We learn as children to follow the rules, but sometimes people use the rules deceptively to avoid addressing uncomfortable topics. Dr. Sturg goes through examples of misplaced focus and talks with Ajay Parasram and Alex Khasnabish, hosts of a YouTube series called "Frequently Asked White Questions." Check out Frequently Asked White Questions Follow…

You have a lot of choices about how to spend your time, so how and why do you choose to spend it with certain media? In this episode, Dr. Sturg breaks down the things that make media appealing and shows how deceptive newsmakers can use these human tendencies against you. Follow Dr. Sturg Twitter -Prof. Amanda Sturgill (@DrSturg) / X Websites -Sturg…

From COVID to presidential sex scandals, newsmakers use distraction to tell the story they want and take your attention from the story you *need*. Dr. Sturg breaks down this common issues with several examples of politician deception for you to try your skills. Then, she and award-winning journalist Ben Welsh talk about data journalism. Data storie…

How does the news decide who to interview, and what do they do with people who just don't want to answer the questions? Dr. Sturg breaks it down in this week's mini-sode of UnSpun. Here's an example of a newsmaker being evasive in an interview. Send us your questions and comments at theunspunpodcast@gmail.com and don't forget to like and subscribe!…

Do attorneys plan for media coverage as a part of a trial? Do reporters covering courts do a good job, or are they missing things. Asha Rangappa and Renato Mariotti answer questions about the intersection between the courts and the media in this episode of UnSpun. Asha Rangappa and Renato Mariotti have a ton of experience in different parts of the …

They are name-calling in congressional committees and judges don't like it when witnesses roll their eyes. It's summer travel time in North America, and as we get ready to go see those relatives we really disagree with, we're re-airing an episode on getting along across difference. Dr. Sturg breaks down the research on how you can get along and may…

Headlines are a changing art, as the pressures of digital algorithms are forcing news makers to emphasize the popular over the important. In this minisode of UnSpun, Dr. Sturg explains how headlines come to be and shares the latest research on how that affects you, the audience. Tweet about NYT article with buried lede. Follow Dr. Sturg Twitter -Pr…

If you repeat a lie enough, people may start to believe it. This idea of the big lie has been around for a while, but the last 8 years it has been so bad that fact checkers had to create a whole new rating level for how bad the lying is. Dr. Sturg breaks down the history of the big lie and shows how surrogates and supporters help to spread it. In t…

In this minisode of UnSpun, Dr. Sturg breaks down how press conferences work and how they are used to shape the public's view of what a newsmaker is doing. Plus, a logical thinking review. Washington Post article on Chanel Rion and OANN's presence at White House Press Conferences Follow Dr. Sturg Twitter -Prof. Amanda Sturgill (@DrSturg) / X Websit…

Angela V. Shelton and Frances Callier, Frangela, host the very popular The Final Word podcast on the MSW Media Network. But the podcast is just one waypoint in an accomplished career in comedy and acting. The artists discuss the rewards and challenges they have faced in their careers, explain why representation benefits everyone and give the inside…

It is always fair to include both sides? Dr. Sturg breaks down the history and future of objectivity in this miniepisode of UnSpun. Follow Dr. Sturg Twitter -Prof. Amanda Sturgill (@DrSturg) / X Websites -Sturg says|Unspun’s Substack Questions and Tips TheUnspunPodcast@gmail.com Dr. Sturg’s Books Detecting Deception: Tools to Fight Fake News We are…

News media and news makers can do better at working to protect democracy. In this week's episode, Dr. Sturg breaks down the research on how media cover elections and gives some examples of the the appeal to nature fallacy. Then, author, professor and NBC contributor Barbara McQuade and Dr. Sturg talk about her new book and the ways that lawmakers c…

Trying a new episode format - single host minisodes! Let me know what you think! What's even worse for carrying disinformation than social media? Messaging apps! In this episode, Dr. Sturg reviews a deceptive tactic with some new clips and goes over the research on how apps like WhatsApp and Telegram make it very hard to stop Fake News from spreadi…

Google and other search engines are an essential part of digital life. There's so much information online that we need help finding what we need. But that search doesn't give you all the information or even necessarily the best information. In this week's UnSpun, Dr. Sturg runs down the research on internet search and she and Search Engine Optimiza…

In this week's UnSpun, Dr. Sturg and author Mike Caulfield discuss how to keep yourself safer from the misinformation effect by being more aware of your own relationship to the facts you seek. Plus, Dr. Sturg goes over what a reporter means when she says "on the record" and gives some examples of false authority, which is when someone is put forwar…

Someone's need to feel validated and important can affect how they view the news, politics and even their own family. In this episode, Dr. Sturg talks with psychotherapist Nick Carmody about the interplay between emotions, beliefs and actions. Plus, she talks about how features like impact and bizarreness shape the news you see. Follow Nick Carmody…

One way newsmakers to get people to agree with them is to limit their choices so they look like the reasonable one. But they may not be reasonable at all. Learn about false choice this week, and then Dr. Sturg talks with author Teri Kanefield about her upcoming graphic novel "Firehose of Falsehood." Follow Teri Kanefield Teri's book FireHose of Fal…

Every fact can matter, but you wouldn’t know it from the way some newsmakers act. It’s tempting to ignore facts that don’t support what you want to believe, but that’s a logic crime called cherry picking. Dr. Sturg goes through several examples. Then she and then she and American Oversight’s Katie Anthony talk about how FOIA and other records laws …

Do high-profile debates truly shift opinions or votes? On this episode, Dr. Sturg gets into the studies to see if debates produce real changes. From Kennedy-Nixon to Romney-Obama, she looks at famous debates and explores what the research says about impacts on voters. She also looks the logical flaw of hasty generalization, using debate slip-ups as…

It's the holidays, and that means visits with those challenging relatives and chance encounters when you travel. In this episode, Dr. Sturg reviews some ideas from communication studies about how to have productive conversations with people you disagree with. Why do grown adult politicians call other people mean names? Personal attacks are designed…

Free speech is on the menu this week as guest Israel Balderas and Dr. Sturg talk about the First Amendment and the ways newsmakers misrepresent it. The first word is Congress, and that word matters a lot in what it does and doesn't mean. Plus! Listener questions and the wild story of the time the ACLU and the New York Times defended the rights of A…

People rely on some bad cues for how to make choices, and sometimes newsmakers don't help. In this episode, learn why "we've always done it this way" can be a bad thing. Then, Dr. Sturg talks with Dr. Ben Rein, a neuroscientist and social media star who myth busts and explains science for everyone. Follow Dr. Ben Rein https://www.benrein.com https:…

What does Jan. 6 have to do with cherry picking? A lot, it turns out. Find out how. Plus Dr. Sturg tells what the research says about Thanksgiving dinner with the relatives. Can you change Aunt Gladys's mind?By Dr. Amanda Sturgill

Some...years it feels like Congress is the opposite of progress, and the government just can't get past an impasse. It happened for more than a month in 2018-2019 and it's looking like it might happen again. In this week's UnSpun, learn how politicians distract from their failings with red herrings - galling or enthralling distractions that keep yo…

"Nothing happened" doesn't make for much of a headline, and newsmakers know it. When they want to get your attention or get you to do something, sometimes they deliberately use fear. Dr. Sturg talks about how how the powerful use fear deceptively to keep their followers engaged. Then, she and Dr. Seth Norrhom, a psychiatry professor and fear resear…

What about what HE did? If there’s one thing politicians love, it’s calling an opponent a hypocrite. But two things can both be bad. In this episode of UnSpun, see how newsmakers try to distract from their own bad deeds by pointing out problems with others. Then, Dr. Sturg talks with analytics expert William Moner about how and why companies track …

What do deceptive people do when they don’t have a good argument? They make things up and act like someone else said them. In this episode of UnSpun, see how people put words in someone else’s mouth and try to debate them. Hear counter disinformation journalist Brooke Binkowski explain how people click themselves into their own conspiracy theories …

Why do grown adult politicians call other people mean names? Personal attacks are designed to make you trust the other person less, and they are deceptive. In this episode of UnSpun, learn about how those attacks work, and how a little laughter can make politics easier to take, as Dr. Sturg and Canadian comedy influencer Brittlestar talk about the …

Welcome to Unspun where Amanda Sturgill helps us spot media manipulation and spin to get to the truth. New episodes starting September 18thBy Amanda Sturgill