Back to the People

About Back to the People

"Back to the People," hosted by Nicole Shanahan, is a podcast that dives deep into the heart of the most underexplored and often overlooked topics today. Each episode invites listeners into a thought-provoking journey through discussions that illuminate the voices and stories less heard in mainstream media. Nicole brings together experts, activists, and everyday individuals to unpack complex issues, share untold stories, and explore solutions that get back to the core of humanity. This podcast aims to bridge gaps, foster understanding, and bring critical, unseen perspectives to the forefront, empowering listeners to engage with the world in new and meaningful ways. Join Nicole every week for a compelling blend of empathy, curiosity, and enlightenment.

Publisher

Nicole Shanahan

Category

society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

30 Apr 2024

Latest episode

17 Oct 2025

Latest episodes

76 of 91 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   17 Oct 2025TRANSCRIPT

   How Social Media Algorithms Rewire Your Mind and Steal Your Peace, feat. Richard Ryan

   Richard Ryan is a software developer and media executive with more than 20 years of experience in the tech industry. He has generated billions of views and millions of followers across social media platforms, leveraging his deep understanding of algorithms and digital marketing.As a co-founder of Black Rifle Coffee Company, he helped grow the brand to a publicly traded powerhouse with a $1.7 billion valuation and $396 million in revenue in 2023. As a tech entrepreneur, Richard has created a suite of applications to include a YouTube app that debuted in the App Store four years before YouTube. Across multiple apps, he’s achieved over millions of downloads. As a media executive, he launched Rated Red with Verizon Media and Hearst Publications, growing it to over one million organic subscribers in its first year. Richard’s YouTube empire includes several channels like FullMag (2.7 million subscribers), with over 20 billion views across all his platforms.In his new book, The Warrior’s Garden, Richard exposes how social media algorithms exploit the same psychological triggers as casinos: bright visuals, sound cues, and unpredictable rewards that hook users and keep them scrolling. Just as gamblers chase uncertain outcomes, we chase likes, comments, and notifications, sacrificing long-term goals for short-term gratification. He explores the neuroscience behind these dopamine-driven cycles and offers practical strategies to reclaim control. His book is not about quitting technology altogether, instead it focuses on using it consciously, minimizing addictive effects, strengthening mental resilience, and empowering readers to become mindful participants in a digital age. With gratitude to our sponsors: RA Opticshttps://raoptics.com/bttpUse Code: BTTP-----Sky Horse Publishinghttps://www.skyhorsepublishing.com/-----Sign Uphttps://www.backtothepeople.net

2. 

   8 Oct 2025TRANSCRIPT

   Max McLean on The Screwtape Letters and the Spiritual War for Your Soul

   Max McLean is an American stage actor, writer, producer, and founder of the Fellowship for Performing Arts (FPA), a New York-based company producing theater and film from a Christian worldview. He is renowned for his acclaimed stage adaptations of C.S. Lewis’s works, including The Screwtape Letters, The Great Divorce, and C.S. Lewis Onstage: The Most Reluctant Convert—the last of which he also starred in for the film adaptation. In addition to dramatizing Lewis, McLean has created original plays such as Martin Luther on Trial, performed dramatic presentations of Biblical texts, and narrated multiple versions of The Listener’s Bible, earning four Audie Award nominations and critical praise from national publications. His productions have toured internationally and played to over a million people, frequently reaching university campuses as part of his drive to foster open, civil dialogue on big questions of faith and life. He is the recipient of numerous honors, including the Jeff Award (Chicago theatre’s highest honor) and the 2022 C.S. Lewis Foundation Award for contributions to integrating faith and the arts. McLean is currently touring his acclaimed stage adaptation of The Screwtape Letters. Tickets and tour dates are available at ScrewtapeOnStage.com. With gratitude to our sponsors: RA Opticshttps://raoptics.com/bttpUse Code: BTTP-----Sky Horse Publishinghttps://www.skyhorsepublishing.com/-----Sign Uphttps://www.backtothepeople.net

3. 

   1 Oct 2025TRANSCRIPT

   The Secret Poisoning of U.S. Marines at Camp Lejeune, feat. Virginia Robinson and Ashley Keller

   Virginia Robinson and her family moved to Camp Lejeune in 1959, a Marine Corps base in North Carolina. She raised her children there and dedicated 25 years of her life working on base, never knowing that the very place where she lived, worked, and built her family was slowly poisoning them. For decades, toxic chemicals such as PCE and TCE contaminated the water and air at Camp Lejeune. No one warned the families. And for Virginia, the consequences have been devastating. Virginia has endured a battle for her life that has spanned more than 40 years. She survived leukemia, colon cancer while pregnant, and two separate diagnoses of breast cancer. In 2023, she faced liver cancer, kidney cancer, and yet another fight with breast cancer, all at the same time. The tragedy has stretched across her family. Her husband passed away in 2014, her daughter followed just five months later, and her father developed Parkinson’s. Her daughter was born with a spinal tumor and died young from bladder cancer. All of them were exposed to Camp Lejeune’s poisoned water. Virginia’s suffering has been relentless, but so has her courage. Out of five siblings, she was the only one plagued by repeated cancers. Despite loss, grief, and years of illness, she refuses to give up. “Camp Lejeune never told us the truth,” she has said, but she still believes she can win this fight for herself, for her family, and for every victim who was left in the dark. For decades, families like hers have been ignored, their pain dismissed, and their sacrifices forgotten. Ashley Keller is a founding partner of Keller Postman LLC and one of the nation’s leading trial and appellate lawyers. At Keller Postman, he helps guide strategic direction across the firm’s wide-ranging docket, which includes product liability, antitrust, class action, and arbitration matters. He is a recognized leader in product-liability litigation and currently serves as court-appointed co-lead counsel in the Acetaminophen multidistrict litigation in the Southern District of New York. Ashley also represents numerous states in antitrust litigation against Google, challenging its dominance in online display advertising. He has played a key role in the development of Keller Postman’s arbitration practice, which has secured millions of dollars in settlements for employees and consumers nationwide. Before founding Keller Postman, Ashley co-founded Gerchen Keller Capital, which became the largest private investment manager focused on legal and regulatory risk. He was previously a partner at Bartlit Beck, where he litigated high-stakes securities, patent, and mass tort cases. Ashley clerked for Justice Anthony M. Kennedy on the United States Supreme Court and Judge Richard Posner on the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. He graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College, earned his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and graduated first in his class from the University of Chicago Law School. Keller has been recognized as a Plaintiffs’ Lawyers Trailblazer by the National Law Journal and has been listed among Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Lawyers in America. He will be representing Virginia Robinson in her fight for justice in the Camp Lejeune case. With gratitude to our sponsors: RA Opticshttps://raoptics.com/bttpUse Code: BTTP-----Sky Horse Publishinghttps://www.skyhorsepublishing.com/-----Sign Uphttps://www.backtothepeople.net

Inside a recent episode

How Social Media Algorithms Rewire Your Mind and Steal Your Peace, feat. Richard Ryan

Published 17 Oct 2025 · Transcript excerpt

[…] And I started extrapolating that out over a period of time and I was like, oh, wow, if I'm spending 60 hours a week on social platforms and I quantify that over the span of my life, would I rather spend that time doing something else with family, with my dogs or kids or whatever these things are learning to play piano? And again, like I want to emphasize, I'm not asking people to abstain from social media completely in that sense. It's really establishing boundaries after you do the work and understanding where your time is being sucked away from you. Because really, it's one of the few things that a lot of people as they get older in life wish that they could exchange money for optimizing their health span so that they can have quality years in their later life. […]

Who has been a guest on Back to the People

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Dr Joseph Ladapo
• Dane Wigington
• Joe Allen
• Wesley Huff
• Chloe Cole

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.9 / 5

211 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 24 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

10

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

96

Contact Back to the People

Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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