Episodes
Sewell Chan, editor in chief of The Texas Tribune, talks about covering the massacre at Robb Elementary and making sure that his employees take mental health breaks amid marathon reporting days. Chan also discusses several other reasons why Texas is in the news, from primary election results to abortion restrictions to heat waves. Chan says the Tribune's nonpartisan accountability journalism approach is sorely needed. "Opinion is plentiful, whereas meticulous gathering of facts is becoming a...
Published 05/26/22
Margaret Sullivan, Philip Bump, and Khaya Himmelman discuss the state of social media and disinformation; Insider global EIC Nicholas Carlson discusses his decision to publish a sexual harassment allegation against Musk; Kathy Barnette answers questions about her relationship with the media and controversies in her past; and Bill Carter talks about "SNL" and the TV upfronts. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
Published 05/22/22
Kathleen Carley, a computer scientist and specialist in dynamic network analysis, defines spam bots, fake accounts, and other maladies of social networking. She discusses Elon Musk's recent questions about bots on Twitter and says the attention may be beneficial. She also says that "focusing on the number of bots is perhaps not a good thing to focus on, because more important than the numbers is how active are they and what are they active about." To learn more about how CNN protects listener...
Published 05/19/22
Wesley Lowery, Mara Schiavocampo, and Oliver Darcy discuss the media climate and possible connections to white supremacist violence. Plus, Ambassador Asaf Zamir, the Consul General of Israel in New York, addresses the fatal shooting of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh; Holly Otterbein and Will Bunch discuss why some Republican candidates are shutting out the media; and Caroline Kitchener, who covers the politics of abortion for The Washington Post, discusses her reporting trip to Texas...
Published 05/15/22
Steve Schmidt talks with Brian Stelter about his headline-making "war" with John McCain's family. Schmidt explains why he is sharing secrets from McCain's 2008 campaign; how his stories have relevance for political journalists; and why he feels compelled to annotate history now. Schmidt also discusses challenges for the press and says the next few years are going to be "wild and chaotic and dangerous:" 2024, he believes, "could be a last choice election." To learn more about how CNN protects...
Published 05/13/22
Politico's executive editor Dafna Linzer discusses the decision to publish the Supreme Court draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade. Plus, interviews with Montse Alvarado, a host on the Catholic TV network EWTN, and Kate Smith, a former CBS reporter who now works at Planned Parenthood. Also: Some of the week's top media stories with Elahe Izadi, Brian Lowry, Eric Deggans, and David French. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy
Published 05/08/22
New York Times reporter Nick Confessore spent months interviewing Tucker Carlson's friends, studying Carlson's show, and checking the accuracy of the content. Confessore's resulting series, "American Nationalist," is about everything from Carlson's childhood to Fox's future as a far-right broadcaster. Everything about Carlson's show "comes back to a central narrative of elite corruption, elite hatred, how much the ruling class hates you," he says. To learn more about how CNN protects listener...
Published 05/06/22
April Ryan, Molly Ball, Leigh Ann Caldwell, and David Zurawik analyze President Biden and Trevor Noah's speeches at the 2022 White House Correspondents Dinner. Plus, Ball discusses Elon Musk's politics; Zurawik reacts to a new New York Times series about Tucker Carlson; Kristen Soltis Anderson addresses the disconnects between the press and the public; Moira Whelan talks about defending democratic values in the digital age; and Jodie Ginsberg shares her priorities as she takes over the...
Published 05/01/22
Acclaimed television producer David Simon speaks with Brian Stelter about his new crime drama; how it shares a theme with "The Wire;" and why the relationship between police and the public must be repaired. Simon also discusses the differences between journalism and drama, commenting that "it's an amorphous thing when you’re trying to depict reality after the fact, with limited information, on a camera…in my shop we try to have an ethical discussion about every scene." Simon also shares his...
Published 04/28/22
Brian Stelter covers the end of CNN+, Elon Musk's bid for Twitter and other media stories with Mara Schiavocampo, Oliver Darcy and Sara Fischer. Plus, Jonathan Haidt makes the case that social media has made American life "uniquely stupid;" White House Correspondents Association president Steven Portnoy discusses President Biden and the press corps; and "Navalny" director Daniel Roher talks about the making of his documentary. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit...
Published 04/24/22
Taylor Lorenz, the Washington Post journalist who profiled the "Libs of TikTok" Twitter account and revealed the creator's identity, answers questions about her reporting. She says "Libs of TikTok," which ridicules progressive educators, has become a "feeding ground" for right-wing media outlets: "The idea that this woman is not newsworthy is nonsense." She says the conservative commentators denouncing her want to "sow doubt and discredit journalism. That is their agenda." To learn more about...
Published 04/21/22
Gessen argues that news outlets should not amplify "ridiculous messages" from Russian authorities. Plus: Scott McLean reports from Estonia; Jessica Toonkel and Clare Duffy discuss what Elon Musk and Twitter might do next; and Lynn Sweet dissects why President Biden is granting so few interviews and why the RNC is opposing the Commission on Presidential Debates. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
Published 04/17/22
American journalist Danny Fenster was imprisoned in Myanmar for nearly six months in 2021. Now he is readjusting to normal life and getting back to reporting. He talks with Brian Stelter about his arrest; going into "reporter mode" in prison; experiencing a "sham trial;" and eventually winning his freedom. Fenster discusses the lack of due process in Myanmar, the role of state-run media, and the "challenge for [journalists] to make the story more compelling" as the citizens of Myanmar...
Published 04/14/22
Abigail Disney speaks with Brian Stelter about Republicans demonizing the company co-founded by her grandfather. Plus: Kara Swisher on Elon Musk's plans for Twitter; Anne Applebaum on the Ukrainian president's TV producing power; Claire Atkinson on Discovery's merger with CNN's parent WarnerMedia; and Katherine Wu on the first "so what?" wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
Published 04/10/22
What does the media get wrong about covering gun violence? Mother Jones national affairs editor Mark Follman, author of "Trigger Points: Inside the Mission to Stop Mass Shootings in America" talks with Brian Stelter about "getting in front" of the story "instead of reacting to it." Follman debunks oft repeated myths, unpacks unhelpful headlines, and discusses how to combat sensationalism in an audience desensitized to mass shootings.  To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy,...
Published 04/07/22
Brian Stelter and a panel of guests discuss the right-wing media targeting both Disney and LGBTQ rights. Plus, Julia Ioffe makes the case that Vladimir Putin is now a prisoner of his own propaganda; Meduza editor Ivan Kolpakov discusses his fight to provide news to Russians despite restrictions; and CNN's Frederik Pleitgen calls in with eyewitness reporting from Bucha, Ukraine. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
Published 04/03/22
"I was absolutely convinced I was going to die," Stuart Ramsay says. Ramsay, the chief correspondent for Sky News, was shot when his crew came under fire in Ukraine. One month later, he is now recovering from surgery and is able to share his story. Ramsay and senior foreign producer Dominique Van Heerden speak with Brian Stelter about how they fled the ambush; sheltered in place for several hours; and evacuated with the help of Ukrainian police. Unimaginably, Van Heerden says, "what happened...
Published 03/31/22
Journalists Ekaterina Kotrikadze and Tikhon Dzyadko, who fled Moscow when the war began, tell Brian Stelter about relaunching a channel on YouTube from outside Russia. Plus, Frederik Pleitgen talks about covering the invasion from both sides of the border; Jane Mayer shares the significance of the recently revealed Ginni Thomas texts; and CNN's Andrew Morse and Alex MacCallum preview this week's launch of the CNN+ streaming service. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit...
Published 03/27/22
Brian Stelter and Oliver Darcy review the first quarter of 2022 across the wide world of media, from CNN to OAN, Fox to Facebook, Spotify to the Smiths. The pair also discuss news coverage of the war and Ukraine and the evolution of the pandemic. "We need to do better in the news media and elsewhere talking about what the end of this pandemic looks like,” Darcy says. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
Published 03/24/22
Olga Rudenko, editor in chief of The Kyiv Independent, talks with Brian Stelter about covering Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Plus, Associated Press executive editor Julie Pace discusses war zone deployments; and Anne Applebaum, Peter Pomerantsev, Kimberly Dozier, Mara Schiavocampo and Philip Bump join the conversation. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Published 03/20/22
Kimberly Dozier is one of the only people in the world who can relate to what wounded Fox News correspondent Benjamin Hall is going through. When Dozier was reporting for CBS in Baghdad in 2006, she survived a bomb blast that left two colleagues dead. Dozier reflects on the trauma and the road to recovery for wounded war correspondents; describes how journalists are mobilizing to help Hall; and underscores the importance of reporting in conflict zones like Ukraine. She also warns against...
Published 03/17/22
Veteran Russia journalist Yevgenia Albats joins Brian Stelter from Moscow. Plus, Maria Ressa and Nick Kristof react to Russia's new anti-journalism law; Daniel Dale debunks videos circulating on social media about Ukraine; and Christof Putzel pays tribute to his friend Brent Renaud, the filmmaker who was killed near Kyiv on Sunday. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Published 03/13/22
Brian Stelter catches up with two public health experts who helped explain Covid-19 when the pandemic first upended American life two years ago this week. Dr. Elisabeth Rosenthal and Dr. James Hamblin discuss the initial "communication vacuum," the decline of trust in information sources, and the potential end of the pandemic. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Published 03/11/22
Brian Stelter reports on a new Russian law that may make legitimate reporting a crime. Robert Mahoney, Julia Ioffe and Thomas Friedman analyze Putin's crackdown on the press. Jim Sciutto explains the challenges in confirming information from the battleground. An executive from Facebook's parent company says the company is trying to restore service in Russia. And a TV host from a Ukrainian news network has a message for the world. To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit...
Published 03/06/22
"You cannot exaggerate how dangerous this moment is," New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman says. Friedman talks with Brian Stelter about the Ukraine war; how to cover the "economic nuclear bomb" dropped on Russia; and why he dubs this "World War Wired." To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Published 03/03/22