AEE 2620: Debunk and Connect with Lindsay and Michelle

Summary

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All Ears English Podcast – Episode 2620: "Debunk and Connect with Lindsay and Michelle"

Release Date: May 20, 2026
Hosts: Lindsay McMahon & Michelle Kaplan
Theme: Understanding and Using the Word “Debunk” in Everyday English

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Episode Overview

In this lively episode, Lindsay and Michelle shine a light on the ever-popular word "debunk." They explore how it’s used in everyday English, particularly when discussing new research, news reports, or dispelling myths and misconceptions. Through relatable examples from nutrition, science, workplace rumors, and recent trends, the hosts break down the meaning, pronunciation, and natural use of “debunk,” all while highlighting related vocabulary and strategies for discussing contentious or “hot button” topics in English.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. What Does "Debunk" Mean?

• Definition & Use Context ([03:33]):
  • Lindsay shares: “Debunk. I love it. It’s kind of fun to say…it basically means to show that something people believed was true before is now false.” ([03:42])
  • Michelle elaborates: “You might hear things like debunk a myth, debunk a theory, debunk a common misconception.” ([05:05])
• Pronunciation: Both “debunk” and “de-bunk” are acceptable. The hosts joke about saying it so much it starts to sound strange ([05:17]).

2. Real-Life Examples of “Debunk”

• Nutrition Trends:
  • The hosts discuss how nutrition advice is often “debunked”:
    • “I read an article debunking the misconception that a low fat diet is good for you.” ([06:07])
    • They recall shifts from “red wine is good for your heart” narratives to more negative views on alcohol. ([02:48])
  • Lindsay: “You just have to take it all with a grain of salt and kind of just do your best.” ([06:24])
• Rumors and Misconceptions:
  • Example: “The supervisor debunked the rumor that layoffs were going to…” ([07:48])
  • Another: “The professor debunked the myth from the 1800s by explaining the history to the class.” ([09:01])
  • Journalism: “The reporter put out a shocking story debunking the idea that the school system was doing well.” ([09:13])
• Social Media and Fake News:
  • "This is all colliding with the Instagram age, right?…There is fake news out there everywhere…It's crazy out there." ([08:38]–[08:58])
• Personal Experiences:
  • Michelle on discussing news with family: “Wait a second, but that's not true. Maybe you heard that online, and that wasn't a valid source.” ([09:52]–[09:58])

3. Strategies for Debunking

• How to Debunk:
  • Lindsay: “You try to do it with proof, with facts, images, numbers, videos…” ([10:36])
  • She notes the challenge: “…nowadays in kind of this fake news era, we don’t necessarily listen to facts or trust facts all the time…” ([10:36])
• Difficulties in the Modern Era:
  • The impact of AI and digital manipulation: "The scary part about where the news is heading and with AI…Right now I still think it’s a little glitchy…but in a few years…it might get harder to tell and we have to be really careful." ([11:09]–[11:34])

4. Synonyms and Related Expressions

• Other Ways to Say “Debunk”: ([13:11])
  • Disprove: “The professor disproved the report by showing the graph she had recorded.”
  • Expose: “She exposed the truth by sharing pictures she had taken of the couple together.”
  • Discredit: “The scientist discredited the reporter's claim by bringing her to the lab.”
• Bonus Phrase:
  • “Hot button issue” — “A topic that sends people off into their silos of belief.” ([17:04])

5. Role Play and Application

• Investigative Journalism Scenario: ([14:28])
  • Lindsay: “We need to be strategic about this if we really want to expose the truth.”
  • Michelle: “Right. We need proof in order to discredit the claims…”
  • Lindsay: “We will debunk everything they said.”
  • The hosts discuss the importance and decline of investigative reporting in the US ([15:07]–[15:42]).

6. Using "Debunk" in Conversation

• Safer Conversation Topics:
  • Lindsay suggests: “Talking about studies that have debunked prior understandings of things like the wine thing is kind of funny and interesting.” ([15:58])
  • She cautions: “Health and politics are really starting to mix together a lot…So try to find a topic…that is not so hot button.” ([16:15]–[16:44])
• Examples of Neutral Topics:
  • Sports, how movies are made, “There’s something out there still, I’m sure there’s still something to debunk.” ([17:09]–[17:14])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Health Trends:

  • “I tend to believe them when it supports a habit I already have, and it says it’s good, like coffee these days…” – Lindsay ([02:29])
  • “Now we're saying it too many times that it's sounding...I say both. I think there’s no way to go wrong with this.” – Michelle ([05:21])

• On Fake News and AI:

  • “That’s the scary part about where the news is heading and with AI and, yes, things that’s just actually frightening…in a few years or even sooner, it might get harder to tell and we have to be really careful.” – Lindsay ([11:09]–[11:34])
  • “Don’t worry, guys, this is the real us, right?” – Michelle ([11:34])

• On Finding Safe Topics:

  • “Try to find a topic that you could talk about, scientific research…that is not so hot button.” – Lindsay ([16:44])

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:29] – Do you believe studies in the news? Discussion on nutrition myths and the shifting advice about wine and coffee.
• [03:33] – Introduction, spelling, and meaning of “debunk.”
• [05:05] – Common collocations: debunk a myth, a theory, a misconception.
• [06:07] – Examples from nutrition: low-fat vs. high-fat diets.
• [07:48] – Using “debunk” for workplace rumors.
• [08:38] – The impact of social media and fake news.
• [10:36] – How to debunk: facts, proof, and the challenge in today’s world.
• [11:09] – Concerns about AI and digital misinformation.
• [13:11] – Synonyms for “debunk”: disprove, expose, discredit.
• [14:28] – Role play: investigative reporters and using related verbs.
• [15:42] – Decline of investigative journalism in the US.
• [15:58] – Advice on safer debate topics – avoiding hot button issues.

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Takeaways

• “Debunk” is a versatile and current term useful for discussing myths, misconceptions, rumors, and shifting research.
• It’s essential to approach new claims with healthy skepticism and seek credible evidence before believing or sharing information.
• In conversation, “debunk” and its synonyms (“disprove,” “expose,” “discredit”) can help you confidently participate in discussions, but be mindful of sensitive or “hot button” topics.
• The episode blends humor, real examples, and practical advice for ESL learners seeking to sound natural in American English, all through the lens of “connection, not perfection.”

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End of Summary

Transcript

[Lindsay McMahon]

This is an All Ears English podcast. Episode 26:20 debunk and connect with Lindsay and Michelle.

[Podcast Host / Announcer]

Welcome to the All Ears English podcast, downloaded more than 200 million times. Are you feeling stuck with your English? We'll show you how to become fearless and fluent by focusing on connection, not perfection, with your American hosts, Lindsay McMahon, the English adventurer, and Michelle Kaplan, the New York radio girl, coming to you from Colorado and New York City, usa. And to get your transcripts delivered by email every week, go to allearsenglish.com forward/subscribe. What does the word debunk mean and

[Michelle Kaplan]

how do you use it?

[Podcast Host / Announcer]

Today?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Learn how to bring up new research

[Podcast Host / Announcer]

in tons of areas including nutrition, science, history, politics and more. Listen in today.

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There's a big difference between understanding English and participating in English. Understanding means you follow the conversation. You participate by adding your ideas, reacting naturally and keeping the conversation moving. Many English learners are strong listeners, but hesitant speakers. Once you know your current fluency level, it becomes much easier to close that gap. Take our free 2 minute quiz to discover your level and what to focus on next. Go to allearsenglish.com fluencyscore that's allersenglish.com flu e n c Y S C O R E.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Hey there Michelle. What is going on with you today?

Not too much, Lizzy. How are you?

I'm feeling good. I'm ready to be on the mic and talk about a good topic for today for our listeners.

Yeah, yeah, me too. Lindsay, do you tend to believe studies that come out in the news or are you wary of them? Like that's like 15 of people who eat this will die like in like 20 years. You know about food illness. You know, there's so many things that come out. What do you, what's your feeling when you see those us?

I tend to believe them when it supports a habit I already have and it says it's good like coffee these days. The press on coffee is good.

Yes, yes, coffee right now.

But then you never know, in two years it could be like, oh, now it causes cancer. I mean that's what happened with. Not exactly what happened with wine, but back in the, in the aughts.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Do you remember when everyone said red

[Lindsay McMahon]

wine, it's good for your heart, antioxidants. Everyone started drinking more red wine and now they're like, nope, Alcohol in general is very bad for you.

Yep, I know. It's so hard, so hard to follow along. I don't know anymore. So that's why I try and stick with everything in moderation and Hope for the best. I mean, not, obviously, things that are terrible for me, but, yeah, things that are on the. So today we're going to talk about a word that often comes up in these scenarios. And this is. I think this is kind of a buzzword today because we're always. I mean, I've seen it a lot recently. Yeah. Because we're always talking about these kinds of things. So what's the word?

Debunk. Debunk. I love it. It's kind of fun to say. It sounds. I don't know, sounds like we're dropping news here.

Yeah. How do you spell that?

Yeah. D, E, B, U, N, K. Interesting word. I don't know where it comes from, but it basically means to show that something people. People believe that something is now false

[Michelle Kaplan]

that maybe they believed was true before.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yes, right.

Yes, exactly. So. But we're going to talk more about that in just a second. Guys, we want to remind you to hit follow wherever you're to the All Ears English podcast, so you never miss an episode.

Yep. There's only one Allers English. Our belief is connection, not perfection. So if you love our style, the way we do this, and you want to come along with us five days a week, you got to hit that follow button or that subscribe button if

[Michelle Kaplan]

you are consuming this on YouTube.

[Lindsay McMahon]

So, Michelle, this is going to be fun because I've always found it interesting, especially, you know, in American culture. Poke fun at ourselves here. We're so obsessed with health research, nutrition research, but we still have some of the highest rates of obesity in the world. It's like, what gives?

You know? Yeah, yeah, good question. Yeah. I mean, so I think it's also because we're such a large country.

Yeah, sure, sure.

It's hard. It's like, it's so hard to get everybody on board. But for sure, you know, different areas in the country are totally different, and so it's very. It's very interesting. So with this word debun. So again, it's kind of like proving something is wrong.

Yes. You might hear things like debunk a myth, debunk a theory, debunk a common misconception. Do you say debunk or debunk? Which do you say? I feel like you could say both.

Right? I think you could say debunk.

Yeah.

Now we're saying it too many times

that it's sounding that I say both. I think there's no way to go wrong with this.

Yeah. Yeah. And I mean, you might hear this or see this word in the News a lot. Right. Like, so we talked about, you know, debunking. I guess I say debunk a study, like what we were. What we're talking about, you know. Oh, like they, the coffee, you know, they. They said that coffee was bad. But now we've debunked that and we realize it's great. Right.

All the better for us. Yes, right.

Exactly. Exactly.

But it's not just nutrition. Even though I really enjoy, I don't know, I find nutrition really interesting. So I enjoy seeking out those. Whenever those articles are in the news,

[Michelle Kaplan]

I always read them and add them

[Lindsay McMahon]

to, you know, my body of knowledge. Misunderstandings, right?

Yeah, yeah.

But it goes beyond just nutrition, of course. So here's one with nutrition, though. I read an article debunking the misconception that a low fat diet is good for you. And this is another thing that has been coming out recently. But then people saying high fat diet is good for you. I'm not sure about that either. Right.

It's. It's, you know, some of it, you just have to, you just have to take it all with a grain of salt and like, kind of just do your best. I don't know, it's because, I mean, you know, then they say there's good fats and bad fats. When I, you know, when we were growing up, Lindsay, I'm sure you remember, it was like everything was low fat, low fat. Meanwhile, they're adding all these chemicals in.

Right. That are probably really dangerous for our health. Right. All these fake sugars and, you know, sort of additives and preservatives.

Yeah. They had to make it taste good. So somehow.

Right, right.

Like I remember. Yeah. I remember when I first started thinking about that. I remember because I would always get like low fat salad dressing and, and I remember one of my mom's friends was like, yeah, but like, what? H. They had to do something to make the taste good. So, like, what are they? And it started. Made me think. And yeah. I always remember that this is why

I love traveling, because if you go pretty much anywhere else in the world, a lot of the food is. Is fresh. Like, you go to Italy.

Yes.

France. I mean, you're just. You're eating farm to table.

Yeah.

And it's not astronomically expensive either. And just, just. Oh, gosh.

I remember when.

I know Mania last year, Slovenia. The food in Slovenia is so clean. It's just so clean. And you can tell, you feel it

[Michelle Kaplan]

in your stomach when you're eating it.

[Lindsay McMahon]

It's just such a different experience. Than eating here in the states.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, definitely. Yeah. Here's another one. The supervisor debunked the rumor that layoffs were going to. So what are we saying here? What did the supervisor do?

Yeah, he basically. He or she basically said, okay, it's not true.

[Michelle Kaplan]

There is a rumor, but the rumor is incorrect.

[Lindsay McMahon]

There are no layoffs.

He addressed it in some way and said that it was false. Or. What's another.

I'm going to show you something that

[Michelle Kaplan]

will debunk your prior misconceptions about homeschooling.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Right?

Yeah. That's an interesting thing, homeschooling in this country. Like.

Right?

Yeah, yeah. So I, you know, sometimes people think, oh, like, they have judgments on homeschooling, and then. But people who homeschool their kids, they feel really strongly about it. Right. So interesting stuff.

And this is all colliding with the Instagram age, right? Where we have people kind of just saying what they think is true, whether it's based in any science. They just use certain phrases that feel heavier.

Right.

And so there is fake news out there everywhere. It's tricky. You gotta. It's. It's crazy out there, Michelle. It's crazy out there.

It is, it is. Or what's another one?

[Michelle Kaplan]

The professor debunked the Myth from the

[Lindsay McMahon]

1800s by explaining the history to the class. Okay. So when you have more context, maybe

[Michelle Kaplan]

you can debunk certain myths a bit better.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Right.

Or one more. The reporter put out a shocking story debunking the idea that the school system was doing well.

[Advertiser / Bloomberg]

Good.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Okay. Okay. Yes. Lindsay, have you ever had to debunk anything in your life at work?

That's a tricky one.

I know.

I don't know. I. I feel like.

[Michelle Kaplan]

I mean, when we set our.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Our highest value here at dollars. English as connection. I feel like maybe the industry was more in a mindset of being correct, being perfect, focusing on being correct, but we believe that there's something higher. It's not exactly the same thing, but I don't have any good examples. Michelle, do you have any.

Anything? There are certain. There are certain things in the news, you know, that will come out where, you know, where you will talk about them with family or something like that. And you're. And, you know, there's a lot of, you know, political discussion, and you say, wait a second, but that's not true. Like, you heard that somewhere. Maybe you heard that online and that wasn't a valid source. And, you know, so.

Oh, God. Yeah, yeah, yeah. When it comes to politics and fake things, with vaccines and stuff, people's perspectives that can get into a really heated area. You got to be careful to enter those conversations. But yeah, I mean, if. But yeah. Anyways, we can say more about this.

But yes, I mean, but Lindsay, how does someone debunk. What are you debunking with?

Well, you. So you try to do it with. With proof, with facts, images, numbers, videos. But I feel like nowadays in kind of this fake news era, we don't necessarily listen to facts or trust facts all the time or not everyone does. So I don't know. How do you do it, Michelle?

I mean, yeah, that's how you should do it. But I. I wonder, like, even now I'll see things coming up online for me where I'm watching a video, something, and I can tell that it's not real.

Yeah.

So that's a scary part about where the news is heading and with AI and yes, things that's just. That's just actually frightening because something. I mean, right now I still think it's a little glitchy where you're watching something and you're like, wait a second, that doesn't look like her.

That's not the real person, right?

Yeah, that's a. I don't know. And that's. There's no way. But in a few years or even sooner, you know, it might get harder to tell and we have to be really careful.

Yep. Don't worry, guys. This is the real us, right? Yes.

Yes, yes, yes.

It's true. It's true. Yeah. Yeah. I just. A few years from now, I mean, things could. I mean, AI is just moving so incredibly fast, Michelle. So a year from now, we don't know where we'll be. It's.

It's true.

Yeah. It's wild. Yeah.

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[Lindsay McMahon]

Okay, so other ways we might say debunk. If we don't want to always go

[Michelle Kaplan]

around saying debunk, debunk, debunk.

[Lindsay McMahon]

We could say disprove. Right. The professor disproved the report by showing the graph she had recorded in her book three years ago. Okay.

Or expose. Right. So, like, she exposed the truth. Right. So that's more like to uncover by sharing pictures she had taken of the couple together.

Yes, Exposed. So uncover. Unleash the information that no one knew about before. Right. Discredit. The scientists discredited the reporter's claim by bringing her to the lab and showing her exactly why she was wrong. So all in the same ballpark. Not exactly the same.

Right. Some minor differences.

[Podcast Host / Announcer]

Yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

So let's do a role play here. You and I are reporters talking about a story that we're about to break. I would love to be. I feel like in an alternate life, I would like to be, like, an investigative reporter. If I were better at details, I think.

Yeah, you know? Yeah, definitely. It would be. It would be interesting. Also, I just want to bring up one more, which I kind of touched on earlier, which was to prove someone wrong or right to disprove. Could also be another one. So there's a lot here, but. All right, here we go.

All right.

Wow. This is huge. All right. We need to be strategic about this if we really want to expose the truth.

Right. We need proof in order to discredit

[Michelle Kaplan]

the claims that came out.

[Lindsay McMahon]

We will debunk everything they said.

Okay. All right, good. So we're really here. We are exposing the truth.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Exposing the truth.

[Lindsay McMahon]

You said we need to be strategic about this if we really want to expose the truth. Meaning bring light to the facts.

Yes. And then you said, right, we need to. We need proof in order to discredit the claims that came out.

[Michelle Kaplan]

And then you said, we will debunk everything they said.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah, And. Yeah. And I really admire and respect investigative reporters that get to the bottom of these stories.

[Michelle Kaplan]

We need them.

[Lindsay McMahon]

But in the US they're getting a little less funded now, like investigative reporting. We've talked about this on the show before. There's the talking heads, because it's entertaining. They bring in the podcasters and the I don't know who they bring in, like personalities and just have opinion, opinion, opinion all night, you know, on cnn. And there's less actual news investigating. Like go out and investigate a story, talk to sources, you know, that's what I want to see more of. But we're seeing less of it, unfortunately.

Yes, exactly. All right, Lindsay, guys, check out episode 2609. That was English grammar to showed your nostalgia. And Lindsay, what do you think about for the takeaway for today?

Well, I think it's. I mean, I don't know, it depends

[Michelle Kaplan]

on your social circle.

[Lindsay McMahon]

But I feel like I sometimes talk about like health research with friends. This is an area where you can be a little safer than if you veer into politics. You could end up in a tricky area. But like talking about studies that have debunked prior understandings of things like the wine thing is kind of funny and interesting.

Right. However, however now I think that, you know, health and politics, it's really like starting to mix together a lot. So that can also. It can lead to. Yeah, so I thought I found a

topic that was just.

You found a neutral topic. No, you didn't. Yeah, no, but I mean, yeah, things like that. But yeah, there, there's a lot of controversy about what's actually healthy and in politics and who believes what. And so yeah, it's wild.

It's wild. So try to find, try to find a topic that you could talk about scientific research that continuing to come out. That is not so hot button. Right? Hot button is a bonus phrase for today. It's not a hot button issue, meaning a issue that sends people off into their, into their silos of belief. Right, yeah.

Sports. About sports or.

Right, right.

Something about how movies are made or, you know, there's.

Yeah, there's something out there still.

I'm sure there's still something to debunk Funk guys. Don't you worry.

All right, good stuff. Good episode today. Michelle and I will see you back on the show soon. You have a good day, all right?

All right, you too. Bye.

[Podcast Host / Announcer]

Thanks for listening.

[Lindsay McMahon]

To all ears. English.

[Podcast Host / Announcer]

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