On the Media

This week, Kamala Harris’ VP pick Tim Walz went viral for being a typical Midwestern dad. On this week’s On the Media, the narratives surrounding Walz, and the political appeal of the car-tinkering, grill-manning father figure. Plus, the news influencers covering the election, and what their work reveals about the future of legacy journalism. [02:22] Host Brooke Gladstone examines the narratives s...

Brooke Gladstone interviews Kathryn Hughes, author of Catland , about the storied history of the cat lady trope, how cats became beloved by so many in our culture, and the many meanings ascribed to the animals. On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today ( https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm ). Follow our show on Instagram , Bluesky , TikTok and Facebook @ontheme...

Vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance’s remarks on childless cat ladies have ties to a movement urging people to have more children. On this week’s On the Media, find out why declining birth rates are regarded by some as a harbinger of doom. Plus, the storied history of so-called cat ladies, and why they often face contempt. [01:00] Host Micah Loewinger on our “weird” politics, why every day in our...

“ The Sound of Sport ” was produced by Peregrine Andrews for Falling Tree Productions and originally broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2011. Dennis Baxter is the host of the documentary which was made right around the time of the London Olympics in 2012. Some things have changed in the intervening years, but if you're watching the Paris Olympics, this documentary is a perfect companion.  On the Media is...

Conservative media outlets are testing a series of talking points to discredit the leading Democratic candidate for president. On this week’s On the Media, hear how right-wing coverage of Kamala Harris compares to what Hilary Clinton received. Plus, podcast host Ezra Klein reflects on how his early call for President Biden to step aside came true. [01:00] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Kat Abugh...

Moments after President Biden withdrew from the presidential race on Sunday, GOP leaders rushed to tug at any loose threads in his withdrawal. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson threatened legal challenges to his withdrawal, calling it “unlawful,” and other GOP leaders like J.D. Vance referred to the move as a “coup” and “a threat to democracy.” For the midweek podcast, host Brooke Gladstone speaks...

At the Republican National Convention, Donald J. Trump named J.D. Vance as his pick for Vice President. On this week’s On the Media, hear how Vance went from liberal darling to MAGA leader, with a little help from a billionaire. Plus, meet the right-wing Christians who see the failed attempt on Trump’s life as evidence of his divine anointing by God. [01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone charts the media’...

Across the globe, summers are getting unseasonably, and scarily hot, and last year the United Nations announcing that we've entered the era of "global boiling."  And yet it's hard to grapple with the damage caused by extreme heat. It's the deadliest kind of climate disaster, but victims of heat often die out of sight of the public eye. FEMA doesn't even respond to extreme heat waves in the way it...

Immigration is one of the most important issues in this year’s presidential election. This week, On the Media traces how root causes of mass migration from Central America to the United States over the past decade stem back to the Cold War. Plus, a deep dive on terms like “colonialism” and “decolonization,” and what they mean in the context of Israel-Palestine. [01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks...

In January 2023, a TV show called In the Know debuted on Peacock. The comedy is a parody of a daily NPR show produced in New York City, with rather cringey characters portrayed by stop-motion puppets. Each episode also features an interview with a real person who appears on Zoom. The show is written by Zach Woods, Brandon Gardner, and Mike Judge, creator of Beavis and Butthead (who also voices the...

Every year on the Fourth of July, households across America embrace the aesthetics of patriotism. On this week’s On the Media, find out how the early country music industry got a major boost from the US military and became associated with the “sound of patriotism.” Plus, how a song written by a Canadian became an anthem for the Confederate “lost cause.” [01:00] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Jos...

Last month, Clarence Thomas acknowledged several luxury trips that were gifted to him by billionaire Harlan Crow. But the pair’s financial ties had long been public knowledge, thanks to a bombshell report by ProPublica in 2023.  The gifts included lavish vacations, trips on private yachts and jets — and even a trip to Indonesia valued at as much as half a million dollars. Most of these gifts went...

Some of the most outrageous stories about President Biden are originating from a single, unverified source. On this week’s On the Media, hear about the shadowy organization that’s influencing election narratives. Plus, factual errors are at the heart of a recent Supreme Court decision. Learn how we can reform the system. [01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Judd Legum , author of Popular Infor...

This week, we turn away from the media for a moment, to a realm thousands of feet beneath the ocean’s surface – where sperm whales swim. These behemoths spend most of their lives in complete darkness, surfacing only for a few minutes at a time. They have the largest brains of virtually any other creature on earth, and they grow to be the size of one school bus, even two – and weigh as much as ten...

Why does every social media platform seem to get worse over time? This week’s On the Media explores an expansive theory on how we lost a better version of the internet, and the systems that insulate Big Digital from competition. Plus, some solutions for fixing the world wide web. [01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Cory Doctorow, journalist, activist, and the author of Red Team Blues , on his...

Over the past few months, The Washington Post has weathered a slate of unfavorable news. In May, publisher and CEO Will Lewis revealed the Post lost 77 million dollars last year. Lewis also announced a big restructuring and, as reported by Semafor’s Max Tani, the paper’s chief technology officer should have "AI everywhere in our newsroom."  But then things started changing at the top of the news o...

Over the past two decades, 900 British postal workers were wrongfully prosecuted for fraud. On this week’s On the Media, hear how a TV show about the Post Office Scandal sparked a political reckoning in the U.K. Plus, meet the Redstones – the complicated family behind Paramount Global. [00:00] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Jonathan Freedland , columnist at the Guardian and host of the Politics...

This week's midweek podcast comes from our colleagues at the New Yorker Radio Hour: On the Netflix reality-TV dating show “Love Is Blind,” contestants are alone in windowless, octagonal pods with no access to their phones or the Internet. They talk to each other through the walls. There’s intrigue, romance, heartbreak, and, in some cases, sight-unseen engagements. According to several lawsuits, th...

This week, the Department of Justice accused one of the most influential right wing outlets of laundering tens of millions of dollars. On this week’s On the Media, a former reporter on his progression from defining the disinformation beat to running one of the most famous fake news outlets, The Onion. Plus, a satirical movement about birds illuminates the inner workings of conspiracies. [01:09] Ho...

Something happened on the internet this week that was at once HUGE and also kind of a foregone conclusion. Jimmy Donaldson better known as Mr. Beast has been for many years basically the king of YouTube. But, as of this week, Mr Beast is now officially the most subscribed YouTuber in the world with 271 million followers at time of recording. His clickbaity game-show style videos, with their extrav...

When Donald J. Trump was found guilty on all counts in the hush money trial, some in the press were caught off guard. But the former president and conservative pundits primed for this result with a strategic messaging campaign. On this week’s On the Media, hear how Trump uses Truth Social to disseminate talking points to a web of right-wing influencers. [01:10] Host Micah Loewinger analyzes the me...

Micah breaks down media hype about AI. According to Sam Harnett , a former tech reporter, journalists are repeating lazy tropes about the future of work that once boosted companies like Uber, Airbnb, and Fiverr. Plus, Julia Angwin, founder of Proof News , debunks fantastical claims by AI companies about their software. And Paris Marx, host of Tech Won’t Save Us , explains how AI leaders like Sam A...

A majority of Americans believe that the economy is in a recession even though it’s not. On this week’s On the Media, hear why there’s a mismatch between facts and feelings about the economy. Plus, how the outlandish claims of AI companies often go unchecked by the press. [01:09] Host Micah Loewinger interviews Jeanna Smialek of The New York Times about whether the ‘vibecession’ is back and the fa...

Immigration consistently polls as one of the most important topics for voters. According to a recent Gallup poll immigration is the most polarizing issue of the last 25 years, with 48 percent of Republicans saying it’s the most important issue compared to just 8 percent of Democrats. This probably has something to do with the coverage of immigration in conservative media. And recently, right pundi...

On this week’s On the Media we revisit another fraught moment in American democracy: the contested  election between Al Gore and George W. Bush in 2000. Hear about the extraordinary legal battle that ensued, and what it can teach us about partisan politics today.  Leon Neyfakh , host of the podcast Fiasco , takes us back in time to witness how the Gore and Bush campaigns fought for recounts; how “...