Make It Plain MIP with Rev. Mark Thompson

Eric Boehlert of pressrun.media is holding the press accountable every week as he scans the coverage of Trump and points directly to their lies--whether in the form of omissions or outright misinformation. “It’s a fantasy that the press wants to advance, that [Trump] is a rational person with our interests at heart, and if he can just focus, we’ll be okay. No. He’s not going to focus and he doesn’t want to help us, and that’s the bottom line,” says Eric, and he outlines the specific moments that show how the federal government is literally done helping the public with coronavirus. All the while, Trump is proudly displaying his racism, and yet the press hasn’t called it what it is: racism, white supremacy, and white nationalism. And why is it important that they DO call him out? Eric explains that in today’s episode. Executive Producer: Adell Coleman Producer: Brittany Temple Distributor: DCP Entertainment For additional content: makeitplain.com 

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The veteran journalist and publisher of prorev.com on the importance of people with differences finding things in common to work together for real change--unity in diversity. He also believes that we must confront the strong and convert the weak. Executive Producer: Adell Coleman Producer: Brittany Temple Editor: Ryan Woodhall Distributor: DCP Entertainment For additional content: makeitplain.com 

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Tucker Carlson hasn’t explicitly said that he wants to run for president, but he’s also not denying it, or taking an opportunity to humiliate the reporter who asked about a 2024 run. So, is he really considering it? Angelo Carusone, President of MediaMatters.org, says Carlson is grasping for power as his show's advertising dollars dwindle to nothing, save for MyPillow (remember their CEO at the Trump rally?). Fox insists it doesn’t hurt their bottom line, but Angelo notes some changes in how the network has been promoting the show itself that indicates otherwise. Speaking of presidential runs, Angelo and Mark also get into the whole Kanye West discussion and how Fox is approaching it on-air (spoiler alert: it's a mess). Also covered in today's episode is what’s happening with advertisers over at Facebook, and Angelo clues us in on who is making the decisions and rules around what the platform will mark as false information (hint: he’s a buddy of Brett Kavanaugh). Executive Producer: Adell Coleman Producer: Brittany Temple Distributor: DCP Entertainment For additional content: makeitplain.com 

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On this week’s Thursday Kos, Daily Kos founder Markos Moulitsas talks with Mark about Trump’s recent losses including suburban white women and battleground states’ voters dissatisfied with his pandemic response. Executive Producer: Adell Coleman Producer: Brittany Temple Distributor: DCP Entertainment For additional content: makeitplain.com 

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We see the term “contact tracing” pop up in the coronavirus conversation quite a bit, but what the heck is it anyway? How does it work, and how can it help? Dr. Keren Landman is a physician, epidemiologist, and journalist, who recently wrote the piece published on Medium titled, “Hey America, What Happened to Contact Tracing?” (link below). In today’s episode, she gives us an understanding of not just what it is, but how it has been used in the past why it’s such a bigger challenge with coronavirus. Mark and Dr. Landman also get into the other side of the coin: are we comfortable giving detailed personal information to the government? And where does tech fit into this conversation--are phone apps up for the task? Dr. Landman answers all these important questions and more. CLICK HERE to read Dr. Landman's piece on contact tracing: https://elemental.medium.com/hey-america-what-happened-to-contact-tracing-47a2dbccc020 Executive Producer: Adell Coleman Producer: Brittany Temple Distributor: DCP Entertainment For additional content: makeitplain.com 

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David Shimer, author of "Rigged: America, Russia and 100 Years of Covert Electoral Interference," knows what Russia wants for the United States -- to undermine and discredit our democracy and turn our country into a weakened, corrupt version of itself. After interviewing 26 former advisors to Obama, a handful of Trump officials, and many other national security figures, David is helping us answer the question of "how can we prepare for 2020?" David's research goes well beyond the 2016 election and extends far into the past and across the world, assessing patterns that help us understand exactly what Russia is up to and why it's so difficult for the U.S. to respond. He details all of this in today's eye-opening episode. Executive Producer: Adell Coleman Producer: Brittany Temple Distributor: DCP Entertainment For additional content: makeitplain.com 

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Jobs were added in June, but as Chad Stone, Chief Economist for the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, points out, we're still in a massive deficit from what was lost back in February. And now that social distancing has relaxed in many states, and coronavirus begins to surge again, "jobs are going to be disappearing already" from the 4.8 million that were gained last month. Mark and Chad break down individual demographics to better understand who is getting back to work and he lets us know why he thinks July's numbers are "almost surely" going to be worse than this report. But before we get to July, we're also taking a look at how state and government jobs have gotten clobbered, and it could get worse. There is so much more to the jobs report than the number of jobs added, and Chad is here to help us understand it all! Executive Producer: Adell Coleman Producer: Brittany Temple Distributor: DCP Entertainment For additional content: makeitplain.com 

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Senator Doug Jones of Alabama joins Mark today for an in-depth discussion on everything happening in the U.S. right now, which, as you know, is a lot. Starting with coronavirus, the senator shares his thoughts on Republicans finally getting vocal about battling it with the most basic of recommendations, like masks and social distancing. Though it's better late than never, Senator Jones is concerned that they're too late to play catch-up and states are already suffering the consequences. And while cases are climbing, his focus has now shifted to the monetary burden school districts are experiencing because of coronavirus and his concerns for safely reopening schools in the fall. The conversation also covers the recent Black Lives Matter protests across the country in what the senator calls "a historic time," noting that "we should be a better America than we are, and we've got to do everything that we can to not let the moment pass." They also get into Trump's "white power" tweet, the recent news surrounding Russia and our military, his thoughts on Biden's potential VP pick, voting by mail, and of course, his run for re-election to the senate in November. SUPPORT Senator Doug Jones re-election to the senate! We need him and you can help: https://dougjones.com/splash Executive Producer: Adell Coleman Producer: Brittany Temple Distributor: DCP Entertainment For additional content: makeitplain.com 

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Markos Moulitsas, our personal polling whiz and founder of DailyKos and Civiqs, gives a hopeful outlook based on the latest numbers. Aside from noting that Biden is "within striking distance of getting 400 electoral votes," he feels confident that we'll flip the Senate in November. And that's not just because Senator Susan Collins is likely doomed, no thanks to Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who she held the door for on his way in to his lifetime appointment. We knew that when he allegedly promised her he wouldn't vote against abortion rights, it didn't mean a damn thing, but now we have the proof. All this and much more in today's chat with Markos. Executive Producer: Adell Coleman Producer: Brittany Temple Distributor: DCP Entertainment For additional content: makeitplain.com 

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"Gun rights" supporters are invested in protecting the 2nd Amendment, but often conveniently forget the 1st. Igor Volsky, Executive Director of Guns Down America, is back for today's episode of MIP and the first order of business is the intersection of gun violence and the recent protests for #BlackLivesMatter. Igor and his team looked at instances of firearms at protests from late May into early June, and found that out of 130 instances, 60 appear to be connected to white nationalists and white supremacists. And while we're raising our standards for gun ownership in this country, we should also be raising our standards of the companies we invest in. Guns Down America is now keeping tabs on how major brands (like your beloved Target) are handling the national call to end racism and if they're actually making changes beyond those posted to their timelines and feeds. CLICK HERE for more information on the topics discussed in today's episode: https://gunsdownamerica.org/ Executive Producer: Adell Coleman Producer: Brittany Temple Distributor: DCP Entertainment For additional content: makeitplain.com 

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