Freak Out And Carry On Presents: Endless Thread's "The Scream"

We thought Freak Out And Carry On listeners might be interested in what's new at the iLab. That's why we're dropping a special episode of our podcast Endless Thread into the feed this week. This is an episode of Endless Thread's new season all about memes and the untold stories behind them. In "The Scream," we tell the story behind the scream heard 'round the world when Donald Trump was inaugurated in 2017. If you typed “inauguration” into your web browser anytime between 2017 and 2020, you likely saw, near the top of your search results, an image of a person in a neon green jacket, black winter hat and glasses screaming “Nooooooooooo!” That person was Jess, who was in Washington D.C. on January 20, 2017 to protest the inauguration of President Donald Trump. This “Nooooooooooo!” flew out of Jess after the oath of office, during what seemed to be a deeply painful and private moment. But what Jess didn’t know at the time was that they were being filmed by a UK media outlet. Within hours, it became a symbol of “liberal fragility” for Trump supporters. Fearing for their safety, Jess went into a sort of hiding – on social media, and in their personal life. Four years later, Jess tells their story for the very first time.