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November 27, 2015

Status Update

Most of the time, the updates we share about our lives are small and inconsequential. This week, status updates that interrupt daily life. We hear two friends talk about how one of them has become rich and famous. And an entire town gets a status update on itself.

Note: The internet version of this episode contains un-beeped curse words. BEEPED VERSION.

Prologue

Three teenage girls explain why they are constantly telling their friends they are beautiful on Instagram. (4 minutes)
Act Three

There Owes the Neighborhood

The story of an entire town that gets a status update. Producer Chana Joffe-Walt talked to Paul Kiel of Pro Publica, the man who gave the town its status update. You can read Paul’s story about this on Pro Publica. (18 minutes)