What the Hack?

Latest Episodes:

Episode 193: Roy Wood, Jr. Exposes the Loch Ness Monster Gun Lobby Conspiracy Mar 18, 2025

Show notes

As a Daily Show correspondent, comedian Roy Wood, Jr. knows a thing or two about fake news and truthiness as well as the truth-and-a-half that is comedy. By skewering the media and the people in the news, he has special insight into how misinformation affects the way we think about the world and what we know.

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Episode 192: Max McCoy Investigates $47 Million That Isn’t in Kansas Anymore Mar 11, 2025

Show notes

Max McCoy stumbled on a $47 million swindle that starts just north of the Oklahoma panhandle and bounces to Australia before things get really confusing in a haze of small town corruption, secretive law enforcement and competing theories.

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Episode 191: Erin West Puts the Bad Guys to Shame Mar 04, 2025

Show notes

Erin West is the Deputy District Attorney in Santa Clara County, California, and the founder of Project Shamrock. Whether she’s prosecuting eye-popping SIM-swap money grabs or putting large-scale pig butchering operations out of business, her stories and experience can help you stay safer.

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Episode 190: Dick Gephardt Wants a Safer Internet Feb 25, 2025

Show notes

Former House Democratic Leader Dick Gephardt is on a mission to kill Section 230, the legal shield that lets social media giants profit from chaos. If engagement-driven algorithms are fueling harmful content for the sake of profit, is it time for the U.S. to take bold action to rein in the Internet? (You know the answer, but this is a must listen!)

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Episode 189: Kara Swisher Calls Out the Man Babies of Big Tech Feb 18, 2025

Show notes

Kara Swisher has been covering Silicon Valley since the early days, and she’s made a ton of enemies the old fashioned way (by telling the truth about the new robber barons of our digital lives). In a new memoir called Burn Book, she pulls the curtain back on a world run by powerful babies.

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Episode 188: Jen Caltrider Unwraps Hidden Privacy Nightmares Feb 11, 2025

Show notes

Privacy expert Jen Caltrider reveals how those shiny new AI gadgets with their mind-bending tech—not to mention the social media apps capturing every moment—are a privacy nightmare. Is going analog the only safe option? Learn how to protect your data from the prying eyes of Big Tech.

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Episode 187: Al Franken Holds a Mock Senate Hearing on Privacy with Siri and Alexa Feb 04, 2025

Show notes

No deep fake here. This week, Al Franken does his own impersonations of Bernie Sanders, Mitch McConnell, Chuck Grassley, Sherrod Brown and Susan Collins in this mock Senate Hearing featuring Siri (played by the actual voice-over talent Susan Bennett) and Al’s fellow SNL alum Laraine Newman playing the part of Alexa.

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Episode 186: Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark Hates Scammers More than We Do Jan 28, 2025

Show notes

Ever wonder why facial recognition is so accurate? Well, one reason is the shocking amount of personal data it needs (think: all the world’s snapshots), and that’s why Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark is taking aim at the industry behind that technology.

We also review Charity’s top scams to watch for this year, and other topics near and dear to our own scam-hating hearts.

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Episode 185: Senators Blackburn and Blumenthal Join Us to Discuss the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) Jan 21, 2025

Show notes

From cyberbullying to harmful algorithms, the risks are real. This week, Senators Marsha Blackburn and Richard Blumenthal join us to discuss their bipartisan bill—the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA). Together, they’re taking on Big Tech to ensure the safety of children online. Tune in to hear how KOSA could change the digital world for the better.

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Episode 184: Kristin Bride Lost Her Son and Now She’s on a Mission Jan 14, 2025

Show notes

Kristen Bride’s 16-year-old son died by suicide after being cyberbullied on Snapchat. Setting her sites on anonymous messaging apps that intentionally traumatize children, Bride heads to Washington DC to fight for change.

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