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Ready to peek behind the curtain of how your favorite independent journalists actually gather the news? In this unfiltered episode, Meseidy and Rachel expose their wildly different approaches to news sourcing—and spoiler alert: one of them just discovered you can search your Twitter bookmarks (looking at you, Rachel).

While Meseidy operates like a tech-savvy newsroom with AI assistants, databases, and enough apps to make your head spin, Rachel’s over here with her trusty paper lists and printed articles, proving that sometimes old school just works. From AI hallucinations to Google Alerts, from Twitter lists to literal Manila folders, this episode is packed with practical tips you can actually use—whether you’re team digital or team analog.

Warning: You might leave this episode with a serious case of tool envy and a sudden urge to organize your entire news consumption system.

Episode Highlights

* The Great Tech Divide - Meseidy drops knowledge about AI tools and Twitter features while Rachel discovers she’s been living in the digital stone age

* AI for News Junkies - Learn how to use Grok, Claude, and other AI tools for research without falling into the hallucination trap

* Verification Standards - Both hosts reveal their personal rules for confirming breaking news before hitting publish (spoiler: it’s not what mainstream media does)

* The Tool Arsenal - From Ground News to Google Alerts to searchable Twitter bookmarks, get the full breakdown of free and paid tools that actually work

* Analog vs Digital Showdown - Rachel’s paper lists and printed articles go head-to-head with Meseidy’s databases and digital workflows

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Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Personal Updates

05:37 News Sourcing Methods: A Contrast of Approaches

10:32 Utilizing Technology for News Gathering

16:32 The Role of AI in News Reporting

22:08 Evaluating News Sources and Bias

25:27 Navigating Research Tools

27:37 Utilizing AI for Data Analysis

30:52 The Role of AI in Historical Research

34:48 Building a Personal Database for Research

38:41 Setting Up Google Alerts for News Tracking

42:59 Journalistic Ethics and Verification

47:55 The Changing Landscape of News Reporting

55:21 Archiving and Note-Taking Strategies

58:40 Utilizing Technology for Information Management

01:01:25 Podcasting and Learning Styles

01:07:23 Balancing Technology and Traditional Methods

01:12:20 Personal Preferences in Focus and Learning

01:18:20 Embracing Differences in Perspectives