extremely

We often say episodes of extremely are special, but this time we really mean it. Oren Segal and Jessica Reaves are joined, live on stage, by Nuseir Yassin and Alex Dwek of Nas Company and Nas Daily for a freewheeling, thoughtful conversation about Israeli-Palestinian identity, the importance of community-building and our universal need for human connection.

Recorded at the Never Is Now conference in New York, this episode...

In this episode of extremely, Oren Segal and Jessica Reaves have a little something for everyone. We’re talking Houthi terrorists, Men’s Rights Activists and how extremists use cryptocurrency exchanges – the last with COE’s Extremism Funding Investigator, Mark Dwyer.

In the second half of the episode, we’re joined by Shannon Hiller, who helms Princeton University’s Bridging Divides Initiative, for a frank conversation about the pote...

In the final episode of 2023, Oren Segal and Jessica Reaves look back at some of the developments in hate and extremism we wish would end along with the year (but almost certainly will not), including extremists harassing city council meetings, a months-long swatting spree targeting synagogues and other religious institutions and finally the massive post-October 7 spike in antisemitic incidents.

We also welcome a couple o...

In this episode of extremely, Oren Segal and Jessica Reaves consider the (partial) demise of extremist favorite Omegle, hype COE's popular and incredibly useful Hate Symbols Database and have an illuminating discussion with COE mis/disinformation analyst Sara Aniano, who walks us through the promise and very real dangers of Generative AI.

We also revisit and share an important update to our conversation with Abbey Onn...

In this special episode of extremely, Oren Segal and Jessica Reaves speak with two women who are advocating tirelessly on behalf of their family members who were taken hostage by Hamas terrorists. Abbey Onn and Alana Zeitchik are responding to an unspeakable situation with endless resolve and empathy, and they are determined to keep the hostages in the spotlight.

Have any questions for us? Email: extremely@adl.org

Recorded two weeks after the start of the Israel-Hamas war, this month’s episode of extremely finds the ADL Center on Extremism’s (COE) Oren Segal and Jessica Reaves talking about white supremacists celebrating Hamas terror and the dangers of mis- and disinformation at a time when truth feels hard to come by. They also talk to COE’s Antisemitic Incident Specialist Rachel Sass about the spike in antisemitic incidents since the war b...

In extremely’s triumphant return to the podcast (air)waves, the ADL Center on Extremism’s Oren Segal and Jessica Reaves talk swatting, white supremacist activity and optics. We’re also joined by Research Assistant Mason Peeples, who weighs in on his work in online threat detection. Then, Oren talks to Michael Rothschild about his new book, Jewish Space Lasers: The Rothschilds and 200 Years of Conspiracy Theories. Fun fact: Michael’...

In this episode of extremely, Oren Segal speaks with Elizabeth Williamson, feature writer for The New York Times and author of “Sandy Hook: An American Tragedy and the Battle for Truth.”

Elizabeth and Oren discuss how disinformation and falsehoods inevitably follow mass shootings, and how conspiracies and lies - aided by super-spreaders like Alex Jones - increasingly lead to harassment of and threats against victims’ families. Eliza...

In this episode of extremely, Oren Segal speaks with Sam Jackson, assistant professor in the College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity at the State University of New York at Albany, and author of, “Oath Keepers: Patriotism and the Edge of Violence in a Right-Wing Antigovernment Group.”

When Sam was an undergrad religious studies major at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, he “accidentally” took a cla...

In this episode of extremely, Oren Segal speaks with David Neiwert, investigative journalist, and author of, “Alt-America: The Rise of the Radical Right in the Age of Trump.” David, who has been reporting on extremism for decades, provides his insight into the evolution of anti-democratic movements in the U.S. and how it culminated with the January 6th insurrection.

In addition to describing how he made extremism reporting a beat, D...

In this episode of extremely, Oren Segal speaks with Lisa Kaplan, founder of the Alethea Group, which detects and mitigates disinformation and social media manipulation. Lisa explains the difference between disinformation and misinformation and highlights strategies to reduce the consequences of disinformation campaigns, which she says are "fast, cheap and easy to do."

Beyond her love of dogs – repeat, Lisa loves dogs – sh...

In this episode of extremely, Oren Segal speaks with Amy Cooter, Senior Lecturer in Sociology at Vanderbilt University, about her ethnographic research on the militia movement in the U.S.

Amy, who has interviewed militia members directly and observed their training firsthand, is not “a stereotypical academic.” She says that while most militias “see themselves as fundamentally local,” that started to change when they “became more wil...

In this episode of extremely, Oren Segal speaks with Mary McCord, Executive Director of the Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection (ICAP) and a Visiting Professor of Law at Georgetown University Law Center.

Before her national security work or serving as Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, Mary attended journalism school, which she describes as a "pretty good precursor to law school because essen...

In this episode of extremely, Oren Segal speaks with Erroll Southers, Professor at USC and Director of the Safe Communities Institute. Erroll explains his pathway from being stopped by law enforcement growing up in small town New Jersey to the Santa Monica Police Department, counterterrorism with the FBI, and then academia.

Erroll credits a “incredible mentor” for the tough love that helped him keep moving forward in his career. Er...

In episode one of season two, Oren Segal speaks with Jared Holt, Resident Fellow at Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab), about recent media coverage of extremism and the September 18 non-event in Washington DC.

Oren and Jared also discuss the importance of personal security and pathways into this field of work. Jared says his upbringing in Arkansas and spending time on the internet as a kid gave him "a bet...

On the final episode of season one, we turn to previous guests for wisdom. An “Evening with the Experts” was chance to share personal strategies for managing extremist topics, which includes trash TV recommendations, the soothing sounds of basketball and rap star legacies.

As we work to understand and interrupt some of the worst ideas, we also learn the value of self-care and the responsibility for taking care of those coming up in ...

In Episode 12, Oren Segal speaks with Joan Donovan, Research Director of the Harvard Kennedy School Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy. Dr. Donovan leads the field in examining media manipulation, online extremism and disinformation campaigns.

Joan admits to being a bit of an anarchist but describes the ways in which governments are instrumental in service delivery. Oren and Joan discuss the effects of bad regul...

A month following the January 6 insurrection we reflect on the sadly inevitable events and how we got here. On this episode of extremely, Oren Segal spoke to Amy Spitalnick, Executive Director of Integrity First for America, about the importance of holding extremists accountable for their actions.

Oren and Amy explore: How do extremist groups use try to avoid liability? How did Amy learn how to sue Nazis from Roberta Kaplan? This an...

After decades of work together, Oren Segal speaks with Mark Pitcavage, Senior Research Fellow at the ADL Center on Extremism, about ADL's annual Murder and Extremism report. But Mark also has word of encouragement for the next generation of researchers and leaders.

In this month’s conversation, we learn how getting in on the ground floor of subject matter expertise can have huge impact. Mark also talks about a career that enabl...