I'm going to be Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, If you're hearing this, well done. If you're hearing this, well done, you've found a way to connect to the internet.

Welcome to the QAA Podcast Premium episode 244, on the road with the Conspiracist's right featuring Mike Wendling.

As always we are your host Jake Rockatanski, Julian Field, and Travis View.

Mike Wendling is a National Digital Reporter for the BBC. He's the co- reporter for the BBC.

He's the co-founder of the BBC's Disinformation Unit

and was editor and presenter of BBC Trending.

Well, topics related to disinformation and extremism have become very popular, you know, starting in 2016.

He's been covering this subject matter for decades.

He's the author of the book, Alt-Write, from 4chan to White House, as well as the brand new book, Day of Reckoning

How the far right declared war on democracy.

Mike, thank you so much for joining us today.

Thanks so much for having me.

It's great to be here.

I mean, like I said, it's fair to say that you are a seasoned veteran in covering the subject matter that has blown up an interest and relevant sort of the last eight years. So what first got you in like covering this?

Well, you know, it's kind of weird that like my interest in fringe politics and technology

somehow merged about 10 years ago, but you know, basically that's how I got into it. I was making

radio documentaries for the BBC about social media and the sort of like the bright

in glitzy new world of online social networking but then I've always also had a fascination with

fringe political movements of all stripes and of course when the alt-right

started to coalesce and in 2015 and 2016 really you know kind of burst out of nowhere at

least from like mainstream attention it was very shocking in a way but maybe not

so surprising if you were looking at these things over the long term to realize

...