KPFA - Project Censored

Mickey recently sat down with the second director of Project Censored and co-founder of this program, Dr. Peter Phillips, professor emeritus of political sociology from Sonoma State University, who edited 14 editions of the Project’s annual book and author of Giants: The Global Power Elite and Titans of Capital. They spoke about the history of Project Censored, how censorship has changed and grown, remaining a fixture a society that purports to cherish press freedoms and free speech. Peter shared some stories of his times at the Project, and from the times of his predecessor, the founder of Project Censored, Dr. Carl Jensen, who launched the Project as a college class in 1976. Next up, Mickey spoke with the publisher of The Progressive Magazine, Norman Stockwell. Stockwell is a veteran of independent media, including in broadcasting. Stockwell reviews how he and other independent journalists utilized emerging technologies to get their stories to the public when corporate media couldn’t be bothered to report…

First up, Eleanor sits down with journalist and political economist Ben Norton to discuss the economy, in particular how workers wages have plummeted to levels not seen since the Great Depression. Whats behind this? And what does it have to do with the gold standard? Ben also explains the AI bubble and how the coming recession will be different from the one that we lived through in 2008. Finally, Eleanor and Ben talk about the failed trade war with China, and why US corporations are falling over each other to make nice with the country most maligned by Trumps economic agenda. Next up, human rights advocate Gimena Sanchez-Garzoli comes back on the program to give her expert analysis on the Lula win in Brazil. Gimena outlines US meddling tactics and why that matters for us voters here at home. Gimena also dissects the power of the right-wings propaganda, the new job market in stealing and selling a hemisphere, and how Colombia is censoring the past to control the future. The News That Didn’t Make the News.…

First up, I sit down with author, podcast host and organizer Lawrence Grandpre to talk about the important distinction between local and independent media. We also discuss the fallacy of objectivity, and the propagandistic and nuanced tactics that dehumanize and flatten – from Baltimore to Palestine. Lawrence and I dig into the importance of community-based media in not just informing but in connecting people with their political agency, and how solidarity means understanding our different lived experiences, not trying to monotone or oversimplify them. We can handle complex ideas, situations, and struggles – and a lot of that starts with critical media literacy. Next up, I sit down with Tianna Jameswhite, the Editor-in-Chief of Morgan State Universitys student led newspaper, The Spokesman. Tianna talks about how media portrays Black youth, highlighting how often we hear about them, without hearing from them. They talk about the over-policing of Black communities that crosses over into Black colleges and…

First up, Eleanor sits down with writer and journalist Madeline Peltz to talk about trad wives – the far rights answer to the girl boss who has it all. But what if having it all just means doing it all? We can see why many would exchange that myth for another. Madeline digs into some of the tactics that the far-right uses, and what could we learn from it all. If instead of dismissing it out of hand, we listen, and reach to the root causes and failures that push women to seek refuge in the places that dehumanize them the most, we might actually collectively get somewhere. Given the rise in book challenges and bans in the US the past few years, Banned Books Week should be extended to every week. Building on the BBW work PC has done already this year, Mickey sat down and spoke to Kasey Meehan, Director, Freedom to Read at PEN America, to discuss her recent coauthored report, A Spotlight on School Book Bans, published in time for BBW. The News That Didn’t Make the News. Each week, co-hosts Mickey Huff and…

First up this week, journalist Stephanie Koithan comes back on the program to give updates from the Lone Start State – and how whats going on in Texas should be viewed as a canary in the coal mine for where the nation as a whole is headed. Stephanie talks about how ICE is adapting to a dissenting climate, and how big tech is finding nefarious loopholes around data center moratoriums. She also highlights the importance of local independent media in facilitating political agency and engagement. Next up, Mosaab Baba joins the program again to give updates on Sudan one year out from the RSF attacks on El Fasher. Mosaab outlines the compounding oppressions and violences facing the Sudanese people, and how the war on Iran has changed regional politics. The News That Didn’t Make the News. Each week, co-hosts Mickey Huff and Eleanor Goldfield conduct in depth interviews with their guests and offer hard hitting commentary on the key political, social, and economic issues of the day with an emphasis on critical media…

Gwynne Hogan is a senior reporter at THE CITY covering immigration, homelessness, and many things in between. Abby Martin is an American journalist, television presenter, and activist. She helped found the citizen journalism website Media Roots and serves on the board of directors for the Media Freedom Foundation which manages Project Censored. Wikipedia Gus Bova is the editor-in-chief of the Texas Observer. Loren Lynch is the executive director of the Texas Observer Jeff Cohen was the founding Director of the Park Center for Independent Media The News That Didn’t Make the News. Each week, co-hosts Mickey Huff and Eleanor Goldfield conduct in depth interviews with their guests and offer hard hitting commentary on the key political, social, and economic issues of the day with an emphasis on critical media literacy. The post Fund Drive Special – 2026 Izzy Awards Acceptance Speeches appeared first on KPFA.

First up, Trumps dictators toolkit and how we got here. Eleanor sits down with journalist, researcher and policy director of Defending Rights & Dissent Chip Gibbons to talk about the NSPM-7, the latest in a long line of attacks on our basic constitutional rights. Chip warns that we should neither look at this as a new phenomenon in US history nor should we be flippant about the severity of Trumps escalation. By looking at history we can contextualize our current moment and understand more of what the government is thinking with regards to our rights, our movements, and our future. Next up, cohosts Mickey Huff and Eleanor Goldfield sit down to dig into some news that didnt make the news, focusing on attacks on journalists and academic freedom. They outline how Congress is blackmailing universities to swear loyalty to Israel, the myriad attacks on journalists abroad and at home, and how DHS is using a customs law to obtain the private data and correspondence of journalists, non-profits and unions. They also…

First up, Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR) celebrates their 40th anniversary this fall. Mickey is joined by founder Jeff Cohen, Janine Jackson and Olivia Riggio as they talk about their history, their contribution to media criticism and media literacy and why FAIR still matters after 40 years. Next, media scholar Nolan Higdon discusses his latest piece Unmasking AI: 10 Myths Fueling the Silicon Mirage. AI systems are being deployed precipitously and often without foundational understanding from the very creators and advocates driving their adoption, consequently uncritically accepting corporate hype over empirical reality resulting in widespread societal harm. To dismantle this narrative, Nolan Higdon examines ten pervasive myths surrounding AI. The News That Didn’t Make the News. Each week, co-hosts Mickey Huff and Eleanor Goldfield conduct in depth interviews with their guests and offer hard hitting commentary on the key political, social, and economic issues of the day with an emphasis on…

First up on the show, I sit down with Beryl Lipton from the Electronic Frontier Foundation to talk about the Drone-as-First-Responder Programs, which yes, are as horrifying as they sound. Beryl outlines the ever expanding grey area where constitutional rights and accountability fall away in service of more efficient surveillance technology, and that includes AI. Beryl and I also discuss the pitfalls of that AI, not least of all that its created both in the image and in service of a racist, patriarchal so-called justice system. Next up, I sit down with Ian Head from the Center for Constitutional Rights to talk about the slow death of the Freedom of Information Act. Ian outlines the various ways in which law enforcement agencies in particular avoid accountability, and various strategies to keep fighting for our right to know. The News That Didn’t Make the News. Each week, co-hosts Mickey Huff and Eleanor Goldfield conduct in depth interviews with their guests and offer hard hitting commentary on the key…

This week, we circle back to a show that first aired in April of this year titled Muckrakers & Media Freedom: Celebrating the Izzy Award First up, we have documentary filmmaker Abby Martin of Empire Files who is sharing the Izzy Award this year for her documentary Earths Greatest Enemy about how the Pentagon is the worlds greatest polluter and why we must all act to reverse the global damage caused by US military. Next up Izzy judge and professor Victor Pickard discusses the state of our free press, the challenges journalists face from the current administration, and how independent media can light the way to a more informed and just world. The News That Didn’t Make the News. Each week, co-hosts Mickey Huff and Eleanor Goldfield conduct in depth interviews with their guests and offer hard hitting commentary on the key political, social, and economic issues of the day with an emphasis on critical media literacy. The post Project Censored – Muckrakers & Media Freedom: Celebrating the Izzy Award appeared first…

First up, I sit down with Zachary Levenson to talk about the war on sociology and what happens when the academic governing body deems all existing sociology textbooks illegal to teach in the state of Florida. Zach highlights the purposefully vague verbiage of new policies, the anti-intellectualism fueling them, and why educators must never self-censor or comply in advance. Next up, cohost Mickey Huff sits down with Nolan Higdon to talk about his latest book MAGAcademy on how corporatism paved the way for the hostile takeover of Higher Ed. Nolan discusses the neoliberalization of academia, the purposeful devaluing of professors and treatment of students as customers that all predate the current attacks on higher ed. Nolan also warns of the dangers of compliance in advance and the smooth rhetoric of corporate takeovers wrapped in social justice ideologies. Zachary Levenson is associate professor of sociology at Florida International University. He is the author of the award-winning book Delivery as…

This week, news that didn’t make the news, from Palestine. First up, I sit down with Palestinian writer and researcher Nadine Sayegh to discuss her latest piece State, Soldiers, and Systematic Sadism: The Israeli Military’s Normalization of Sexual Violence. Nadine explains the Israeli hasbara tactic of purple-washing, the global Norths violent feminism, and the confluence of sex and genocidal violence. We discuss the medias failure to place accountability on systems, suggesting that the problem, much like with the US own torture programs, is just a few bad eggs. Next up, associate editor at the Electronic Intifada Nora Barrows Friedman comes back on the show to discuss the latest news from Palestine: what’s the story with Hamas stepping down, as concentration camps are constructed inside the concentration camp of Gaza, and as the so-called ceasefire continues to be violently broken by Israel daily? Nora also discusses the most recent violent escalations of settler violence in the occupied West Bank, and the…

This week, news that didn’t make the news, from Palestine. First up, I sit down with Palestinian writer and researcher Nadine Sayegh to discuss her latest piece State, Soldiers, and Systematic Sadism: The Israeli Military’s Normalization of Sexual Violence. Nadine explains the Israeli hasbara tactic of purple-washing, the global Norths violent feminism, and the confluence of sex and genocidal violence. We discuss the medias failure to place accountability on systems, suggesting that the problem, much like with the US own torture programs, is just a few bad eggs. Next up, associate editor at the Electronic Intifada Nora Barrows Friedman comes back on the show to discuss the latest news from Palestine: what’s the story with Hamas stepping down, as concentration camps are constructed inside the concentration camp of Gaza, and as the so-called ceasefire continues to be violently broken by Israel daily? Nora also discusses the most recent violent escalations of settler violence in the occupied West Bank, and the…

This week: combating and reframing big tech. First up, I sit down with Ed from DeFlock to talk about ALPRs – Automatic License Plate Readers, and their handy way of circumventing the 4th amendment meant to protect against unlawful search. Ed also talks about the massive network of data sharing across law enforcement and private corporations, the use of the data for more than stated purposes – from assisting ICE to stalking ex-girlfriends. Ed reminds us that a functioning democracy does not surveil their population, and lists ways that communities across the country are fighting back. Next up, I sit down with Heidi Lim from AI Resist List to talk about reframing AI, and the possible futures that both buck the current iteration of AI and avoid the binary of anti-tech vs. pro-tech. Heidi points out that the purpose is not just to give people hope but to give them ideas, to become literate in not only what AI is but how to combat it creatively – because if AI is where creativity goes to die, perhaps combating it…

First up, I sit down Kels Menchaca, an organizer with the DFW Support Committee to talk about the Prairieland case. With combined sentences of 562 years, the defendants represent the latest intensification in the US governments violent assault on free speech, freedom of assembly, freedom to have zines, freedom to think, and more. We discuss the egregious and absurd case – from the prosecution outright lying in court to the judge fining lawyers for defending their clients. Taken all together, it is a terrifying reminder that in these times, you could face decades in jail for not liking your government. Next up, Leonardo Flores joins the show again to talk about the fallout from the double earthquake in Venezuela. Leo outlines some of the recent US media propaganda attempting to smear Venezuela when in fact it is the US paralyzing Venezuelas disaster response through unilateral economic warfare. Leo and I discuss the US and Israel vying for shock doctrine access, how grassroots coordination post-disaster…

This week on the program, a special full show with Palestinian author, historian and academic Dr. Ramzy Baroud about his latest book Before the Flood: A Gaza Family Memoir Across Three Generations of Colonial Invasion, Occupation, and War in Palestine. Dr. Baroud takes us through long duree, a history that has not been amputated and distorted by colonial narrative. He explains the failings of corporate media, of political discourse, and the need for oppressed peoples to tell their own stories, without countering, without arguing the points of the oppressor. Because dignity cannot be divided. Freedom cannot be sectionalized. Dr. Ramzy Baroud is a Palestinian author, historian, and academic whose work centers on Palestinian history, liberation, and peoples history. He is the editor of The Palestine Chronicle, a position he has held since 1999, where he has helped shape an alternative narrative grounded in lived Palestinian experience. He holds a Ph.D. in Palestine Studies from the University of Exeter and has…

First up, Mickey Huff sits down with public health researcher and journalist Lily Minh Wass to talk about the sycophancy machine. Lily outlines the subtle and disturbing quirks of AIs large language models, amplifying our human desire to be agreed with, which supersedes the desire to be factual. Lily highlights our cognitive offloading onto AI, breaks down how these systems operate, and more. Next up, Mickey and I dig into some of the news that did make the news but was wrong. We highlight the need for critical media literacy, especially when were confronted with something that pings our confirmation bias. We also dive into some history, the US at 250, the framing of our nationalistic ideals, the society of the spectacle, Idiocracy, and finding our way to solidarity. The News That Didn’t Make the News. Each week, co-hosts Mickey Huff and Eleanor Goldfield conduct in depth interviews with their guests and offer hard hitting commentary on the key political, social, and economic issues of the day with an…

First up, I sit down with professor Abboud Hamayel to discuss the misuse of history, in particular archaeology as a tool of ethnic cleansing and genocide. Abboud also deconstructs the performative solidarity of pity, the entangled histories that make Palestine a lens through which to frame our own struggles, the jealousy of the settler, and stepping outside of colonial time. Next up, Metas censorship of LGBTQ voices brings together digital activists, legal experts and LGBTQ communities to combat invisibilization. We discuss the problematic dependency on social media platforms, how this can spur the creation of alternative comms and organizing methods, digital legal frameworks in the EU vs the US, and more. Abboud Hamayel is a Palestinian intellectual, lecturer, and political analyst. He is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Philosophy and Cultural Studies at Birzeit University, near Ramallah. Caspar Pistersis the head of communication for Amsterdams wonderful & notorious Club Church. With…

First up, cohost Mickey Huff sits down with media analyst Nolan Higdon to dig into big techs hold on higher ed – namely their aims to surveil, extract and breach. Nolan digs into a recent hacking scandal, how big tech aligns with the likes of Epstein and a dark history of eugenics, big tech propaganda and authentic resistance. Next up, Dr. Austin Kocher comes back on the program to dig into some recent news that didn’t make the news vis a vis immigration, from overcrowding court hearings to expedite deportation to handpicking so-called deportation judges, the cruelty is the point. But there are some glimmers in this world full of triggers, and as always a lot of it has to do with communities fighting back. Nolan Higdon is a political analyst, author, host of The Disinfo Detox Podcast, lecturer at Merrill College and the Education Department at University of California, Santa Cruz, and Project Censored National Judge. Higdon’s areas of concentration include critical AI literacy, podcasting, digital culture,…

First up, Professor Dave explains. Science communicator Dave Farina joins the show to talk about the emergence of science communicators at a time when science denial is reaching ever soaring heights. Dave discusses the lure and prevalence of erroneous scientific claims and how science literacy and media literacy necessarily overlap and require continued practice and engagement to combat dangerous mis and disinformation. Up next, my cohost Mickey Huff and I dig into some of the news that didnt make the news with a particular focus on AI and data centers. We discuss the targeting of community members standing in opposition to the data center boom, the recycled intersections of corporate malfeasance, poverty, and racism, why you shouldn’t just google that, and more. The News That Didn’t Make the News. Each week, co-hosts Mickey Huff and Eleanor Goldfield conduct in depth interviews with their guests and offer hard hitting commentary on the key political, social, and economic issues of the day with an emphasis…

The News That Didn’t Make the News. Each week, co-hosts Mickey Huff and Eleanor Goldfield conduct in depth interviews with their guests and offer hard hitting commentary on the key political, social, and economic issues of the day with an emphasis on critical media literacy. The post Project Censored – June 5, 2026 appeared first on KPFA.

On today’s show: First up Wanda Bertram from the Prison Policy Initiative joins the show to talk about what we dont know and what we think we know about mass incarceration. Wanda shares some stats and facts that youll never hear on corporate media, and debunks myths that betray our propagandized thinking. Next up, MiDian Shofner sits down to unpack antiracism, abolition, and reframing what an expert is when it comes to building alternatives to our cruel system. MiDian calls on us to linger in the reality of what this country really is, who we are, and where to look for solutions that benefit the people. — Wanda Bertram is the communications strategist at thePrison Policy Initiative. ThePrison Policy Initiative uses data to highlight the harms of mass incarceration and to spark campaigns for reform of the criminal legal system. MiDian Shofner is the CEO of the Epitome of Black Excellence & Partnership and the Owner/Founder of 8PM Consulting for Humanity. MiDian’s work is founded upon three core pillars…

This week, the violation and capitulation of higher education. First up, I sit down with Zachary Levenson to talk about the war on sociology and what happens when the academic governing body deems all existing sociology textbooks illegal to teach in the state of Florida. Zach highlights the purposefully vague verbiage of new policies, the anti-intellectualism fueling them, and why educators must never self-censor or comply in advance. Next up, cohost Mickey Huff sits down with Nolan Higdon to talk about his latest book MAGAcademy on how corporatism paved the way for the hostile takeover of Higher Ed. Nolan discusses the neoliberalization of academia, the purposeful devaluing of professors and treatment of students as customers that all predate the current attacks on higher ed. Nolan also warns of the dangers of compliance in advance and the smooth rhetoric of corporate takeovers wrapped in social justice ideologies. Zachary Levenson is associate professor of sociology at Florida International University. He…

This week on the program, we celebrate Independent Media and press freedom with Izzy Fest 2026 and the 18th annual Izzy Award named after the legendary muckraker, I.F. Stone. First up, we have documentary filmmaker Abby Martin of Empire Files who is sharing the Izzy Award this year for her documentary Earths Greatest Enemy about how the Pentagon is the worlds greatest polluter and why we must all act to reverse the global damage caused by US military. Next up Izzy judge and professor Victor Pickard discusses the state of our free press, the challenges journalists face from the current administration, and how independent media can light the way to a more informed and just world. Abby Martin is an independent journalist, filmmaker, and host of The Empire Files. She is the director of the 2019 documentary Gaza Fights for Freedom and the 2026 documentary Earths Greatest Enemy. Victor Pickard is the C. Edwin Baker Professor of Media Policy and Political Economy at the Annenberg School for Communication, where he…

First up this week, we welcome back to the program journalist José Luis Granados Ceja to talk about the Greater America plan, and Operation Total Extermination, the latest US policy initiatives for Latin America. José Luis highlights media complicity in framing US relations with the Global South, how Mexico and its allies in the region are responding to these military threats and how the war in Iran is affecting this political landscape. Next up, journalist and organizer Edith Romero talks about corporate colonialism in Honduras, and how the likes of Peter Thiel are piggy-backing on decades of imperialist extraction to create their own sovereign nations not subject to any Honduran oversight or accountability, and how this connects to the oppressive surveillance and anti-human eugenicist manifestations of AI here in the US and globally. José Luis Granados Ceja is an experienced journalist based in Mexico City, co-host of the Canal Once public affairs television program Sin Muros, as well as Soberana: The…