Listen to If Then by clicking the arrow on the audio player below:
On this week’s If Then, Slate’s April Glaser and Will Oremus puncture the hype around Vero, the new social network that has people fleeing Instagram and Facebook. They discuss how conspiracy theories after the Parkland, Florida, massacre bubbled to the top of YouTube’s search results. Will’s “Don’t Close My Tabs” looks at the controversy over how Facebook charges for campaign ads, after a Wired report showed that Trump faced much lower rates than Clinton in the 2016 presidential election. And FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn joins the show to talk about net neutrality, the upcoming Sinclair merger, sky-high prison phone rates, and what the Federal Communications Commission is doing to help restore communications post–Hurricane Maria.
Stories discussed on the show:
Slate: Why Is Vero Going Viral?
Slate: YouTube Is Struggling to Deal With the Conspiracy Theory Videos That Flood the Site
Don’t Close My Tabs:
Wired: How Trump Conquered Facebook—Without Russian Ads
An Uber driver’s playlists: @TEEJUS
Podcast production by Max Jacobs.
If Then plugs:
You can get updates about what’s coming up next by following us on Twitter @ifthenpod. You can follow Will @WillOremus and April @Aprilaser. If you have a question or comment, you can email us at ifthen@slate.com.
If Then is presented by Slate and Future Tense, a collaboration among Arizona State University, New America, and Slate. Future Tense explores the ways emerging technologies affect society, policy, and culture. To read more, follow us on Twitter and sign up for our weekly newsletter.
