NO SUCH THING

Today’s episode was inspired by a question from a listener who goes by Santa: What’s the deal with First Amendment auditors? We trace the history of people who film the police, from the Black Panther Party to Berkeley Copwatch and the rise of auditor culture on YouTube. We also explore the methods and influence of some of the movement’s biggest creators, from Philip Turner (The Battousai) to Jeff Gray of HonorYourOath Civil Rights Investigations and Christopher Ruff (Direct D).
Our guests are Robert Klemko, an investigative journalist at ESPN who previously reported on auditors and cop watchers for The Washington Post, and Dale Hiller, creator of the LackLuster YouTube channel and co-founder of Attorney Shield.
If you’re new here, listen to episode 28: Inside the violent world of online pedophile hunters and check out our NST starter pack.
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On today's episode of NO SUCH THING, we’re talking about so-called “Super Agers,” the term used to describe people who are at least 80 years old, but are still sharp as a tack. Maury Povich. Joy Behar. Anthony Fauci. Bernie Sanders. Martha Stewart. There are a ton of octogenarians who are cognitively impressive. Of course, there are many who… aren’t. What differentiates these two groups?
A groundbreaking new study endeavors to answer that question, and in today’s episode, we talked to one of the study’s authors, and to one of the super-agers in question.
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New data shows that less than half of American newborn boys are circumcised, a major decrease from around 90% in the 1960s. But how and why did circumcision become so common here in the United States? This week, we speak to an epidemiologist, a sociologist, and an anti-circumcision “intactivist” to explore the origins of the procedure, its health impacts, and why attitudes around it are changing.
Our guests this week are Johns Hopkins epidemiologist Dr. Kate Grabowski, Vanderbilt University associate professor of sociology Laura Carpenter, and Intact America founding executive Georganne Chapin.
NOTE: Due to time restraints, not everything can make it into the final episode. We tried our best to represent all sides of the issue fairly and respectfully. With that said, some claims around the African VMMC trials in particular may be misleading. To clarify: these trials produced high quality peer-reviewed studies documenting medical benefits, particularly in relation to HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. They were also conducted in partnership with some of the world’s most respected African scientists and research institutions. They are not simply colonial interventions.
For additional information, please go to our newsletter to find links to research and more. NST has no particular agenda here, so please take a look at all the info yourself to decide what’s best for you.
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On today’s episode, we’re tackling a question from a listener named Joel: Why do singers lose their accents when they sing?
Our guest this week is New Yorker writer Kelefa Sanneh. In this wide-ranging conversation, we explore identity in country music, why Taylor Swift stopped singing with a twang, how Drake changed the way people think about authenticity in hip-hop, and why Adele and Harry Styles don’t sound British when they sing.
Want to hear all the music from this episode? Check out our newsletter for a playlist.
Check out Kelefa’s book Major Labels: A History of Popular Music in Seven Genres
If you’re new here, listen to episode 36: Is Taylor Swift bigger than Michael Jackson? and check out our NST starter pack.
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This week’s topic came from a listener who asked if micromanaging is a more productive work-style than a more “free range” approach. We talk about our own work experiences, and answer a few other miscellaneous work questions about performance improvement plans (“PIPs”), handling an incompetent boss, office odors, and more.
Our guest this week is Erik Baker, historian at Harvard, editor at The Drift, and author of Make Your Own Job: How the Entrepreneurial Work Ethic Exhausted America, who walks us through the history of the corporate work structure and evolution of management styles.
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