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Reproductive Rights Deep Dives
Katie Phang Is Unleashed: Abortion, the Media, and Power Building on My Body. My Pod. Episode 5
The trailblazing journalist and trial lawyer talks about anti-abortion dark money networks, what the mainstream media gets wrong, and how to build power for reproductive freedom.
Watch & Listen
Katie Phang sits down with Mini Timmaraju to unpack the GOP’s coordinated playbook—the dark-money network funding anti-abortion extremism from judges to disinformation campaigns—and how traditional media still struggles to tell the full story on abortion.
She shares why she built her own platform for fearless, nuanced, fact-based storytelling and how independent voices are reaching more audiences that legacy media often overlooks.
Together they dig into attacks on mifepristone, the intersection of voting rights and abortion, the power of local and state races (including judges), and why real stories move policy.
🔎 Closer Look: Coordinated Anti-Abortion Extremism
In this candid conversation, Katie and Mini discuss:
- How the fall of Roe wasn’t a surprise—it was a long game funded by dark money networks and led by the Republican Party (now fully co-opted by MAGA)
- The anti-abortion movement’s big lies around mifepristone
- The role of judges up and down the ballot in shaping our abortion access
- How abortion isn’t a siloed issue—it intersects with the economy, health care, and civil rights, impacting many aspects of life for everyone
- The role of independent media to meet the urgency this moment demands
- How real stories change minds and policy
About Katie Phang
Katie Phang is an independent journalist and trial lawyer. Formerly the host of “The Katie Phang Show” on MSNBC, Katie also has served as a legal contributor/legal correspondent for several media outlets, such as NBC, MSNBC, and Fox News.
She has had a front-row seat to some of the most consequential moments in recent history, including being on-air during the fall of Roe v. Wade when the Supreme Court delivered its devastating decision in Dobbs.
After several years in mainstream media, Katie departed cable TV to dive into independent media. Recognizing the importance of fearless, fact-based reporting, Katie launched her own YouTube channel (@katiephangnews) and Substack (@katiephang), leveraging her experience, including as a trial lawyer for more than 25 years, to provide compelling analysis and commentary on the latest legal and political issues across the globe.
She cuts through the spin to deliver accurate, truthful information with the goal of creating an ecosystem of pro-democracy, “high-information” Americans.
At a time when every minute is critical, Katie pushes for the media to meet the urgency of the moment with the urgency of the message.
🔑 Key Take Aways: Building Power is Possible
“We can’t clutch our pearls and still kind of fret over what happened. We have to rebuild, we have to regroup and pivot,” says Katie. “We can unify in ways that are more powerful than everything that’s happening on the other side.”
Ways to Take Action
Keep mifepristone in our pharmacies
Costco has refused to stock mifepristone in its 500 pharmacies nationwide after pressure from anti-abortion groups. These extremists are celebrating and openly plotting to pressure CVS and Walgreens next—all part of their coordinated strategy to ban abortion nationwide.
Add your name to demand pharmacies stock mifepristone on their shelves.
Explore more ways to take action
We are fighting back against extremists who want to control our bodies, our lives, and our futures. Explore more ways to take action.
🤿 Dive Deeper
“Reproductive rights is not a standalone issue,” says Katie. “It is tied financially to our economy. The cuts to Medicaid speak directly to reproductive freedom. It’s part of every system. These [are] not standalone issues. And so you cannot think of them as silos.”
To understand how we got Dobbs you can trace the dark-money and court-stacking strategies deployed by a fringe group of anti-abortion extremists tracing back decades.
Mentioned in this Episode:
- Mitch McConnell: Orchestrated years of judicial hardball (from blocking Garland to fast-tracking confirmations) that reshaped the appellate courts and the Supreme Court.
- Leonard Leo:  The conservative legal movement’s chief architect; helped steer funding and vetting pipelines for judges likely to roll back abortion rights.
- Federalist Society: The talent and influence network that cultivated many of the jurists and advocates advancing these cases.
- Harlan Crow: Billionaire patron whose ties to key justices spotlight ongoing ethics and recusal concerns, including Justice Clarence Thomas.
- Pamela Jo “Pam” Bondi: U.S. Attorney General, longtime anti-abortion advocate who now heads up the Department of Justice and has already played a key role in rolling back abortion protections.
More Reading
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ABOUT THE PODCAST
MY BODY. MY POD. WITH MINI TIMMARAJU.
The fight for reproductive freedom is more urgent than ever.
That’s why we’re bringing you My Body. My Pod. with Mini Timmaraju, a reproductive freedom podcast.
If you’re into building a nationwide movement to protect and expand health justice, reproductive equity, and the power of people to control their own lives, this show is for you.
Hear from leaders and changemakers who share wisdom from the front lines, stories of the real struggles people are facing every day, and a vision for the future we’re determined to win.
Hosted by Mini Timmaraju, President and CEO of Reproductive Freedom for All. Available on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts.
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