Marianna in Conspiracyland

Meet Camille and ‘Wild Mother’. Both women love nature, animals, and the outdoors. Both women also believe the assassination attempts on Donald Trump were staged – but have very different political views. Why do people believe the things they do? And what role do social media sites – and their algorithms – play? In this series, BBC disinformation and social media correspondent Marianna Spring travels to the United States to investigate the social media backdrop to the 2024 presidential election and explore the different ways in which what is happening online is influencing the campaign offline. Marianna starts her journey in Colorado, looking at how conspiracy theories have spread so far across the political spectrum in the US. She interrogates the consequences for Camille, ‘Wild Mother’, and the upcoming election. Host: Marianna Spring Producer: Daniel Wittenberg Story Editor: Matt Willis Editor: Sam Bonham Commissioning Editor: Rhian Roberts Sound Designer: Tony Churnside Production Co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

For the second series of BBC Radio 4’s Why Do You Hate Me, disinformation and social media correspondent Marianna Spring heads to the USA. She investigates the social media backdrop to the presidential election, interrogating different online phenomena and cases of hate – looking at how they could potentially influence the way people vote.Marianna travels from Colorado to Baltimore and New York, tracking down both those harmed and causing harm on social media. She investigates everything from extreme hate targeting officials and students, to online fandoms, deepfakes and corrosive conspiracy theories.Over five episodes, she uncovers why people behave the way they do on social media during a heated presidential race. Each episode exposes the real-world consequences of what happens in this online world and its potential impact on society and democracy.

Marianna investigates online abuse targeting Eni Aluko and tracks down one of her trolls.In this series, Why Do You Hate Me?, Marianna Spring delves into her inbox to investigate extraordinary cases of online hate like this one. She meets the people at the heart of the conflicts, to see if understanding – even forgiveness is possible.In this episode, she speaks to former footballer Eni Aluko and investigates the wave of online abuse directed at her. Marianna tracks down one of the people behind the abusive messages to understand why they do it.If you have been affected by some of the issues raised in this programme, please visit bbc.co.uk/actionline.Host: Marianna Spring Producer: Ben Carter Editor: Sam Bonham Commissioning editor: Rhian Roberts Sound Engineer: Neil Churchill Production co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

The Premier League has told the BBC it’s fighting a rise in social media threats against both its players and their families, with a team dedicated to hunting down online trolls. The BBC’s Disinformation and social media correspondent Marianna Spring goes inside the team for the first time, talks to striker Neal Maupay about social media abuse - and tracks down the man they helped convict for threatening him.In this series, Why Do You Hate Me?, Marianna delves into her inbox to investigate extraordinary cases of online hate like this one. She meets the people at the heart of the conflicts, and in some cases brings them together, to see if understanding – even forgiveness – is ever possible.Subscribe to BBC Sounds to hear the episodes first. And watch the episodes on BBC iPlayer too.If you have been affected by some of the issues raised in this programme, please visit bbc.co.uk/actionline.Host: Marianna Spring Producer: Ben Carter
 Editor: Sam Bonham
 Commissioning editor: Rhian Roberts Sound Engineer: Neil Churchill Production co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

Last November, a faked audio clip of London's mayor went viral. Marianna Spring talks to Sadiq Khan about the impact it had and tracks down it's suspected creator.The clip used artificial intelligence to create a replica of Mr Khan's voice saying words scripted by the faker, disparaging Remembrance weekend with an expletive and calling for pro-Palestinian marches to take precedence.In this series, Why Do You Hate Me?, Marianna Spring delves into her inbox to investigate extraordinary cases of online hate like this one. She meets the people at the heart of the conflicts, and in some cases brings them together, to see if understanding – even forgiveness – is ever possible.Subscribe to BBC Sounds to hear the episodes first. And watch the episodes on BBC iPlayer too. If you have been affected by some of the issues raised in this programme, please visit bbc.co.uk/actionline.Host: Marianna Spring Producer: Ben Carter
 Editor: Sam Bonham
 Commissioning editor: Rhian Roberts Sound Engineer: Tom Brignell Production co-ordinator: Rosie Strawbridge

Marianna Spring talks to a survivor of the mass shooting in Las Vegas in 2017 about how posts on a social media account made him question an event he’d witnessed with his own eyesListen to more episodes of Why Do You Hate Me on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts. For this series, Marianna Spring (one of the most trolled BBC journalists) dives into her inbox and investigates a different extraordinary case of online hate to find out. She meets the people at the heart of these conflicts, and in some cases brings them together, to see if understanding - even forgiveness - is ever possible. Subscribe to BBC Sounds to hear the episodes first.And watch the episodes on BBC iPlayer too. If you have been affected by online abuse, please visit bbc.co.uk/actionlineHost: Marianna Spring Producer: Ben Carter
Editor: Sam Bonham
 Commissioning editor: Rhian Roberts Sound Engineer: Tom Brignell Production co-ordinator: Rosie StrawbridgeCellphone footage courtesy of Lindsay Sherk

When Julia Wandelt posted on social media that she believed she was Madeleine McCann, she became a lightning rod for online anger. In the first of a new series exploring extraordinary cases of online hate and the possibility of forgiveness, Marianna Spring, the BBC's Disinformation and social media correspondent, speaks to Julia about her motives and regrets. Listen to more episodes of Why Do You Hate Me on BBC Sounds or wherever you get your podcasts. For this series, Marianna Spring (one of the most trolled BBC journalists) dives into her inbox and investigates a different extraordinary case of online hate to find out. She meets the people at the heart of these conflicts, and in some cases brings them together, to see if understanding - even forgiveness - is ever possible. Subscribe to BBC Sounds to hear the episodes first.And watch the episodes on BBC iPlayer too. If you have been affected by some of the issues raised in this programme, please visit bbc.co.uk/actionline. Host: Marianna Spring Producer: Ben Carter
 Editor: Sam Bonham
Commissioning editor: Rhian Roberts Sound Engineer: Tom Brignell Production co-ordinator: Rosie StrawbridgeArchive credits: Peteski Productions distributed through CBS Media Ventures.

The online world can be a breeding ground for hate. But why do some people behave the way they do on social media? In each episode, the BBC's Disinformation and social media correspondent Marianna Spring - one of the most trolled BBC journalists - dives into her inbox and investigates a different extraordinary case of online hate to find out. She meets the people at the heart of these conflicts, and in some cases brings them together, to see if understanding - even forgiveness - is ever possible. Producers: Emma Close and Ben Carter Commissioning Editor: Rhian Roberts Editor: Sam Bonham

Marianna travels to Dublin to investigate a court case unfolding against the Irish Light conspiracy theory newspaper. Edel Campbell and her lawyer have been targeted by an extreme campaign of abuse after suing The Light which falsely claimed Edel’s son Diego died from a Covid vaccine, when in reality he had died by suicide. Conspiracy theorists worldwide have used dozens of tragic deaths to spread vaccine misinformation. This case is thought to be the first where a relative has sued. And what is the cost of taking action like this?

In this bonus episode, the BBC’S International Editor Jeremy Bowen and Disinformation and Social Media Correspondent Marianna Spring talk about their respective new podcasts: Frontlines of Journalism and Marianna in Conspiracyland. They reflect on the obstacles that stand between journalists and the truth and the conspiracy theory movement that seems to have boomed in the UK after Covid. Exploring the similarities and differences of their journalistic specialisms, they discuss techniques to hold interviewees to account – especially when their position is based on disinformation - and the significance of social media in modern journalism.Host: Marianna Spring Producer: Georgia Catt Producer for BBC Radio 4 podcasts: Nathan Jones Senior news editor: Sam Bonham Commissioner: Rhian Roberts