On The Media

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Channel • 2 Shows

Politics

Politics

Updated twice weekly
News Commentary

News Commentary

Updated 22/08/2025

27/07/2012

Olympic Branding Police, Confessions of a Media Manipulator, and More

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, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

27/07/2012

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50 min
14/06/2024

UK Elections: They’re Not Like Ours! Plus, the Messy Family Behind Paramount

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 Weekly America podcast, about how coinciding election campaigns in the US and the UK this year are influencing each other from across the pond. [00:00] Brooke explores how a recent British TV drama about the "Post Office Scandal" sparked a long overdue political reckoning in the U.K., and shone a light on the stories of British postal workers wrongfully prosecuted for fraud. Brooke interviews reporter Rebecca Thomson, who first broke the story in 2009; reporter Nick Wallis, author of The Great Post Office Scandal and consultant for the television drama; and Lee Castleton, a former subpostmaster in East Yorkshire. [00:00] Lastly, Brooke interviews Rachel Abrams, senior producer and reporter for The New York Times Presents and co-author of Unscripted: The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy. They discuss the Redstones, the family behind the media empire Paramount Global. Further reading: The Great Post Office Scandal by Nick WallisMr. Bates vs The Post Office, PBSUnscripted: The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy by Rachel Abrams and James B. Stewart 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, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

14/06/2024

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51 min
15/02/2025

Donald Trump is Rewriting the Past. Plus, the Christian Groups Vying for Political Power

The new administration is purging data from government websites and databases, such as the Department of Justice and the National Security Agency. On this week's On the Media, a historian shares the political playbook for rewriting the past in order to control the future. Plus, meet the different Christian groups vying for power at the White House. [01:00] Host Micah Loewinger looks at the White House’s purge of data and records. He talks to Dara Kerr, a reporter at the Guardian, about President Trump’s attempt to ramp up deportations and how ICE is fudging its numbers. Micah also speaks with Molly White, author of the newsletter “Citation Needed” and Wikipedia editor, about why Musk and others on the right are going after Wikipedia. [13:24] Host Brooke Gladstone talks to Jason Stanley, professor of philosophy at Yale University and author of the book Erasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future, about the narrative the new administration is constructing. [31:46] Brooke Gladstone hears from Matthew D. Taylor, author of The Violent Take It by Force: The Christian Movement That Is Threatening Our Democracy. They discuss the three Christian factions jostling for power in the new administration: the independent Charismatics like Trump’s faith adviser Paula White-Cain, the trad Catholics (represented by J.D. Vance), and the theobros (epitomized by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth). Further reading: “US immigration is creating a mirage of mass deportations on Google search,” by Dara Kerr“Elon Musk and the right’s war on Wikipedia,” by Molly WhiteErasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future, by Jason StanleyThe second coming of Donald J. Trump,” by Matthew D. Taylor 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, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

15/02/2025

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50 min
30/05/2025

An FCC Commissioner Sounds the Alarm. Plus, the Finale of The Divided Dial

On Tuesday, NPR and three Colorado public radio stations sued the Trump administration for violating the First Amendment. On this week’s On the Media, the soon-to-be lone Democratic commissioner at the FCC speaks out against what she calls the weaponization of her agency. Plus, the final episode of The Divided Dial introduces the unlikely group trying to take over shortwave radio. [01:37] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Anna Gomez, soon to be the lone Democratic commissioner at the Federal Communications Commission, about her makeshift media tour–where Gomez is speaking out about what she sees as the weaponization of her agency. [12:47] Episode 4 of The Divided Dial, Season 2: Wall St. Wants Your Airwaves. In recent years, creative, often music-focused pirate broadcasting has been thriving on shortwave. Reporter Katie Thornton reveals how these surreptitious broadcasters are up against a surprising enemy: not the FCC, but a deep-pocketed group of finance bros that is trying to wrestle the airwaves away from the public, and use them for a money-making scheme completely antithetical to broadcasting. What do we lose when we give up our public airwaves? Further reading: Remarks of FCC Commissioner Anna M. Gomez at the 2025 Media Institute Communications Forum, May 15, 2025 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, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

30/05/2025

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51 min
23/11/2024

How Hank Green Makes the Truth Go Viral. Plus, the Escape Fantasies of the Uber Rich.

A recent report from the Pew Research Center finds that 1 in 5 Americans get their news from influencers. On this week’s On the Media, YouTuber and science communicator Hank Green explains how he makes the truth go viral. Plus, hear how tech billionaires plan to escape the end of the world. [01:00] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Renée DiResta, researcher studying online manipulation and professor at Georgetown University, about what the data tells us about how news consumption is changing. Plus, how news influencers are rewriting the power dynamics of media. [17:04] Host Micah Loewinger interviews science communicator, YouTuber, and entrepreneur Hank Green about how he makes the truth go viral, how he connects with his audience of many millions, and how he chooses what topics to cover. [33:44] Host Brooke Gladstone talks with Douglas Rushkoff, whose many books probe the practice and philosophy of digital technology, about whether the apocalypse survival fantasies of tech billionaires are actually viable. Further reading/listening/watching: Invisible Rulers: The People Who Turn Lies Into Reality, by Renée DiResta“Everyone Was Wrong About Avocados - Including Us,” by SciShow“Why do Cars Suddenly Look Like Putty??” by Hank GreenSurvival of the Richest: Escape Fantasies of the Tech Billionaires, by Douglas Rushkoff 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, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

23/11/2024

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50 min
14 JAN

Who is Russell Vought?

This week, we revisit a conversation with Andy Kroll, a reporter covering justice and the rule of law at ProPublica, about the profile he wrote of Russell Vought, the director of a little-known, but powerful office inside the White House. Donald Trump calls him "Darth Vader," and Vought is behind thousands of federal layoffs. Hear why Kroll calls him Trump's "shadow president," and about Vought's goal to put federal workers "in trauma." 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, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

14 Jan

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23 min
04/12/2024

Kash Patel’s Crusade Against the Media

Over the weekend, president-elect Donald Trump nominated a little-known, largely inexperienced civil servant to an enormous role in his upcoming administration – Kash Patel as FBI director. Firing current FBI director Christopher Wray, who has 2 years left in his 10 year term, would itself be an alarming break in norms. Atlantic staff writer Elaina Plott Calabro, profiled Kash Patel in August, chartint his rise to power, starting at the very beginning of his legal career. She explains how he came to loathe the media, and love Trump. Further reading: "The Man Who Will Do Anything For Trump," by Elaina Plott Calabro "What the FBI Has Done, and Kash Patel Could Do," by Jon Allsop 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, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

04/12/2024

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21 min
13/12/2024

A Cold-Blooded Killing Ignites a National Conversation. Plus, Part Two of The Harvard Plan.

The suspected killer of the UnitedHealthcare CEO has been crowned a hero by many on social media. On this week’s On the Media, what the fandom reveals, and what the coverage of it has missed. Plus, tune in to part two of The Harvard Plan. Hear how plagiarism allegations at the university exploded into a toxic discourse about DEI and “diversity hires.” [01:00] Hosts Brooke Gladstone and Micah Loewinger examine how the suspected killer of the UnitedHealthcare CEO became an internet sensation, what the spectacle itself reveals, and the gulf between the reactions on TikTok and in mainstream media. [15:29] Reporter Ilya Marritz, in part two of this collaboration with WNYC’s On The Media, Harvard’s first Black president Claudine Gay is accused of academic plagiarism, just days after giving testimony to Congress. The drip-drip of new allegations keeps the story in the headlines. It also reinforces critics’ allegation that Gay is a “diversity hire,” unworthy of the job. We hear from two of the writers who broke that news, and from a defender of Harvard’s diversity efforts. Check out our collaboration with the Boston Globe here. Further reading/listening/watching: “Luigi Mangione’s Full Story Isn’t Online,” by John Herrman"Beware, fellow plutocrats, the pitchforks are coming," Ted Talk by Nick Hanauer 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, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

13/12/2024

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50 min
19/04/2025

Brooke and Micah Enter the MAGA-verse. Plus, Liberal YouTubers Fight Back.

Conservative influencers have captured a massive audience on the internet, boasting nearly five times more followers than their progressive competitors. On this week’s On the Media, the hosts spend twelve hours immersed in right wing media and report back on what they saw. Plus, why Democrats are struggling to compete for audiences online. [00:00] According to a new study from Media Matters for America, right-leaning shows dominate on social media. Hosts Brooke Gladstone and Micah Loewinger immerse themselves in right-wing podcasts and Rumble shows to hear how these creators are covering the news of the week. [20:26] Brooke and Micah continue their journey into the right-wing online ecosystem, where they encounter how celebrity gossip can be a gateway to controversial political takes. [32:41] Host Micah Loewinger chats with left-leaning news content creators Brian Tyler Cohen and David Pakman about why Democrats are struggling to reach younger and working class audiences, and how the rise of independent media has left progressives in the dust. Further reading: “The right dominates the online media ecosystem, seeping into sports, comedy, and other supposedly nonpolitical spaces,” by Kayla GogartyThe Echo Machine: How Right-Wing Extremism Created a Post-Truth America by David Pakman 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, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

19/04/2025

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52 min
18/06/2025

Bob Menendez’s Disastrous Romance

In this week's midweek podcast, we share the next installment of WNYC's Dead End: The Rise and Fall of 'Gold Bar' Bob Menendez. Yesterday, the former senator began an 11-year prison sentence. In this episode, Nancy Solomon takes a look at a relationship that spanned a key chapter in Bob Menendez's political downfall. Nadine Arslanian was a stay at home mom in Englewood cliffs, New Jersey. Within weeks of meeting the Senator, she was arranging off-the-books meetings with Egyptian generals. And what started as a rebound romance turned into the centerpiece of an international bribery case. 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, Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.

18/06/2025

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24 min

On the Media is a weekly show that uses the media as a lens to understand our world. On the Media listeners say the show is an essential companion, helping them survive the firehose of media coming at them 24/7. Hosted by Brooke Gladstone and Micah Loewinger, the show does not do ‘hot takes’, instead offering listeners context, historical parallels, media analysis and often a much appreciated deep exhale. On the Media hosts have an eye on the nuances and details regularly missed by other outlets which helps listeners understand where they should be paying attention (and what they can afford to ignore). Our media diets have untruths woven in, and inconvenient truths left out. These are the bits explored every week at On the Media.

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POLITICS