The Cambridge Analytica Scandal involves data science being described as potent black magic, claims of psychological voter manipulation in swing states, micro-targeting, secret meetings, massive amounts of stolen data and a seemingly nefarious plan to use Brexit as a blueprint and catapult Donald Trump into the White House. But we’re here to tell you that the existing and broadly accepted narrative often reads more like a conspiracy theory. We are joined by guest writer Anthony Mansuy, a French reporter for Society Magazine, who in this first of two parts helps us tell the tale of a social media behemoth, a libertarian hedge fund billionaire, a sketchy political consulting firm, Donald Trump, Steve Bannon, and a host of Russian figures.

For this two-parter, Anthony conducted months of research and forty exclusive interviews. You’ll be hearing from Cambridge Analytica employees, data scientists, former Obama, Trump and Cruz campaign staffers, as well as friends and associates of Chris Wylie. There's also a long interview with Wylie himself and even one with Steve Bannon, who Anthony tracked down in Rome in 2018, just after the scandal broke.

The evidence lays out how Wylie spread numerous fabrications and exaggerations to minimize his contribution to the development of Cambridge Analytica's tools and conceal the true causes of his departure from the organization. More importantly, Wylie capitalized on the deepest fears held by the liberal media about the far-right, social media, and Russia; allowing him to craft the perfect narrative to fit the political moment — one that persists to this day.

Subscribe for $5 a month to get an extra episode of QAA every week + access to ongoing series like 'Manclan' and 'Trickle Down': http://www.patreon.com/QAnonAnonymous

Anthony Mansuy: https://twitter.com/AnthonyMansuy
Les Dissidents (Anthony's book): https://bit.ly/3jgCFfK

Merch: http://merch.qanonanonymous.com

Music by Pontus Berghe and Nick Sena. Editing by Corey Klotz.

Episode 213: Rewriting Cambridge Analytica (P1) feat Anthony Mansuy

Conspiracy theories, melted online communities and cursed media — we pry open the cracks in consensus reality and journey into the hidden worlds below. The QAA Podcast is a mix of reporting, comedy, and history hosted by Jake Rockatansky, Travis View, and Julian Feeld along with co-hosts Annie Kelly, Liv Agar and Brad Abrahams. Formerly known as the QAnon Anonymous podcast.