14 chapters across the catalog
Will Smith describes how Quincy Jones, who had been drinking, forced him to audition on the spot and then ordered lawyers to draw up a contract in a limo. Adam Curry shares his own experience getting drunk on expensive wine with Quincy Jones, confirming the producer's reputation for aggressive deal-making and heavy drinking.
The hosts speculate on a "power struggle" between Bill Cosby and Quincy Jones at NBC during the 1990s. They suggest that Jones may have had a hand in Cosby's eventual legal downfall. They discuss how both men used their shows to recruit and program young Black talent into specific "Boule" or "thug" archetypes.
Joseph Bolanos recounts how an NBC camera crew was present during his FBI raid, suggesting a coordinated effort between the bureau and the media to humiliate him. It is revealed that the NBC journalist's partner was a former FBI spokesman. The hosts discuss the "Mockingbird" nature of modern journalism and the "too big to fail" relationship between big tech, the media, and federal law enforcement agencies.
The hosts critique Lieutenant Michael Byrd's televised interview on NBC, where he claimed he showed "utmost courage" in shooting Ashley Babbitt. They compare this to other high-profile police shootings, noting that officers are rarely given a favorable national platform to praise their own actions after killing an unarmed person. The discussion highlights the tactical and legal inconsistencies in Byrd's account of the "imminent threat."
The discussion revisits the initial police response on May 25, 2020, involving a counterfeit $20 bill and the subsequent death of George Floyd under the knee of Derek Chauvin. Mo highlights a discrepancy in early media coverage where NBC News pronounced the officer's name as "Chauvin" (rhyming with bin) rather than the now-standard "Chauvin." This linguistic shift is presented as a potential indicator of media style guides shaping the narrative.
Adam Curry brings up a recent shooting in Austin where a black police officer killed three people, noting that the media did not frame it through a racial lens but rather through "manosphere" or domestic abuse narratives. This is used to support the argument that the media selectively amplifies cases that fit a specific racial "script" while suppressing those that do not.
An NBC News timeline of the January 6th Capitol events is analyzed for its dramatic production and use of specific keywords like vengeance. The hosts discuss the presence of a large Asian American contingent at the rally, which they claim was ignored by mainstream outlets because it complicates the racial narrative. They argue that minority groups are often shifted into the category of whiteness when they no longer fit a specific political model.
NBC News clips and host commentary explore the "improbable journey" of Obama's mother, Stanley Ann Dunham. The narrative is framed to make Obama relatable to single mothers and the black matriarchal structure. His mother's work with USAID and the Ford Foundation in Indonesia is again highlighted as a marker of intelligence community involvement.
The hosts critique an NBC News timeline for its editorial choices, comparing it to the environment of MTV News. They argue that media organizations operate under a form of "mind control" where producers and editors align with a specific truth without needing an explicit conspiracy. The segment highlights how the firing of the officers without immediate charges served to "ratchet up" public tension.
Derek Chauvin is officially arrested and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter. The hosts critique the "dead" and "unpassionate" delivery of the news by NBC, noting the media's persistent use of the terms "demonstrations" and "protests" even as buildings and police cars were being burned across the country.
Implicit bias testing, which measures reaction times to racial images, is criticized as a pseudo-scientific method to label individuals as racist. The HBO series *Watchmen* is cited for dramatizing these tests to "mainline" racial trauma and propaganda into the public consciousness. The hosts discuss rejecting such "trauma-based entertainment" despite its inclusion of historical events like the Tulsa Massacre.
A 2007 Dateline NBC segment shows civil rights attorneys and activists failing implicit association tests, often showing a preference for white faces despite their professional backgrounds. The results suggest that even black participants can show a preference for whiteness due to media influence. The experiment is framed as a "labyrinth" where no participant can escape being labeled with some form of bias.
The discussion shifts to the historical and future significance of African American voters in the United States. Data from NBC exit polls dating back to 1976 suggests that one out of every four Democratic primary votes in 2020 will come from black voters. This segment establishes the premise that the black electorate holds unprecedented leverage in the upcoming presidential cycle.
Kanye West's 2005 live television comment that George Bush doesn't care about black people is revisited as his definitive entry into mainstream celebrity. During a Hurricane Katrina benefit show on NBC, West went off-script, leaving co-presenter Mike Myers visibly stunned. This moment is described as a brave act of self-expression that resonated with many who were critical of the government's disaster response.
