Rather than merely debunking modern flat-earth claims, Sorgatz examines the false historical belief that earlier societies commonly considered Earth flat. He notes that Greek thinkers, Columbus's contemporaries, church figures, and Dante understood Earth as spherical; the popular contrary story largely emerged as a nineteenth-century rhetorical device.

Ancient Greek thinkers understood that Earth was spherical
Columbus's contemporaries did not generally believe in a flat Earth
Galileo's persecutors disputed heliocentrism, not Earth's shape
The historical flat-earth narrative became a nineteenth-century intellectual cudgel

“There was no one during Columbus's time that was flat.”
Rex Sorgatz · 13:31

“the people who persecuted Galileo believe the Earth is round. They just didn't believe that the Earth was not the center of the universe.”
Rex Sorgatz · 13:40

#flat earth#history#myths#science

Hot Take· 2

Hot Take34:56

Why “X Should Buy Y” Columns Are Business Fan Fiction

Sorgatz identifies acquisition-prediction columns as a recurring technology-writing gimmick, often produced when writers need an easy premise. Yet he also sees value in the form because imagining a merger creates a speculative sandbox for exploring how companies, products, and industries might evolve.

Acquisition columns rely on a repeatable media trope
The format can function as a lazy writing gimmick
Speculating about a merger lets readers project a possible future
Seemingly absurd combinations can later become plausible
The exercise can reveal shifts in corporate strategy and reputation

“I call it business fan fick because what allows you to do is kind of project a future in your head.”
Rex Sorgatz · 37:23

“there's kind of a weird value in it because it allows you your mind to kind of wander and kind of speculate about that future”
Rex Sorgatz · 38:04

#media criticism#acquisitions#technology#writing

Hot Take42:11

Can a Huge Sale Price Turn a Questionable Painting Into a Masterpiece?

Sorgatz examines how the art market can confer legitimacy on disputed works through price and ownership rather than new historical or scientific evidence. He uses Steve Wynn's Vermeer and the costly attributed Leonardo da Vinci painting to argue that a major purchase can reshape canon, attention, and perceived artistic importance.

The accepted Vermeer canon can change without discovery of a new painting
A high-profile purchase can influence attribution and legitimacy
No new scientific analysis accompanied the change described
Extreme prices attract investigation and cultural importance
Market value can become entangled with judgments of authenticity

“the verifying fact of art is not it's historical voracity or any kind of analysis on it”
Rex Sorgatz · 43:26

“It's like it's full of all kinds of new value just because somebody wrote a big check for it.”
Rex Sorgatz · 45:08

#art#forgery#vermeer#da vinci#markets

Explainer· 4

Explainer10:15

Why an Encyclopedia of Misinformation Is Really About Trust

Sorgatz explains that his book is not primarily a catalog of hoaxes and conspiracy theories. It explores how falsehood evolves, how people decide which knowledge sources to trust, and how confidence in institutions and shared knowledge bases is eroding.

The book emphasizes theories and mechanisms rather than lists of hoaxes
Its core subject is the epistemology of misinformation
Trust in institutions and knowledge bases is weakening
The material uses a playful style to examine a serious cultural problem

“really it's about the theory.”
Rex Sorgatz · 10:43

“I think of it as a book about trust, like who what's sources? Who what sources of do you trust today?”
Rex Sorgatz · 10:53

#trust#misinformation#institutions#epistemology

Explainer14:36

Fake News Has Deep Roots in the Golden Age of Grifters

Sorgatz argues that manipulation and media chicanery are not inventions of the internet. The nineteenth century featured figures such as P. T. Barnum and widespread medical hoaxes, while the present resembles periods when opportunists learned to game emerging information systems.

Misinformation long predates social media
The nineteenth century was rich in commercial and medical hoaxes
P. T. Barnum exemplified the era's manipulation
Modern platforms may be revisiting an older cycle of system-gaming

“there's a lot of nineteenth century stuff in here. Um, and that was just an era of peer chicanery and uh and manipulation”
Rex Sorgatz · 14:44

“I feel like we're kind of returning to an era right now.”
Rex Sorgatz · 15:41

#fake news#history#grifters#media

Explainer15:47

How the Overton Window Moves Fringe Ideas Into Public Debate

The Overton window describes the range of ideas a society considers acceptable for mainstream discussion. Sorgatz uses marijuana legalization and same-sex marriage as examples of ideas moving into acceptance, while warning that fringe claims can also enter public consciousness and demand attention they previously did not receive.

The window defines what is acceptable to discuss publicly
Social and political ideas move in and out of the window
Movement can normalize constructive reforms
The same mechanism can elevate extremist or baseless positions
Once admitted, fringe ideas consume attention through debate and debunking

“it's what are the topics that we allow into public discourse, what is safe for us to discuss”
Rex Sorgatz · 16:02

“we're starting to take things seriously that otherwise we're like, oh, that's for the freaks and the outsiders”
Rex Sorgatz · 18:14

#overton window#public discourse#politics#media

Explainer18:46

Reddit Incubates Fringe Ideas Before Facebook Makes Them Mainstream

Sorgatz distinguishes the roles of major social platforms in spreading misinformation. He describes Reddit as an incubator where isolated believers find one another, strengthen theories, and develop memes or propaganda; successful material then bubbles up to Facebook and reaches a much broader audience.

Reddit's smaller communities give fringe beliefs a place to take root
Previously isolated individuals find reinforcement from like-minded users
Challenges from outsiders can prompt believers to elaborate their theories
Communities manufacture memes and propaganda
Facebook provides the later path to mainstream reach

“read it is where the audience is smaller, still substantial, but smaller. But it's really where ideas get root.”
Rex Sorgatz · 18:54

“eventually what happens is that stuff bubbles up to Facebook, and that's when it goes mainstream”
Rex Sorgatz · 19:55

#reddit#facebook#social media#memes#misinformation

Story· 4

Story07:00

The Flood and Fire That Launched Sorgatz's Media Career

Sorgatz recounts remaining in Grand Forks during the catastrophic 1997 flood, when a downtown fire compounded the disaster and submerged hydrants made firefighting nearly impossible. The newspaper burned, he was rescued from his apartment, and the Grand Forks Herald's coverage won a Pulitzer Prize that helped open his path beyond North Dakota.

Grand Forks evacuated roughly 50,000 residents
A downtown fire broke out amid six feet of floodwater
Submerged hydrants and lost water pressure obstructed firefighters
The newspaper's disaster coverage won a Pulitzer Prize
The recognition transformed Sorgatz's career options

“there's all of this water, but there's a fire, and the fire can't be put out because the fire hydrants are on the water.”
Rex Sorgatz · 08:05

“I lost everything I ever owned. But it was sort of lucky because, um, you know, we won the pulletzer.”
Rex Sorgatz · 09:30

#journalism#disaster#pulitzer#north dakota

Story25:48

When One Blogger Could Still Index Every Year-End List

Sorgatz describes building the List of Lists by collecting year-end rankings through search alerts, submissions, and manual browsing. What began as a manageable set of roughly 200 lists became impossible for one person as listicles, affiliate sites, and online publishing exploded.

The project collected year-end lists into simple categories
Google alerts and reader submissions supported the process
Early editions contained roughly 200 lists
Affiliate publishing and listicles multiplied the available material
The scale eventually became too large for one curator

“Basically I had a Google search alert for best of year or best of two thousand six or whatever”
Rex Sorgatz · 26:29

“I chose life.”
Rex Sorgatz · 33:04

#blogging#web history#curation#listicles

Story53:26

How the 2016 Election Made a Playful Book More Serious

The book began as The Encyclopedia of Fakeery, focused more playfully on aesthetics, society, and culture. The 2016 election occurred halfway through writing, prompting Sorgatz to adopt a graver tone and incorporate more psychology and sociology, including concepts such as the backfire effect and filter bubbles.

The original title was The Encyclopedia of Fakeery
The initial concept was lighter and more culturally focused
The 2016 election changed the perceived stakes of the subject
Sorgatz added social-science research to explain misinformation mechanisms

“it took on a graver tone when halfway through writing it, UM, we had a ran new presidents”
Rex Sorgatz · 54:39

“all of a sudden, I had to introduce a lot more social science into it.”
Rex Sorgatz · 55:18

#books#2016 election#social science#misinformation

Story1:14:26

The Parody T-Shirt That Triggered a Viral Legal Fight

Sorgatz recounts selling a parody shirt reading “Prairie Ho Companion” and later receiving a cease-and-desist letter from Garrison Keillor's lawyer. After warning that he would publish the demand, Sorgatz did so; the dispute went viral, attracted legal-defense offers, and forced him to decide whether vindicating a constitutional principle was worth becoming defined by the litigation.

The shirt parodied A Prairie Home Companion
The legal demand arrived after the shirts had sold out
Sorgatz disclosed his intended public-response strategy in advance
The published letter became a major viral story
The ACLU and Stanford Law School offered support
He ultimately chose not to pursue the dispute further

“one of the T shirts was um Prairie Ho Companion.”
Rex Sorgatz · 1:15:21

“Here are my cards on the table. I'm sharing strategy. I'm saying, don't pursue this.”
Rex Sorgatz · 1:16:50

#parody#free speech#lawsuit#viral media

Tool· 1

Tool29:49

Use an Unpersonalized Browser to Expose Your Search Filter Bubble

The discussion shows how two people can receive different search results because Google uses prior activity to personalize rankings. Ritholtz suggests repeating a query in a browser where the user is not logged in and has little search history, revealing how personalization changes the visible information landscape.

Search rankings can depend on the user's browsing history
Two users may receive different answers to the same query
A separate browser can provide a less personalized comparison
Product-ranking searches are especially vulnerable to affiliate clutter
Personalization complicates the notion of one objectively best result

“There is no best coffee maker. There is there's only a best for you.”
Rex Sorgatz · 31:24

#search#filter bubble#google#personalization

Frameworks in this episode

Agnotology Information-Flood Model

Epistemic Humility Protocol

Own Your Interest Category

Insights & moments

⚡Myth Buster· 1

Most Educated People Never Thought the Earth Was Flat

◆Hot Take· 2