The UK’s Violent Riots Were Stoked by Elon Musk and a Global Far-Right Network
6/12/202651 min
This week, a mob attacked immigrant communities in Northern Ireland after Elon Musk fomented anger on X. On this week’s On the Media, hear how a group linked with a global neo-Nazi movement organized the riots. Plus, what the recent upheaval at 60 Minutes tells us about the state of TV news.
[01:34] Micah speaks with David Gilbert, a reporter at WIRED covering disinformation and online extremism, about the anti-immigrant riots that exploded across the UK and more recently Northern Ireland, and how Elon Musk stoked violence on X. Plus, the racist ideology behind the attacks.
[17:29] Micah sits down with Oliver Darcy, founder of Status and co-host of Power Lines, to discuss the turmoil at 60 Minutes since Bari Weiss fired about half a dozen staffers.
[32:52] Brooke talks with Maria Kuznetsova and Dan Storyev, the authors of the upcoming book How to Survive Authoritarianism: A Russian's Phrasebook for Everyday Life in America, about how Russian words and phrases can help Americans understand what's happening in their country today.
Further reading:
- “A White Supremacist Youth Group Helped Orchestrate the Belfast Riots,” by David Gilbert
- “Elon Musk and America’s Far Right Stoke Anger Over Murder of UK Teen,” by David Gilbert
- “Bari in the Bunker and Ellison at the Gates,” by Oliver Darcy
- “Pelley’s ‘60 Minutes’ Revolt,” by Oliver Darcy
- How to Survive Authoritarianism: A Russian's Phrasebook for Everyday Life in America by Maria Kuznetsova and Dan Storyev
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Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsMicah Loewinger· Host0:00
Hey, it's Micah. It's been a minute since our FEMA series came out, and I want our New York listeners to know that we're having an in-person event in a couple of weeks. I'll be joined by former FEMA official Mary Anne Tierney. We'll talk about the history of the agency, how it's being reshaped now under the Trump administration, and some other fun stuff we couldn't fit in the show. Join us in person at WNYC, 7:00 PM on June 7th. You can get tickets at wnyc.org/events. It's a great opportunity to meet other OTM listeners. We'd love to see you there.
Speaker 20:33
[gentle music] In a capital city in the British Isles, people are forced to flee their homes by a mob.
Micah Loewinger· Host0:40
Anti-immigrant violence erupted in Belfast this week, in part stoked by the world's first trillionaire, Elon Musk.
Speaker 3· Soundbite0:48
Elon Musk writing on X this week, "Only by protesting repeatedly and loudly will there be any change."
Micah Loewinger· Host0:55
From WNYC New York, this is On the Media. I'm Micah Loewinger. Also on this week's show, two of network TV's biggest news shows made news. The president stormed out of an interview with NBC- Let's call it quits, 'cause I've had enough ... and fired 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley had words for CBS's new management.
Speaker 51:15
There was a thumb on the scale for the president's version of events that was a level of political influence that I had never seen in 37 years at CBS News.
Micah Loewinger· Host1:28
Go behind the headlines