About this episode
It’s a bird, it’s a plane… no, it’s a spy balloon. On this week’s On the Media, how to grasp a news event that’s equal parts concerning and absurd. Plus, the hunt for who poisoned the Russian dissident Alexei Navalny, and re-reading classic Russian novels in the shadow of the Ukraine war. 1. Jon Allsop [ @Jon_Allsop ], freelance journalist and author of the Columbia Journalism Review's newsletter The Media Today, on how to understand polarizing reactions to the Chinese spy balloon. Listen . 2. Christo Grozev [ @christogrozev ], lead Russia investigator at Bellingcat, and Daniel Roher [ @DanielRoher ], director of the documentary "Navalny ," on investigating, and filming, Alexei Navalny's search for the truth behind his own poisoning. Listen . 3. Elif Batuman [ @BananaKarenina ], novelist and staff writer at The New Yorker , on revisiting classic Russian literature in times of war . Listen . On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today ( https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm ). Follow our show on Instagram , Twitter and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing onthemedia@wnyc.org.