The Bullshit Filter

There's been lots of talk in the media about Trump's trade war with China. One aspect about it that I find interesting is that I never see any talk, in this context, about the fact that China is a Communist country - a Communist country that seems to be a major economic threat to the USA, [...] The post 6.1 China's Economy - Part 1 appeared first on The BS Filter. Learn more about your ad choices....

The plan this week was to interview Alan MacLeod about his new excellent book "Propaganda in the Information Age" but he missed the call, so we talked about it without him instead. We'll get him on next week for a follow up. The book is an internet-era update on Herman and Chomsky's 1988 classic "Manufacturing [...] The post BFTN 50 - The Propaganda Model appeared first on The BS Filter. Learn mor...

We finish our mini-biography on the new Prime Minister of the UK, Boris Johnson, aka "BoJo", or, as I like to call him, "The Big BJ". In Ray's absence, I'm joined again by my good friend Trevor Bell from the The Iron Fist and the Velvet Glove. The post BFTN 49 - Boris Part 2 appeared first on The BS Filter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode I'm joined by Brisbane's #1 podcaster, the fabulous Trevor Bell, co-host of The Iron Fist and the Velvet Glove ("a weekly podcast which takes a look at news, political events, culture, ethics and the transformations taking place in our society"), who is standing in for Papa Bear who is on vacation.... AGAIN. [...] The post BFTN 48 - Boris Part 1 appeared first on The BS Filter. Lea...

On this week's news show we look the recent headlines concerning Iran - their arrest of 17 CIA spies, and the seizure of oil tankers by both the British and the Iranians. Who and what should we believe? Iran detains 17 citizens accused of spying for the CIA Iran Executes Defense Ministry Staffer Over Spying [...] The post BFTN 47 - CIA Spies in Iran appeared first on The BS Filter. Learn more abou...

How do these shell companies get used? We provide some examples. We also talk about the fallout of the Panama Papers, Operation Car Wash, the murder of Maltese journalist Daphne Galizia, why Americans didn't show up in the Panama Papers as much as we might have expected, and how some of the world's largest banks [...] The post Bullshit 5.3 - The Panama Papers (part 3) appeared first on The BS Filt...

After more than a year of analysis, the first news stories were published on April 3, 2016, by SZ and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). Some 4.8 million leaked files were emails, 3 million were database entries, 2.2 million PDFs, 1.2 million images, 320,000 text files, and 2242 files in other formats. Edward [...] The post Bullshit 5.2 - The Panama Papers (part 2) a...

In 2015, journalist Bastian Obermayer from the Süddeutsche Zeitung , a Southern German Newspaper, was approached online by an anonymous source. He or she provided him with a database from Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca. They are the Panama Papers. Named in the leak were 12 current or former world leaders, 128 other public officials and politicians, [...] The post Bullshit 5.1 - The Panama Pap...

Iran stands accused by the US of attacking two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman. But should we accept the US's claims at face value? Or is there more to the story? Here's a short clip from the show. Full shownotes below. Please Note: our weekly news shows are currently available to Silver subscribers [...] The post BFTN 46 - The Gulf Of Oman appeared first on The BS Filter. Learn more about your ad...

Australian journalists are under attack for publishing stories on domestic spying and our military. What kind of protections should we have in place for whistleblowers and journalists in a democracy? That's what today's show is about. Full shownotes below. Please Note: our weekly news shows are currently available to Silver subscribers and above. But this week [...] The post BFTN 45 - The Australi...

Should we believe South Korean news reports about North Korean executions? Should we believe reports about marijuana-related illness and deaths? Should we believe American reports about Iran's nuclear ambitions? Here's a short clip from today's episode. Full shownotes below. *Please Note: our weekly news shows are currently available to Silver subscribers and above. Follow Cameron [...] The post B...

Is the United States waging a war on journalism? Can we trust the OPCW reports on Syria's chemical war attacks? Does the Pentagon produce fake terrorist propaganda films? Here's a short clip from today's show. Full shownotes below. *Please Note: our weekly news shows are currently available to Silver subscribers and above. Follow Cameron on [...] The post BFTN 43 appeared first on The BS Filter. L...

We wrap up our antivax mini-series by looking at another antivax claim: "All vaccines contain a number of toxic poisons and chemicals that are linked to serious neurological damage". We talk about Robert Kennedy Jr, thimerosal, and the difference between methyl vs ethyl mercury. [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/bullshitfilter/BS_4.6.mp3″ ] Full shownotes below. *Please Note: our...

Let's look at another two antivax claims: that the very first vaccine was a disaster and that vaccines are highly profitable for pharmaceutical companies and the health care industry. Full shownotes below. *Please Note: our weekly news shows are currently available to Silver subscribers and above. Follow Cameron on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter [...] The post ANTIVAX 4.5 appeared first on The BS...

We're still breaking down antivax claim number 2 from last time and dealing with the claims that "Whenever the outbreaks are examined more closely, the data show that the majority of those suffering have been vaccinated for the disease. Disease charts show that diseases were mostly eliminated prior to the creation of vaccinations. What is [...] The post ANTIVAX 4.4 appeared first on The BS Filter....

I went looking for a list of claims antivaxxers use NOT to vaccinate. Today we'll look at the first two. Claim #1. Vaccines have never been proven safe or effective. Claim #2. Vaccines do NOT work. Full shownotes below. *Please Note: our weekly news shows are currently available to Silver subscribers and above. Follow [...] The post ANTIVAX 4.3 appeared first on The BS Filter. Learn more about you...

On this episode we discuss the arrest of Julian Assange, break down a recent NYT story about him, and look at other various bits of disinformation that people are blindly repeating. Below are some links that you might find useful reading. Detailed breakdown of the Swedish sexual misconduct allegations by Celia Farber, half-Swedish [...] The post BFTN 42 - Julian Assange appeared first on The BS Fi...

On this episode we take a look at the History Of Vaccinations & the story of Andrew Wakefield. *Please Note: our weekly news shows are currently available to Silver subscribers and above. Follow Cameron on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter Follow Ray on Facebook. The post ANTIVAX 4.2 appeared first on The BS Filter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we start a short series on THE ANTIVAX MOVEMENT. On the first episode we have a discussion about why people believe what they believe. Where do we get our knowledge? What sources do we trust? In other words, it's all about epistemology and heuristics. [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/bullshitfilter/BS_4.1.mp3″ ] *Please Note: our weekly news [...] The post ANTIVAX 4.1 appea...

Today we break down what we know - and don't know - about the Mueller Report and ask why for the last two years we've heard so much about Trump - Russian collusion when there is apparently no evidence to support it. [smart_track_player url="http://traffic.libsyn.com/bullshitfilter/BFTN_41.mp3″ ] *Please Note: our weekly news shows are currently [...] The post BSF NEWS #41 appeared first on The BS...

Today's show is all about the mosque shooting in Christchurch, the rise of Islamophobia in Australia and the role of the media and Christianity in that rise. *Please Note: our weekly news shows are currently available to Silver subscribers and above. Follow Cameron on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter Follow Ray on Facebook. The post BSF NEWS #40 appeared first on The BS Filter. Learn more about your...

NYT's Exposé on the Lies About Burning Aid Trucks in Venezuela Shows How U.S. Government and Media Spread Pro-War Propaganda Venezuelan opposition leader will call for 'state of national emergency' as power blackout goes on U.N. Finds Israel Intentionally Shot Children, Journalists & the Disabled During Gaza Protests Debunking the myth that anti-Zionism is antisemitic [...] The post BSF NEWS #39 a...

Michael Cohen's Statement. Proposal: keep the nuclear launch codes in an innocent volunteer's chest-cavity Netanyahu to be Indicted on Bribery, Fraud, Press Tampering: Israeli AG Religion works exactly like a drug *Please Note: our weekly news shows are for Silver subscribers and above. Follow Cameron on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter Follow Ray [...] The post BSF NEWS #38 appeared first on The BS...

U.S. Supreme Court rules against civil asset forfeiture Dutch historian Rutger Bregman vs Tucker Carlson Cardinal admits to Vatican summit that Catholic Church destroyed abuse files BREAKING: Australian Cardinal George Pell Convicted Of Child Rape American airstrikes contribute to record number of children, civilians killed in Afghanistan *Please Note: our weekly news shows are for [...] The post...

Trump Declares National Emergency - what else can he do? No Direct Evidence Of Collusion Ilhan Omar Smacks Down Elliott Abrams In Front Of Everybody The massacre Trump's envoy to Venezuela wants us to forget *Please Note: our weekly news shows are for Silver subscribers and above. Follow Cameron on Facebook | Instagram [...] The post BSF NEWS #36 appeared first on The BS Filter. Learn more about y...