The Disinfo Detox

This week on The Disinfo Detox, we go behind the velvet rope of the advertising world with Alessandra Di Lorenzo — former ad industry insider and author of ADJUST: HOW TO SHAPE WHAT YOU THINK.

Host Nolan Higdon digs into what really goes on behind the screens we scroll — and what it means for the future of democracy, education, and digital well-being.

Together, they explore:

👉 How advertising, algorithms, and design manipulate attention and behavior
👉 What lawmakers, educators, and parents can actually do to push back
👉 Why media literacy alone isn’t enough — but still essential

With firsthand insights from inside Big Ad Tech and a roadmap for how policy and public awareness can shift power, this episode is a must-listen for anyone ready to rethink the way we shape — and are shaped by — media.

📢 Support the show & join the conversation:

🧠 Subscribe to our Substacks for exclusive essays & media critiques:
Nolan Higdon: https://nolanhigdon.substack.com/
Sydney Sullivan: https://substack.com/@sydneysullivanphd

💥 Become a patron and help us keep the detox going: https://www.patreon.com/c/DisinfoDetox

✅ Don’t forget to:
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The Media Literacy Wrecking Crew is back — minus Sydney (she’s out this week), but Nolan Higdon and Dickey are here to break down the headlines the media won’t touch — or totally misrepresents.

In this wild ride of an episode, we unpack:

🕵️ Epstein leaks, cover-ups, and suspicious resignations
💸 OpenAI and Microsoft’s teacher training program — good PR or bad policy?
🧠 Why “neutral” AI is a myth — and what Grok’s Nazi problem tells us
🧪 Truth or Troll? Dickey challenges Nolan with real vs. fake headlines
📢 What media literacy really looks like in an age of bots, billionaires, and bullshit

This isn’t your average news roundup — it’s a critical, funny, and fearless breakdown from the Media Literacy Wrecking Crew.

🎧 Disinfo Detox — Where media literacy meets breaking news.

👇 Do your part to fight disinfo:
✅ LIKE this video
✅ SUBSCRIBE to the channel
✅ DROP A COMMENT — even if it’s hate, it helps the algorithm

💥 JOIN the Detox crew on Patreon for exclusive content, essays, and annual consultations:
👉 ⁠https://patreon.com/disinfodetox⁠

🧠 Get smarter with every episode:
📚 Nolan Higdon’s Substack: ⁠https://nolanhigdon.substack.com⁠
📚 Sydney Sullivan’s Substack: ⁠https://sydneysullivanphd.substack.com⁠

🎙️ This week on The Disinfo Detox, Nolan’s out — but the Media Literacy Wrecking Crew is IN.
Join Sydney Sullivan and Dickey as they take over the mic for a jam-packed media literacy moment and a sidebar that hits hard.

Together, they unpack:
👉 How media shapes our everyday choices without us even noticing
👉 The subtle (and not-so-subtle) power dynamics in our screen time
👉 And why Project 2025 isn’t just a political roadmap — it’s a media strategy

From algorithmic influence to political propaganda, this episode is your critical crash course in decoding power through media. Buckle up — the wrecking crew doesn't pull punches.

💥 JOIN the Detox crew on Patreon for exclusive content, essays, and annual consultations:👉 ⁠https://patreon.com/disinfodetox⁠

📢 Support the show & stay in the know:
🧠 Subscribe to our Substack for exclusive media analysis: Nolan Higdon: https://nolanhigdon.substack.com/

💥 Join the Patreon and help fund independent, critical media work: https://www.patreon.com/c/DisinfoDetox

✅ Don’t forget to:
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🔔 Subscribe & turn on notifications — every listen helps detox the discourse.

#DisinfoDetox #MediaLiteracy #Project2025 #ScreenTime #MediaPower #SydneySullivan #Dickey #WreckingCrew #CriticalThinking #Propaganda #DigitalCulture #Substack #Patreon

🎙️ This week on The Disinfo Detox, Sydney Sullivan steps into the host chair to explore a viral TikTok trend — "Man of the Year" — with special guest Allison Butler, media scholar and co-author of The Media and Me.

Together, they break down what this trend reveals about the complex intersections of gender, feminism, and media culture, asking:
👉 What kinds of masculinity are being celebrated?
👉 How does social media reinforce or challenge gender norms?
👉 And what role does critical media literacy play in decoding it all?

Whether you're on TikTok or not, this episode is a must-listen for anyone curious about how media shapes the way we think about identity, power, and social change.

📢 Support the show & join the conversation!
🧠 Subscribe to our Substack for exclusive essays & media critiques:

💥 JOIN the Detox crew on Patreon for exclusive content, essays, and annual consultations:👉 ⁠https://patreon.com/disinfodetox⁠

✅ Don’t forget to:
👍 Like
💬 Comment
🔁 Share
🔔 Subscribe and hit the bell to stay informed (and a little detoxed) every week!

#DisinfoDetox #MediaLiteracy #TikTokTrends #GenderAndMedia #Feminism #CriticalThinking #AllisonButler #SydneySullivan #TheMediaAndMe #DigitalCulture #Substack #Patreon

🔥 Disinfo Detox goes deep into the GOP’s civil war in the Bluegrass State.

This episode features James Higdon, who served as an At-Large Member of the Republican Party in the state of Kentucky from 2021 to 2025. A former executive board member and political insider, Higdon brings a behind-the-scenes look at the growing rift inside Kentucky’s Republican Party—between establishment figures like Rand Paul and Thomas Massie and the Trump-aligned MAGA wing.

In this can't-miss conversation, we cover:
🧨 The Kentucky GOP's internal battles and why they matter nationally
🔀 Rand Paul & Thomas Massie’s clashes with Trump’s influence machine
📍 Why Kentucky’s electoral map makes it a crucial testing ground for the future of the GOP
⚔️ How Elon Musk and Trump are both trying to shape the politics of Massie’s district
🇺🇸 And where Kentucky stands as a national political force in 2025 and beyond

Forget the cable news narrative—this is what’s really going on inside the Republican Party.

🎧 Disinfo Detox — Where media literacy meets breaking news.

👇 Do your part to fight disinfo:
✅ LIKE this video
✅ SUBSCRIBE to the channel
✅ DROP A COMMENT and share your take

💥 JOIN the Detox crew on Patreon for exclusive content, essays, and annual consultations:
👉 ⁠https://www.patreon.com/disinfodetox⁠

🧠 Get smarter with every episode:
📚 Nolan Higdon’s Substack: ⁠https://nolanhigdon.substack.com⁠
📚 Sydney Sullivan’s Substack: ⁠https://sydneysullivanphd.substack.com/⁠

🎙️ Disinfo Detox dives deep into the legal drama behind CBS’s $16 million settlement with Donald Trump—and what the press isn't telling you.This episode features Elizabeth Blakey, a cultural sociologist, California lawyer, and professor in the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication at California State University Northridge. With a Ph.D. in sociology from Notre Dame and a J.D. from Loyola Law School Los Angeles, Prof. Blakey brings sharp legal insight and deep expertise on freedom of expression in the digital age.Together, we unpack:

⚖️ What CBS’s settlement actually means—and what it doesn’t

🧩 How free speech, defamation, and media law intersect in Trump’s lawsuits

🤔 What Bernie Sanders AND Joe Rogan got wrong about the press and the courts

📺 Why the legal nuances get lost in cable news coverage

If you care about journalism, media freedom, and the future of democracy, this is a must-listen conversation.

🎧 Disinfo Detox — Where media literacy meets breaking news.

👇 Do your part to fight disinfo:

✅ LIKE this video

✅ SUBSCRIBE to the channel

✅ DROP A COMMENT and share your take

💥 JOIN the Detox crew on Patreon for exclusive content, essays, and annual consultations:

👉 ⁠https://www.patreon.com/disinfodetox⁠

🧠 Get smarter with every episode:

📚 Nolan Higdon’s Substack: ⁠https://nolanhigdon.substack.com⁠

📚 Sydney Sullivan’s Substack: ⁠https://sydneysullivanphd.substack.com/⁠

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Cay Johnston joins the Disinfo Detox for a no-holds-barred conversation on:

📰 His decades covering corrupt media owners and law enforcement
💰 How the press helped create Donald Trump
📉 What’s really broken in today’s media—and what can still be saved
😮 His reaction to CBS settling with Trump

This episode is packed with insight, outrage, and truth bombs you won’t hear on cable news. If you're tired of fluff and spin, this one's for you.

🎧 Disinfo Detox — Where media literacy meets breaking news.

👇 Do your part to fight disinfo:
✅ LIKE this video
✅ SUBSCRIBE to the channel
✅ DROP A COMMENT and share your take
💥 JOIN the Detox crew on Patreon for exclusive content, essays, and annual consultations:
👉 https://www.patreon.com/DisinfoDetox

🧠 Get smarter with every episode:

• Nolan Higdon’s Substack: https://nolanhigdon.substack.com

• Sydney Sullivan’s Substack: https://sydneysullivanphd.substack.com/

🎧 Disinfo Detox is back with the Media Literacy Wrecking Crew – and we’re smashing through the spin 💥

This week:
🔍 DHS “fact-checking” that’s not really fact-checking
📉 A new study shows HALF of Americans believe falsehoods
🧠 Media literacy tips to cut through the noise
🔥 Dickey’s Sidebar: “No Government” vibes meet Big Tech control
🎲 Trolls or Truth? – Can you tell the difference?

💬 Drop a comment, hit like, and follow us for real talk, no fluff.
💸 Want exclusive essays, behind-the-scenes content, and an annual media literacy consult?
👉 Join the movement and become a paid subscriber on Patreon!
https://www.patreon.com/DisinfoDetox

🧠 Disinfo Detox — Where Media Literacy Meets Breaking News.

The Media Literacy Wrecking Crew is back — Nolan Higdon, Sydney Sullivan, and the one and only Dickey — breaking down the chaotic media coverage surrounding the Iran-Israel-US triangle.

🔍 Was that a ceasefire or just a soundbite?
🎭 Is Jon Stewart the only one calling out Netanyahu’s greatest hits of fear-mongering?
🪖 Are we watching a rerun of 2003 in real time — but this time, with less journalistic courage?

From misleading timelines to selective outrage, this episode dives deep into how the media is shaping your perception of the war — and what they’re leaving out. We compare today’s propaganda to the press failures that sold the Iraq War and ask: what’s changed, and what hasn’t?

💬 Like, follow, and drop a comment — any comment — it really helps us fight the algorithmic fog.
💸 And if you've got a few bucks, support critical media analysis by becoming a paid subscriber to Nolan Higdon’s Substack. Every subscription helps keep this wrecking crew rolling.

On this episode of The Disinfo Detox, the Media Literacy Wrecking Crew—Nolan Higdon, Dr. Sydney Sullivan, and resident philosopher Dickey—cuts through the spin and breaks down the stories behind the headlines.

We dive into:
🇮🇷 Rising tensions between Israel and Iran—and what the U.S. might do next
🤖 Major legal challenges that could reshape AI tools like ChatGPT
📰 Media framing of the Minnesota shooter and “No Kings” protests
💰 And a brand-new segment from Dickey exposing how your attention is being monetized in the media economy

Like, follow, and stay skeptical—let’s detox.

📢 If you value independent media that challenges war narratives and speaks truth to power, support this work by becoming a paid subscriber to Nolan Higdon’s Substack:👉 https://nolanhigdon.substack.comCan’t go paid right now? No problem! You can still help by:✅ Liking this video✅ Subscribing to the channel✅ Leaving a comment✅ Sharing this episode with your network⚠️ Want to dive deeper into the history of U.S. propaganda?