
Blocked and Reported
Journalists Katie Herzog and Jesse Singal scour the internet for its craziest, silliest, most sociopathic content, part of an obsessive and ill-conceived attempt to extract kernels of meaning and humanity from a landscape of endless raging dumpster fires. www.blockedandreported.org
Latest episodes

Mar 8, 2021 • 1h 27min
Bonus Interview: Youth-Gender Clinician Dr. Erica Anderson
In a bonus interview episode, Jesse interviews Dr. Erica Anderson, a trans woman and Bay-Area-based gender clinician with years of experience working with transgender and gender nonconforming youth. The two discuss the white-hot debate over trans kids, including what comprehensive, compassionate assessment looks like in this field, and how clincians decide when a young person is ready for puberty blockers and/or hormones.Please consider ordering Jesse's book, The Quick Fix: Why Fad Psychology Can't Cure Our Social Ills: https://www.amazon.com/Quick-Fix-Psychology-Cant-Social/dp/0374239800/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr= Show notes/Links:Jesse's long article in The Atlantic about youth gender dysphoria: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2018/07/when-a-child-says-shes-trans/561749/ Dr. Erica Anderson's website: https://www.drericaanderson.com/ Her Tretter Transgender Oral History Project video: https://umedia.lib.umn.edu/item/p16022coll97:194?q=%22Tretter+Transgender+Oral+History+Project+Phase+2%22&sort=title_sort+asc%2C+date_created_sort+desc A Washington Post article quoting Dr. Anderson on the 'trendiness' aspect: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/when-kids-come-in-saying-they-are-transgender-or-no-gender-these-doctors-try-to-help/2018/01/19/f635e5fa-dac0-11e7-a841-2066faf731ef_story.html Jesse's newsletter quoting her on the folly of laws banning youth transition, but also the importance of comprehensive, competent care for TGNC youth: https://jessesingal.substack.com/p/why-the-hard-age-caps-on-youth-gender There's an insane amount of misinformatino on this subject: https://jessesingal.substack.com/p/a-response-to-foreign-policys-deeply Lisa Littman's rapid onset gender dysphoria study: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0202330 The World Professional Association for Transgender Health Standards of Care: https://www.wpath.org/publications/soc "In Which I Fail to Find You Any Gate-keeping" by Carey Callahan, a detransitioner: https://medium.com/@mariacatt42/in-which-i-fail-to-find-you-any-gate-keeping-622c447a835f "Gender identity is hard but jumping to medical solutions is worse" by Callahan: https://www.economist.com/open-future/2019/12/03/gender-identity-is-hard-but-jumping-to-medical-solutions-is-worse This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

Mar 7, 2021 • 45min
Episode 54: That Sinking, Racist Feeling When You've Lost The Newsroom (Early Access, Ad-Free)
Let's put a bow on this Donald McNeil Jr. story. McNeil has fired back with a 20,000-word opus about his travails trying to wrangle a group of young prep-schoolers with very strong feelings about social justice -- and without any booze! What did he really say? How did he say it? How did he handle the girl with the Latino/x boyfriend? Katie and Jesse also discuss media unionization and their exciting upcoming orthodontic endeavors.Show notes/Links:Donald McNeil Jr.'s Medium series: https://donaldgmcneiljr1954.medium.com/nytimes-peru-n-word-part-one-introduction-57eb6a3e0d95 The Daily Beast's original reporting: https://www.thedailybeast.com/star-new-york-times-reporter-donald-mcneil-accused-of-using-n-word-making-other-racist-comments This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

Feb 27, 2021 • 54min
Episode 53: Reply All And Mike Pesca And Smith College And Race And Race And Race
The liberal landscape is littered with race-related meltdowns. After a correction and an update to last week's Reply All episode, Katie and Jesse discuss Mike Pesca's suspension from Slate and a long, infuriating article in the New York Times about false accusations at Smith College.Reply All’s “The Confetti Cannon” episode:https://gimletmedia.com/shows/reply-all/dvh64gThe other side of the argument that Reply All got more political:https://www.reddit.com/r/replyallpodcast/comments/ju3ly4/hot_take_reply_all_is_not_getting_more_political/gca58cv?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3Fresh Air on the nature of the protest:https://www.npr.org/2021/02/25/971319812/reporters-video-from-inside-senate-on-jan-6-shows-a-crowd-prepared-for-violenceNY Times on Deadspin’s implosion: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/31/business/media/deadspin-was-a-good-website.htmlDefector’s story on Mike Pesca:https://defector.com/mike-pesca-slate-suspended/NY Times on Pesca:https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/22/business/media/slate-mike-pesca-suspended.html“Eschew the Taboo: The pernicious effects of banning words” by Christopher Hitchens:https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2006/12/hatred-will-always-outpace-linguistic-correctness.htmlTa-Nehisi Coates on use/mention:https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2010/11/to-conversate/66929/John McWhorter on use/mention:https://johnmcwhorter.substack.com/p/the-n-word-as-slur-vs-the-n-wordMargaret Sullivan with a confusing column:https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/media/mike-pesca-donald-mcneil-n-word-media/2021/02/24/fe89d010-76a1-11eb-8115-9ad5e9c02117_story.html?itid=ap_margaretsullivanStefan Fatsis on this debate in Slate alllllll the way back in 2020:https://slate.com/culture/2020/07/scrabble-offensive-words-ban-player-reaction.htmlThe episode of The Gist where Pesca mentions nonbinary pronouns:https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2019/07/acosta-out-emily-bazelon-charged-kamala-harris-gun-laws.htmlMichael Powell’s crazy story about Smith College:https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/24/us/smith-college-race.htmlThe ACLU ACLU-ing, hard:https://www.aclu.org/blog/racial-justice/race-and-criminal-justice/smith-college-overhauls-policing-practices-after-blackCathy Young on the "Napping Whilte Black" story at Yale, which was significantly more complicated:https://thebulwark.com/standing-up-to-the-moral-outrage-industry/ Jodi Shaw's latter, as published by Bari Weiss:https://bariweiss.substack.com/p/whistleblower-at-smith-college-resigns Katie on disappearing lesbians:https://andrewsullivan.substack.com/p/where-have-all-the-lesbians-gone-0a7 Glenn Greenwald on his experience "trending as a transphobe and biphobe":https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXXJoOsdoNE&feature=youtu.be&ab_channel=GlennGreenwald This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

Feb 19, 2021 • 1h 7min
Episode 52: Reply All Is Melting Down Like Some Sort Of Delectable Queso Dip Appropriated By A White Bon Appetit Editor
Hoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo boy. Reply All, an excellent podcast, is melting down. What happened? What does it have to do with Bon Apetit? Why does new keep breaking immediately after Jesse and Katie record an episode? Show notes/Links:Jesse on his rejection:https://twitter.com/jessesingal/status/1361125261220196356A couple great episodes of Reply All:The Case of the Missing Hit: https://gimletmedia.com/shows/reply-all/o2h8bxShine On You Crazy Goldmanhttps://gimletmedia.com/shows/reply-all/2oh933/44-shine-on-you-crazy-goldmanAdam Rapaport resigns (not fired, like Jesse says):https://www.npr.org/2020/06/09/872697289/chief-editor-at-bon-app-tit-resigns-after-racially-offensive-photo-surfacesTest Kitchen episodes of Reply All:https://gimletmedia.com/shows/reply-all/dvhzkdo/172-the-test-kitchen-chapter-1https://gimletmedia.com/shows/reply-all/awheda3/173-the-test-kitchen-chapter-2Eric Eddings' thread denouncing Reply All's alleged toxicity:https://twitter.com/eeddings/status/1361789128006897668 Everyone reflexively agreeing with it without knowing whether it is 100% true:https://twitter.com/eeddings/status/1361789128006897668/retweets/with_comments PJ Vogt's apology:https://twitter.com/PJVogt/status/1362233699220258818Sruthi Pinnamaneni's:https://twitter.com/sruthiri/status/1362254842270519296FdB is not A-OK with NYC (media): https://fredrikdeboer.com/2021/02/15/scott-alexander-is-not-in-the-gizmodo-media-slack This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

Feb 13, 2021 • 43min
Episode 51: [Yoda Voice:] Cancelled, You Are
Should Gina Carano have been fired from her job on the hit Star Wars show "A Candalabra" for being a dumb conservative with Boomerlike posting tendencies? The whole crew gets together to discuss. Also, Katie talks about her relationship with an old Trump supporter and Jesse looks back fondly on his grad-school trip to Israel and Palestine that solved that conflict once and for all.Show notes/Links: Bret Stephens in the New York... Post???????: https://nypost.com/2021/02/11/read-the-column-the-new-york-times-didnt-want-you-read/Haywire trailer aka Gina Carano waiing on dudes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OpffbDjWlog&ab_channel=MovieclipsTrailersThe redubbing incident: https://www.slashfilm.com/gina-carano-confirms-voice-altered-haywire/ Robby Soave on Carano: https://reason.com/2021/02/11/disney-cancels-the-mandalorian-star-gina-carano-over-provocative-social-media-posts/ Deadline: https://deadline.com/2021/02/mandalorian-gina-carano-lucas-film-responds-to-controversial-statement-1234691898/The "anti-Semitic" post that clearly isn't: https://twitter.com/jessesingal/status/1359701663901245442The Freedom for Humanity mural Carano eventually posted a version of: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_for_HumanityA Carano-sympathetic take: https://www.eviemagazine.com/post/people-are-trying-to-cancel-gina-carano-for-what-exactly/Jesse in Ramallah, solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict via the healing power of sport: This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

Feb 11, 2021 • 1h 5min
BONUS: Two More New York Times Departures Raise Some Troubling Questions About Disrespect Of Peruvian Shamans
Jesse and Katie talk about a disturbing bit of listener feedback and the recent departures from the Times, under questionable circumstances, of Andy Mills and Donald McNeil Jr. Are the worst norms of campus culture seeping into major media institutions? To hear the answer, you'll have to listen. (It's 'yes.')(Correction: At around 8:00 in the recording, Jesse originally referred to Rukmini Callamachi as a "woman of color." She isn't one. The error has been snipped out and free listeners will never hear it. Jesse apologizes for the misracing. Also, race is a poisonous fiction.)Show notes/Links:The Cut on Andy Mills: https://www.thecut.com/2018/02/at-wnyc-an-uncertain-path-out-of-scandal.htmlHis resignation note: https://www.andymills.work/resignation The Times on both resignations: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/05/business/media/donald-mcneil-andy-mills-leave-nyt.html John McWhorter is skeptical of collapsing the use/mention distinction: https://johnmcwhorter.substack.com/p/the-n-word-as-slur-vs-the-n-wordNHJ not great on anonymous sources...: https://twitter.com/jessesingal/status/1358780440774082561 ...or the question of whether the NYT has published "that word" much: https://twitter.com/jessesingal/status/1358781725652975618 Because it has: https://rb.gy/pm6bpc This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

Feb 6, 2021 • 1h 5min
Episode 50: Could Detransitioners Be Any More Bigoted? (With Detransitioner Carey Callahan)
After Jesse tells Katie a touching story about shoveling food into his face-hole, and the hosts discuss his latest Twitter-feud -- this one with a noted New Yorker food critic (not staff writer) -- the hosts discuss a Slate article about detransition that seems geared at painting that communtiy in a particularly negative and reactionary light. But Cary Callahan, a detransitioner, therapist, and activist (who, to be fair, Katie and Jesse already knew before this all popped up), doesn't think this is a fair assessment, so she joins the pod for a conversation about her own experiences and what she thinks the Slate article misses.Show notes/Links:Jesse criticizes Helen: https://twitter.com/jessesingal/status/1354851768090439684 Helen's thoughtful response forces Jesse to reconsider his position: https://twitter.com/jessesingal/status/1355200463029874693 https://twitter.com/jessesingal/status/1355974150129655813 The Slate article about detransitioners: https://slate.com/human-interest/2021/02/detransition-movement-star-ex-gay-explained.html Katie's detrans article: https://www.thestranger.com/features/2017/06/28/25252342/the-detransitioners-they-were-transgender-until-they-werent Jesse's detrans article: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2018/07/when-a-child-says-shes-trans/561749/ Carey Callahan's excellent stuff:Twitter: https://twitter.com/CareyCallsBS The Economist: https://www.economist.com/open-future/2019/12/03/gender-identity-is-hard-but-jumping-to-medical-solutions-is-worse Medium:https://medium.com/@mariacatt42/in-which-i-fail-to-find-you-any-gate-keeping-622c447a835f https://medium.com/@mariacatt42/how-to-do-your-own-differential-diagnosis-and-why-its-total-b******t-that-you-would-have-to-461077985659 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

Jan 29, 2021 • 51min
Episode 49: It's Unbelievable That Glenn Greenwald Fired A New York Times Editor Just For Getting The Chills
After Katie tells Jesse about a very disturbing dream she had about him, the hosts perform some valuable service journalism by explaining to listeners the nature of stonks and bons and hedge funs. Then they turn their attention to the story of Lauren Wolfe, a New York Times gig-editor who was fired after tweeting that watching Joe Biden's plane land gave her the 'chills.' Fair? Unfair? Inconsistently applied standards? Lot to unpack.Show notes/Links:STONKS:https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stonks https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2021/01/the-complete-morons-guide-to-gamestops-stock-roller-coaster/Lauren Wolfe:Yashar Ali's thread: https://twitter.com/yashar/status/1352471654425743361 Josh Shahryar's thread: https://twitter.com/JShahryar/status/1353142366656372741 Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/01/25/lauren-wolfe-tweet-nyt-dismissal/ Vanity Fair: https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2021/01/inside-the-new-york-times-firing-of-lauren-wolfe Yascha Mounk on the firing of David Shor: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/06/stop-firing-innocent/613615/ Katie on Jack Smith IV: https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2018/09/28/33049349/a-progressive-writer-was-bad-boyfriend-and-then-he-was-fired-for-it This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

Jan 23, 2021 • 55min
Episode 48: Ethan Watters On The Latest Skirmish In The Never-Ending Memory Wars
Katie and Jesse bring on Ethan Watters, an author and freelance journalist who helped debunk the recovered-memory craze back in the 1990s, to discuss the most recent development in that area: an article in The Cut that Watters does not think does a good and accurate job relating the (scant) scientific evidence for recovered memories. The hosts and Watters also discuss certain arguable therapeutic parallels between the recovered-memory movement and treatment for youth gender dysphoria, as well as the general tendency of liberals to violate their "We <3 Science" stance fairly regulary when moral outrage is afoot.Show notes/Links:The Cut article in question: https://www.thecut.com/article/false-memory-syndrome-controversy.htmlAnd the podcast: https://www.thecut.com/2021/01/the-cut-podcast-the-truth-about-false-memories.htmlEthan's books:Making Monsters: False Memories, Psychotherapy, And Sexual Hysteria: https://www.amazon.com/Making-Monsters-Memories-Psychotherapy-Hysteria/dp/0520205839 Crazy Like Us: The Globalization of the American Psyche: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Crazy-Like-Us/Ethan-Watters/9781416587095 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

Jan 17, 2021 • 56min
Episode 47: Should Ben Shapiro Be Deplatformed? Andy Ngo Way!
After Jesse addresses the totally baseless rumor that he went to Yale Law School, the best law school in the country, where (in this false scenario) he got very good grades, the hosts talk a bit more about online content moderation and then discuss two recent stories about controversial right-wing media figures: the backfired attempt to deplatform Andy Ngo's book, and the widespread outrage among Politico employees that Ben Shapiro was allowed to author an edition of the Playbook newsletter.Please pre-preorder Jesse's book, The Quick Fix, if you can: https://www.amazon.com/Quick-Fix-Psychology-Cant-Social/dp/0374239800/Show Notes/Links:NY Mag: Why Deplatforming Might Be Useless — Or Worse — When It Comes to Preventing Right-Wing Violence - https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/01/why-deplatforming-might-be-bad-answer-to-right-wing-violence.htmlABC News: Powell's Books says Andy Ngo's book will not be in store - https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/powells-books-andy-ngos-book-store-75239210NY Post: Inside The Suspicious Rise Of Gay Hate Crimes In Portland - https://nypost.com/2019/03/30/inside-the-suspicious-rise-of-gay-hate-crimes-in-portland/UnHerd: The Antifa thugs shame America - https://unherd.com/2021/01/the-antifa-thugs-shame-america/NY Times: The Events Leading to the Shooting of Trayvon Martin - http://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/04/02/us/the-events-leading-to-the-shooting-of-trayvon-martin.htmlBen Shapiro's Politico Playbook: https://www.politico.com/newsletters/playbook/2021/01/14/the-real-reason-most-republicans-opposed-impeachment-491399NY Times: Politico Staff Objects After Right-Wing Star Ben Shapiro Writes Newsletter - https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/14/business/media/politico-playbook-ben-shapiro.htmlWashington Post: Politico’s revolt over Ben Shapiro guest-hosting Playbook went too far - https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/01/15/politicos-revolt-over-ben-shapiro-guest-hosting-playbook-went-too-far/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe