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On the Media
Sundays at 3pm

On The Media decodes what we hear, read, and see in the media every day, and arms us with critical tools necessary to survive the information age.

While maintaining the civility and fairness that are the hallmarks of public radio, On The Media tackles sticky issues with a frankness and transparency trusted by one million people a week. Winner of Edward R. Murrow Awards for feature reporting and investigative reporting, the National Press Club's Arthur Rowse Award for Press Criticism, and a Peabody Award.

Find a list of recent episodes of On the Media below. To learn more about the show, click here.

  • Recently, the House passed a bill that could ban TikTok from the US unless the app’s Chinese owners divest. On this week’s On the Media, hear how the bill will likely fail to live up to its promise. Plus, a pulse-check on the book-banning movement, and a look into the larger mission behind Moms for Liberty. 1. Julia Angwin [@JuliaAngwin], opinion writer for The New York Time and founder of the new outlet Proof News, on why this TikTok legislation won't do what lawmakers claim it will. Listen. 2. Adam Laats [@AdamLaats], professor of education and history at Binghamton University, on the long history leading to Moms For Liberty. Listen. 3. Jennifer Berkshire [@BisforBerkshire], lecturer at Yale’s Education Studies Department, on why Moms for Liberty election losses are not a reason to ignore the group's power. Listen.
  • Last fall, it seemed like Moms for Liberty, the infamous political group behind the recent push for book bans in schools across the country, might be on the wane, after a series of losses at school board and local district elections in November. But shortly afterward, Moms for Liberty co-founder Tiffany Justice claimed in an interview, "we're just getting started," boasting about the group's plans to ramp up efforts this year. Jennifer Berkshire, lecturer at Yale University’s Education Studies Department, and author of the forthcoming book "The Education Wars: A Citizens’ Guide and Defense Manual," is wary of writing the group off. She argues that perhaps their progress, or lack thereof, in the polls isn't a good indicator of their success. Brooke speaks with Berkshire about the larger project behind Moms for Liberty to ultimately sow distrust in the public school system that extends far beyond the controversial book banning campaigns the Moms have now become famous for. This is a segment from our March 15, 2024 show, Why Banning TikTok Might Backfire. Plus, a History of Book-Banning Moms. This segment originally aired on our December 15th, 2023 show, Climate Delay-ism and the Real Goals of the Book Banning Movement.
  • For nearly two years, Moms for Liberty has been framing their book banning efforts across public schools as a fight for “parental rights” — a rallying call that has gained traction among some conservative lawmakers and candidates. But when put to voters at the polls in November 2023, candidates endorsed by Moms for Liberty performed poorly in school board elections, and in states like Iowa, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, the majority of candidates running on a Moms for Liberty platform lost. Adam Laats, a professor of education and history at Binghamton University, has been tracking the long lineage of conservative women's groups over the last century, and he claims that the trajectory of Moms for Liberty is eerily similar to what he's seen many times before in his research. Last summer, he wrote a piece for Slate called, "Moms for Liberty Is Riding High. It Should Beware What Comes Next." Brooke speaks with Laats about what we can learn from the fate of past conservative women groups, and why they tend to enjoy bursts of initial political success before spiraling out of control. This is a segment from our March 15, 2024 show, Why Banning TikTok Might Backfire. Plus, a History of Book-Banning Moms. This segment originally aired on our December 15th, 2023 show, Climate Delay-ism and the Real Goals of the Book Banning Movement.
  • The House has voted to pass a bipartisan bill that could lead to a nationwide ban of TikTok. Congress has cited concerns that the China-owned app is sharing American users' data with the Chinese government, and that TikTok is spreading propaganda. Tech journalist Julia Angwin, founder of the new nonprofit outlet Proof News, isn't so convinced by those arguments. This week, Julia tells Micah Loewinger about how TikTok's practices compare to other platforms; what a ban or forced sale of the app would (or would not) accomplish; and why the U.S. needs better regulations for all social media companies. This is a segment from our March 15, 2024 show, Why Banning TikTok Might Backfire. Plus, a History of Book-Banning Moms.
  • Writer Calvin Trillin joined The New Yorker in 1963, and he continues to contribute today. Trillin’s trademark humility and humor show up in all of his writing, whether it’s a story about the invention of the buffalo chicken wing, or the civil rights movement, or an old ditty about our political woes. Brooke recently sat down with him to discuss his career and his latest book, The Lede: Dispatches from a Life in the Press.
  • Earlier this week, Elon Musk and Donald Trump met at Palm Beach, Florida, as first reported by the New York Times. This comes in the midst of Trump's spiraling legal and financial woes as he's in the thick of his presidential campaign. Despite all his merch sales and donations, Trump’s campaign fundraising is lagging behind team Biden. And on top of that, he’s on the hook for $83 million for defaming E. Jean Carroll and $355 million for fraudulent business practices in New York. Adding interest and other penalties, NPR estimated he owes $600 million. In the Washington Post, columnist Philip Bump argued that, “It’s not money that Elon Musk is contributing to Donald Trump.” This week, Micah speaks with Bump about the other reasons these two kindred spirits have for teaming up, and the shifting landscape of right wing media toward Musk's X. This is a segment from our March 8, 2024 show, What Can Musk Offer Trump? And Defining “Decolonization” for Gaza.