They Stand Corrected

Josh Levs
  • 4.9 (33)
  • NEWS COMMENTARY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
They Stand Corrected Podcast

Award-winning broadcaster, author, speaker, consultant, activist -- and now, podcast host

  1. 3 DAYS AGO

    Episode 25: The Media’s Gullibility

    While the media fixates on one awful thing Trump and Vance are doing, it ignores lots of others. And that’s exactly how the Trump campaign wants it. Today, Josh explains the history of campaigns purposely fanning flames of controversy in the media so that their preferred issues dominate the news cycle. Meanwhile, will that same gullibility lead the media to fall for anti-Israel protests scheduled on October 7, when they should be reporting on what happened in the most evil terrorist attack of modern times? Josh has a plan to push the media to avoid this, and you can help. Plus, Trump is now claiming that if he loses, Jewish people will “have a lot to do” with it. Josh explains why this is so dangerous. He also wrote an op-ed about it for the biggest paper in a crucial swing state.

    30 min

  2. SEP 18

    Episode 24: Scandal

    Donald Trump and J.D. Vance are trying desperately to get the media to declare something -- anything -- involving Kamala Harris and Tim Walz a “scandal.” Today, Josh shows how transparent the effort is, with one of them even trying twice in a single televised interview. Will the media fall for it, as it did in 2016 with Hillary Clinton’s emails? Josh invites listeners to come up with an acronym for Trump's scandals, which may need to be as long as supercalifragilisticexpialidocious. Meanwhile, a scandal at the world’s largest broadcaster. A new study shows the extent of the BBC’s institutional, antisemitic bias against Israel. Josh speaks with the man who oversaw the research, which involved a massive amount of reporting and both human and A.I. analyses. Plus, an announcement. Josh is going on the road together with a pivotal figure in U.S. history: America’s first Black spymaster in the CIA! His story was secret until now.

    30 min

  3. SEP 12

    Episode 23: The Debate’s Low Bar

    Media pundits heaped praise on the moderators of the presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. Why? Because amid Trump’s onslaught of lies, they offered a few brief moments of fact checking. Today, Josh explains that this proves the incredibly low bar for “journalism” at these spectacles -- which are, as he has said before, “arson for truth.” Also, he highlights a moment in which a host said something false in the process of asking Kamala Harris a question. Meanwhile, listeners have sent in lots of questions about the media’s failure to accurately describe the slaughter of hostages in Gaza, including a U.S. citizen. Josh shares something surprising: for a brief period, the language that upset people was actually accurate. But the critics are right too.

    32 min

  4. SEP 4

    Episode 22: ‘Masculinity’ in the Media

    When Tim Walz’s teenage son Gus teared up in pride over his father, right-wing talking heads bullied him. It brought a major issue into focus: battles over “masculinity.” The head of a top polling agency says it’s the only thing helping Trump keep the race close. Today, Josh shows that the media is caught between two superficial visions of masculinity, while ignoring reality. Through hard data, he shows that Trump is nothing like the overwhelming majority of today’s American men -- and Tim Walz is. Also, Josh shows that the media misuses the term “toxic masculinity,” and that people who support it are not only on the far right, but also the far left. He shares the sound of a Palestinian terrorist’s call to his father, who cries in pride over his son’s evil murder spree.

    33 min

  5. AUG 28

    Episode 21: Hack-pocrisy

    The media should choose which stories to tell based on what's most important and relevant. But often inside newsrooms, those decisions are instead based on how it will make the news agencies themselves look. That's why in recent days, a huge story was, relatively speaking, buried. It involves both major parties, the presidential candidates, and a Trump move that should make the “hypocrisy meter” explode. In this episode, Josh explains why. Also, why Julian Assange should never get away with calling himself a “journalist” -- and why it involves the heartbreaking death of a young man. Plus: media misses from the DNC. And a prominent journalist actually apologizes for getting something wrong!

    32 min

  6. AUG 21

    Episode 20: Ending Open Mic Nights

    So much of the media has lost sight of what its role is in society: to provide truth. News organizations have even built operations around the opposite idea: letting anyone say anything. They've turned what should be journalism into open mic nights.  Recently, Lawrence O’Donnell on MSNBC called out the media, and his message spoke to this problem. Today, Josh shows sneakier ways the media keep this up, and the false dichotomy that they use to try to justify it. (Hear Anderson Cooper spout this nonsense.) And Josh presents a three-word oath that journalists should use as a guide in making any and all decisions. Plus, as the show hits something of a milestone, Josh shares an emotional note from a listener.

    29 min

  7. AUG 14

    Episode 19: When the Media Ignore Solutions

    When you look at many of the big problems in the world, you see that there are people working on solutions. That's a major part of the positive side of the story of humanity. But in journalism, you generally wouldn't know that. Most controversies are presented simply as two sides disagreeing. In fact there is now, pathetically, a term for the rare times that news organizations actually consider solutions as part of their coverage. This issue plays out in all sorts of stories, including one in recent days involving gender in boxing and Olympic sports in general. Today, Josh shows how journalists miss the story when they ignore solutions. Also, an entirely different way to look at the controversy surrounding the term “pregnant people.” Josh explains why, in certain contexts, he has been careful to use the term “Black” instead of “African-American,” and why the media need to think carefully about terms they use for any group. Plus, employees inside one of the world's leading news organizations come together to call out antisemitism. Josh shares the awful response from the head of the agency and what it says about any employer in any industry. There’s a basic rule that should be seen as part of Journalism 101 and Management 101.  And the host of a cable news show addresses exactly what Josh has been talking about, and even calls out his own network.

    31 min

  8. AUG 7

    Episode 18: A Network’s Bonkers Lie About Militaries

    Perhaps the most frustrating kinds of lies in the media are the ones presented as part of a so-called “fact check.” In this episode, Josh digs into something that CNN got exactly wrong in discussing militaries in general, and Israel’s in particular. The network claimed that all military analysts except for one would agree on something false; Josh shows that even CNN’s own military analyst disputes that claim. Plus, a whole different kind of reality check. Military expert Andrew Fox points out that some analysts often quoted in the news are examining the war in Gaza through the prism of the U.S.-led “war on terrorism,” which failed. He provides an understandable explanation of why he believes Israel is winning -- and that its actions should be “taught in military colleges.” Also, the actress and activist Debra Messing’s powerful message to the media, especially the Washington Post, following their biased coverage of the slaughter of a group of Israeli Druze children by Hezbollah.

    33 min
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4.9
out of 5
33 Ratings

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Award-winning broadcaster, author, speaker, consultant, activist -- and now, podcast host

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