This week JD Vance has been doing a lot of press; partly to sell the quote-unquote peace deal with Iran that he had a hand in brokering. But he’s also on a book tour! Communion , out this week, is Vance’s follow-up to his 2016 best seller hillbilly elegy . Some of the excerpts being circulated are making their own headlines, like this one, quote; “One of the dumbest things I ever said came when I argued that ‘childless cat ladies’ across the Democrat Party were running our country into the groun...
Jun 17, 2026•18 min
This week, a mob attacked immigrant communities in Northern Ireland after Elon Musk fomented anger on X. On this week’s On the Media, hear how a group linked with a global neo-Nazi movement organized the riots. Plus, what the recent upheaval at 60 Minutes tells us about the state of TV news. [01:34] Micah speaks with David Gilbert , a reporter at WIRED covering disinformation and online extremism, about the anti-immigrant riots that exploded across the UK and more recently Northern Ireland, and ...
Jun 12, 2026•51 min
China is home to over one billion internet users, and about half are consumers of internet literature. While the industry started as a group of hobby writers, it's now a multimillion dollar industry that has spawned adaptations to TV shows, films, and games. One of the most successful genres has become a phenomenon in and of itself. It's called "alt-history" fiction, which typically follows a contemporary man traveling back in time to save ancient China from a crisis. Brooke sits down with Rongb...
Jun 10, 2026•21 min
This week, Anthropic filed for an IPO following a valuation of nearly $1 trillion, which would make it one of the largest IPOs in history. On this week’s On the Media, the company’s marketing campaign to position it as the “good guy” of AI. Plus, what a literary AI scandal reveals about our vanishing ability to tell what’s human and what’s not. [01:00] Micah speaks with Brian Merchant , a tech journalist and author of the book and newsletter Blood in the Machine, about Anthropic’s successful pos...
Jun 05, 2026•50 min
For a second week, reports of inhumane conditions at Delaney Hall in New Jersey are drawing protesters and camera crews. A handful of journalists and dozens of protesters have been arrested. Under this Trump administration, I.C.E.’s operations have ballooned, making it the highest-funded U.S. law enforcement agency. This week we're sharing an interview Micah did with Drew Harwell, a technology reporter for The Washington Post, from earlier this year. They discuss how I.C.E. is trying to enlist n...
Jun 03, 2026•16 min
The Department of Justice is trying to create a nearly $1.8 billion fund to compensate Donald Trump’s political supporters who claim they were unfairly targeted by the government. On this week’s On the Media, how Trump is using the federal legal system to reward his allies and go after his perceived enemies. Plus, how a prison fire in 1930 changed the course of history for CBS News. [01:00] Micah speaks with Anna Bower , senior editor at Lawfare , about President Trump’s effort to sue himself an...
May 29, 2026•51 min
Russian language has a rich vocabulary for describing life under tyranny. Like the plain-clothed ICE officers snatching people off the streets? In Russian, they would be called "siloviki." Former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem's requirement that she personally approve of contracts over $100,000? That's a phenomenon that Russians would call "manual control." Government workers being required to perform a military parade for the president's birthday? They would be called "budget people" in Russian. Bro...
May 27, 2026•29 min
The president has proposed a new leader for the Federal Emergency Management Agency. On this week’s On the Media, a reckoning with the future of FEMA, and an interview with Trump’s nominee to lead the agency. Plus, a FEMA worker starts an anonymous newsletter to share how cuts are hurting the agency. [01:56] Micah Loewinger brings us the final installment of OTM’s miniseries American Emergency: The Movement to Kill FEMA. Micah interviews Cameron Hamilton, an unqualified MAGA warrior brought in t...
May 22, 2026•52 min
This week, the President announced a proposed expansion of the America's refugee program - from 7,500 admissions to 17,500. But there's a caveat: those extra 10,000 spots are reserved for white South Africans. Last May, when the first round of Afrikaners arrived in the States, OTM host Micah Loewinger spoke to Carolyn Holmes , professor of political science at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, about why Afrikaner white rights groups objected to the refugee policy, and the long-standing exc...
May 20, 2026•16 min
How an unprecedented storm of conspiracy theories beset FEMA during Hurricane Helene. [00:00] Host Micah Loewinger presents the third part of our investigation American Emergency: The Movement to Kill FEMA. This week, Micah takes a deep dive into the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in 2024, when conspiracy theories surged online, including the old rumors about FEMA camps. And we hear from a library worker who was rescued by raft during the storm, about the greatest obstacle she faced after the sto...
May 15, 2026•34 min
On Sunday, President Trump rejected Iran’s latest response to his administration’s ceasefire proposal by taking to Truth Social, calling it "totally unacceptable." In the meantime, the Strait of Hormuz, a critical oil chokepoint through which a fifth of the world’s oil travels, remains effectively blocked. And people everywhere are beginning to feel the squeeze. The national average cost of gas is now $4.55 per gallon, and diesel is inching closer to $6 a gallon. The Philippines has long declare...
May 13, 2026•24 min
To understand how FEMA became so distrusted, we look at its response to Hurricane Katrina – and how it stained the agency’s reputation forever. [00:00] Host Micah Loewinger presents the second part of our investigation American Emergency: The Movement to Kill FEMA . This week, we look at the event that shaped FEMA’s reputation perhaps more than any other: Hurricane Katrina, one of the costliest disasters in U.S. history. Experts had warned about this kind of storm for years, but when it hit the ...
May 08, 2026•36 min
Last month, the Justice Department, in a startling move, issued a challenge the Presidential Records Act--saying that the bedrock law for keeping Oval Office archives available to the public goes too far. Ironic, considering how Donald Trump has boasted about his presidential library—the home of presidential archives—which renderings show to be a skyscraper (and possibly hotel) in downtown Miami. Last summer, Brooke spoke with Tim Naftali , a Senior Research Scholar at the Columbia School of Int...
May 06, 2026•16 min
Just after Donald Trump's first term began, he announced that he was considering eliminating the Federal Emergency Management Agency — the agency that helps Americans amid unthinkable disasters. And just a month ago, Trump repeated his disdain for FEMA, declaring that he’s poised to make some big changes. On this week’s On the Media, we present the first installment in a four-part series called American Emergency: The Movement to Kill FEMA . In this episode, OTM co-host Micah Loewinger tells the...
May 01, 2026•52 min
When CBS was founded in 1927, its radio programming focused on entertainment, music, and fun. That all changed when a horrific prison fire broke out at the Ohio Penitentiary in 1930. CBS aired on-the-spot coverage of the event, with Otto "Deacon" Gardner, an inmate in the prison, at the microphone. At the time, Gardner's gripping broadcast captured the attention of audiences across the country and started CBS on the path to creating the hard-hitting news that would define the network for nearly ...
Apr 29, 2026•36 min
Earlier this month, Donald Trump posted an AI picture that seemed to depict him as Jesus Christ. On the week’s On the Media, why the image drew so much ire from Trump’s own followers. Plus, why The Onion, a satirical newspaper, is taking over the website of conspiracy theorist Alex Jones. [01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone sits down with David Gilbert , reporter at WIRED covering disinformation and online extremism, to discuss the backlash among MAGA supporters to some of President Trump’s recent Tru...
Apr 24, 2026•51 min
Micah Loewinger speaks with Judd Legum , the author of the accountability newsletter Popular Information, about the explosive rise of prediction markets, and the implications of their growing partnerships with newsrooms. 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 @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org. Hosted by Simplecast...
Apr 22, 2026•18 min
Eric Swalwell suspended his campaign for governor of California following multiple allegations of sexual harassment and assault. On this week’s On the Media, how two social media stars worked to make these allegations public. Plus, what it will take for Hungary to rebuild a robust independent press after years of crackdowns under Orban. [01:00] Brooke speaks with Melanie Mason , POLITICO’s California Bureau Chief, to trace the “whisper network,” involving an education policy influencer with over...
Apr 18, 2026•50 min
This week we're handing over our podcast slot to NPR's Planet Money . They're currently 3 episodes in to a series all about the book industry. It’s very media, you’re gonna love it. 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 @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.c...
Apr 15, 2026•43 min
President Trump threatened to commit war crimes before reaching a shaky ceasefire deal with Iran. On this week’s On the Media, the repercussions of the Nixon-era diplomatic theory that Trump appears to be testing in the Middle East. Plus, why shortwave radio remains a powerful tool for communication. [01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone sits down with Bill Scher , the politics editor at the Washington Monthly , to discuss Trump’s escalating use of the “Madman Theory” in conflicts abroad and how it’s ne...
Apr 11, 2026•51 min
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has led Hungary for the past 16 years, the longest-serving leader in the European Union. He has systematically brought the institutions of Hungary under centralized state control, from the courts and the press to the education system, gutting the democratic checks to his power. But political upstart Peter Magyar, head of the opposition party, is currently beating Orbán in the polls. Brooke sits down with Ivan Nagy, reporter for the Columbia Journalism Review, to discu...
Apr 08, 2026•22 min
The U.S. has waged war on Iran for more than a month now. On this week’s On the Media, what Defense Secretary Hegseth’s monthly Pentagon prayer meetings reveal about his war strategy. Plus, hear how trans rights are being curtailed across the country. [01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone sits down with Brian Kaylor , president and editor-in-chief of Word&Way and author of The Bible According to Christian Nationalists , to talk about Defense Secretary Hegseth’s monthly prayer meetings at the Pentago...
Apr 03, 2026•51 min
Last Friday, the Washington state Attorney General sued Kalshi, the prediction market platform where users can place bets on real world events, such as the number of deportations this year or the winner of Survivor 50 . Washington’s civil lawsuit is now one of twenty waged against Kalshi, and follows on the heels of Arizona’s Attorney General filing criminal charges against the platform earlier this month. Prediction markets generated almost $64 billion in trading volume last year, up 400% from ...
Apr 01, 2026•22 min
A judge ruled that the Pentagon’s recent restrictions on the press are unconstitutional. On this week’s On the Media, hear how Pete Hegseth’s ever-changing media policies have made it harder to cover military actions abroad. Plus, how a tenacious journalist used access to the Pentagon building to expose war crimes during the Vietnam War. [01:00] Host Micah Loewinger sits down with Dan Lamothe , who covers the US military and Pentagon for the Washington Post, to talk about leaving the Pentagon pr...
Mar 27, 2026•50 min
This week, the Idaho Senate is considering a bill that would block transgender people from using public bathrooms that conform with their gender identity, escalating the state’s preexisting trans bathroom ban in public schools. A first offense could land someone in prison for a year. This bill is just the latest in a devastating cascade of legal actions stripping away trans rights. For the midweek pod, host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Alejandra Caraballo , a civil rights attorney and a Clinical...
Mar 25, 2026•25 min
President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are demanding “more patriotic” coverage of the widening war in Iran. On this week’s On the Media, hear how the Pentagon is cracking down on its publication, Stars and Stripes. Plus, fake AI images of the Iran war are proliferating, and they're getting more convincing. [01:00] Host Micah Loewinger breaks down the calls from the Trump administration for the media to produce “patriotic” coverage of the war in Iran. Plus, a closer look at the report...
Mar 20, 2026•50 min
Brooke Gladstone talks with Pasha Talankin, star and co-creator of the new documentary Mr. Nobody Against Putin . Pasha is a high school teacher who made an incredibly vivid and detailed account of Putin’s efforts to indoctrinate schoolchildren in Russia. 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 @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthem...
Mar 18, 2026•21 min
The US and Israel have continued a large-scale bombing campaign in Iran, killing over 1,300 civilians. On this week’s On the Media, the far-reaching implications of the Department of Defense’s scrapping of an initiative to protect civilians. Plus, how different corners of the MAGA-verse are metabolizing the Epstein files. [01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Wes J. Bryant , a former senior policy advisor at the Pentagon and retired Air Force Master Sergeant, about the civilian protection ini...
Mar 13, 2026•50 min
Recently a surprising ruling came down from U.S. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth. The Reagan-appointed judge found that Kari Lake - (formerly best known as the loser of two state-wide races in Arizona), had acted unlawfully in running the United States Agency for Global Media, the body that oversees Voice of America and the handful of other government-assisted media outlets. Kari Lake, wrote the judge "satisfies the requirements of neither the statute nor the Constitution," potentially ma...
Mar 11, 2026•14 min
The US military used AI tools for real-time targeting in its strikes on Iran. On this week’s On the Media, what recent conflicts can tell us about AI-powered weapons and the dangerous future of warfare. Plus, lessons on democratic resilience from around the world. [01:00] Host Brooke Gladstone interviews Siva Vaidhyanathan about how the U.S. military is using artificial intelligence in its strikes on Iran, and what can be gleaned from recent conflicts about the state of AI-powered warfare. Plus,...
Mar 07, 2026•51 min
