Evening, Meteor readers,

So, I trust everyone had a relaxing, uneventful, downright mundane weekend void of any alarming or paradigm-shifting news? We wish. Let’s get straight to it.

In today’s newsletter, we’re jamming to J.D. Vance’s greatest hits, including his number one single, “Mr. Trump is unfit for our nation’s highest office.” Blast it through the speakers. We’re also asking media critic Jennifer L. Pozner three questions about how to stop the spread of disinformation during violent moments.

Is this real life,

Shannon Melero

WHAT’S GOING ON

JAMES DAVID VANCE. OUR COLLECTIVE NIGHTMARE IN HUMAN FORM. (VIA GETTY IMAGES)

J.D. Vance (the D stands for “Don’t let this man in the White House”): As you’ve probably heard by now, Donald Trump has chosen author and Ohio junior senator J.D. Vance as his vice president. There’s already been a bit of ink spilled about Vance and his…policies, if we want to call them that.

But what are the thoughts rattling around in his anti-abortion, isolationist, anti-LGBTQIA+, conspiracy theorist, far-right head? Well. He certainly isn’t a fan of women or their bodily autonomy:

On abortion

In a local Ohio cable news interview in 2021, when asked if abortion bans should have exceptions for rape or incest, Vance said, “It’s not whether a woman should be forced to bring a child to term, it’s whether a child should be allowed to live, even though the circumstances of that child’s birth are somehow inconvenient or a problem to the society.” A year later, Vance (out loud where people could hear!!) also likened abortion to slavery. Ahead of being announced as the choice for VP, Vance conveniently softened his abortion talking points in an interview with Meet the Press. The entire nation calls bullshit.

On domestic violence

In a 2022 anti-abortion forum, Vance said, “The entire idea that you can discard your husband or your wife like a piece of clothing is one of the most dangerous assaults that we’ve ever seen on the family in this country. If we want children to grow up with healthy, happy lives, we should be reminding them that the most important thing that we can do for our kids is make sure they grow up with a mom and dad at home.” In other words: Domestic violence is not a reason to get divorced. His assertion that children are only going to be healthy and happy if a “mom and dad” are present also underpins his anti-LGBTQ+ stances.

On guns

And since we all have gun violence at the top of our minds this week, what has Vance said about that? “I think that we have to ask ourselves: What is the real gun violence problem in this country, and are we legislating in a way that solves fake problems? Or solves real problems?” This was in response to a proposed bump-stock ban (which he voted against). As far as solving “real” gun problems, Vance has rejected a number of measures that would make it harder to obtain a firearm and said he was in favor of dismantling the ATF, which (you guessed it) seizes illegal guns. Define real problems, James David.

TL;DR: This is not a viable vice presidential candidate; this is a nightmare, and a clear sign that the now-formally-nominated Donald Trump has no plans to modify his far-right stances in a second term.

AND:

• Today is Amazon’s annual Prime Day. Before you click “Add to cart” on things you probably don’t need or can find elsewhere, check out this report about the 23.5 million pounds of Amazon plastic packaging waste that entered the ocean and other waterways in 2020 alone. Bezos doesn’t need your money.

• Actress Shannen Doherty died on Saturday after a long bout with breast cancer, which had spread to her brain and bones. While she will be remembered for her career-making roles in Beverly Hills: 90210 and Charmed, she will also be remembered as a woman who sought to educate others about a disease that still affects 1 in 8 women.

THE ONE AND ONLY SHANNEN DOHERTY (VIA GETTY IMAGES)

• Also, in health news: Autoimmune diseases in women, particularly women of color, are becoming increasingly common, and recent studies have found that stress and unexpressed anger are making women sicker. One research team found that “women of color who strongly agreed with statements like ‘I rarely express my anger to those close to me’ were 70% more likely to experience increased carotid atherosclerosis, a cardiovascular plaque associated with higher risk of heart attack.” So for the sake of your health, please: Tell your enemies to fuck all the way off.

• J.D. Vance’s wife is South Asian. That had some outlets jumping for joy at this possible first (lady). There’s a lot to say about that argument (um, first of all, no politician who is invested in stripping rights from disenfranchised people gets a diversity medal), but comedian Pooja Reddy put it best: If you crave desi diversity in the upper echelons of government, “This is not it.”

• The Vera Institute of Justice has found stark differences between incarcerated women’s access to college education and that of their male peers. Vera’s research found that “in over half of all states, men’s prisons offer more access to Pell Grant-eligible courses than women’s prisons do…In 11 states, Vera found there were no college programs at all in women’s prisons.”

• Transgender Floridians have recently been unable to update their gender markers on their birth certificates, something they have been able to do for about a decade. Applicants trying to update their birth certificates tell The 19th that there hasn’t been any statewide notice explaining why so many applications are being denied or outright ignored.

• Is Charli XCX’s irreverent pop album Brat shifting the zeitgeist in favor of messy, irreverent, even punk femininity that, as The Guardian’s Zoe Williams posits, “rejects the social surveillance that requires all young women to be the same way”? Read her take on whether embracing trashiness (and thus irreverence) via Charli’s girl-centric vision might be a brash reaction to the “clean girls” and tradwife archetypes on the internet; at the very least, Brat summer is a refreshing retort to the trope of womanly perfection, and a perfectly-timed response to the fall of Tory conservativism in the UK.

• Over the weekend, NASA transmitted a hip-hop song into space for the first time ever. With so many options available, the choice must have been difficult, but they landed on something we earthlings can be proud of: Missy Elliott’s “The Rain.” Missy shared the announcement on Instagram, writing that the song had been broadcast as far as her favorite planet, Venus.

Three Questions About…Disinformation

Last Saturday was a moment of mass panic. One feminist media critic has ideas about what could have gone differently.

BY SAMHITA MUKHOPADHYAY 

NO COMMENT. (VIA GETTY IMAGES)

When the mass shooting at the Trump rally happened on Saturday, I was unclear how to respond. Disbelief and adrenaline coursed through me, and the moment I logged onto Instagram, the content was flying: everything from earnest (“This is not who we are!”) to snark (“This is why Democrats need access to guns!”) to cries of “It’s a hoax!” As a journalist, I knew this should be a wait-and-see moment, but instead, I was faced with the reality of how quickly unhelpful—and downright untruthful—messaging can spread.

What gave me solace was a measured list of media literacy strategies posted by my friend Jennifer L. Pozner, a journalist and long-time media educator with an upcoming graphic novel about critical media literacy. So, I called to ask her to elaborate.

What was the first thing you noticed when the news broke about the shooting?

Jennifer Pozner: The first piece I saw from a credible outlet was on NPR’s website, and the comments under the story included someone telling NPR it was their fault, another implying that it was staged, and a third laughing at Trump’s bloody ear. Legitimate news reporting is a time-consuming process. During chaotic events, ethical reporters have to vet sources, fact-checkers need to do their best to confirm the story, and they all need to work carefully to ensure that they’re giving the public accurate information.

You know what takes no time at all? Bullshit. Bullshit is instantaneous. Rumor, propaganda, bots, and bad actors always pop up right away, flooding the zone with disinformation and conspiracy theories to fill every short-term information vacuum.

This is a collective societal problem, but we contribute to it individually when we react without thinking critically… That’s dangerous because disinformation is sticky. When disinformation infuses the immediate narrative, it can be hard to convince people of reality even after the facts have been verified.

You had a great social post about what to do instead of posting immediate reactions. Can you summarize what you suggested people do in a moment like this and why? 

It’s important to wait for verified reporting to establish the facts. And we should denounce political violence without condition—even when the target has often encouraged political violence against his perceived enemies. Don’t share false stories, even to mock them: You may think something is so outrageous no one could possibly believe it, but many do…Those potshots could just end up reinforcing the disinformation to others.

Outrageous claims need air to multiply; suffocate conspiracies by depriving them of attention. Debunk, don’t distribute: Share accurate information and analysis in plain language and explain how you know particular falsehoods are untrue (without sharing the original lies themselves).

Bad actors (including domestic propagandists, Russian and Chinese troll farms, and money-motivated bot operators) use moments like these to pit Americans against one another and foment hate. Don’t fall into those traps. Lower the volume. Don’t debate those who aren’t engaging in good faith, and moderate your social feeds to block trolls and anyone who seems sketchy from poisoning the dialogue.

Remember, everything we say publicly can impact other people and possibly contribute to an escalation of violence or conspiracy (and screenshots are forever). Fears, ugly thoughts, and dark humor are deeply human, and it’s OK to express them. But if we want to avoid doing harm, we should really only share them with our “inside voice”: offline in the context of conversations with trusted friends.

What is your take on political violence and how we should and shouldn’t talk about it? I thought this was astute in making the case that attacks on politicians are par for the course in the U.S. 

Looking to the public record and to history can often provide crucial context, as it does here. The Times usefully reminds us that four U.S. presidents have been murdered, along with at least six serious failed additional assassination attempts. What it doesn’t mention is that while this violence has been aimed at both parties’ heads of state, only Trump and the GOP have been explicitly encouraging political violence against “the other side.” Everyone seems to have forgotten that Trump himself made a not-so-subtle assassination threat/dog whistle against his rival, Hillary Clinton, at a 2016 campaign rally.

Many journalists, politicians, and historians have accurately situated Trump and the MAGA movement’s policy agendas, statements, and behaviors as consistent with fascism. It’s a routine project for autocratic regimes to threaten violence against their rivals, discredit the press, encourage the public to distrust truth itself (remember “alternative facts”?), revel in mockery and intimidation of minority groups, and paint reasonable disagreement as tantamount to treason—all of which Trump and his acolytes have done. Now, the GOP wants us to believe that acknowledging the history and workings of fascism is so inflammatory and dangerous it must be the reason a 20-year-old lone gunman shot the former President and killed another rallygoer. All their social media posts and press interviews flogging this point aim to distract from clear fact: America is a nation plagued by mass shootings carried out by angry, young gunmen, and Democrats and progressives have not been the ones calling for political violence.

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