Episode 6 - Media and Empire (w/ Chenjerai Kumanyika)

Do the mainstream media need history lessons—or do they understand America’s past and choose not to tell the truth?In this episode of Right of Resistance, host Kuros Charney is joined by scholar, journalist, artist, and organizer Chenjerai Kumanyika for a wide-ranging conversation about media and empire—and why mainstream journalism so often fails to explain the world it claims to cover. Drawing on his work as a Peabody Award–winning podcaster (Uncivil, Empire City) and editor of Hammer & Hope, Kumanyika explores mainstream media institutions as terrains of struggle, where political education is often absent and official narratives crowd out structural truths. He breaks down what journalists actually need to understand in order to report the daily news, how “public safety” is weaponized to scare voters, and how capitalism and empire produce a fictional understanding of the world—one that too often leads to violence.The conversation also covers Palestine solidarity on campuses that suppress dissent, Zohran Mamdani’s shifting positions on policing, the hard realities of coalition-building on the left, and why you shouldn’t look to tech bros for insight into masculinity.Don’t miss this urgent, incisive conversation with one of the sharpest media critics working today.Subscribe to Right of Resistance on YouTube for videos of our episodes.Become a Patreon member to support our work.Follow us on:• Substack• Twitter/X: @KurosCharney and @RightofResist• Instagram: @KurosCharney and @RightofResistance This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit kuroscharney.substack.com