Resources
Media and News Literacy
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Fact-Checking and Media Literacy Skills
Can You Spot Misinformation?
Think you can beat the experts in spotting misinformation? Watch this short video and find out.
01:52
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Where’s That Photo From? Identify the Source.
Online photos can be deceiving. Do you know how to identify the source? This skills-based video can help by teaching you how to use a reverse image search.
03:20
1
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How to Fact-Check History
Meet Joseph Hogan, Retro Report’s fact-checker who explains what methods and processes he employs to verify the information in our stories.
07:05
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The Misunderstood McDonald’s Hot Coffee Lawsuit
Stella Liebeck was vilified when she was awarded millions after spilling McDonald’s coffee in her lap. Her complaint sounded frivolous. But the facts told another story.
10:57
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From Y2K to 2038, Lessons Learned from First Computer Crisis
The Y2K bug threatened to wipe out computers and disrupt modern society at the end of the 20th century. We all remember the doomsday hype, but what really happened?
09:23
Journalism and the Role of the Press
How a Sheep Named Dolly Sparked a Scientific Revolution
In 1997, Scottish scientists announced they had cloned a sheep named Dolly, and sent waves of future shock around the world that continue to shape frontiers of science today.
12:54
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Citizen Nation: How the Media Shaped the Narrative of Civil Rights and Disobedience
Journeylove Taylor reflects on the power of representation as she prepares for and competes in the national We the People finals.
02:48
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Who Gets to Regulate #*%& Free Speech in Popular Culture?
When speech offends, who decides where boundaries should be drawn?
11:22
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Presidents v. Press: How the Pentagon Papers Leak Set Up First Amendment Showdowns
Efforts to clamp down on White House leaks to the press follow a pattern that was set during the Nixon era after the publication of the Pentagon Papers.
12:21
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In El Salvador, a Journalist Faces New Limits. ‘We Want to Continue Shedding Light.’
Nelson Rauda, an independent journalist, told us that El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, is putting the squeeze on press freedom.
03:16
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The Cold War on TV: Joseph McCarthy vs. Edward R. Murrow
In the heat of the Cold War, Joe McCarthy’s anti-communist crusade became a media sensation.
08:13
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How the Cold War Arms Race Fueled a Sprint to the Moon
After the Soviet Union sent the first human safely into orbit, the U.S. government doubled down on its effort to win the race to the moon.
06:49
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Enemies of the People: Trump and the Political Press
In this hour-long film, nominated for two 2021 Emmy Awards, journalists who covered Donald Trump during the 2016 race for the White House critique their role in the former president’s rise to power.
64:00
2
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Political Debates: What the Unforgettable Moments Reveal
High-stakes debates put candidates in the hot seat. But are they helpful to voters?
09:53
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Impeached: How Presidents Handled it — Trump vs. Clinton.
How can a president continue to govern with an impeachment trial looming? President Clinton and President Trump adopted very different strategies.
03:34
Do Whistleblower Protections Work? Ask This One.
A whistleblower case from 2010 reveals the peril faced by whistleblowers seeking to expose wrongdoing.
07:35
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Perp Walks: When Police Roll Out the Blue Carpet
Perp walk: Unfair maneuver or a strong warning to would-be criminals?
07:37
Future of Fact
Online manipulation and immersive media have begun to eradicate our shared notion of authenticity and trust. How will society change when we can no longer believe what we see, hear, or think?
09:50
Smoking Man: Political Ads That Shaped the Battle for the White House
In the 2012 Republican primary, Herman Cain’s campaign produced an unusual video featuring Cain’s chief of staff, Mark Block, giving a pep talk while smoking a cigarette.
04:01
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When Politicians Blame Bad Behavior on Pop Culture
Every so often, Congress holds a hearing on the perils of pop culture. The “peril” has evolved from comic books, to rock and hip hop music, to violence in video games, but the proceedings follow a script.
02:24
Legendary Cartoonist Al Jaffee Recalls Comic Book Censorship
Cartoonist Al Jaffee has been causing mischief at MAD Magazine for decades and at 94-years-old, he’s as irreverent as ever. A new series of Retro Report short docs produced for Facebook.
03:00
A Mother, a Dingo and an Australian Media Frenzy
In 1982, an Australian mother was convicted of murdering her baby daughter. She was later exonerated, but soon fell victim to a joke that distracted the world from the real story.
13:50
The Shame of the Church
Sexual abuse in the Catholic Church has been making headlines for years. Some priests have been punished, but what about the bishops who shielded them?
12:38
Richard Jewell: The Wrong Man
The 1996 Olympics in Atlanta were rocked by a bomb that killed one and injured more than 100. In the rush to find the perpetrator, one man became a target. There was only one problem. He was innocent.
11:50
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The Crack Baby Scare: From Faulty Science to Media Panic
In the 1980s, images of tiny, jittery “crack babies” caused social outcry – crack-addicted pregnant mothers were prosecuted and the media warned that a generation of “crack babies” would plague our country. Turns out… they were wrong.
10:06
Mis and Disinformation
Health Risks of Vaping: Lessons From the Battle With Big Tobacco
Like cigarette manufacturers decades ago, e-cigarette makers have pitched their products as fun and safe. But nobody knows what the risks are.
13:01
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Combating the Myth of the Superpredator
In the 1990s, a handful of researchers inspired panic with a dire but flawed prediction: the imminent arrival of a new breed of “superpredators.”
10:09
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Vaccine Skepticism Is Reviving Preventable Diseases
Diseases once near eradication are re-emerging. Here’s how science and federal policy are squaring off.
12:58
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Trump, Measles, and a Study That Fueled Fear
President Donald Trump has long been a critic of childhood vaccines – but then he suddenly changed course, urging parents to vaccinate their children.
04:11
Conspiracy Theories and Fake News from JFK to Pizzagate
Retro Report explores decades of conspiracy theories – from the John F. Kennedy assassination to Pizzagate – and what they can tell us about how we view the world today.
12:33
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Hillary Clinton and the Superpredator
Wondering what the Hillary Clinton/superpredator brouhaha is all about? Here’s the cliff notes…
01:54
Lessons from Columbine About School Shootings and Media Misinformation
The killing of twelve students and a teacher at Columbine High School in 1999 continues to shape how we view and understand school shootings today.
12:10
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From Crack Babies to Oxytots: Lessons Not Learned
In the 1980s, many government officials, scientists, and journalists warned that the country would be plagued by a generation of “crack babies.” They were wrong. More than 25 years later, the media is sounding a similar alarm.
11:31
How the Story of ‘Sybil’ Influenced Views of Mental Illness
A hit 1970s movie shaped public opinion and popularized a rare diagnosis.
12:39
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The Preschool Sex Abuse Case that Changed How Molestation is Investigated
The nightmare began in 1983 when a 39-year-old mother called the police department in Manhattan Beach, California and accused a teacher at the McMartin Preschool, Raymond Buckey, of molesting her two and a half-year old son.
13:19
Searching for Better Answers
On the heels of a national measles scare, Google announced that it is refining its search results for hundreds of medical conditions to show only vetted resources and web sites.
01:28
GMO Food Fears and the First Test Tube Tomato
In the 1990s, a bunch of gene jockeys brought the first genetically engineered food to market. The business crashed but biotech science has flourished far beyond the produce aisle.
10:50
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Social Media
Trump and Biden Both Want to Repeal Section 230. Would That Wreck the Internet?
Memes, the New Political Cartoon, Are Transforming Social Commentary
The Modern Bystander Effect
Tabletop to Tablet: Using Dungeons & Dragons to Combat Screen Addiction
Online All the Time? Researchers Predicted It.
Activating a Generation: From Live Aid to the Ice Bucket Challenge
The Rock: Political Ads That Shaped the Battle for the White House
The Outrage Machine