I Can't Believe it's Not News: A Podcast about Fake News

In this episode Beth and Kelly finish up their election series with a focus on a true threat to our democracy - gerrymandering. To give some context, gerrymandering, is the drawing of the boundaries of electoral districts in a way that gives one party an unfair advantage over its rivals. This practice is one of the most serious ways politicians can rob you of your vote.

In this week's episode Beth and Kelly decided to delve a little deeper into the subject of sexual assault. Trigger warning for possible discussions of rape and assault. If you need to skip this episode we entirely understand and ask you to do something to take care of yourself at this time. If you want to speak with someone, please contact RAINN, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network at 1-800-656-4673.

In this week's episode Beth and Kelly discuss the questions surrounding voter fraud. Is voter fraud really an issue we need to worry about? Why does the GOP constantly remind us to be afraid of it? Why is DJT so invested in the idea, without a single shred of evidence? What could we do, as citizens, to help prevent voter fraud?

In this week's episode, Beth and Kelly discuss the history of deception in campaign advertising. Political ads are filled with misleading claims, and we wanted to find out why that's not against FCC regulations the way false claims in consumer ads are. Political advertising is meant to persuade the viewer to change their mind or reassure their beliefs in 30 seconds or less. Advertising works by multiple mechanisms, some of which are about conscious decision making, and some which are not. You can be influenced, even subtly, without really realizing it.

In this episode Beth and Elizabeth - who is filling in for Kelly on vacation - talk about something *good* in the land of fake news. Wait. What? Yes - it's true, something good happened, a bridge was crossed... we think. In August 2018 Apple, Facebook, Google and Spotify among others all announced that they would be removing all or most of content created by Alex Jones and his website, Infowars.

So are all these sites finally coming around to spread jam, not lies?

Take a listen and find out!

This week Beth and Kelly celebrate the one year anniversary of the non-repeal of Obamacare (aka, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act). There have been many years worth of fake news surrounding the ACA, but it's lack of clarity around certain aspects of Obamacare that continue to put the plan in jeopardy.

In this episode Beth and Kelly interview Alex Kaplan from Media Matters for America. Mr. Kaplan is a research coordinator with a focus on far-right media and fake news. Media Matters for America is a Web-based non-profit founded in 2004. They are a progressive research and information center dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation in the U.S. media.

This week Beth and Kelly discuss the current controversy surrounding the June 28th resignation letter from Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy. Was his hand forced? Did his son lend Trump billions? Were the Russians involved? Do liberals need tin foil hats? We talk about all this and more!

This week Beth and Kelly talk about how fake news is affecting kids. The truth is, kids today have less trust for news sources than ever before. What can parents and schools do to help kids figure out who to trust in this topsy-turvy fake news world? Join us as we talk kids, fake news and stick around for some jams.

In this episode Bath and Kelly unravel the twisted stories of the missing immigrant minors and the children being separated from their parents at the border. The recent outrage is certainly clear, but it is not clear exactly what happened when, and who ordered it to happen. Join us as we take a closer look at the stories and unravel the ball of yarn.