[grc] Questions about network radio and disinformation

[riva enteen]

Who are you saying should be the arbiters of truth?  Hopefully not Silicon
Valley.

https://greenwald.substack.com/p/civil-liberties-are-being-trampled

https://greenwald.substack.com/p/democrats-and-media-do-not-want-to

On Wed, Oct 20, 2021 at 9:07 AM Katie Thornton via grc <
grc at maillist.peak.org> wrote:

> *Hi GRC folks! *
>
> My name is Katie Thornton, and I'm a
> longtime-community-radio-person-turned-independent-reporter out of
> Minneapolis. (Recent work has been run on/in the BBC, 99% Invisible,
> Washington Post, Minnesota Public Radio, NPR, WNYC, National Geographic,
> Atlas Obscura, KFAI, etc.). I started volunteering at KFAI in my home city
> of Minneapolis as a teenager, interned at Prometheus back in 2013 (during
> the LPFM window!), and went on to work at and with multiple different
> community, college, and LPFM stations (and had the joy of attending at
> least one GRC!) before transitioning over to freelance journalism and
> writing work.
>
> I'm posting here because I'm currently working on a part-investigative,
> part-narrative mini-series about disinformation on network terrestrial
> radio. The series seeks to uncover how the profitability of disinformation
> and ideological motivations -- paired with the FCC’s ongoing deregulation
> of the airwaves’ content and ownership -- have made the radio dial fertile
> ground for the spread of disinformation. To do this, the series will look
> at examples of how these large-scale issues play out for individuals; it
> will share the intersecting personal stories of Americans on all sides of
> the radio dial: a citizen (or group of citizens!) trying to stop the spread
> of on-air conspiracies, executives and hosts from a large national radio
> network rife with disinformation, and listeners who consume and are
> occasionally driven to action by untruths heard over the airwaves. I've
> been fortunate enough to get some support from an organization that helps
> independent investigative journalists, as well as an NPR affiliate station
> who will ultimately distribute the series.
>
> I've been incredibly grateful that folks have been eager to share their
> experiences and expertise with me thus far. However, I know that there are
> many people doing work in this field, directly or indirectly, with whom I
> have not yet been in touch. Given that LPFMs and NCEs have been a major way
> that communities have been able to retain a degree of local control over
> media as more and more of us lose local outlets, I wanted to turn to you
> all with some questions. If you know of anyone who might be able to shed
> some light on some of these questions -- or if you personally would like to
> talk more -- I would love to speak with you. I'd love to hear from folks in
> cities, small towns, or rural areas; however, given the prominence of
> network stations in non-coastal regions and smaller markets (as well as my
> own experience as a lifelong Midwesterner), I am especially hoping to hear
> from folks in middle America and areas outside of major coastal cities.
> Here are some of the questions I am hoping to hear from folks about right
> now:
>
>    - Do you hear information you know to be false on the airwaves
>    (especially on network stations)? Specifically, have you heard
>    disinformation about COVID-19 spread on the airwaves? How has talk radio
>    influenced people's response to COVID where you live?
>    - Have you heard speech that you would describe as hate speech over the
>    airwaves?
>    - Do you know of anyone (individuals or groups) -- or have you
>    personally -- been trying to fight disinformation or hate speech you
> hear
>    on the airwaves? How have you/they gone about this? Have you/they had
> any
>    luck? For example, I recently spoke with someone in Montana who has been
>    personally petitioning the FCC to try to stop the spread of
>    disinformation on the airwaves. But I have a feeling she is not the only
>    one out there.
>    - Is your radio station doing any explicit work to combat the
>    disinformation that may spread on other radio stations?
>    - Has anyone in your life been driven to extreme ideological beliefs
>    and/or action thanks to the influence of talk radio?
>    - There are a few networks about which I'm particularly curious. Do you
>    have any stations in your town/city/area that are run by Salem Media
>    Network? Alternatively, are any stations in your town/city/area run by
> the
>    Bott Radio Network, CSN (Christian Satellite Network), or American
> Family
>    Radio?
>    - Has your community had a locally-run station bought out and replaced
>    by a station run by a large media network (such as one of those listed
>    above)? If so, I'd love to ask you more about that change.
>
> Thank you all so much. I'm really looking forward to hearing from you.
> Please feel free to send me an email if you'd like to talk further -- or if
> you'd like to ask me any questions about the project, my background, etc.
>
> Thank you all again. I'm looking forward to talking. Take good care,
>
> Katie
>
> *Katie Thornton*
> *Fulbright-National Geographic Digital Storytelling Fellow*
> *www.itskatiethornton.com* <http://www.itskatiethornton.com>
>
> *IG: @itskatiethornton <https://www.instagram.com/itskatiethornton/>*
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