Alex Garland's new film, 'Civil War,' debuted at no. 1 at the box office earlier this month, and  follows four journalists on a road trip from New York City to D.C. in the midst of societal collapse. The beating heart of the film is Lee, a veteran photojournalist played by Kirsten Dunst, who's determined to interview the president as his administration is on the verge of collapse to rebel forces.  Lynsey Addario is an award-winning photojournalist who has covered humanitarian crises abroad for over two decades, including the ongoing war in Ukraine, and  conflicts in the Middle E ..read more

Former president Trump says he wants to make America pray again. On this week’s On the Media, hear how Christian nationalism is shaping American politics. Plus, what the new film Civil War has to say about the role of journalism when civilizing norms have broken down.  [01:08] Host Brooke Gladstone speaks with Matthew D. Taylor, scholar at the Institute for Islamic, Christian, & Jewish Studies in Baltimore and author of the forthcoming book, The Violent Take It by Force: The Christian Movement That Is Threatening Our Democracy. They discuss different strains of Christian nationalism ..read more

April 19th, which is this Friday, marks an odd holiday known as Bicycle Day — the day, now 81 years ago, when Swiss scientist Albert Hofmann rode his bike home from work after dosing himself with his lab concoction, lysergic acid diethylamide, or LSD. The first acid trip. Hofmann’s wobbly ride is what launches us into an exploration of a moment, when Ken Kesey, an evangelist of acid would emerge from a Menlo Park hospital lab, and plow through the nation’s gray flannel culture in a candy colored bus. Some know Kesey as the enigmatic author behind One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest — oth ..read more

New York City’s alternative weekly newspaper, The Village Voice, birthed a generation of legendary writers. On this week’s On the Media, how the Voice transformed journalism and what’s being lost as alt-weeklies across the country die off. Plus, why the feds brought America’s most controversial alt-weekly mogul to court. [02:17] Host Micah Loewinger speaks with Tricia Romano, author of The Freaks Came Out to Write, about the early days of The Village Voice, including one reporter’s mission to stop Robert Moses and its revolutionary music section.  [15:09] Micah continues his conversation ..read more

The Village Voice, founded in 1955, is widely credited as the first alternative weekly newspaper, or alt-weekly. The big show this week is all about the rise and fall of the alt-weekly—the type of off-beat, fearless publication that, once-upon-a-time, you could pick up on a street corner in cities across the country. For the mid-week podcast, Micah interviewed Tricia Romano, the author of a new oral history titled, The Freaks Came Out To Write: The Definitive History of the Village Voice, the Radical Paper that Changed American Culture. Their conversation about this legenda ..read more

President Joe Biden is calling for a ceasefire in Gaza as famine looms. On this week’s On the Media, hear how warring media narratives have jeopardized UNRWA, the largest humanitarian aid organization in the region. Plus, what the explosion in sports gambling means for the future of sports journalism.  1. Mehul Srivastava [@MehulAtLarge], Financial Times correspondent, and Chris Van Hollen [@ChrisVanHollen], US Senator from Maryland, on the warring media narratives around UNRWA. Listen. 2. Lex Takkenberg [@LTakkenberg], humanitarian law expert and a former Chief of Eth ..read more

Last month, President Biden signed a resolution to pause funding for UNRWA, the largest humanitarian aid organization in Gaza despite the ongoing famine. UNRWA, which acts as a quasi-state for 6 million Palestinian refugees scattered in Gaza, the West Bank, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan, distributes not only essential aid during the war, but also education, housing, and healthcare. Since before the latest war, Israel has accused UNRWA of radicalizing refugees, and getting in the way of peace for Israelis. But lately, the criticisms have escalated — culminating in allegations of UNRWA wo ..read more

On Monday night, a series of IDF airstrikes killed seven aid workers from World Central Kitchen in Gaza. Now World Central Kitchen and at least two other humanitarian aid organizations have suspended their operations in Gaza, a region already on the brink of famine. Nearly 200 aid workers in Gaza have been killed in this conflict. At least 176 of them worked for The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the largest humanitarian organization operating in Gaza. Over recent weeks, UNRWA's operations have been threatened by funding c ..read more

In the next few days, the NCAA's March Madness tournaments will crown a men's and women's champion. The end of "The Big Dance" will also mark the end of one of America's largest gambling events. An estimated 68 million Americans bet on the madness last year, a number only expected to rise once the data is out for 2024. The betting boom comes in the protracted wake of a 2018 Supreme Court decision allowing states to legalize sports betting.  But in addition to sportsbooks and casinos, media companies have jumped in on this new, legal market—posing ethical questions for journ ..read more

With his cool rhymes and even cooler clothes, Basketball Hall of Famer Walt "Clyde" Frazier made a successful transition from NBA star to sports broadcaster on the MSG Network. Frazier sat down with Brooke back in 2012 for a live event to discuss basketball, broadcasting, and the art of being cool. We're re-airing it now because a) it was Mr. Frazier's birthday this week! and b) we're in a sporting mood — we have a big piece in the hopper for this week's show all about sports betting, reported by OTM producer Rebecca Clark-Callender.  ..read more