Why do those on the religious and cultural right often describe transgender or gender-nonconforming identity as a mental illness? What is the relationship of “gender dysphoria” and trans or gender-nonconforming identity? Why would some who target trans and gender-nonconforming people claim that they are doing it because they care for them? And finally, how can we support trans and gender-nonconforming people and address the concrete effects of gender dysphoria? Dan takes on these issues in this week’s episode.
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It's In the Code Ep. 58: "It's a Mental Illness"

An in-depth examination of the culture and politics of Christian Nationalism and Evangelicalism by two ex-evangelical ministers-turned-religion professors. If you have ever wondered what social and historical forces led white evangelicals to usher Donald Trump into the White House this is the show for you. As former insiders and critical scholars of religion, Dan Miller and Bradley Onishi have a unique perspective on the Religious Right. Guests have included Chrissy Stroop, R. Marie Griffith, Janelle Wong, Randall Balmer, Katherine Stewart, and many others.

News

Politics

Subscribe for $5.99 a month to get full access to this episode, bonus content most Mondays, bonus episodes every month, ad-free listening, access to the entire 500-episode archive, Discord access, and more: https://axismundi.supercast.com/
Last night we learned that Donald Trump was convicted on all 34 accounts of falsifying business records. Brad and Dan ask what this means for the coming months, how it will affect the election, and why the GOP refuses to abandon a man who has been impeached twice, lost his re-election campaign, and now becomes the only former president convicted of a felony. Brad is joined by Dr. Hank Willenbrink at the end of the episode to talk about the roles, performances, and characters Trump and Trump supports play in order to create a self-enclosed MAGA ecosystem impervious even to the news that he is now a convicted criminal.
Dr. Hank Willenbrink substack: https://performingforthedon.substack.com/
Book: https://www.routledge.com/Performing-for-the-Don-Theaters-of-Faith-in-the-Trump-Era/Willenbrink/p/book/9781032302898
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Weekly Roundup: Donald Trump Convicted of 34 Felonies

Dan had a family emergency this week, so instead of It's In the Code we have a special episode. In the first part, Brad speaks to Dr. Jeffery Stoyanoff and Dr. Brian Onishi about their new podcast Horror Joy - a deep dive into horror in hopes of finding joy lurking in the shadows. They talk about the allure of horror films and books, the ways horror provides a window into our contemporary hopes and fears, and why Jaws is actually reallly good f*cking movie.
In the second part, Brad speaks to Dr. Susannah Crockford, creator of Miss Information. She explains the allure of conspiracy theories, what they do for people, and how we need to think differently about the misinformation problem.
Subscribe to Horror Joy here: https://redcircle.com/shows/97996083-5fe9-41d5-824e-f069a412ed76
Subscribe to Miss Information here: https://redcircle.com/shows/21b4b512-ceef-4289-b9fc-76f302f5bd22
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The Allure of Horror, Misinformation, and Joy

On this Memorial Day, we are proud to introduce the newest limited series from the Institute for Religion, Media, and Civic Engagement and Axis Mundi Media. Miss Information is a podcast about how conspiracies and misinformation infiltrate wellness communities and religious spaces. 
Subscribe here: https://redcircle.com/shows/21b4b512-ceef-4289-b9fc-76f302f5bd22/episodes/3532f1b2-5f15-4302-82f6-8a281d676871
Misinformation is big news, but what does it mean and why does it matter? If misinformation is simply incorrect information, can it be solved simply by telling people the right answer? 
In this episode, we learn how misinformation can prevent people from voting if they think they aren’t eligible or can’t vote by mail; how misinformation can convince people to take certain drugs to cure a disease even if it’s not proven to be safe; and the ways misinformation can draw people into conspiracies like QAnon. But it’s not as simple as dispelling all misinformation from our midst. That seems impossible. Rather, in dialogue with Dr. David Robertson from the Open University, what we will discover points to a different question: Why do people believe misinformation at all and what does it do for them? In other words, instead of focusing on what people believe, perhaps the phenomenon of misinformation directs us to ask what beliefs do - who they favor, who they put in power, who they marginalize, and who they leave vulnerable. And by understanding the mechanics, maybe we can mitigate the damage misinformation does to our public square.

For more information about research-based media by Axis Mundi Media visit: www.axismundi.us
For more information about public scholarship by the Institute for Religion, Media, and Civic Engagement follow us @irmceorg or go to www.irmce.org
Funding for this series has been generously provided by the Henry Luce Foundation. 
Creator: Dr. Susannah Crockford
Executive Producer: Dr. Bradley Onishi (@bradleyonishi) 
Audio Engineer: Scott Okamoto (@rsokamoto)
Production Assistance: Kari Onishi 
Dr. Susannah Crockford (@suscrockford): Ripples of the Universe: Spirituality in Sedona, Arizona

Further Reading

Robertson, David G. UFOs, Conspiracy Theories and the New Age: Millennial Conspiracism. London: Bloomsbury, 2016.

Robertson, David G., and Amarnath Amarasingam. “How Conspiracy Theorists Argue: Epistemic Capital in the Qanon Social Media Sphere.” Popular Communication 20 (2022): 193-207. https://doi.org/10.1080/15405702.2022.2050238.

Howard, Philip N. Lie Machines: How to Save Democracy from Troll Armies, Deceitful Robots, Junk News Operations, and Political Operatives. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2020.

Bail, Chris. Breaking the Social Media Prism: How to Make Our Platforms Less Polarizing. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2021. 

Uscinski, Joseph E., and Joseph M. Parent. American Conspiracy Theories. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014. 

Byford, Jovan. Conspiracy Theories: A Critical Introduction. London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011.

Argentino, Marc-Andre. “The Church of QAnon: Will Conspiracy Theories Form the Basis of a New Religious Movement?” The Conversation, May 18, 2020, https://theconversation.com/the-church-of-qanon-will-conspiracy-theories-form-the-basis-of-a-new-religious-movement-137859 

Hao, Karen. “How Facebook got addicted to spreading misinformation,” MIT Technology Review, March 11, 2021, https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/03/11/1020600/facebook-responsible-ai-misinformation/ 
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Miss Information Episode 1 - Holiday Special Episode

CORRECTION for Friday's on the original version of this Weekly Roundup that Biden invited Netanyahu to speak to congress when it was Mike Johnson. Was trying to express that Biden should condemn the invitation strongly. Alas.Brad and Dan discuss the Alito Appeal to Heaven flag controversy, Trump's "Unified Reich" video, and the affirmation of Palestinian statehood by US allies.
Subscribe for $5.99 a month to get full access to this episode, bonus content most Mondays, bonus episodes every month, ad-free listening, access to the entire 500-episode archive, Discord access, and more: https://axismundi.supercast.com/
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Weekly Roundup: Trump Wants a "Unified Reich" and Alito Appeals to Heaven

In light of the news that Justice Alito flies an Appeal to Heaven flag over his beach house, Brad speaks to four experts on what it means and why it's a truly significant moment in the life of SCOTUS.
Dr. Matthew Taylor, author of the Violent Take It By Force: https://www.broadleafbooks.com/store/product/9781506497785/The-Violent-Take-It-by-Force
Annika Brockschmidt, journalist, author: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Annika-Brockschmidt/author/B06XH8QPWM?ref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true
Andrew Seidel, constitutional lawyer and author of American Crusade: https://www.unionsquareandco.com/9781454943921/american-crusade-by-andrew-l-seidel/
Rev. Angela Denker, writer and pastor - author of Red State Christians: https://www.broadleafbooks.com/store/product/9781506482507/Red-State-Christians
Subscribe for $5.99 a month to get full access to this episode, bonus content most Mondays, bonus episodes every month, ad-free listening, access to the entire 500-episode archive, Discord access, and more: https://axismundi.supercast.com/
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It's In the Code Ep. 58: "It's a Mental Illness"

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