News Beat
143 episodes - English - Latest episode: 5 months ago - ★★★★★ - 77 ratingsA social justice podcast combining hard-hitting journalism and interviews with hip-hop music and original lyrics from independent artists. Each episode delves into an important issue with an alternative take to widely accepted narratives, arming listeners with knowledge and insight they won't hear from mainstream media outlets.
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Episodes
Abused and Alone: Prison Rape in the #MeToo Era
November 29, 2018 08:30 - 27 minutes - 25.3 MBIn an era when women comprise the fastest-growing prison population in the U.S., those incarcerated are screaming #MeToo, too. But is anyone listening? News Beat: Social Justice Never Sounded So Good News Beat is a Morey Creative Studios production: www.MoreyCreative.com News Beat is produced, engineered and hosted by Manny Faces: www.MannyFaces.com News Beat Executive Producer: Jed Morey Editor in Chief: Christopher TwarowskiManaging Editor: Rashed MianCover Art Design: Jeff Main S...
Abandoning The Left: Why Democrats Can't Save Us
November 15, 2018 08:00 - 31 minutes - 28.9 MBIn the age of Trump, Democrats parade as democracy's saviors yet serve same corporate overlords as the GOP, abandoning progressive left ideals & the people. Episode features interviews with Jill Stein, Chris Hedges, Glen Ford and Richard D. Wolff, and lyrical contribution from Rebel Diaz. Distributed in partnership with Left Forum. News Beat: Social Justice Never Sounded So Good News Beat is a Morey Creative Studios production: www.MoreyCreative.com News Beat is produced, engineered an...
Law & Disorder: Progressive Prosecutors Hope to Dismantle Mass Incarceration, One County at a Time
October 30, 2018 11:06 - 23 minutes - 21.8 MBA new wave of progressive prosecutors hopes to reform the criminal 'injustice' system & dismantle mass incarceration by sweeping the midterm elections. News Beat: Social Justice Never Sounded So Good News Beat is a Morey Creative Studios production: www.MoreyCreative.com News Beat is produced, engineered and hosted by Manny Faces: www.MannyFaces.com News Beat Executive Producer: Jed Morey Editor in Chief: Christopher TwarowskiManaging Editor: Rashed MianCover Art Design: Jeff Main S...
Black Ops: COINTELPRO & The U.S. Government’s Ongoing Demonization of Black Activism
October 18, 2018 07:00 - 28 minutes - 26.4 MBThe U.S. government has a long and sordid history of surveilling, infiltrating, and disrupting peaceful political and social movements it deems threatening, or adverse to the status quo. Perhaps most infamous was a secret FBI-led program codenamed COINTELPRO (‘Counter Intelligence Program’), initiated in the ‘50s against such civil and human rights icons as Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali, and many others. While purportedly shut down in 1971, its sinister tactics and spirit ...
The Truth About Puerto Rico: A U.S. Colony
October 08, 2018 07:00 - 25 minutes - 23.6 MBThe United States invaded Puerto Rico in 1898, and as colonists, Puerto Ricans—since 1917, "U.S. citizens"—have endured atrocities ranging from assassinations and bombings to covert mass sterilizations and incarcerations, and the island for decades has been used as a testing ground for experimental weapons and pharmaceuticals, while also serving as a triple-tax-free paradise for U.S. corporations, hedge funds and Wall Street, who've enslaved an entire people, all but seized their nation out ...
Season Three Trailer
October 01, 2018 21:09 - 3 minutes - 3.5 MBThe third season of the award-winning News Beat podcast is set to drop. Here's a quick look at some of the upcoming episodes, including topics such as the immigration crisis, prison abolition, the threat of sexual assault facing incarcerated women, and how the government spies on its citizens. News Beat: Social Justice Never Sounded So Good News Beat is a Morey Creative Studios production: www.MoreyCreative.com News Beat is produced, engineered and hosted by Manny Faces: www.MannyFaces...
Trump’s Muslim Ban: Tearing Apart Families
August 02, 2018 07:00 - 26 minutes - 24.5 MBTwenty-two million people are at risk of starving to death in Yemen due to the U.S.-backed, Saudi-led bombing campaign there against Iranian-supported Houthi rebels. Amal is a 26-year-old woman who fled the destruction, only to have her once-approved visa to the United States revoked. Her and her husband's story is just one of countless tragedies created by U.S. President Donald Trump's self-professed Muslim Ban barring families from five Muslim-majority countries from ever reuniting—even to...
The Real Voter Fraud
July 03, 2018 07:00 - 34 minutes - 32 MBMore than 6 million Americans are barred from voting due to Jim Crow-era laws that strip citizens' voting rights following a felony conviction. Nearly all states have mechanisms in place amounting to civil death sentences for those who served their time and were released back into society, but remain oppressed by a system that refuses to abolish Civil War-era policies. Florida is home to a quarter of the voting-revoked population, with nearly 1.7 million former offenders stripped of their ri...
Criminalizing Protest
June 14, 2018 08:00 - 21 minutes - 19.8 MBAll around the United States, peaceful protesters are being met with armed resistance from local authorities, and restrictive anti-protest laws criminalizing dissent. Across the United States, more than 60 anti-protest bills have been proposed in the last two years. While the far majority haven't been passed, there's a clear attempt by local governments to suppress dissent amid massive waves of discontent since President Trump took office. Not only that, peaceful demonstrators are being co...
America: Even More 'Separate and Unequal'
May 16, 2018 08:00 - 24 minutes - 22.3 MBIn 1968, an 11-member panel appointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson was instructed to examine the causes of the multiple uprisings in African-American communities in 1967, and recommend solutions. The "Kerner Commission" did just that, in a 426-page report released in early 1968. Much of the problem, the report stated, was African-American frustration over a lack of economic opportunity, due to white racism. It then detailed multiple potential solutions to help avoid its ominous prediction ...
BackBeat Episode Breakdown: Youth Prisons
May 11, 2018 16:57 - 37 minutes - 33.9 MBThe News Beat crew expands on the information presented in the full Youth Prisons: Juvenile Detention’s Racial Disparity, Rampant Violence & Lasting Damage episode. Join News Beat's producer and host, Manny Faces, editor in chief Chris Twarowski in this BackBeat episode. Support the show: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?token=EYkdQRkbZ6vNTGfNSGWZjx7_15orqqDl8vkmrAg3TkxLprft1OguFwxlheC3tAkNd-KVPG&country.x=US&locale.x=US See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Youth Prisons: Juvenile Detention’s Racial Disparity, Rampant Violence & Lasting Damage
April 30, 2018 07:30 - 22 minutes - 21 MBThere are tens of thousands of kids incarcerated across the United States within youth prisons, which are often outdated, antiquated, and dilapidated former military prisons dating back to the Civil War. Conditions inside mirror those of adult prisons. There’s rampant violence and abuse, both physical and psychological. Kids are placed in solitary confinement and even hog-tied by guards. And just as with the United States’ adult prison population, it’s African American children and kids of c...
Youth Prisons
April 30, 2018 07:30 - 22 minutes - 41.9 MBThere are tens of thousands of kids incarcerated across the United States within youth prisons, which are often outdated, antiquated, and dilapidated former military prisons dating back to the Civil War. Conditions inside mirror those of adult prisons. There’s rampant violence and abuse, both physical and psychological. Kids are placed in solitary confinement and even hog-tied by guards. And just as with the United States’ adult prison population, it’s African American children and kids of c...
BackBeat Episode Breakdown: MS-13 plus Rebel Diaz Interview
April 19, 2018 08:00 - 1 hour - 63.3 MBThe News Beat crew expands on the information presented in the full MS-13: Made in the USA episode, which explores the origins of the murderous gang which is being used as something of a scapegoat for the immigration policies of the Trump administration. This episode's featured musical guests were revolutionary hip-hop duo Rebel Diaz, with a special appearance from El Savadorian rap artist, Cruz Kontrol. Rebel Diaz are no stranger to social justice and immigrant issues. These children of...
MS-13: Made in the U.S.A.
April 09, 2018 08:00 - 25 minutes - 23.4 MBThe United States under President Donald Trump is fully committed to an all-out assault on immigrants. Much of Trump's ire is directed at MS-13, the transnational gang known primarily for its brutal slayings. But what's often lost in the discussion is the fact that the United States inadvertently helped create MS-13 after providing millions to El Savador's oppressive right-wing regime during its civil war in the '80s. A refugee crisis ensued, causing thousands of young Salvadorans to flee to...
BackBeat Episode Breakdown: Poverty in America
April 06, 2018 18:30 - 46 minutes - 42.7 MBThis BackBeat episode provides additional background and insight regarding our episode, "Land of the Rich, Home of the Poor: America's Poverty Crisis." Listen to the full episode first, then join us here for an in-depth discussion about the issue. You'll hear from News Beat host/producer Manny Faces, editor-in-chief Christopher Twarowski and managing editor Rashed Mian. Support the show: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?token=EYkdQRkbZ6vNTGfNSGWZjx7_15orqqDl8vkmrAg3TkxLprft1OguFwxlheC3tAk...
Land of the Rich, Home of the Poor: America's Poverty Crisis
March 21, 2018 19:47 - 23 minutes - 21.2 MBThe United States is one of the wealthiest nations in the world, and by certain fiscal parameters, the wealthiest. It's richest citizens own roughly 40 percent of the world's wealth. Yet, about 40 million Americans are living in poverty, and about 20 million are mired in extreme poverty, scraping by on less than $2 a day. At the same time that the top 1 percent are increasing their vast fortunes, the income inequality gap is ever-widening, and the middle class is dissolving. For tens of mill...
Poverty in America: Land of the Rich, Home of the Poor
March 21, 2018 19:47 - 23 minutes - 42.7 MBThe United States is one of the wealthiest nations in the world, and by certain fiscal parameters, the wealthiest. It's richest citizens own roughly 40 percent of the world's wealth. Yet, about 40 million Americans are living in poverty, and about 20 million are mired in extreme poverty, scraping by on less than $2 a day. At the same time that the top 1 percent are increasing their vast fortunes, the income inequality gap is ever-widening, and the middle class is dissolving. For tens of mill...
Gina Haspel Covered Up Torture. Now She Might Run The CIA.
March 21, 2018 19:11 - 50 minutes - 46.5 MBA News Beat BONUS EPISODE Just as soon as Trump selected Gina Haspel to lead the CIA, pending a Senate confirmation hearing, her critics condemned the president’s decision, saying Haspel’s role in the CIA’s brutal torture and rendition program disqualifies her for the position. Of course, Mike Pompeo, her predecessor at the agency if she is indeed confirmed, had endorsed torture in the past, just as Trump did on the campaign trail. We talk to two former government insiders who warn about...
BackBeat: A Discussion about the War on the Freedom of the Press
March 15, 2018 20:33 - 50 minutes - 46 MBThis BackBeat episode provides additional background and insight regarding our episode, "Enemy of the American People: The U.S. Government's War on Journalism and Press Freedom." Listen to the full episode first, then join us here for an in-depth discussion about the issue. You'll hear from News Beat producer and host Michael Conforti, AKA Manny Faces, editor-in-chief Christopher Twarowski and managing editor Rashed Mian. Support the show: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?token=EYkdQRkbZ6...
Enemy of the American People
March 01, 2018 19:31 - 25 minutes - 23.7 MBObama had his "War on Whistleblowers." Trump unflinchingly attacks the media. There's also been arrests of reporters. How "free" is the free press? News Beat is a Morey Creative Studios production: www.MoreyCreative.com News Beat is produced, engineered and hosted by Michael “Manny Faces” Conforti: www.MannyFaces.com News Beat Executive Producer is Jed Morey Editor in Chief: Christopher TwarowskiManaging Editor: Rashed MianCover Art Design: Jeff Main Support the show: https://www.payp...
Freedom of the Press: Trump's War on Journalists
March 01, 2018 19:31 - 25 minutes - 47.8 MBObama had his "War on Whistleblowers." Trump unflinchingly attacks the media. There's also been arrests of reporters. How "free" is the free press? News Beat is a Morey Creative Studios production: www.MoreyCreative.com News Beat is produced, engineered and hosted by Michael “Manny Faces” Conforti: www.MannyFaces.com News Beat Executive Producer is Jed Morey Editor in Chief: Christopher Twarowski Managing Editor: Rashed Mian Cover Art Design: Jeff Main
BackBeat Episode Breakdown: America's Black Hole
February 21, 2018 13:59 - 50 minutes - 46.2 MBThis BackBeat episode provides additional background and insight regarding our episode, "America's Black Hole: Indefinite Detention, Torture at Terror at Guantanamo Bay." Listen to the full episode first, then join us here for an in-depth discussion about the issue. You'll hear from News Beat producer Michael Conforti, AKA Manny Faces, editor-in-chief Christopher Twarowski and managing editor Rashed Mian. Support the show: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?token=EYkdQRkbZ6vNTGfNSGWZjx7_15o...
America's Black Hole: Indefinite Detention, Torture & Terror at Guantanamo Bay
February 09, 2018 18:08 - 24 minutes - 22.5 MBObama and Bush said Guantanamo Bay needs to close. Trump wants to keep it open. This is the story of a prison that has become known as a legal "Black Hole." News Beat is a Morey Creative Studios production: www.MoreyCreative.com News Beat is produced, engineered and hosted by Michael “Manny Faces” Conforti: www.MannyFaces.com News Beat Executive Producer is Jed Morey Editor in Chief: Christopher TwarowskiManaging Editor: Rashed MianCover Art Design: Jeff Main Support the show: https:/...
Guantanamo Bay: America's Black Hole
February 09, 2018 18:08 - 24 minutes - 45.1 MBObama and Bush said Guantanamo Bay needs to close. Trump wants to keep it open. This is the story of a prison that has become known as a legal "Black Hole." News Beat is a Morey Creative Studios production: www.MoreyCreative.com News Beat is produced, engineered and hosted by Michael “Manny Faces” Conforti: www.MannyFaces.com News Beat Executive Producer is Jed Morey Editor in Chief: Christopher Twarowski Managing Editor: Rashed Mian Cover Art Design: Jeff Main
BackBeat Episode Breakdown: Freedom For Sale
February 07, 2018 17:20 - 40 minutes - 36.9 MBThis BackBeat provides background, insight and added information regarding our episode, "Freedom For Sale: How Money Bail Crushes America's Poor and Inflates The World's Largest Prison State." Listen to the full episode first, then join us here for an in-depth discussion about the issue. You'll hear from News Beat producer Michael Conforti, AKA Manny Faces, editor-in-chief Christopher Twarowski and managing editor Rashed Mian. Support the show: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?token=EYkdQ...
Money Bail: Freedom for Sale
January 25, 2018 18:32 - 23 minutes - 21.7 MBMore than 400,000 people toil in U.S. jails annually because they can't pay bail. So why in the "Land of the Free" does freedom come at a debilitating cost? Learn how the money bail system in the United States has crushed the poor and forced potentially innocent people to confess to crimes they did not commit, transforming the so-called "Land of the Free" into the world's biggest prison state, and deceivingly inflating conviction rates to grease the campaign coffers of political parties an...
BackBeat Episode Breakdown: Why We Riot, MLK & Season Two
January 24, 2018 16:38 - 47 minutes - 43.1 MBThis special BackBeat episode introduces our second season opener, our acclaimed episode, MLK: What They Won't Teach You In School, giving a bit of behind the scenes context as to how that episode came about and why it's so important. We also touch on our epic season one finale, Why We Riot, and tease some upcoming episodes. You'll hear from News Beat producer Michael Conforti, AKA Manny Faces, editor-in-chief Christopher Twarowski and managing editor Rashed Mian. This BackBeat was recor...
MLK: What They Won't Teach In School
January 08, 2018 18:04 - 20 minutes - 18.8 MBIn this episode, we take an alternative look at Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy, examining how the civil rights icon was so much more than simply the “I Have a Dream” soundbite, which has become known as the cornerstone of his public perception. Along with Pastor Roger C. Williams of the First Baptist Church of Glen Cove, NY, Larry Hamm, of the People's Organization for Progress, hip-hop artist Silent Knight, and King’s own words, listeners learn of MLK’s Poor People’s Campaign, which he be...
BackBeat: Episode breakdown - Radical Caucasian Extremism
December 11, 2017 13:56 - 39 minutes - 35.9 MBOn this episode of BackBeat, the team elaborates how the threat of right-wing radical extremism is often overshadowed by the fear of radical Islamist extremism, even though the statistics show that radical caucasian extremism is more likely to affect the average American. You'll hear from News Beat producer Michael Conforti, AKA Manny Faces, and editors Christopher Twarowski and Rashed Mian as they provide additional insight into the making of the episode "Misunderstanding Terrorism: Expos...
BackBeat: Behind the Scenes of "AUMF: America's Illegal Perpetual War"
November 24, 2017 17:09 - 37 minutes - 34.5 MBOn this episode of BackBeat, the team elaborates on the Authorization for the Use of Military Force, and how this one sentence, passed almost unanimously by Congress, has continued to allow America to engage in military conflicts around the world, without ever receiving official approval. You'll hear from News Beat producer Michael Conforti, AKA Manny Faces, and editors Christopher Twarowski and Rashed Mian as they provide additional insight into the making of the episode "AUMF: The Latest...
AUMF: The Latest Weapon in America's Illegal Perpetual War
November 16, 2017 15:50 - 22 minutes - 20.9 MBThe U.S. Constitution dictates Congress as the sole governmental body possessing the power to declare war, yet it hasn't done so since World War II. So how have we been waging wars for the past 75 years, and what justifies our current global conflicts? News Beat is an MP Studios production, a division of Morey Publishing: www.MoreyPublishing.com News Beat is produced and engineered by Michael “Manny Faces” Conforti: www.MannyFaces.com News Beat Executive Producer is Jed Morey Editor in...
BackBeat: The Making of "Chelsea Manning: Collateral Murder Cover-Up"
November 10, 2017 00:12 - 36 minutes - 33.1 MBOn this episode of BackBeat, the team elaborates on the Chelsea Manning leaks from seven years ago and discuss why her revelations remain relevant today. You'll hear from Michael Conforti, AKA Manny Faces, Christopher Twarowski and Rashed Mian as they provide additional insight into the making of the episode "Chelsea Manning: Collateral Murder Cover-Up." Support the show: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?token=EYkdQRkbZ6vNTGfNSGWZjx7_15orqqDl8vkmrAg3TkxLprft1OguFwxlheC3tAkNd-KVPG&country.x=...
Chelsea Manning: Collateral Murder Cover-Up
November 02, 2017 19:18 - 22 minutes - 20.4 MBChelsea Manning is perhaps the most important whistleblower in history. Yet she and her revelations remain largely distorted, misunderstood and covered up, obscured by US government- and mainstream media-manufactured hysteria about her patriotism and gender dysphoria. News Beat is an MP Studios production, a division of Morey Publishing: www.MoreyPublishing.com News Beat is produced and engineered by Michael “Manny Faces” Conforti: www.MannyFaces.com News Beat Executive Producer is Jed...
BackBeat Special Edition: 'Hijacking Jihad' Follow-up
November 01, 2017 15:08 - 13 minutes - 12.8 MBA years-long project spearheaded by Daisy Khan, one of the leading Muslim American advocates in the United States culminated last week in the release of a robust report debunking myths about Islam while amplifying the spiritual and cultural tenets of the oft-maligned religion. We featured Daisy in our previous episode, "Hijacking Jihad," and were on hand at the WISE Up: Knowledge Ends Extremism Summit to gain further insight. Listen to this special 'on the road' edition of BackBeat. Sup...
BackBeat: The Making of "Exonerated and Broke"
October 05, 2017 15:33 - 29 minutes - 26.7 MBOn this episode of BackBeat, the team discusses the inspiration for the episode Exonerated and Broke, providing more insight on the fight for exonerees to receive compensation for their wrongful convictions. In this BackBeat, you’ll hear from News Beat producer Michael Conforti, aka Manny Faces, editor-in-chief Christopher Twarowski, and managing editor Rashed Mian. Support the show: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?token=EYkdQRkbZ6vNTGfNSGWZjx7_15orqqDl8vkmrAg3TkxLprft1OguFwxlheC3tAkNd-KVPG&...
BackBeat 003: Hijacking JIhad
August 31, 2017 14:35 - 19 minutes - 18 MBOn this episode of BackBeat, the team discusses the inspiration for the episode “Hijacking Jihad: Reclaiming ‘Islam’s Personal Struggle’” and how reporting on the meaning of Jihad has given them a more nuanced view of the religion. You’ll hear from News Beat producer Michael Conforti, aka Manny Faces, editor-in-chief Christopher Twarowski, and managing editor Rashed Mian as they provide insight into the making of the episode. Support the show: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?token=EYkdQRkbZ6...
BackBeat: The making of 'Hijacking Jihad'
August 31, 2017 14:35 - 19 minutes - 17.9 MBOn this episode of BackBeat, the team discusses the inspiration for the episode “Hijacking Jihad: Reclaiming ‘Islam’s Personal Struggle’” and how reporting on the meaning of Jihad has given them a more nuanced view of the religion. You’ll hear from News Beat producer Michael Conforti, aka Manny Faces, editor-in-chief Christopher Twarowski, and managing editor Rashed Mian as they provide insight into the making of the episode.
Hijacking Jihad
August 24, 2017 14:19 - 16 minutes - 15.1 MBOver the last two decades, the term "Jihad" has exclusively been defined as a holy war perpetrated by extremists. As such, when the average American hears the term "Jihad," they conflate Islam with terror. Although the term has been hijacked by extremists, many Muslims in the US and around world don't recognize Jihad's contemporary application. For these Muslims, the term, which literally translates to "struggle," is a personal struggle, or a mission. For example, someone's "Jihad" could be ...
BackBeat: The True Origins of the War on Drugs
August 22, 2017 19:57 - 19 minutes - 17.7 MBOn this episode of BackBeat, the News Beat team goes behind-the-scenes of episode 0002, "The True Origins of the War on Drugs," to provide additional insight as to how the episode came together and why it was important to tell this story. News Beat and BackBeat are brought to you by Morey Publishing, an inbound marketing agency and custom publishing house located on Long Island, NY. For more information about News Beat or BackBeat, please visit www.usnewsbeat.com or email us at newsbeat@...
BackBeat: The Making of 'The True Origins of the War on Drugs'
August 22, 2017 19:57 - 19 minutes - 13.2 MBOn this episode of BackBeat, the News Beat team goes behind-the-scenes of episode 0002, "The True Origins of the War on Drugs," to provide additional insight as to how the episode came together and why it was important to tell this story. News Beat and BackBeat are brought to you by Morey Publishing, an inbound marketing agency and custom publishing house located on Long Island, NY. For more information about News Beat or BackBeat, please visit www.usnewsbeat.com or email us at newsbeat@...
BackBeat: The introduction to News Beat
June 26, 2017 19:14 - 48 minutes - 44.3 MBIn this, our inaugural episode of BackBeat, we spend a little time describing who we are, why we've launched the News Beat podcast, and the kinds of issues we hope the podcast series will bring to light. Speaking on their history together and how News Beat came to be, this episode includes executive producer and engineer, Michael "Manny Faces" Conforti, News Beat Managing Editor Rashed Mian, Editor-in-Chief Chris Twarowski and executive producer and founder, Jed Morey. News Beat and Back...
News Beat: MLK, Jr. - Unfinished Business
January 15, 2017 19:06 - 30 minutes - 27.9 MBWelcome to News Beat. An unconventional examination of conventional wisdom. News Beat is an educational and alternative news podcast combining spoken word, music and audio clips. In this inaugural episode, we take an alternative look at Martin Luther King, Jr.'s legacy, examining how the civil rights icon was so much more that simply the "I Have a Dream" soundbite, which has become known as the cornerstone of his public perception. Along with Reverend Roger C. Williams of the First Baptist ...