Talk, unscripted and well worth a listen. But first, from the Z Files: Stuart Zechman considers “false equivalence” and the misleading practices of traditional media pundits who use it to mean something very different when commenting on actions of the Obama administration than the way they used it during the Bush administration. More here from our collection of audio commentary.

Sunday, April 1 through Thursday, April 5: Joan McCarter, Culture of Truth, Spocko, Mike Stark, Alan Boyle, Kevin Gosztola, Stuart Zechman and Jay Ackroyd consider politics, policy and science in light of very current events, timely trends and public affairs. Comments and questions courtesy of a digitally present studio audience. Which could include you. (see IRC below) All programs webcast and archived at BlogTalkRadio (BTR). Syndicated too! Available free at iTunes. (Search Virtually Speaking and Virtually Speaking Science from the iTunes store.)

Sunday, April 1 | 9 pm eastern | 6 am pacific |Virtually Speaking Sundays |Joan McCarter – Senior Policy Editor at DailyKos - and Culture of Truth – author of the weekly Bobblespeak Translations, where he satirizes the Sunday Morning talking heads - discuss their most recent work. Plus this week’s Most Ridiculous Moment. Follow @JoanMcCarter @Bobblespeak Listen live and later on BTR

Monday, April 2 | 9 pm eastern | 6 am pacific |Virtually Speaking A-Z | Jay Ackroyd and Stuart Zechman discuss state lotteries as public finance and as part of American consumer culture. Recorded earlier in the day. Follow @Stuart_Zechman @JayAckroyd Listen on BTR

Tuesday, April 3 | 9 pm eastern | 6 pm pacific |Virtually Speaking Tuesdays | Spocko and Mike Stark talk about today’s media environment, effective activism, organizing strategies and the power of the 99%. Follow @spockosbrain @mike_stark Listen live and later on BTR

Wednesday, April 4 | 9 pm eastern | 6 pm pacific |Virtually Speaking Science | MSNBC.com’s Alan Boyle (Cosmic Log) talks with organizers of Yuri’s Night, which celebrates the past and future of spaceflight.  VS Science is produced in cooperation with MICA, the Meta Institute for Computational Astrophysics. Watch for the pre-show interview at CosmicLog. Follow @b0yle #YurisNight Listen live and later on BTR

Thursday, April 5 | 9 pm eastern | 6 pm pacific | Jay Ackroyd talks with Kevin Gosztola, FDL’s Wikileaks expert and premiere blogger for all things Occupy. Follow @kgosztola Listen live and later on BTR Read the rest of this entry →

Talk worth listening to. But first, from  Jay’s VS video collection. In What Digby Said: CU, Digby observes that people who blame Citizens United for the unseemly SuperPACs are mistaken. The problem runs deeper. What Adelson and Paulson are doing was legal before CU. Excerpted from January 26, 2012 Virtually Speaking A-Z, with Stuart Zechman and Jay Ackroyd

Schedule below for Tues, Jan 3 through Sunday, Jan 8: Mike Stark, Spocko, Marc Abrahams, Alan Boyle, Mac McClelland, Gotta Laff, Cliff Schecter, Stuart Zechman and Jay Ackroyd. With help from listener commentary and questions, we talk through foundational policy matters and very current events: public affairs with political analysts, activists, media critics, technologists, historians, etc. We amplify – mainly – progressive voices. Comments and questions courtesy of a digitally present studio audience. Which could include you. (see IRC below) All programs webcast and archived at BlogTalkRadio. Available free at iTunes. (Search Virtually Speaking from the iTunes store.) I post weekly, so you can go back to previous posts and link through to the juicy stuff. Miss the Intro?

As it amplifies more progressive voices, we – and our listeners – love the flexible rotating panel concept. So, beginning this week, Virtually  Speaking Susie morphs into Virtually Speaking Tuesdays.  Spocko and Mike Stark talk about advocacy and activism on the 1st Tuesday of the month; Susie Madrak and a guest consider the impact of current events on working and middle class people on the 2nd Tuesday; Avedon Carol and Correntewire‘s Lambert Strether dissect breaking news and crazy liberalism on the 3rd Tuesday; Dave Johnson maps the forest with a guest on the 4th Tuesday; and Jay Ackroyd and a guest shed light on current insanities of the political and economic kind, on the 5th Tuesday.

Tuesday, Jan 3 | 9 pm eastern | 6 pm pacific |Virtually Speaking Tuesdays | | This week, Spocko and Mike Stark talk about today’s media environment, effective activism, organizing strategies and the power of the 99%. Follow @spockosbrain @mike_stark Listen live and later on BTR

Wednesday, Jan 4 | 9 pm eastern | 6 pm pacific |Virtually Speaking Science | MSNBC’s Alan Boyle (Cosmic Log) talks with Marc Abrahams, creator of the Ig Nobel Prizes and editor of the Annals of Improbable Research, about the scientific findings from the past year that made us laugh … and then made us think.VS Science is produced in cooperation with MICA, the Meta Institute for Computational Astrophysics. Follow @b0yle @MarcAbrahams @ImprobResearch Watch the 2011 Ig Nobels Listen live and later on BTR

Thursday, Jan 5 | Double Header

8 pm eastern | 5 pm pacific |Virtually Speaking A-Z: This week in liberalism. | Stuart Zechman and Jay Ackroyd| continue to explore the truth and lies, clarity and obfuscation, that characterizes our political and media environment. Follow @bobblespeak @Stuart_Zechman @JayAckroyd Listen live on BTR. Beginning midnight Friday, listen here.

9 pm eastern | 6 pm pacific |Virtually Speaking with Jay Ackroyd |Jay discusses human rights with Mac McClelland, author of For Us Surrender Is Out of the Question an “intimate account of McClelland’s time among Burmese rebels.” Follow @MacMcClelland Listen live and later on BTR. Read the rest of this entry →

Virtually Speaking - Sundays" by California Sherry on flickr

Schedule for Sunday, Sept 25 through Thursday Sept 29. With help from listener commentary and questions, we talk with some of your favorite writers: political analysts, media critics, technologists, historians, etc. Virtually Speaking is public affairs, progressive voices, current events. Comments and questions courtesy of a digitally present studio audience. Which could include you. (see IRC below) All programs webcast and archived at BlogTalkRadio. Available free at iTunes. See IRC below to participate. I post weekly, so you can go back to previous posts and link through to the juicy stuff. Miss it the first time? Read the intro to http://my.firedoglake.com/myfdl/wp-content/themes/myfdl_user/_inc/images/domain_blocked_default.png”../2011/08/2011/07/30/2011/07/23/2011/02/26/introducing-virtually-speaking/” target=”_blank”>Virtually Speaking.

Sunday, Sept 25 | http://my.firedoglake.com/myfdl/wp-content/themes/myfdl_user/_inc/images/domain_blocked_default.png”../2011/08/2011/07/30/2011/07/23/2011/07/2011/05/07/2011/04/stuartzechman/” target=”_blank”> 9 pm eastern | 6 pm pacific http://my.firedoglake.com/myfdl/wp-content/themes/myfdl_user/_inc/images/domain_blocked_default.png”../2011/08/2011/07/30/2011/07/23/2011/07/2011/05/07/2011/04/stuartzechman/” target=”_blank”>| http://my.firedoglake.com/myfdl/wp-content/themes/myfdl_user/_inc/images/domain_blocked_default.png”http://sideshow.me.uk/” target=”_blank”>Avedon Carol & http://my.firedoglake.com/myfdl/wp-content/themes/myfdl_user/_inc/images/domain_blocked_default.png”http://www.emptywheel.net/” target=”_blank”>Marcy Wheeler, discuss developments of the week, highlighting issues neglected or misrepresented on the Sunday morning broadcasts, often drawing from the wickedly funny http://my.firedoglake.com/myfdl/wp-content/themes/myfdl_user/_inc/images/domain_blocked_default.png”http://moonshinepatriot.blogspot.com/” target=”_blank”>Bobblespeak Translations Informative, thoughtful and passionate.http://my.firedoglake.com/myfdl/wp-content/themes/myfdl_user/_inc/images/domain_blocked_default.png”http://bit.ly/n9zVtf”> Listen live and later on BTR Read the rest of this entry →