2 chapters across the catalog
Manoj Bhargava, the billionaire creator of 5-Hour Energy, develops a "Free Electric" hybrid bike designed to provide 24 hours of electricity from one hour of pedaling. Bhargava pitches the bike as a solution for the 1.3 billion people living without power. The hosts mock the concept as a form of "slave labor" where the poor must pedal to power their homes.
NPR Corporate Underwriting and Five-Hour Energy Promotion
NPR is accused of running a "promotional scam" by airing a five-minute segment on Five-Hour Energy and its founder, Manoj Bhargava, without explicitly disclosing the company's status as a major corporate underwriter. The segment featured a reporter "hooked" on the product, which the hosts argue blurs the line between journalism and advertising. NPR currently has 175 corporate underwriters but rarely provides on-air disclaimers during related stories.
