- Sup, you beautiful bastards?
Welcome back to the "Philip DeFranco Show."
Buckle up.
Make sure you're subscribing because I'm splitting $10,000
across 10 lucky subscribed beautiful bastards this month.
And let's just jump into it.
True crime is a genre
that people seemingly cannot get enough of.
Between documentaries, miniseries, podcasts,
scripted retellings of stories,
there's so much crime content out there right now,
with it especially blowing up during COVID lockdown.
And while audiences,
and I'll even include myself here,
eat these stories up,
on the other end of them are families
that lived these gruesome realities.
And seeing that play out for the world is not always easy.
And for some, the idea of reliving
their most traumatic days is too much to bear.
Others can't stomach the idea of their stories being told
inaccurately in favor of dramatic flare,
or that oftentimes it's usually the murderer
who gets a spotlight, not the victims.
And then for many, it's all of the above,
which is actually why we spoke to Mariah Day
whose family's story was told
in a miniseries called "The Thing About Pam" on NBC,
produced by and starring Renee Zellweger.
Mariah's mother Betsy Faria was suffering from cancer
when she was found stabbed dozens of times
in December of 2011.
Betsy's husband Russ was originally charged over the murder
and later convicted with the leading witness in the case
being Betsy's friend Pam Hupp.
All the while, though, following Betsy's death,
Pam was actually the beneficiary
of Betsy's $150,000 life insurance policy.
And so Russ's conviction was later overturned in 2015,
and Hupp was charged over Betsy's death in 2021
and is still awaiting trial.
But also, notably,
she's actually already serving a life sentence
over the murder of Louis Gumpenberger,
which interestingly is the punishment that she got
after entering an Alford plea,
which allowed her to avoid the potential death penalty
without admitting guilt to the crime.
And so the story is laid out in "The Thing About Pam,"
which aired over the spring and is now streaming.
Zellweger plays Hupp,
hamming the role up via prosthetics and aggressive quirks.
The story overall has been described
as taking something of a comedic twist on the case
and the alleged misconduct that led
to Hupp being initially ignored as a suspect.
- Hi.
- Sorry, I am such a sweaty Betty.
Came straight from Zumba.
- You do Zumba?
I do Zumba.
- Tuesday, Thursday.
- I'm Wednesday, Friday.
(Renee laughs)
- And Betsy's daughter Mariah has only been able
to watch a handful of episodes
after feeling shocked by the tone
and tactics used to tell the story
of the worst days of her life.
- We lived this,
and it's just so weird to see them play our real lives
and such a tragedy in such a satire way.
It's not funny to us.
- And according to Mariah,
when she was first approached by NBC about the show,
she was under the impression
that the network was making a documentary,
not a scripted series about her mother's death.
And so she said she agreed to sit down for an interview
to discuss her story,
but only learned it would be a fictionalized version
of the incident once she saw the trailer.
And so in the lead up to the series,
Mariah began posting several TikToks about the show
and how she found it insensitive,
some of those posts also going viral
with many responding by supporting Mariah
and her message about why it's so important
for true crime storytelling to be ethical,
with some having the same issues
with "The Thing About Pam" as she did.
- I've had so many people reach out and say,
"It was completely disrespectful.
I had to turn it off as soon as I saw the tone of the show,"
without even knowing me or my family.
- With some critics also agreeing.
"The Independent" calling the series a lesson
in how to not make a true crime series,
writing that "little felt true about the crime presented,"
and adding that, "When it comes
to the tacky exploitive depths of true crime,
let's hope we finally hit the bottom of the barrel."
Now with all of this,
we saw NBC previously defending the series
in a statement to "Buzzfeed News" saying,
" 'The Thing About Pam' is a fictionalized television series
based on true events that are heavily documented
and in public domain.
Since the inception of the project,
it has been a top priority of the creative team
to honor the spirit of the story
while also treating the real people impacted,
many of whom shared their experiences
as part of this process,
with sensitivity and respect."
But Mariah hardly feels
that this story was told sensitively.
- They really focused on the killer.
They glorify her in a way by showing her like this quirky,
quirky lady who had everyone manipulated
when it wasn't completely like that,
being so close to it.
I mean, they show her consoling me, which never happened.
I've never had a conversation with Pam Hupp.
So it's really weird to see my mom's killer portraying
or my mom's killer on TV consoling us
when that never really happened.
- And she's not alone in finding it difficult
to watch her family's true crime story play out
in a sensationalized way.
For example, when Jordan Preston learned
that Hulu was making a documentary
about the man who killed her sister Brooke,
she made a change.org petition
to stop the release of it in writing,
"We clearly will never be given the opportunity
to grieve in peace from her brutal murder,
to the drawn out trial,
to the appeals still taking place, and now to this.
That much is apparent."
Also, you have people like Mindy Pendleton
whose stepson Robert was murdered at the age of 25
telling "Time Magazine"
that it was her greatest fear
when Netflix said that the incident would be featured
in a true crime docu-series
in saying that she actually begged Netflix to not do it.
And Mariah knows that as if living
through these tragedies wasn't hard enough,
having them reemerge as forms of entertainment
only retraumatizes those involved.
- I definitely struggle with mental health,
but I get strength from my mom.
And if I was any weaker, then that could have...
I mean, it's been really hard.
I mean, I had PTSD from the trials and everything.
And I mean, anyone,
any normal person would not be able to make it through this.
It's a very difficult process,
and they just entertain it.
- However, with all of this,
Mariah does think that things are changing
when it comes to how true crime is both perceived and told.
After attending a true crime podcast festival,
she said that she was met with support from those attending
with many saying that they wanna see a shift
to focus on the victims, not the killers.
And Mariah thinks that this will make a world
of difference in the genre.
- That's the main reason why I continue to speak out
is because I've had so many people tell me that
just hearing what I went through
and just me being vocal about it all
has really changed their perspective
on the way they either view true crime,
or if they're creators of true crime,
they actually think more of the victim's families.
And I just want people to be able
to put themselves in our shoes
- And adding that to tell ethical true crime,
the victim's life and story needs
to be a bigger part of the picture.
- I mean, it's okay to be fascinated
with the psychology behind it all,
but people just get so into the killer's story,
and we just hear the killer's name everywhere,
where everyone forgets about the victims.
The victims had a story too.
- This story for us,
this may live in your mind for minutes, hours, days,
even months, maybe,
but for Mariah, her story still isn't even over
because Pam still hasn't gone to trial,
meaning that the wounds are still open and fresh.
And she may even have to relocate during the trial
because it's gotten so much attention.
And then with the NFL season starting up,
concerts in full swing,
and the MLB playoffs right around the corner,
there is an event for everyone,
and you're not gonna wanna miss out,
which is why I wanna take a second
to thank the fantastic sponsor of today's show SeatGeek.
Whether it's concerts, football, baseball, theater or more,
SeatGeek puts tickets from all over the web
in one place to make buying simple.
Use it all the time.
I'm looking for something to do.
Boom, comedy show.
When I was in New York, I went to a Ranger's game.
Out here, I went to the Super Bowl.
SeatGeek is my go to,
and SeatGeek wants to make sure
that you're getting a good deal.
So when you're on the app, look for the green dots.
Green means good deal, red means bad.
And I've got the hookup for you
because if you use code PHIL,
you get $20 off tickets at SeatGeek.
That's $20 off your first purchase with promo code PHIL.
So make sure you click the link in the description
to download the app.
Then a very exciting and quick announcement.
Next Monday, I am launching the biggest drop we've done
in a very long time over at beautifulbastard.com.
It features all of this goodness.
And stretch it out.
Feel free to pause and eye what you wanna snag
because there are gonna be a few things
that are just very limited.
So yeah, get ready to snag what you want while you can.
Disaster has been averted possibly, probably.
So most of us probably haven't been aware until recently
that for the past two years,
there's been a labor contract struggle happening
between six of the largest freight carriers
and 12 railroad workers' unions.
And last July, Biden appointed an emergency board
to mediate this dispute.
And since then, its recommendations have produced
tentative agreements with nine of the unions,
with a 10th striking down a tentative agreement on Monday,
throwing it back into negotiations,
and so leaving two unions representing
almost 60,000 conductors and engineers without a deal.
And their demands concern typical issues
like pay and working conditions,
but also it primarily centered
around a points-based attendance policy adopted
by some railroads earlier this year,
a policy that penalized workers for missing work
and even firing them for taking off to see the doctor
or attending family emergencies,
with workers saying that they can be on call
for 14 consecutive days without a break,
and that they don't get any sick days at all,
paid or unpaid.
With the president of one union saying,
"The average American would not know
that we get fired for going to the doctor.
This one thing has our members most enraged.
We have guys who were punished for taking time off
for a heart attack and COVID.
It's inhumane."
But also even before the points-based system,
they were on call pretty much constantly.
And if you got called in,
you had to show up within 90 minutes to two hours.
So with all of this, we saw the unions threaten to strike
with a deadline to reach a deal being midnight tonight.
And if that were to happen,
I don't think the word catastrophic is too heavy.
It would be the first time the United States
has seen a railroad strike in three decades.
It would shut down nearly a third of the US's freight,
according to "Industry Players,"
and costing an estimated $2 billion per day.
But also beneath those numbers
are a bunch of more specific impacts
that are incredibly ugly.
We've got Amtrak announcing the suspension
of all long-distance trains,
and some state-supported trains starting Thursday.
This even though none of its workers
are threatening to strike
because it still uses track that's owned,
maintained and dispatched by freight railroad.
Plus freight tracks also serve commuter lines
between major cities and suburbs.
So passenger trains could be shut down,
leaving many people with no quick route to work.
And it's not just a little bit.
About half of commuter rail systems run on tracks
or right of ways at least partially owned by freight.
But then more directly hitting the economy where it hurts,
you have freight railways being critical
for retailers that transport inventory
from ports to warehouses and distribution centers.
And so this stoppage, I mean,
you're talking about supply chains
getting completely shut down,
which as many of you know,
is one of the big factors
when you're talking about inflation.
It could also affect the availability of supplies
like food and health equipment.
And frighteningly, in more places
than just Jackson, Mississippi,
the strike could disrupt the delivery of coal
to utility plants
and chlorine to water treatment facilities.
Just fucking up people's way of life,
which is why we've seen senior White House aids talking
to top officials in the shipping, freight,
and logistics industries to figure out how highways, ports,
and waterways can be used to offset any damage,
as well as holding daily meetings
with the Agriculture Department,
Transportation Department, Energy Department,
and other federal agencies to brace for impact,
with labor secretary Marty Walsh holding emergency meetings
between unions and management starting yesterday morning
and then continuing for 20 straight hours
all through last night trying to rock through it
like me trying to learn calculus
in a night for the final in college.
Except for the people involved here,
it's not an F that you're risking,
it's more America's economy on the line,
which appears to have resulted
in the first bit of good news with this story.
Biden announced that the two sides
finally reached a tentative agreement,
effectively diffusing the crisis,
or at the very least postponing it
because the keyword here is tentative.
An official deal has to be ratified in the coming weeks.
That'll require union members to vote for it.
And until then, they have agreed to not strike.
But we have to wait to see
if they approve what their leadership presents to them.
And as far as some of the specifics in this agreement,
there's a 24% increase in wages in the five years
from 2020 to 2024, as well as an immediate payout
of some $11,000 on average when it's ratified.
New contracts also include one additional paid day off
and the ability to attend medical appointments
without penalty, which is insane to think
that they even have to fight for that.
Plus, the agreement will freeze workers
monthly healthcare contributions,
ensuring that those costs will not increase
during the next round of contract negotiations.
And even with all this, there are more details coming.
But this is a huge deal for pretty much everyone,
for the country, for the workers involved here.
But also I think it's important to remember
how integral the hard labor
of so many unrecognized Americans is
for all of our lives to just function on a basic level.
Chief Florida man, Ron DeSantis back in the news.
That's because the governor of Florida decided
to ship a group of 50 or so illegal migrants
from his state to Martha's Vineyard.
And in a statement, his office said,
"Florida can confirm the two planes with illegal immigrants
that arrived in Martha's Vineyard today
were part of the state's relocation program
to transport illegal immigrants to sanctuary destinations,"
and adding that they believe
that states such as Massachusetts, New York,
and California were better equipped to handle migrants.
So here we saw this small city quickly scrambling
to take care of the new arrivals
with local officials tweeting out,
"Due to an unexpected urgent humanitarian situation,
emergency services are opening emergency shelters tonight
on Martha's Vineyard.
If you're willing and able to volunteer
in a clinical or non-clinical role, contact Dukes' office."
And with that we saw a number of conservatives
bashing the city claiming that it doesn't really stand
by its liberal views on immigration.
This isn't really an isolated incident.
This is actually just one of a series
of stunts we've seen pulled by Republican governors.
We've seen Texas governor Greg Abbott
shipping people off to New York,
as well as shipping out 101 migrants,
mostly from Venezuela to DC today,
dropping them off in front
of one of the Vice President's residences.
And for Republicans, these stunts appear to be meant
to show that it's easy for liberal states
to block border measures on high-minded ideals
when they often aren't the ones
who actually have to deal with illegal immigration.
But also going back to Martha's Vineyard,
the characterization that the city freaked out
about the surprise influx of people
does appear to be a little off.
Instead, it seems to have actually taken the situation
in stride and received a lot of praise
for coming together to help the migrants,
rather than be put off by them.
And also, the overall criticism
that liberal cities are are hypocritical
for declaring a state of emergency,
that appears to be somewhat disingenuous
because it often unlocks funds to quickly set up responses.
And regarding the mockery
of calling this a humanitarian crisis,
we're talking about a group of people
that were forced onto a plane or a bus
and shipped across the country
without knowing where they were going
and being treated as pawns.
And even when you have people being transported voluntarily,
such as when Abbott does it,
it's reported that Republican officials often refuse
to work with local officials
to make the transfer as smooth as possible.
But then once again, so we don't get confused,
when it came to DeSantis,
he reportedly didn't work with DHS or INS.
And then somehow you're gonna tout it as a win
when those migrants are actually met
with compassion and help.
But hey, for now, that is where we are.
We're gonna have to see how this situation
and these stunts continue to develop.
But that is the end of this story and today's show.
As always, thank you for watching
and being subscribed to my daily dives in the news.
I've got some more news
that you should know about right here.
But as always, my name is Philip DeFranco.
You've just been filled in.
I love your faces and I'll see you tomorrow.