How to Reach People in Today's New Media Amid a Crisis of Mistrust. A Conversation with Emily Jashinsky

Explicit content warning

04/24/25 • 53 min

We’re joined by Emily Jashinsky, co-host of Counterpoints with Ryan Grim. Formerly with The Federalist and The Hill, Emily now serves as DC correspondent for UnHerd and hosts Undercurrents TV. She’s someone well-versed in this shifting media landscape.

Together, we explore the rise of the so-called “New Media”—a world where legacy outlets are giving way to right-leaning podcasters, YouTubers, and social media influencers. As trust in public health, science, and institutions craters, we ask: is this new media ecosystem fueling the breakdown, or finally reflecting a mistrust that’s been simmering for years?

And while critics on the Left call this new media machine unstoppable—blaming it for everything from Trump’s rise to the collapse of trust in science—we push back on that narrative. Could this shifting landscape actually offer unexpected opportunities for public health voices willing to step into the fray?

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Maggie Bartlett (off this week)

Dr. Mark Abdelmalek (off this week)

Guest:

Emily Jashinsky, former The Federalist, The Hill, co-host of Counterpoints web and podcast show; and the DC correspondent of UnHerd - a news and current affairs site and host of Undercurrents TV.

Sources:

Media Matters "Bubbles" Graphic on Dominance of Right-Leaning Media

https://x.com/GoAngelo/status/1900959918040989731
Joe Rogan Podcast, Dave Smith, Doug Murray, on Expertise

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ah6kirkSwTg

Emily Jashinsky: Legacy Media Indict Themselves When They Blame the "Right Wing Media Ecosystem"

https://thefederalist.com/2024/11/08/legacy-media-indict-themselves-when-they-blame-the-right-wing-media-ecosystem/

Thanks for listening! If you like us, please leave a review, rate us, and please subscribe!
Got questions? Comments? We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Maggie Bartlett (off this week)

Dr. Mark Abdelmalek (off this week)

Guest:

Emily Jashinsky, former The Federalist, The Hill, co-host of Counterpoints web and podcast show; and the DC correspondent of UnHerd - a news and current affairs site and host of Undercurrents TV.

Sources:

Media Matters "Bubbles" Graphic on Dominance of Right-Leaning Media

https://x.com/GoAngelo/status/1900959918040989731
Joe Rogan Podcast, Dave Smith, Doug Murray, on Expertise

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ah6kirkSwTg

Emily Jashinsky: Legacy Media Indict Themselves When They Blame the "Right Wing Media Ecosystem"

https://thefederalist.com/2024/11/08/legacy-media-indict-themselves-when-they-blame-the-right-wing-media-ecosystem/

Thanks for listening! If you like us, please leave a review, rate us, and please subscribe!
Got questions? Comments? We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Previous Episode

A Writer's Journey w a Rare Disease Led Her to Champion Obamacare & Democrats. Why She Is Now a MAGA Supporter.

In today’s episode, we speak with Evan Barker, a writer, podcaster, and former Democratic staffer and fundraiser who, in 2024, voted for Donald Trump. Raised in a working-class community by her mother, Barker's family lived paycheck to paycheck. Then she was diagnosed with a rare, potentially fatal chronic illness.

Raised in a blue-collar Missouri community, Evan represents a much-needed voice at the table as America wrestles with how to get healthier. Does she feel MAHA represents the America of her upbringing? How did the party of Obamacare--which provided her insurance and thus the opportunity to go to college--lose her trust? And despite her vote for Trump, does she trust the Republican Party will hold the line on cuts to Medicaid, which millions of working-class Americans depend on? Finally, does this former Democrat think either party has a health agenda that will rebuild trust with middle-class America and will make us healthier?

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Maggie Bartlett

Dr. Mark Abdelmalek

Guest:

Evan Barker: writer; former Democratic campaign operative; host of podcast Not Going Back

Source:

Evan Barker: I Raised $50 Million for the Democratic Party. This Week I Voted for Donald Trump.

https://www.thefp.com/p/democrat-fundraiser-evan-barker-i-voted-trump

Thanks for listening! If you like us, please leave a review, rate us, and please subscribe!
Got questions? Comments? We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Next Episode

Can Dems Be the Party of Health in an Age of RFK Jr.’s MAHA? A Conversation w Sen. Maggie Hassan

During RFK Jr.'s confirmation hearing back in January, many voices competed to be heard. But one cut through the noise: Senator Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire — a Democrat, a policymaker, and the mother of a son with Cerebral Palsy. Her emotional testimony about love, a mother's guilt, and the daily realities of disability struck a national chord.

Today, she joins us.

She tells us about where she finds yes, disagreement — but also, surprising common ground — with MAHA parents seeking answers about autism, vaccines, food, and chemicals.

Can this Democrat from the "Live Free or Die" state help rebuild trust in public health, a field often tied to collective sacrifice? And with her party facing historic polling lows, how does she believe Democrats can craft a new health message, even as they fight to protect scientific research and Medicaid from deep cuts she sees as devastating?

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Maggie Bartlett

Dr. Mark Abdelmalek

Guest:

Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH)

Relevant committees she serves which relate to the subject of our podcast: Senate HELP Committee (Health, Education, Labor and Pensions); Senate Finance Committee; Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs

Source:

Clip from January 2025 of Sen Maggie Hassan at RFK Jr.'s confirmation hearing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEYj8x8f1QY&t=1s

Thanks for listening! If you like us, please leave a review, rate us, and please subscribe!
Got questions? Comments? We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]