DeepSummary
The episode features an interview with Andy Kroll, an investigative reporter for ProPublica, about his new book 'A Death on W Street: The Murder of Seth Rich and the Age of Conspiracy.' Kroll discusses how he initially became interested in the Seth Rich case, which involved the unsolved murder of a DNC staffer that sparked widespread online conspiracy theories linking his death to Hillary Clinton and the 2016 email leaks.
Kroll shares details about his reporting process, including his efforts to gain the trust of Seth Rich's family and understand the motivations of those who spread conspiracy theories about the case. He explores the role of figures like Sean Hannity, Julian Assange, and Alex Jones in fueling the misinformation and the challenges journalists face in covering such stories objectively.
The interview delves into the broader implications of the Seth Rich case, examining how it reflects the increasingly polarized and dehumanizing nature of American politics. Kroll reflects on the impact the experience had on his approach to journalism and his desire to capture the human elements of political stories.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- The Seth Rich murder case sparked widespread online conspiracy theories linking his death to the 2016 DNC email leaks and Hillary Clinton.
- Andy Kroll spent five years investigating the case and the spread of misinformation surrounding it for his book 'A Death on W Street.'
- The experience changed Kroll's perspective on journalism, emphasizing the need for nuanced, empathetic storytelling that captures the human elements.
- Media figures like Sean Hannity, Julian Assange, and Alex Jones played significant roles in fueling the conspiracy theories.
- Kroll explores the challenges of gaining the trust of Seth Rich's family and maintaining objectivity while immersing himself in the complex case.
- The Seth Rich case reflects broader issues of polarization, dehumanization, and the spread of misinformation in American politics.
- Kroll contrasts the roles of Fox News' news and opinion divisions in covering the story, highlighting the conflicts and inconsistencies within the network.
- The book delves into the motivations and beliefs of those who propagated the conspiracy theories, blurring the lines between genuine belief and opportunism.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “I felt like the chance to write a book about one of these major stories of the last half decade left me with the feeling that if I'm not trying to get down to the most human level in some of this political reporting and trying to understand what's happening in the country, I almost feel like I'm part of the problem, to be honest, that I am contributing to these larger forces that are pulling people apart and causing us to see someone who disagrees with us, not as a human who disagrees with us, but as an enemy that I cannot reconcile myself with.“ by Andy Kroll
- “It was a strange start to a reporting journey, something unlike practically any other story, actually, any other story that I've ever had. You know how this works. When we start off on a story, it's because we got a tip from someone or we read some fascinating, intriguing nugget in the news, some line in, like, the 13th or the 50th paragraph of a news story that we kind of like, circle or drop into a Google file and say, okay, I got to come back to that later. This story was the opposite of that.“ by Andy Kroll
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10/26/22