Citations Needed, Episode 38: The Media' Bogus Generation Obsession

LIFE magazine, January 1, 1970

“Baby Boomers are bloating the social safety net!” “GenXers are changing the nature of work!” “Millennials are killing the housing market!”

The media endlessly feeds us stories about how one generation or another is engaging in some collective act of moral failing that, either explicitly or by implication, harms another generation. It’s a widely-mocked cliché at this point, namely the near-constant analyses detailing what Millennials have “killed” or “ruined” lately - everything from Applebee's to diamonds to top sheets to beer to napkins.

The first rule of drama––and by implication, the media––is to create tension. But what if tensions that actually exist in our society, like white supremacy and class conflict, are too unpleasant and dicey to touch––upsetting advertisers and media owners who benefit from these systems? To replace these real tensions in society, the media repeatedly relies on dubious and entirely safe points of conflict, like those between two arbitrary generations. It’s not the rich or racism that’s holding me back--it’s old people running up entitlement spending or lazy youth who don’t want to work!

In this episode we talk about why this media trope isn’t just hacky and cliche, but also subtly racist and reactionary.

We are joined by Adam Conover, host of Adam Ruins Everything on truTV.

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The Show

Episode transcript available here.

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The Guest

Adam Conover is a comedian, writer, and the creator and host of Adam Ruins Everything on truTV. Follow him @adamconover.

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Citations Needed is available on iTunes, Soundcloud and LibSyn (here’s the RSS feed). You can also check us out on Twitter and Facebook.

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Want More?

For further reading, show notes, a periodic newsletter, and more exclusive content, please visit our Patreon page and sign up to support the show!

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Citations Needed is a media criticism podcast, hosted by Adam Johnson and Nima Shirazi, political commentators and media analysts working to call bullshit on (usually corporate) media’s ubiquitous reliance on and regurgitation of false and destructive narratives, tropes and stereotypes.

Citations Needed is produced by Florence Barrau-Adams. Our Production Consultant is Josh Kross. Our research assistant is Sophia Steinert-Evoy. Transcription by Morgan McAslan. The theme is ‘Nonphenomenal Lineage’ by Grandaddy.

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Talkin' Cable News Pundits on AJE's The Listening Post

Former U.S. government officials are consistent features of cable news punditry. I joined Al Jazeera English's The Listening Post to discuss.

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Citations Needed, Episode 37: Black Lives Matter, Dreamers, and the Problem of ‘The Perfect Victim’

A pillar of the community. A straight-A student who dreamed of becoming a doctor. A loving father. Here through no fault of their own. She was hysterical and out of control. He was no angel.

The press, both local and national, humanizes some victims of state or corporate violence, while demonizing others. Despite good intentions and seemingly without noticing, the media all too often create tiered systems of moral worth by trying to find “the perfect victim.”

The media’s search for the perfect victim, and its corollary desire to smear those with less than perfect pasts, makes humanity conditional, further entrenching negative stereotypes and destructive narratives about entire communities.

In this episode, we dissect the real time auditing of those who die or are deported and how we can expand our moral vocabulary to protect all vulnerable people and populations.

We are joined by both Joel Sati and Charlene Carruthers.

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The Show

Episode transcript available here.

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The Guests

Joel Sati is a PhD student in the Jurisprudence and Social Policy program at Berkeley Law and an immigrant rights activist.

Charlene Carruthers is founding national director of the Black Youth Project 100. She has appeared on CNN, Democracy Now!, BBC and MSNBC and has written for theRoot.com, Colorlines and the Boston Review. Charlene’s forthcoming book, Unapologetic: A Black, Queer and Feminist Mandate for Radical Movements, will be published in the Fall of 2018.

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Citations Needed is available on iTunes, Soundcloud and LibSyn (here’s the RSS feed). You can also check us out on Twitter and Facebook.

***

Want More?

For further reading, show notes, a periodic newsletter, and more exclusive content, please visit our Patreon page and sign up to support the show!

***

Citations Needed is a media criticism podcast, hosted by Adam Johnson and Nima Shirazi, political commentators and media analysts working to call bullshit on (usually corporate) media’s ubiquitous reliance on and regurgitation of false and destructive narratives, tropes and stereotypes.

Citations Needed is produced by Florence Barrau-Adams. Our Production Consultant is Josh Kross. Our research assistant is Sophia Steinert-Evoy. Transcription by Morgan McAslan. The theme is ‘Nonphenomenal Lineage’ by Grandaddy.

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Wide Asleep on Radio Dispatch, Talkin' Iran Deal Destruction

I had the honor of returning to the Radio Dispatch airwaves to discuss the history and potential future of the Iran Deal with the great John Knefel.

Listen to it below or download it here.


And be sure to check out John and Molly Knefel's amazing archive of past shows here. And listen to the show from now on. C'mon people.

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Citations Needed, Episode 36: Maplewashing - Looking Behind Canada's Progressive Veneer

For decades, Canada has been a go-to point of reference for American progressives as a country the United States can and should strive to be. And while there are many parts about Canadian society that are measurably preferable, leftists in Canada find their country's glossy, socialist paradise image to be overblown and often a barrier to meaningful change.

This episode examines this tension, the reality versus perception, what we can learn from each other, and the common and existential thread we share of white settler-colonialism.

With guests Eriel Tchekwie Deranger of Indigenous Climate Action and writer Luke Savage.

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The Show

Episode transcript available here.

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The Guests

Luke Savage is a Toronto-based writer and political commentator. His work has appeared in Maisonneuve, Jacobin, Current Affairs and elsewhere. He works at the Broadbent Institute. Follow him @LukeWSavage.

Eriel Tchekwie Deranger is founding member and executive director of Indigenous Climate Action. Follow her at @erieltd.

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Citations Needed is available on iTunes, Soundcloud and LibSyn (here’s the RSS feed). You can also check us out on Twitter and Facebook.

***

Want More?

For further reading, show notes, a periodic newsletter, and more exclusive content, please visit our Patreon page and sign up to support the show!

***

Citations Needed is a media criticism podcast, hosted by Adam Johnson and Nima Shirazi, political commentators and media analysts working to call bullshit on (usually corporate) media’s ubiquitous reliance on and regurgitation of false and destructive narratives, tropes and stereotypes.

Citations Needed is produced by Florence Barrau-Adams. Our Production Consultant is Josh Kross. Our research assistant is Sophia Steinert-Evoy. Transcription by Morgan McAslan. The theme is ‘Nonphenomenal Lineage’ by Grandaddy.

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