AI Slopaganda feat. Ryan Broderick (E319)

Artificial Intelligence carries a host of risks: it could reshape jobs and the economy, alter educational practices, help powerful figures dodge accountability through AI-assisted decision-making, and even influence our personal relationships and mental well-being. But here’s the biggest question: how will AI affect the content filling up your social media feeds? In today’s episode, journalist Ryan Broderick joins us to discuss the influx of “AI slop” — which increasingly jostles for space alongside human-created content. We’ll explore the “Shrimp Jesus” Facebook phenomenon, a viral (yet entirely fabricated) story about Elon Musk saving a young girl with Neuralink, and the 1995 sci-fi horror film Screamers. Subscribe for $5 a month to get all the premium episodes: https://patreon.com/qaa Thanks for subscribing to QAA on patreon. /// Ryan Broderick https://x.com/broderick https://bsky.app/profile/ryanhatesthis.bsky.social Garbage Day Newsletter https://www.garbageday.email/ Panic World Podcast https://pod.link/1740187810 /// Editing by Corey Klotz. Theme by Nick Sena. Additional music by Pontus Berghe. Theme Vocals by THEY/LIVE (https://instagram.com/theyylivve / https://sptfy.com/QrDm). Cover Art by Pedro Correa: (https://pedrocorrea.com) https://qaapodcast.com /// REFERENCES Nearly all Americans use AI, though most dislike it, poll shows https://www.axios.com/2025/01/15/americans-use-ai-products-poll Behold the AI Slop Dominating Google Image Results for "Does Corn Get Digested" https://futurism.com/google-image-corn-ai-slop Facebook's Shrimp Jesus, Explained https://www.404media.co/email/1cdf7620-2e2f-4450-9cd9-e041f4f0c27f/ Zuckerberg 'Loves' AI Slop Image From Spam Account That Posts Amputated Children https://www.404media.co/zuckerberg-loves-ai-slop-image-from-spam-account-that-posts-amputated-children/ Why you should be skeptical of that ‘leaked’ audio of JD Vance criticizing Elon Musk https://www.poynter.org/fact-checking/2025/jd-vance-rant-elon-musk-making-look-bad/ ‘Trump Gaza’ AI video intended as political satire, says creator https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/mar/06/trump-gaza-ai-video-intended-as-political-satire-says-creator “AI: The New Aesthetics of Fascism.” New Socialist https://newsocialist.org.uk/transmissions/ai-the-new-aesthetics-of-fascism/ Signal President Meredith Whittaker calls out agentic AI as having ‘profound’ security and privacy issues https://techcrunch.com/2025/03/07/signal-president-meredith-whittaker-calls-out-agentic-ai-as-having-profound-security-and-privacy-issues/