"Facebook’s Zuckerberg backs online political ad regulations forwarded by Sen. Amy Klobuchar," reported the Associated Press in 2018. "CEO Sam Bankman-Fried says crypto needs to embrace regulation," announced Business Insider in 2021. "AI leaders: Please regulate us," read an Axios headline in 2023.

In recent years, major U.S. companies, especially in the tech industry, have given new life to a longstanding corporate PR strategy: self-regulation. It's a common tactic. After a scandal — say, revelations about pollution, rampant scams, or large-scale invasions of privacy — corporations rebrand as repentant and disciplined, ready to pay their debts to society and embrace the public good. "No need for oppressive and overly burdensome regulation", they insist, "we can handle it ourselves."

This, of course, isn't the real intention. Historically, this corporate voluntarism has generated little more than a few cosmetic reforms, if that, and allowed the continuation of business as usual in every industry from slavery to oil to tobacco to crypto, save for the occasional sacrificial lamb. So why, and how, do media keep assuring their audiences that, This Time, It's Different? That this time corporate America has learned its lesson and can be trusted to regulate itself?

On this episode, we examine the centuries-old damage-control strategy of industry self-regulation, looking at how corporate claims of self-policing, aided by news media, buy time and goodwill while concealing an agenda of weakening pre-existing regulations, manipulating new laws to the benefit of the private sector, or, often, preventing regulation altogether. Our guest is the Revolving Door Project's assistant director Timi Iwayemi.

Episode 224: Corporate Self-Regulation and the Fine Art of 'Preempting" Public Outrage

Episode 225: How US Media Frames Democracy that Actually Helps People as "Buying Votes"

We start off this week with some light discussion regarding a few items in the news lately, then pivot to a more serious discussion expanding on Monday's Patreon episode about the ongoing catastrophe and genocide in Gaza. We end with a lighthearted but still somewhat concerning article about a new AI school in Texas.

Support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/trillbillyworkersparty

Episode 403: War Boy Academy

In this News Brief, we detail recent "updates," "clarifications" and "added context" pro-Israel crybullies pressure Western media outlets to make (some more willingly than others) that give readers the distinct impression emaciated children in Gaza aren't really an urgent humanitarian problem if they have rickets, cancer, or cerebral palsy.  With guest Beatrice Adler-Bolton. 

News Brief: NYT, BBC, Guardian: Starvation in Gaza Doesn't Really Count if Victim Has Preexisting Condition

This week we're taking a look at Trump's health scare, Florida ending vaccine mandates, dog autism, the impending recession, and an article in Politico about the inevitable AI doomsday 

Support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/trillbillyworkersparty

Episode 408: Scared Straight For Nukes (w/ special guest Mina Parkison)

Liv, Travis, and Jake discuss the continuing fallout from Charlie Kirk's assassination and new details from Tyler Robinson's charging document.

Thanks for subscribing to QAA on patreon.

Check out our new podcast series network Cursed Media and binge the entirety of our new show Science in Transition by Liv Agar and Spencer Barrows: https://cursedmedia.net

Editing by Corey Klotz. Theme by Nick Sena. Additional music by Pontus Berghe. Theme Vocals by THEY/LIVE (https://instagram.com/theyylivve / https://sptfy.com/QrDm). Cover Art by Pedro Correa: (https://pedrocorrea.com)

https://qaapodcast.com

QAA was known as the QAnon Anonymous podcast.

See You In Valhalla, Charlie (E341)

Ep 228 - Billionaires as Insta-Experts: How Our Media Conflates Extreme Wealth with Expertise

Catching up on the latest news after a brief hiatus: Charlie Kirk memorial and everything therein; Kamala's new book about the 2024 election; and debating whether or not democracy really can survive

Support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/trillbillyworkersparty

Episode 411: Awakening The Warrior Spirit

Like many things, there used to be a bipartisan consensus that in a disaster, you help as many people get through it as quickly and safely as possible. In the past 20+ years, though, we’ve seen a shift in how the right responds to climate catastrophes — including building out a robust selection of conspiracy theories from chemtrails to Flat Earth. Will Menaker from Chapo Trap House joins us to discuss right-wing conspiracy theories about the weather, the climate, and whether we’re living on a discworld.

Our guest is Will Menaker, host of Chapo Trap House. Their Movie Mindset series returns in October for spooky season, and you can also buy their new Year Zero comic book here: https://badegg.co/products/year-zero-1. 

Want even more Panic World content? Like ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and access to our Discord? There’s still a week left to get your first month for just $0.50 by signing up for our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/PanicWorld. Enter “PANICYEAR” at checkout for 90% the first month.

And if you want to see this conversation on video, ⁠Panic World is now posting episodes to YouTube!

PANIC WORLD: The Big Dumb Weather Conspiracy with Chapo Trap House

Drop Site’s Ryan Grim and Jeremy Scahill return to talk more about the ceasefire deal in Gaza. We discuss what finally led to this moment, whether this ceasefire will be any different than the previous ones, and the future of Gaza, Israel, and the Gulf States. We then turn to the media’s coverage of Gaza: Jeremy’s new story on The Free Press’ “debunking” of the photos of malnourished Gazan children, the news that Douglas Murray and David Frum were writing speeches for an Israeli ambassador, a supposed document from Mohammad Sinwar, and Jacki Karsh’s pro-Israel journalism fellowship.

Subscribe to Drop Site here: https://www.dropsitenews.com/ 

NEW MERCH IS OUT NOW! Go to https://chapotraphouse.store/ and buy a new hat or shirt, especially our great new “Carousel Club” design.

AND be sure to pre-save the date of October 28 for Will and Hesse’s LIVE WATCH PARTY of Re-Animator! Tickets available now – use the promo code CHAPO20 for 20% off! https://checkout.stagepilot.com/collections/chapo-trap-house 

977 - The Next Day feat. Ryan Grim and Jeremy Scahill

Unfortunately we had to discuss the gooning article in Harper's. From there we went on to talk about the growing "China envy" among Silicon Valley's tech elite, Draft King's entry onto Wall Street, how China's approach to AI differs from America's approach to AI, and, finally, why so many pundits still think that centrism is the best way to engage with politics

Support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/trillbillyworkersparty

Episode 415: A World Of Thieves

Citations Needed is a podcast about the media, power, PR, and the history of bullshit. It is hosted by Nima Shirazi and Adam Johnson, and produced by Florence Barrau-Adams.

Ep 228 - Billionaires as Insta-Experts: How Our Media Conflates Extreme Wealth with Expertise

Citations Needed Podcast