The Supreme Court has denied a bid by the Trump administration to restrict mail-in voting. On this week’s On the Media, hear about the attempts, successful and not, to turn election conspiracies into policy. Plus, the case for literary gatekeepers.

[01:00] Micah Loewinger speaks with Rick Hasen, law professor and director of the Safeguarding Democracy Project at UCLA, about the state of our election systems heading into midterm season, and what headlines should hold our attention.

[20:07] Brooke Gladstone speaks with Mark Krotov, the publisher and coeditor of the literary magazine n+1, about how old books are enjoying renewed popularity thanks to the flourishing “reissue” book market, and TikTokers’ penchant for hidden gems in the backlist. But what does the trend tell us about the health of the publishing industry?

[35:41] Brooke also sits down with Laura McGrath, an assistant professor of English at Temple University and the author of the book, Middlemen: Literary Agents and the Making of American Fiction, to discuss the little-known history of literary agents, the unseen tastemakers choosing your favorite novels.

Further reading:

• “Exorcising Justice Alito’s Voter Fraud Boogeyman,” by Richard L. Hasen
• “A Judicial Guide to Search Warrants Seeking Election Materials,” by Richard L. Hasen and Shelby Wayment
• “Old Directions: Reviving the spirit of revival,” by Mark Krotov and Lisa Borst
• Middlemen: Literary Agents and the Making of American Fiction, by Laura McGrath
  

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