Isabel and Amanda throw out their other plans and instead talk about the subreddit “myboyfriendisAI” which is about, you guessed it, AI boyfriends and other types of digital partners. We also discuss Meta’s not-amazing practices and the LLM paper doing the rounds on the AI hater part of the internet, with Iz’s human partner weighing in. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Jun 25, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 117
You had questions. We have answers. We tell you about: the most "white lady" email we have sent; our screen time; fears of unexpected wet; life hacks for 29-year-olds specifically; Amanda's undying love for HBO Girls; cursed food content; political memes and earnestness; is there any good use of AI; and, unfortunately, not the 1944 US-Mexico Water Treaty. Find Us Online Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/wowiftrue.bsky.social Twitter: https://twitter.com/wowiftruepod Instagram: https://www.instag...
Jun 11, 2025•56 min•Ep. 116
We explore all the ways that various AIs are going weird—sycophantic, white genocide focused, blackmailing its users, and not trusting Chargers fans. Also, we talk way too much about Sam Altman's olive oil choices, the Hugos, and Isabel talks for fifteen minutes about trying to get the internet installed. Which, hey, this is a podcast about the internet. And that includes calling Verizon. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#d...
May 28, 2025•52 min•Ep. 115
New pope! But why has this thousands-of-years-old process of choosing a new pope been... weirdly online? We're talking about that Vatican's bad OPSEC, the Pope's Twitter, the chimney livestream, and PopeCrave. Yes, we did find out later that the Pope is a White Sox fan. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
May 14, 2025•50 min•Ep. 114
We chat with Dr. Claire Aubin, academic, American Nazi expert, and host of "This Guy Sucked," and mostly we just talk about the experience of being on social media as a public intellectual, and also, that one time Amanda worked for a fake professor. If you've ever wondered about academia beef, or how a person could work for a fake professor, this is the episode for you See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Apr 30, 2025•59 min•Ep. 113
Bitches love endurance .Think Twitch stream marathons. Think the 3-week livestream of moose migration happening at the time of this episode's publication. Think the first ever viral MrBeast video in which he simply counts to 100,000. From the Barkley Marathons to Cory Booker's day-long Senate speech, this is the episode in which we discover that people on the internet really like when people do stuff, but for a long time. Sources Jasmin Paris documentary Cory Booker’s Oura ring stats Moose Migra...
Apr 16, 2025•1 hr•Ep. 112
Amanda and Isabel popcorn all over the place and talk about: Adding Jeffrey Goldberg to signal chats (and other chats!), Shinzo Abe memes, The Daily Routine (banana involved?), and the Ghiblification of All Things. Also, Isabel doesn’t know how to pronounce Charlemagne. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Apr 02, 2025•1 hr•Ep. 111
Amanda tells Iz about Claude Plays Pokemon, where an AI wearing the skin of a beloved communal experience simply fails to make it out of Mt. Moon. Then Iz inflicts JD Vance memes on Amanda, explaining another sort of beloved communal experience: making JD Vance edits. Also—brodernism! Sources Amanda's article on Claude plays Pokémon Brodernism! An all time bad post :( Midroll links This Guy Sucked Cramped Find Us Online Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/wowiftrue.bsky.social Twitter: https://twi...
Mar 19, 2025•46 min•Ep. 110
The Silicon Valley bros are not okay, and neither are their indeterminate number of genetic offspring. We discuss why the rightwing tech elite are obsessed with having babies, and more importantly, how can we possibly move forward with our lives now that we have [spoilers] learned about a new Elon baby live on air? Sources “The Tech Baron Seeking to Purge San Francisco of ‘Blues’” Amanda’s “Uber with Guns” article Ashley St. Clair sues Elon Musk for custody Grimes’ custody struggles with Elon Mu...
Mar 05, 2025•55 min•Ep. 109
Everyone cites a statistic about how men don't read, but no one knows where that statistic comes from -- so, we did our own very sound scientific study and talked to some men we know about reading. Saunas are involved. Wow if True except every time you ask a man if they read the room gets one degree hotter because we are in a sauna. Thanks to Eric Silver, Sam Rizer, David Newtown, and an amorphous disembodied chorus of Isabel's high school friends ("myst cult") in a sauna for participating. Sour...
Feb 19, 2025•58 min•Ep. 108
We’re out here talking about romantasy and lawsuits related to romantasy. No, not the omegaverse one. OK, a little bit the omegaverse one. Also, asking the age of question: do men read. (Also, a note for the sharp-eared listeners, we don't talk about public domain day despite promising it - next ep!) Find Us Online Twitter: https://twitter.com/wowiftruepod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wowiftrue Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/wowiftrue Website: https://wowiftrue.com/ Email: wowiftruepod...
Jan 29, 2025•58 min•Ep. 107
We travel back in time to the day after Thanksgiving, a calmer and more peaceful era. Just kidding, we're here talking about the naked knife fight, a reference everyone will only understand in 2026. Amanda reads 98% of Isabel's book, Isabel opines on the neccessity of conventions for publishing, and we talk way too long about pottery and hot ass. Also: fish hats, now trending in orca populations near you. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://ar...
Jan 15, 2025•52 min•Ep. 106
It's 2025, and we're flipping it turnways by bringing on the people who shape this podcast into something listenable. AKA, Amanda's in Florida and Isabel's talking with Allison and David about: Walmart Birkins, the ethics of smells (and of going viral for the smellthics), whether Tenet was a good movie, and the correct number of times to read the Odyssey. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Jan 01, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 105
We discuss the internet's reaction to the United Healthcare CEO shooting and the suspect, Luigi Mangione, from a perspective sorely missing from the national conversation: two people who also went to Penn. Finally, something we have true expertise in. Also: how attractiveness relates to public opinion, online sentiment toward Luigi, and you know, the whole murder thing. Links NYT thinks Luigi is too hot: https://www.kenklippenstein.com/p/ny-times-doesnt-want-you-to-see-mangiones Lit Hub on Luigi...
Dec 18, 2024•42 min•Ep. 104
In this episode: somehow, no one makes a 4Beez nuts joke. Also, we talk about the Korean 4B feminist movement strangely gaining steam on American TikTok after the election, and how the right is mad that women are shaving their heads, but no one is actually shaving their heads. Also, bald correspondent Joe joins us in the studio -- we literally mean a studio this time, we were in a studio weirdly... wow if true... Links: Volante Design: https://www.volantedesign.us/ (use code WOW for 10% off!) Fi...
Dec 04, 2024•40 min•Ep. 103
Iz and Amanda talk about: glow in the dark condoms, America's most evil liberal, the double bongcloud, Isabel's book career and the fact that she needs to become a TikTok star, and bringing the portal to Philadelphia, ft. cameo by Iz's boyfriend, at the most appropriate time. Find Us Online Twitter: https://twitter.com/wowiftruepod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wowiftrue Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/wowiftrue Website: https://wowiftrue.com/ Email: wowiftruepod@gmail.com About Us Wow I...
Nov 20, 2024•53 min•Ep. 102
Time for Wow if True 101, a brief look back at the history of Wow if True. By brief, we mean an hour. Iz and Amanda talk about the trajectory of Wow if True and also, their lives. This one's MAD parasocial. Find Us Online Twitter: https://twitter.com/wowiftruepod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wowiftrue Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/wowiftrue Website: https://wowiftrue.com/ Email: wowiftruepod@gmail.com About Us Wow If True was created by Isabel J. Kim and Amanda Silberling . Our editor...
Nov 06, 2024•47 min•Ep. 101
We made it to a hundred episodes! Unfortunately, all celebration must be postponed because Isabel needs to read Amanda far too much Pokémon mythology. That's right, we're talking about the big Pokémon data leak and the resulting Typhlosion memes. By this we mean Pokémon fucking. We're talking about Pokémon fucking. Find Us Online Twitter: https://twitter.com/wowiftruepod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wowiftrue Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/wowiftrue Website: https://wowiftrue.com/ Emai...
Oct 23, 2024•54 min•Ep. 100
What do celebrities owe us? What do your local podcasters owe you? Does anyone ever owe anyone anything? We discuss whether celebrity endorsements are a positive or negative development, and also whether men deserve candles. Thank you to ~research assistant~ Brae Parenteau for their help on this episode! Sources Chappell Roan’s feature in Rolling Stone: https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/chappell-roan-good-luck-babe-fame-fans-1235094314/ Harvard study on celebrities’ political imp...
Oct 09, 2024•57 min•Ep. 99
This episode has it all: and by, it all, we mean that Amanda spends about a full twenty minutes talking about her celebrity crush. And yet, through the power of podcasting, we manage to dive into the history of Stanley Cups and Owalas and how water bottles became fashion statements. We even interviewed Dr. Jess Rauchberg, a professor at Seton Hall studying digital culture, about water bottle culture. Amanda's celebrity crush DOES somehow relate to water bottles, but not in the way you think. Lin...
Sep 25, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 98
So what's a friend, anyway? Well, if you're making an AI startup, a friend is a mic who is always listening :) Iz and Amanda discover the power of friendship and also the power of buying the url friend.com and also the power of reading The Power Broker, Robert Caro's 1162 page epic. Find Us Online Twitter: https://twitter.com/wowiftruepod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wowiftrue Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/wowiftrue Website: https://wowiftrue.com/ Email: wowiftruepod@gmail.com About U...
Sep 11, 2024•46 min•Ep. 97
Pepe: the frog, the myth, the legend. We go all-in on a deep dive on what Pepe has meant as a cultural symbol – from frog, to neo-nazi, to grassroots rebel, and somehow, to a crypto symbol. Sometimes a frog simply contains multitudes. Feels good man. Find Us Online Twitter: https://twitter.com/wowiftruepod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wowiftrue Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/wowiftrue Website: https://wowiftrue.com/ Email: wowiftruepod@gmail.com About Us Wow If True was created by Isab...
Aug 28, 2024•1 hr•Ep. 96
None of this episode is legal advice. We're joined by IP attorney Sam Doesntwantrealnameincluded, and we discuss the legality of stealing Scarlett Johannson's voice for your AI, or if she can sue you for one billion dollars (trick question: its always legal to sue in America!). Also, listener questions about copyrighting the internet, answered with varying degrees of legal fidelity. Find Us Online Twitter: https://twitter.com/wowiftruepod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wowiftrue Patreon: h...
Aug 14, 2024•55 min•Ep. 95
So what is the point of any technology? That's right. To more accurately simulate anime girls. We talk about the relationship between LLMs (large language models), anime girls, and pornography. Also, Iz forces her boyfriend to run jailbroken LLMs to test out ERP (erotic roleplay) prompts. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Jul 31, 2024•46 min•Ep. 94
We're back from our break, more powerful than ever, and maybe even strong enough to talk about anonymous social media and whether it's good or bad (or, perhaps, it's not that simple). Amanda writes a book report, Iz grades a book report, we both reminisce about being anonymous teenagers on the internet. Also: oh, hey YikYak, we thought you were dead. Sources: Instagram is toxic for teen girls (WSJ): https://www.wsj.com/articles/facebook-knows-instagram-is-toxic-for-teen-girls-company-documents-s...
Jul 17, 2024•53 min•Ep. 93
Wow If True is your one-stop internet culture shop, explaining how what’s happening online shapes the real world. And we’re the internet experts and real-life besties to unravel it: tech culture journalist Amanda Silberling and science fiction author slash attorney Isabel J. Kim, Esq. More importantly, we’re the only podcast that will mention Neopets and horizontal mergers in the same episode. New episode every other Wednesday. Find Us Online Twitter: https://twitter.com/wowiftruepod Instagram: ...
Jul 16, 2024•57 sec
In this episode: Iz finally puts her law degree to good use and explains the complaint that the Department of Justice filed against Ticketmaster and Live Nation regarding their many, many antitrust oopsies (This is not the technical term). Also, PBJ metaphors, DND podcast liveshow discussion, and EBITDA, but only conceptually. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Jun 05, 2024•37 min•Ep. 92
In this episode: We discuss "mouth biohacking" and all the fun things (rationalism, experimental mouth technologies and silicon valley, Amanda's beautiful mouth) that go along with it. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
May 22, 2024•41 min•Ep. 91
In this episode: Our luxury fashion correspondent (and half of our editing team), Allison Mills, is back to talk with us about Erewhon. Why are are talking about a grocery store chain from California? Because they sell 32 dollar ice and routinely go viral on social media (mostly because of the 18 dollar smoothies). Also, Morgan Sung joins us as our west coast correspondent, we learn what a macrobiotic diet is, and everyone now really wants a smoothie. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/priv...
May 08, 2024•46 min•Ep. 90
Isabel got a seven figure book deal and got the book optioned, but she continues to threaten to kill people on our podcast (especially the kid in the Omelas hole). No, this is not a bit. Iz is god's favorite princess, and Amanda can run a mile without stopping. Links Isabel's book deal announcement! The story about killing the kid in the Omelas hole Most importantly... NEW MERCH! Get your very own shirt/mug that says "I listened to Wow If True before Isabel J. Kim got a seven figure book deal." ...
Apr 24, 2024•53 min•Ep. 89
