Is the belief that shoplifting is a growing problem a right wing conspiracy, the result of a moral panic, or perhaps grounded, at least in part, in reality?

The Atlantic would have us think we can’t believe our eyes when it comes to locked up or missing goods and suggests there’s a “murky” narrative around shoplifting. Liz and Bekah take some time to discuss the material presented to support their claims that shoplifting isn’t really a concern. The Atlantic does present an unclear picture, but the lack of clarity seems to lie more in the missing data and choice of interpretation on their part.

Episode references.

Make sure to check out the video versions on our YouTube channel.

UPDATE (10/17/24): The Atlantic finally admits that shoplifting is a problem…https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/10/shoplifting-crime-surge/680234/

Legacy media cannot win back trust by admitting what most already knew years after the fact and only when denial of reality becomes completely untenable. Unwarp your reality and avoid MSM!

The NYTimes wonders why people have the false belief that bees are in danger…we wondered why they don’t look in the mirror and then went down a rabbit hole…

In this episode, Liz and Bekah get distracted by all the crazy stories that exist related to bees and discuss bee murders, bee poop, a bit about human feces and some quirky British bee news.

Episode references.

Make sure to check out the video versions on our YouTube channel.

Did human action cause wildfires and extinction in the ancient past? Is the world burning out of control? Should we fear the climate apocalypse?

Maybe, no, and definitely not. This episode offers a discussion of the inaccurate MSM reporting designed to connect human activity with climate change and wildfires. A strange article blaming ancient humans for mystical wildfires from the past from the NYT and a classic case of fear-mongering from the Guardian take center stage.

Liz also makes up the word “solutionize.”

Episode references.

Make sure to check out the video versions on our YouTube channel.

Will California’s coastline disappear? Should New Yorkers fear the apocalypse at every turn?

It turns out, probably not. This episode offers a discussion of the worst case scenario focus and need to create a sense of doom and gloom at every turn in articles from the Guardian and the NYT. A report on the potential for loss of coastline in CA and coverage of the Canadian wildfire-related air pollution in NY take center stage.

Are America’s birds under siege? If so, we’d better call Seagal, given his successful defense of a U.S. battleship under siege during the early 1990’s.

It turns out, we don’t need to enlist his services just yet. Nor do we need him to intervene to prevent mass slaughter at a zoo. This episode breaks down two articles with an eye on the misinformation, inconsistencies and missing material in reporting about animals.

For more on blurring the lines between people and animals, check out this Roots and Wings post on Substack.

Episode references.

Make sure to check out the video versions on our YouTube channel.

The case to revoke law professor Amy Wax’s tenure by University of Pennsylvania is discussed with an eye on misinformation, spin and logical fallacies present in an explainer article from Vox.

In this episode, Liz and Bekah draw attention to the way that news alerts and differential levels of attention in reporting certain events can construct a skewed reality.

In this episode, we look at the issues of free speech on Twitter, the presence of an only for me, not for thee vibe, and media spin machine put to work on Elon Musk.

In this episode, examples of reporting from the NYT and Guardian are discussed help illustrate manipulation and misinformation in race-related topics.

In this episode, Liz and Bekah review some recent headlines that illustrate bias reporting election outcomes.

References for Episode 2