In this podcast episode, we interview Dr. Andy Lee Roth, a sociologist, media scholar, and editor known for his leadership role in the media watchdog group Project Censored. The discussion centers on their latest publication, State of the Free Press 2026, which marks the project's 50th anniversary of highlighting the year's most vital yet underreported news stories. Dr. Roth explains how corporate media systematically censors or distorts critical information and delves into specific examples from the book, including U.S. immigration authorities monitoring social media critics and tech giants like Facebook conducting mass takedowns of content at a government's request.

The conversation broadens to examine the precarious state of press freedom, touching on the decline of local newspapers, the threat of AI-powered misinformation, and the chilling effect of widespread surveillance. While acknowledging these serious challenges, the podcast also strikes a note of cautious optimism, celebrating the rise of a robust independent media landscape and the enduring importance of critical media literacy. Dr. Roth makes a compelling case for supporting non-corporate journalism as an essential tool for defending democracy and an informed public.

Andy Lee Roth is the associate director of Project Censored, a nonprofit media watchdog organization. He coordinates the Campus Affiliates Program, a network of students and faculty at colleges and universities across North America who research and identify the top "censored" news stories. He earned a PhD in Sociology from the University of California–Los Angeles and a BA in Sociology and Anthropology from Haverford College.

Resources:

Order the book: https://www.project-censored.org/shop/p/state-of-the-free-press-2026

Project Censored Website: https://www.project-censored.org/

Beyond Fact-Checking: A Teaching Guide to the Power of News Frames: https://www.projectcensored.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Beyond-Fact-Checking-web.pdf

Movement Media Alliance: https://movement-media.org/

Greg’s Blog: http://zzs-blg.blogspot.com/

Pat’s Substack: https://patcummings.substack.com/

AndyLeeRoth#AndyRoth#MickeyHuff#ShealeighVoitl#StateoftheFreePress2026#ProjectCensord#FreePress2026#AI#algorithms#SocialMedia#MediaBias#Censorship#FirstAmendment#ICEsurveillance#socialmediamonitoring##AlgorithmicLiteracy#AlanMacleod#KevinGosztola#RobertMcChesney#Censorshipbyproxy#PatCummings#PatrickCummings#GregGodels#ZZBlog#ComingFromLeftField#ComingFromLeftFieldPodcast#zzblog#mltoday