Radiolab – "The Fact of the Matter" (Sept. 24, 2012)

Episode Overview

This episode of Radiolab, hosted by Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, explores the nature of truth and fact—how we determine what's real, what evidence should count, and how the facts themselves can become elusive or slippery. Through three distinct but thematically linked stories—a photographic investigation from the Crimean War, the mystery of "Yellow Rain" chemical warfare claims in Southeast Asia, and a deeply personal search for truth in a friendship—the show probes whether facts alone are enough, and what happens when competing narratives and emotional realities clash.

1. Chasing Truth: The Crimean War Photograph

(Begins ~[01:10])

Key Points

• Errol Morris, acclaimed documentary filmmaker, recounts his obsession with solving a photographic mystery: Did 19th-century photographer Roger Fenton stage the famous "Valley of the Shadow of Death" war photo?
• Two nearly identical photographs exist: one with cannonballs littering the road, one without.
• Historians and essays (notably Susan Sontag) have long debated which was first and whether the dramatic version was staged.
• Morris investigates by traveling to Crimea, scrutinizing shadows, and eventually enlists optical engineer Dennis Purcell to do a forensic comparison.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• "Nothing's so obvious that it's obvious." – Errol Morris on Sontag's claim ([05:11])
• "The pursuit of truth, properly considered, shouldn't stop short of insanity." – Errol Morris ([09:28])
• The breakthrough: Purcell notices rocks that have shifted between photos, proving which came first. The empty road preceded the one with cannonballs; Fenton staged the dramatic photo.
  • "Rocks don't fall uphill, they only fall downhill. It's gravity." – Errol Morris ([12:47])

Reflection:

• Ultimately, the successful detective work shows the photo was staged for dramatic effect, raising questions about authenticity, intention, and the nature of photographic "truth."
• Morris ponders the emotional significance—facts vs. feelings:
  • "To make it look the way it felt." – Dennis Purcell ([13:36])
  • "Do I really care whether he put the cannonballs on the road or not?...I do and I don't." – Errol Morris ([14:13])

2. The Mystery of Yellow Rain

(Begins ~[21:46])

Key Points

• Story unfolds via CIA veteran Merle Pribineau, survivor Eng Yang (with niece Kalia), Harvard chemist Matt Meselson, and others.
• After the Vietnam War, the Hmong people in Laos are attacked; reports emerge of yellow drops ("Yellow Rain") falling from aircraft, leaving people ill or dead.
• Early testing of yellow samples (on leaves, etc.) shows high toxin (T2, a mycotoxin) content, leading U.S. officials to accuse the Soviet Union of chemical warfare.
  • "There is conclusive evidence that the Soviet government has provided toxins for use in Laos." – President Reagan ([29:39])
• The story becomes global political ammunition, eventually prompting American chemical weapons production ([29:25]).

Complications & Counter-Theories

• Some scientists note a high pollen content in the yellow samples—leading Matt Meselson to doubt the "chemical weapon" explanation.
• Breakthrough: Tom Seeley (Cornell biologist) suggests the yellow rain is actually honeybee feces, which often falls en masse as "cleansing flights."
  • "The State Department explanation is not parsimonious...this yellow stuff is not a chemical weapon...it's bee fecal spots." – Tom Seeley ([32:06]–[32:24])
• Meselson and Seeley go to Thailand, observe bee cleansing flights, and confirm the phenomenon.
• Retesting of samples finds no toxin; likely lab contamination contributed to initial 'toxin findings.'
• Despite scientific evidence, Yellow Rain remains listed as a potential chemical weapon in U.S. Army manuals and persists as a powerful narrative for the Hmong.

Emotional & Ethical Tensions

• Eng Yang refuses to accept the scientific explanation; to him, the attacks and deaths were very real, tied to direct experience.
  • "I speak to what I've seen and there is no inkling in my mind that those deaths were not caused by starvation, dysentery—it was chemicals that were killing my people." – Eng Yang ([37:13])
• The interview with Eng grows tense as the hosts try to separate scientific 'fact' from lived experience.
  • "There was so much that was not told. Everybody knows that chemical warfare was being used. How do you create bombs, if not with chemicals. We can play the semantics game, but I'm not interested...I think the interview is..." – Kalia Yang ([40:18]–[41:15])

Reflection and Reassessment

• The Radiolab team wrestles with whether factual accuracy can overshadow or minimize human suffering.
  • "What do you do when three truths are right at the same time?" – Errol Morris ([44:46])
• Pat Walters issues an apology for lacking sensitivity during the interview, recognizing the weight of trauma and the limits of journalistic objectivity. ([45:00])

3. Can You Truly Know Someone? (The Tim Kreider Story)

(Begins ~[48:34])

Key Points

• Writer Tim Kreider shares the story of his friendship with "Skelly," a man whose life was full of contradictions, fabrications, and secrets.
• Skelly tells stories—a published novel that never appeared, a daughter in France, mysterious absences—that his friends quietly choose to ignore or not confront.
  • "He just seemed like a really good guy who happened to lie more than most." – Tim Kreider ([53:51])
• After Skelly’s death, Kreider and friends discover the extent of his isolation, mental distress, and the hidden reality he kept from everyone.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• "He had so clearly determined not to let people into that chamber of his life." – Tim Kreider ([62:35])
• "If you don't know someone by having experiences like that and memories like that with them, then I would submit that you cannot ever know anybody at all." – Tim Kreider ([66:03])

Reflection:

• The segment raises the issue of what counts as truly "knowing" a person—are the facts of their life enough? Or is shared experience and empathy a deeper form of understanding?
• Kreider finds that, despite not knowing many facts, the emotional reality of friendship remains authentic.

Episode Takeaways

• Facts are slippery: The nature of truth is often more complex than a collection of verifiable facts. Context, perspective, and emotional reality shape how facts are interpreted and what they mean to us individually and collectively.
• Objectivity vs. Empathy: Seeking objective truth is vital (whether in photojournalism, forensic science, or reporting), but this pursuit can sometimes conflict with the emotional truths of people’s lived experiences.
• Multiple truths can coexist: As Errol Morris notes, several interpretations might all be "right" depending on the standpoint—historian, scientist, survivor, or friend.

Notable Quotes

• "Nothing's so obvious that it's obvious." – Errol Morris ([05:11])
• "The pursuit of truth, properly considered, shouldn't stop short of insanity." – Errol Morris ([09:28])
• "The State Department explanation is not parsimonious...this yellow stuff is not a chemical weapon...it's bee fecal spots." – Tom Seeley ([32:06]–[32:24])
• "What do you do when three truths are right at the same time?" – Errol Morris ([44:49])
• "If you don't know someone by having experiences like that and memories like that with them, then I would submit that you cannot ever know anybody at all." – Tim Kreider ([66:03])

Important Timestamps

• Crimean War Photograph Mystery & Investigation – [01:10]–[16:34]
• The "Yellow Rain" Controversy: Science, Testimony, and Politics – [21:46]–[47:52]
• Can You Know Someone? (Tim Kreider & Skelly) – [48:34]–[66:21]

Radiolab: "The Fact of the Matter" is a meditation on the limits and powers of facts—challenging listeners to consider what it really means to seek and know the truth.