Press Play with Madeleine Brand
The importance of Florida and fact-checking
Florida has been a central focus for presidential campaigns ever since it put George W. Bush in the White House with a margin of 537 votes. Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton and their surrogates have been crisscrossing the state in the last few days. Also, researchers have debunked a widely-cited study that says correcting someone with facts reinforces their erroneous belief.
By Madeleine Brand • • 52m ListenFlorida has been a central focus for presidential campaigns ever since it put George W. Bush in the White House with a margin of 537 votes. Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton and their surrogates have been crisscrossing the state in the last few days.
A widely cited 2010 study found that even when presented with facts, people are still likely to hold onto their erroneous views and sometimes cling to them even more. Now that study has been debunked..
Janet Reno’s tenure as Bill Clinton’s attorney general was marked by increasing acts of right-wing white extremism. The events revealed a deep divide along political lines similar to what we see today.
The new novel The Mothers focuses on a teenager who gets pregnant by the son of her pastor. Her decision to have an abortion then ripples out to affect her African-American church community in Oceanside, California.
Like political opinions, society’s view of profanity is subject to evolution. That’s the subject of a new book called What the F: What Swearing Reveals About Our Language, Our Brains and Ourselves.
Image: Welcome to Florida sign, by Joel Kramer
In this episode
5 storiesWhy Florida is pivotal in presidential campaigns
Florida has been a central focus for presidential campaigns ever since it put George W. Bush in the White House with a margin of 537 votes. As Tim Kaine has said, “If you win it in Florida, it’s won.” That’s why Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton and their surrogates have been crisscrossing the state in the last few days.
Read the story10 minFact-checking's 'backfire' effect gets debunked
PolitiFact says Donald Trump has stretched the truth in more than half of his statements that they evaluated, and it was around 12 percent for Hillary Clinton. Does it matter? A widely cited 2010 study found that even when presented with facts, people are still likely to hold onto their erroneous views and sometimes cling to them even more.
Read the story9 minHow 90s right-wing extremism echoes in today's politics
Janet Reno, the nation’s first female attorney general, died this morning from complications of Parkinson's Disease. Her eight-year tenure in Bill Clinton’s administration was marked by a number of instances of right-wing white extremism, like the Oklahoma City bombing and rise of the Unabomber.
Read the story8 min'The Mothers,' a novel about how an abortion changes a community
The new novel The Mothers tells the story of a teenage girl who gets pregnant by the son of her pastor. Her decision to have an abortion then ripples out to affect her African-American church community in Oceanside, California.
Read the story15 minWhy we don't give a damn about swearing anymore
Like political opinions, society’s view of profanity is subject to evolution. That’s the subject of a new book called What the F: What Swearing Reveals About Our Language, Our Brains and Ourselves.
Read the story5 min
