Maritsa Georgiou joined us for a Effed-up Friday that connected authoritarianism, reproductive rights, independent journalism, and the increasingly disturbing question of who our institutions are actually protecting.
The conversation opened with Don Lemon’s revelation that the Department of Justice sought access to subscriber information connected to his journalism — a chilling reminder that attacks on the press don’t just target reporters. They target audiences too.
From there, Maritsa brought what was easily the most alarming story of the day: a North Carolina bill that would classify abortion as murder and authorize deadly force to stop it. The implications are as horrifying as they sound, and the conversation quickly turned to what happens when extremism stops being rhetoric and starts becoming legislation.
I also dug into the return of Motherless, the website CNN exposed for hosting thousands of videos of men drugging and raping their wives and girlfriends. Despite international attention, the site is back online, no arrests appear to have been made, and the responsibility for policing rape videos apparently remains with the same community that uploaded them in the first place.
And of course, Lawrence had to nominate the absurd story of Trump wanting his ugly mug on a $250 bill. It would be laughable if it weren’t so gross.
Martisa won in a landslide.
Thank you Caro Henry, Courtney, Noble Blend, Mandy Ohman, Stuart Cohen, and many others for tuning in, and to Karen Marie Shelton and Yanni Hamburger for moderating.
Thanks for listening!
We’re Dana DuBois and Lawrence Winnerman, lifelong BFFs and co-hosts of The Daily Whatever Show — our independent home for smart, irreverent conversations about culture, politics, media, creativity, relationships, aging, and whatever else is shaping modern life this week.
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