Over the past week, Elon Musk has been engaged in a near wholesale takeover of key areas of the U.S. federal government. Working under the newly minted "Department of Government Efficiency" aka DOGE, Musk and a group of young Gen Z loyalists have begun wreaking havoc on our institutions. Online culture journalist Ryan Broderick joins Taylor to break down who exactly these young men are, what their backgrounds say about the people Musk is hiring, and what the billionaire is currently do...
Feb 06, 2025•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast Clarkson Lawson was a prominent MAGA influencer on TikTok who amassed over 31 million likes on his videos. He built a platform as an outspoken Gen Z conservative making pro-Trump content. But in the months leading up to the election, something changed. Despite building a massive audience on pro-Trump messaging, he had a change of heart and voted for Kamala Harris. Lawson announced his political pivot in a video titled "Why I left MAGA." Taylor sits down with Clarkson to talk about the ...
Jan 30, 2025•52 min•Transcript available on Metacast Family vlogs are a huge category of online content. At their best, they show real parenting and the entertaining and relatable moments of family life. However, the content category has been plagued by accusations of child exploitation and new laws targeting creators claiming to protect children. Fortesa Latifi covers the space in-depth and joins Taylor to set the record straight.
Jan 23, 2025•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast Remember Gamergate? Well… it's happening again. After writing an exposé about how a video game consultancy was attacked, journalist Alyssa Mercante found herself in the crosshairs of a targeted harassment campaign. Alyssa joins Taylor to discuss what it's like being at the center of an organized smear campaign, how she's fighting back.
Jan 16, 2025•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast Social media as we know it is in chaos. The landscape is becoming more centralized and creators are facing more challenges than ever. On top of all that, the very notion of a follower is dying and there's uncertainty about what that means for the future. Jack Conte, the CEO and co-founder of Patreon, joins Taylor to discuss how to better serve creators.
Jan 09, 2025•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast 2024 was wild! "Brain rot" was the Oxford word of the year. TikTok's days away from being banned. The CostCo Guys and the Hawk Tuah girl were everywhere. Taylor is joined by Sam Sanders, host of the Sam Sanders Show on KCRW to break down the biggest online moments of 2024. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 19, 2024•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast 2024 was wild! "Brain rot" was the Oxford word of the year. TikTok's days away from being banned. The CostCo Guys and the Hawk Tuah girl were everywhere. Taylor is joined by Sam Sanders, host of the Sam Sanders Show on KCRW to break down the biggest online moments of 2024. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 19, 2024•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast Last week, TikTok lost its challenge to stop a ban or forced sale in the United States. WIRED senior business editor Louise Matsakis joins Taylor to discuss what happens next and if this is really the end of the road for TikTok. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 12, 2024•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast Last week, TikTok lost its challenge to stop a ban or forced sale in the United States. WIRED senior business editor Louise Matsakis joins Taylor to discuss what happens next and if this is really the end of the road for TikTok. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 12, 2024•43 min•Transcript available on Metacast A moral panic about kids' social media and smartphone use in schools has been sweeping the country. But are cell phones really the problem? And is removing them entirely the best approach? Taylor chats with educator Brandon Cardet-Hernandez, president of education media company Mrs. Wordsmith, about how smartphones can be used in the classroom, and how a ban would impact marginalized students the most. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 05, 2024•33 min•Transcript available on Metacast A moral panic about kids' social media and smartphone use in schools has been sweeping the country. But are cell phones really the problem? And is removing them entirely the best approach? Taylor chats with educator Brandon Cardet-Hernandez, president of education media company Mrs. Wordsmith, about how smartphones can be used in the classroom, and how a ban would impact marginalized students the most. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 05, 2024•35 min•Transcript available on Metacast Are women abstaining from sex to protest Donald Trump’s re-election? That’s the impression you’d get if you spent time reading the media over the past few weeks. Since the election, the “4B Movement” has been gaining traction online. But where did it come from, how does it work, and could something like this really take off in America? The Cut’s EJ Dickson joins Taylor to discuss. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Nov 21, 2024•14 min•Transcript available on Metacast Are women abstaining from sex to protest Donald Trump’s re-election? That’s the impression you’d get if you spent time reading the media over the past few weeks. Since the election, the “4B Movement” has been gaining traction online. But where did it come from, how does it work, and could something like this really take off in America? The Cut’s EJ Dickson joins Taylor to discuss. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Nov 21, 2024•16 min•Transcript available on Metacast Since the election, Democrats and the media have been in panic mode, trying to figure out “the manosphere.” It’s a vast network of influencers, podcasters and streamers who speak to young men in a way traditional media has failed to. Many of its personalities are Trump supporters, including Joe Rogan. The left has been asking itself how it can win back young men without radicalizing them further. Is there a left-wing Joe Rogan? To help crack the manosphere, Taylor talks to Josh Citarella, host o...
Nov 14, 2024•25 min•Transcript available on Metacast Since the election, Democrats and the media have been in panic mode, trying to figure out “the manosphere.” It’s a vast network of influencers, podcasters and streamers who speak to young men in a way traditional media has failed to. Many of its personalities are Trump supporters, including Joe Rogan. The left has been asking itself how it can win back young men without radicalizing them further. Is there a left-wing Joe Rogan? To help crack the manosphere, Taylor talks to Josh Citarella, host o...
Nov 14, 2024•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast This year, pumpkin spice lattes are being served with a side of AI slop. Autumn vistas generated by artificial intelligence tools are clogging up Pinterest and Instagram. Taylor talks to Vox’s senior correspondent Rebecca Jennings about how AI is warping our perspective of what nature actually looks like. They also discuss Rebecca's recent reporting on “The cultural power of the anti-woke tech bro" and “The Carrie Bradshaws of TikTok." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/a...
Nov 07, 2024•26 min•Transcript available on Metacast This year, pumpkin spice lattes are being served with a side of AI slop. Autumn vistas generated by artificial intelligence tools are clogging up Pinterest and Instagram. Taylor talks to Vox’s senior correspondent Rebecca Jennings about how AI is warping our perspective of what nature actually looks like. They also discuss Rebecca's recent reporting on “The cultural power of the anti-woke tech bro" and “The Carrie Bradshaws of TikTok." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/a...
Nov 07, 2024•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast Anthony Po is a creative genius who has a knack for organizing viral events in New York. This past weekend, he was responsible for a Timothée Chalamet lookalike contest attended by the actor himself. In April, he went viral after he assembled a crowd to watch him eat an entire jug of cheeseballs in the disguise as “Cheese Ball Man.” He's infiltrated a cult, hosted a dating show, faked an alien invasion and more. Taylor talks to Anthony about making things that matter in culture and bringing back...
Oct 31, 2024•22 min•Transcript available on Metacast Anthony Po is a creative genius who has a knack for organizing viral events in New York. This past weekend, he was responsible for a Timothée Chalamet lookalike contest attended by the actor himself. In April, he went viral after he assembled a crowd to watch him eat an entire jug of cheeseballs in the disguise as “Cheese Ball Man.” He's infiltrated a cult, hosted a dating show, faked an alien invasion and more. Taylor talks to Anthony about making things that matter in culture and bringing back...
Oct 31, 2024•24 min•Transcript available on Metacast Over the past few months, a father-son duo known as the Costco guys has become inescapable online. Their family-friendly videos about the grocery chain's chicken bakes and double-chunk chocolate cookies have earned them over 62 million likes on TikTok. This week, AJ Befumo joins Taylor to discuss how he went from former pro wrestler to king of the Costcoverse. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Oct 24, 2024•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Over the past few months, a father-son duo known as the Costco guys has become inescapable online. Their family-friendly videos about the grocery chain's chicken bakes and double-chunk chocolate cookies have earned them over 62 million likes on TikTok. This week, AJ Befumo joins Taylor to discuss how he went from former pro wrestler to king of the Costcoverse. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Oct 24, 2024•34 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week Taylor Lorenz dives into the charged content world of Jubilee Media with its founder Jason Y Lee. Jubilee is quickly becoming a YouTube behemoth. It’s amassed 9.2 million subscribers on its main channel alone by producing social experiments and debates over polarizing questions such as ‘is being fat is a choice?’, or ‘can someone stop being gay?’ and other hot-button topics. The company's stated goal is to spark conversations that matter and help us all come together more around our sh...
Oct 17, 2024•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week Taylor Lorenz dives into the charged content world of Jubilee Media with its founder Jason Y Lee. Jubilee is quickly becoming a YouTube behemoth. It’s amassed 9.2 million subscribers on its main channel alone by producing social experiments and debates over polarizing questions such as ‘is being fat is a choice?’, or ‘can someone stop being gay?’ and other hot-button topics. The company's stated goal is to spark conversations that matter and help us all come together more around our sh...
Oct 17, 2024•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Taylor explores the inner workings of modern office life through the world of corporate influencers. She’s joined by Ross Pomerantz aka ‘Corporate Bro’, a successful corporate influencer who simultaneously parodies the entire genre. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Oct 10, 2024•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast Taylor explores the inner workings of modern office life through the world of corporate influencers. She’s joined by Ross Pomerantz aka ‘Corporate Bro’, a successful corporate influencer who simultaneously parodies the entire genre. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Oct 10, 2024•33 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week Taylor Lorenz talks about going independent and launching her new online culture newsletter, User Mag! Later, Taylor is joined by entertainment culture critic Coleman Spilde to explore how nostalgia accounts are rewriting pop culture history. Subscribe to User Mag here! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Oct 03, 2024•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week Taylor Lorenz talks about going independent and launching her new online culture newsletter, User Mag! Later, Taylor is joined by entertainment culture critic Coleman Spilde to explore how nostalgia accounts are rewriting pop culture history. Subscribe to User Mag here! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Oct 03, 2024•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast If you do a lot of online shopping, you may be experiencing deja vu. Amazon, AliExpress, WalMart, Temu, eBay, the TikTok shop, even Etsy all seem to be selling the exact same, cheaply made products from China. How did this happen? Have we reached some sort of eCommerce singularity? And what does this say about the future of online shopping? Are we all doomed to have shitty cheap products forever? Taylor is joined by New York Magazines John Herman to discuss. Learn more about your ad choices. Vis...
Sep 26, 2024•15 min•Transcript available on Metacast If you do a lot of online shopping, you may be experiencing deja vu. Amazon, AliExpress, WalMart, Temu, eBay, the TikTok shop, even Etsy all seem to be selling the exact same, cheaply made products from China. How did this happen? Have we reached some sort of eCommerce singularity? And what does this say about the future of online shopping? Are we all doomed to have shitty cheap products forever? Taylor is joined by New York Magazines John Herman to discuss. Learn more about your ad choices. Vis...
Sep 26, 2024•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast Description: Age verification technology is becoming increasingly commonplace as lawmakers seek to enact deeply concerning restrictions in the name of “child safety.” Washington Post technology reporter Drew Harwell joins to discuss the threats to our freedom of speech, expression, and privacy this new software unlocks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Sep 19, 2024•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
