This episode thrives on podcast partnership. We’re joined by Ed Fitzpatrick, veteran Boston Globe Rhode Island reporter and host of the Rhode Island Report podcast. What is fake news? In this episode, we explore how misinformation, fueled by AI, amplified on social media, and often dismissed as “fake news,” is reshaping our legal system and democracy. From trials to government debates, misinformation undermines fairness and fuels distrust. Attacks on journalists worsen this by silencing accountability and enabling misinformation to spread.

Drawing on decades of reporting, Ed offers insight into the rising tension between free speech, press freedom, and the right to a fair trial in an era of digital half-truths.

Resources:

• Ed’s Bio: https://www.bostonglobe.com/about/staff-list/staff/edward-fitzpatrick/
• Five Freedoms: https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/amendments/amendment-i
• Information Futures Lab: https://sites.brown.edu/informationfutures/
• RI Board of Elections: https://elections.ri.gov/
• RI Bans Deepfakes: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/07/02/metro/rhode-island-regulates-deepfakes-elections/
• Jeff Britt Trial: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/12/16/metro/ri-political-operative-britt-found-not-guilty-money-laundering-trial/

Hungry for more media discussion? Join Boston Globe at the Rhode Map Live event: Telling Rhode Island’s Story: The Future of Local Media. Tuesday, Sept. 30. Info and registration via https://rhodemapliveseptember30.splashthat.com/