Hi, this is Josh Marshall, and this is the Josh Marshall podcast. We have an interesting show today. We're going to talk about a topic that's sort of near and dear to

DPM's collective hearts and that is conspiracy theories. I'm here with my

colleagues David Tainter and Allegra Kirkland.

Hello.

Hey Joe. Hey, how are you?

Hey Josh, nice to be here.

Yeah, absolutely.

All right, and we're going to, so this isn't just like a free form.

We're going to talk just randomly about conspiracy theories. We have a guest here, Anna Merlin.

Is your hello?

Hi, how are you? Good. It's good to meet you. I don't think we've ever met before.

We actually have, but that's okay. Okay, well okay I'm starting embarrassed when did we meet?

I interviewed for a job here like seven years ago or something. Okay I feel okay

I feel a little better. It was a different lifetime. Okay different lifetime got it. Got it.

So the book is Republic of Lies, Americans Conspiracy Therists, and their surprising rise to power.

Like I was saying, this is like a topic that is near and dear to our hearts and these things are often dismissed as

sort of like oh that's kind of crazy stuff let's talk about the real things happening in

American politics but in the last two or three years we've learned more

than like at any other time in recent American history that the conspiracy

theories are what is actually going on and not not in the literal sense what is going on but that

that discourse and that dialogue is not some kind of comic relief on the side but is actually has a profound determining

effect on what happens in the country. So I'm gonna I'm gonna read some ad copy.

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