Jussie Smollett made headlines recently for being the victim of an alleged hate crime when it was reported he was bashed by two assailants due to his sexual orientation. It has now transpired that the whole incident was an alleged hoax organised by Smollett himself, involving his payment by cheque to two Nigerian brothers to make it happen according to his instructions according to evidence collated by the Chicago Police Department. Much has been said about how the media and broader culture has reacted to this story, both when it was being treated as a real hate crime and then when it was revealed to be a hoax. Steve and Ben examine the incident and subsequent media follow up, including what it says about the current state of our culture and its reactions to such incidents.

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