ENCORE: True Crime in the Post-Truth Era

ENCORE: True Crime in the Post-Truth Era

From Politicology by Politicology

May 20, 2026 · 54 min · Season 2 · Episode 580

About this episode

Andy Kroll discusses his book on the Seth Rich case and the evolution of conspiracy theories in the post-truth era.

To unlock subscriber-only content, visit: https://politicology.com/plus How does murder during a robbery-gone-wrong become an international conspiracy theory? What even is a true crime story in the post-truth era? Andy Kroll (Investigative Reporter at ProPublica, former DC Bureau Chief for Rolling Stone) joins host Ron Steslow to discuss his new book, A Death on W Street: The Murder of Seth Rich and the Age of Conspiracy. (01:34) What drew Andy to the Seth Rich story (08:48) The facts of the Seth Rich case (12:44) How conspiracy theories have changed in the 21st Century (21:08) Russia, the DNC leak, and the need for a scapegoat (24:22) The intersection of conspiracy theories (29:06) The conspiracy theory economy You should read A Death on W Street: https://andy-kroll.com/ Follow Andy and Ron on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AndyKroll https://twitter.com/RonSteslow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People in this episode

Host: Ron Steslow

Guest: Andy Kroll

Topics covered

  • true crime
  • conspiracy theories
  • Seth Rich
  • post-truth era
  • investigative journalism

Keywords

  • Seth Rich
  • true crime
  • conspiracy theory
  • post-truth
  • investigative reporting

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: ProPublica, Rolling Stone

Books & works: A Death on W Street

More episodes of Politicology

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Politicology podcast page.