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On today's episode, Roqayah and Kumars are joined by Wendy Parker and Dan Feidt, two journalists who are part of Unicorn Riot, a decentralized, non-hierarchical media collective that started in 2015. Along with other members of the collective, Wendy and Dan have been reporting on leaked chat logs from a white supremacist organization involved in planning the deadly August "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville. After learning more about Unicorn Riot's unique approach to journalism, with stories produced collaboratively and horizontally and entirely through donations from supporters, Wendy and Dan explain how Unicorn Riot was able to get their hands on these private chat logs. These chat logs, comprised of hundreds of thousands of individual messages over months, show definitively that the white supremacist group in question has genocidal aims, despite their efforts to hide their goals from public scrutiny. The chat logs, in addition to revealing the vile politics and violent aims of many adherents of this right-wing ideology, revealed a high level of organization and strong commitment to building power. We learn about how Unicorn Riot's work has made its way into more mainstream outlets, and the effect that this and other similar work is having on the ability of these groups to function effectively. Dan and Wendy describe how members of the collective have been targeted by neo-nazis in retaliation for their work, and how they've been able to stay safe. Finally, we get their thoughts on how journalists can use reporting to fight against fascist organizing, without giving groups or individuals a platform that amplifies their evil message.
You can follow Unicorn Riot at @UR_Ninja. You can follow Dan on Twitter at @hongpong. You can't follow Wendy anywhere, because she deleted all her accounts (nice). Check out Unicorn Riot's searchable database of neo-nazi chat logs, and also check out the helpful anti-doxxing guide from Equality Labs mentioned on the episode.
A transcript for this episode is forthcoming. Please send an email to deleteuracct @ gmail to get a copy sent to you when it is completed.