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The Trump-less debate, a Planned Parenthood legal twist, and the complexities of radicalization. (episode)
Donald Trump sat out this week's debate because he feared moderator Megyn Kelly would be unduly hard on him. Those who did attend might wish they had done the same.
What listening to conservative talk radio can teach us about this election.
The US government is in talks with Silicon Valley about creating tools to identify potential terrorists on social media. Is that legal?
Is it possible to create an algorithm to detect potential terrorists online? Probably not.
Can a journalist ever lie in pursuit of a story? Jane Kirtley tells Brooke where the law has fallen, and whether a case against the Center for Medical Progress may set a new precedent.
A look at the successes and failures of undercover reporters throughout history.
An OTM Podcast Special featuring WNYC's Note to Self and the debut of the "Infomagical" project. (article)
Celebrate the show's 15th birthday by listening to some vintage OTM, in which we celebrate our 10th birthday. (article)
FOIA requests shed light in Flint and Chicago; Michael Bay's Benghazi blockbuster; and the media's blind spot for Bernie Sanders. (episode)
Flint's water crisis has unfolded largely without national attention. An investigative reporter explains how the story got out, despite denial and obfuscation from state officials.
Using a barrage of FOIA requests, a group of techies and activists in Chicago is trying to uncover what surveillance equipment local police have, how it was obtained, and how it's used.
Michael Bay's take on Benghazi, 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi, stokes the Republican anti-Hillary fire.
Conventional wisdom among political scientists has long held that popular cinema only had “minimal effects” on viewers’ political attitudes. But a recent study upends that view.
We return to our collaboration with FiveThirtyEight to look at the ongoing question of Bernie Sanders and the media.
Since he launched his campaign, Bernie Sanders has been called many things. Until recently, "serious candidate" wasn't one of them. Dylan Byers on the media's Bernie problem.
Reporter Matt Katz talks about his new book, American Governor:Chris Christie’s Bridge to Redemption, and what it's like to cover a master of media manipulation for five years. (article)
A Mexican journalist reacts to Sean Penn's interview with El Chapo; Bob checks back in with the Pentagon; and the history of copyright, from its dramatic birth to its uncertain future. (episode)
Mexican drug kingpin El Chapo's capture by the Mexican government was quickly overshadowed by the revelation of his secret meeting with Oscar-winning actor Sean Penn. Bob weighs in.
A former editor of Mexico's leading newspaper, El Universal, recalls when editors rushed into his office to tell him that El Chapo was offering the paper an interview.
Five months after our initial conversation, we follow up with the Pentagon on the way their contentious Law of War Manual applies to journalists.
A new book traces the life and death of Aaron Swartz alongside the history of copyright in America.
Max Linsky, co-host of the Longform Podcast, interviews Brooke about why she's a "tough" editor, how she resists boredom, and her unconventional introduction to journalism. (article)
President Obama's plea for gun reforms relaunches a national conversation about America's relationship with firearms. We examine the tensions and myths that surround potential reform. (episode)
A journalist reminds the public of the cozy and lucrative relationship between members of Congress and the seemingly all-powerful gun lobby.
Though it might seem like ancient history, there was a time when the NRA supported gun control, and the staunchest supporters of "gun rights" were on the radical left.
A popular poll asking Americans to choose whether gun "rights" or gun "control" are more important indicates a schism in public opinion on guns. But does it ask the right question?
A nearly twenty-year-old ban effectively prevents the CDC from researching gun violence, even though the Congressman who sponsored it, Jay Dickey, has called it a mistake.
A recent, thorough study found no correlation between public opinion and what policies get enacted in the U.S. So what does that mean for popular gun safety proposals?
Mass shootings have catalyzed the conversation about gun reform, but inner-city violence has been left out of the discussion. A California pastor is trying to change that.
Last month, someone bought Nevada's largest newspaper for $140 million. After a week of speculation, the new owner was finally revealed. But the drama didn't end there. (article)
What if, either by the slow creep of technological obsolescence or sudden cosmic disaster, we were cut off from our electronic records? (episode)
NASA's archives faced technological extinction, until a series of happy accidents allowed Keith Cowing to rescue the iconic photograph, Earthrise.
Four decades after he co-developed one of the protocols that made the internet a reality, Vint Cerf is worried about our digital future.
Could a solar flare cause a digital meltdown? Brooke speaks with Lucianne Walkowicz, astronomer at Chicago's Adler Planetarium, about the sun's power to affect our electrical grid.
Rocky Rawlins created the Survivor Library in preparation for a solar flare taking us back to a pre-digital age.
Paper burns. Bits rot. CDs decay. But DNA can last tens of thousands of years. That's why researchers in England have developed a way to code digital data into the code of life.
Novelist Margaret Atwood recently handed in a new manuscript, Scribbler Moon, to the Future Library -- which means we'll have to wait until 2114 to read it.
A guide to moving your data from those obsolete cassettes, tapes and even floppy disks to somewhere you can actually use them.