The most played episodes among Podcast App listeners.

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   Number 1: The Future of Deepfakes and the Decline of Reality with Hany Farid

   The past, present, and future of deepfakes, as seen by the world’s leading expert on synthetic media. I think we’re pretty good at telling the difference between an AI generated image and a real photograph, but when I need help I call Hany Farid. Farid is the cofounder of GetReal, a company that specializes in detecting deepfakes and other AI-generated images, and is the developer of PhotoDNA, a perceptual hashing algorithm that helps companies automatically detect and remove some of the worst images that exist online, and that is now being used by every serious internet platform in the world. We started talking to Hany regularly in 2017, when Sam first reported on deepfakes. As that technology evolved and changed how we perceive reality, so have our conversations. I wanted to talk to him today on the podcast so you could hear of those conversations, and so that Hany and I could zoom out, reflect on the past few years, and speculate about where we might be headed. YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/0xVxK5o4P48 Subscribe at 404media.co Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

   August 17, 2026·47min
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   Number 2: How to Surveil the Police (with William Gude)

   Go to https://surfshark.com/404Media to get 4 extra months of Surfshark VPN, with the reassurance of a 30-day money-back guarantee, or just use code 404MEDIA at checkout. That's https://surfshark.com/404Media. This week, we talk to William Gude, who runs Film the Police LA. Film the Police LA is a YouTube channel, Instagram account, and Twitter account where William does exactly what it says in the name: He films police in Los Angeles to hold them accountable. William has been doing this for years, and has captured a series of police abuses during what are supposed to be routine traffic stops or other encounters that don’t need to be so tense. What I like about William’s work is that it’s a mix of very serious accountability journalism mixed with some humor—William is a funny guy whose rapport with cops in the videos he makes often palpably brings the tension down between the police and the people they have pulled over. William also documents surveillance in Los Angeles, and has taken to filming and talking to the Serve delivery robots in and around Hollywood as they often screw up, get stuck, or are messed with. We talk about the utility of filming the police, how people can get into police watching, what he’s learned over the years, the state of the LAPD, the spread of surveillance, and what it means to surveil the police right back. This week, we talk to William Gude, who runs Film the Police LA. Film the Police LA is a YouTube channel, Instagram account, and Twitter account where William does exactly what it says in the name: He films police in Los Angeles to hold them accountable. William has been doing this for years, and has captured a series of police abuses during what are supposed to be routine traffic stops or other encounters that don’t need to be so tense. What I like about William’s work is that it’s a mix of very serious accountability journalism mixed with some humor—William is a funny guy whose rapport with cops in the videos he makes often palpably brings the tension down between the police and the people they have pulled over. William also documents surveillance in Los Angeles, and has taken to filming and talking to the Serve delivery robots in and around Hollywood as they often screw up, get stuck, or are messed with. We talk about the utility of filming the police, how people can get into police watching, what he’s learned over the years, the state of the LAPD, the spread of surveillance, and what it means to surveil the police right back. 00:00 Intro: William Gude 03:06 How George Floyd Protests Changed His Life 04:31 Documenting Traffic Stops & Police Accountability 07:56 Why Civilian Filming Matters 09:22 How Police React to Being Filmed Today 12:03 The Copyright Music Tactic 13:41 Filming Protests & Police Stops 20:50 Delivery Robots, Waymo & Everyday Surveillance 24:23 Flock License Plate Readers & False Stops 30:30 The Biggest Problem with LAPD 35:33 Pokémon GO Cops & Public Records Delays 42:30 ICE Raids & Facial Recognition 45:27 Memorable Police Encounters 47:42 Has Police Accountability Improved? 48:58 Advice for New Cop Watchers YouTube version: https://youtu.be/aIfe9XQzpYY Find William on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@FilmThePoliceLA This is a production of 404 Media, a journalist-owned tech website. Learn more and subscribe at: htttps://404media.co Listen to our weekly podcasts: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-404-media-podcast/id1703615331?ref=404media.co Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0F3oY47l2XgoBMaAmIaw29?ref=404media.co Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5hY2FzdC5jb20vcHVibGljL3Nob3dzL3RoZS00MDQtbWVkaWEtcG9kY2FzdA?ref=404media.co Become a paid subscriber for access to bonus content: https://404media.co/membership Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

   August 10, 2026·54min
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   Number 3: Former Flock Employee Speaks Out: Says He Was ‘Lied To’

   Take control of your data footprint risk-free with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Go tohttps://incogni.com/404Mediaand use code 404MEDIA for 60% off an annual plan. That's code 404MEDIA athttps://incogni.com/404Media This week Joseph speaks to Jonathan Paz, a former Flock employee and now candidate for Congress in Massachusetts’ 5th District. They talk all about Paz’s work at Flock, how he was tasked with trying to convince cities to buy Flock cameras, and when he ultimately quit the company. It’s a rare peek inside a company that so many people are talking about. ICE Taps into Nationwide AI-Enabled Camera Network, Data Shows YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/BKYYpLC9u5I This is a production of 404 Media, a journalist-owned tech website. Learn more and subscribe at: htttps://404media.co Listen to our weekly podcasts: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-404-media-podcast/id1703615331?ref=404media.co Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0F3oY47l2XgoBMaAmIaw29?ref=404media.co Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5hY2FzdC5jb20vcHVibGljL3Nob3dzL3RoZS00MDQtbWVkaWEtcG9kY2FzdA?ref=404media.co Become a paid subscriber for access to bonus content: https://404media.co/membership Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

   August 03, 2026·51min
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   Number 4: Amazon is Destroying Rare Books to Train AI

   Take control of your data footprint risk-free with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Go tohttps://incogni.com/404Mediaand use code 404MEDIA for 60% off an annual plan. That's code 404MEDIA athttps://incogni.com/404Media We start this week with Emanuel’s big story about Amazon buying, and destroying, masses of books to train AI. After the break we talk about a couple of wild cases where people are using AI. In the subscribers-only section, we talk about Meta’s new smart glasses patent and research into how perverts are using them. We Tracked a Shipment of Rare Books. It Ended at an Amazon AI Training Facility ‘Show How 3M Is 0% at Fault:’ Expert Witness Used ChatGPT to Write Report Defending Company in Deadly Explosion Lawsuit Person Hides Prompt Injection in Legal Filing Telling AI to Side With Them Meta Patents AI Glasses to Use Facial Recognition to Identify People, Make Highlight Reels of Your Dinner Party Researchers Show How Meta's 'Pervert Glasses' Are Used to Harass Women YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/_sf2VoKvxBk Subscribe at 404media.co Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

   August 19, 2026·54min
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5. 5
   Number 5: Cops Are Making Fake Flock Cameras and Amazon Packages

   Take control of your data footprint risk-free with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Go to https://incogni.com/404Mediaand use code 404MEDIA for 60% off an annual plan. That's code 404MEDIA at https://incogni.com/404Media We start this week with Jason’s piece on a cop making a fake Flock camera to catch a vandal. How can you be charged with destroying expensive property if… the camera wasn’t real? After the break, Sam tells us about how Darth Vader loves Flock. In the subscribers-only section, we talk a bit about three years of 404 Media. You're Invited: 404 Media's Third Anniversary Live Podcast and Party! RSVP: Killer Technology With 404 Media Man Charged With 3 Felonies For Breaking 3D-Printed ‘Decoy’ Flock Camera The Man Behind the Anti-Flock Darth Vader Mask Wants to Know: 'When Will This End?' YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/rYCvhAOGAjM Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

   August 26, 2026·34min
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