Why the Algorithm is Making Comedy Boom, Again
The last time I talked to Jesse David Fox about the comedy boom it was… March 5, 2020. Since then, some things have changed. But in other ways it’s just the same: comedy - or at least, some kinds of ...
6 Aug 202558min
What is TV’s endgame?
A decade ago, Disney CEO Bob Iger freaked out the media industry by acknowledging something many of us saw coming — his previously unassailable TV business was starting to erode. But even with a 10-...
30 Jul 202547min
Why Trump is defunding NPR and PBS - and suing Rupert Murdoch
Reporting on the place you work is not fun. But it is an occupational hazard for media reporters — particularly for NPR’s David Folkenflik. That’s because National Public Radio — along with Public Br...
23 Jul 202535min
Inside the Rise and Fall of Condé Nast with Michael Grynbaum
Here's one way New York Times reporter Michael Grynbaum described Condé Nast to me in this week’s chat: “A real exporter of American cultural influence in the late 20th century.” And here’s another on...
16 Jul 202547min
Inside the NYT - and Everywhere Else - with Semafor's Max Tani
You’re probably a normal person, so you didn’t spend your holiday weekend talking to people at the New York Times about a local politics story that some people didn’t like. But that’s Max Tani’s job:...
9 Jul 202548min
Black Mirror's Charlie Brooker on the problem with tech - and people
"Black Mirror" creator Charlie Brooker knows that everyone thinks his show is about tech-fueled dystopias. But he says it's really about humans, not their tools. I loved this chat back when we recor...
2 Jul 202543min
How to become a Substack Star with Emily Sundberg
What's the best way to describe what Emily Sundberg does? Substacker? Influencer? Journalist? Brand-builder? Let's go with "yes". And she does a much better job of describing herself in our conversa...
25 Jun 202547min
Why did Apple ice out the most famous Apple blogger?
If you want smart, nuanced insight into Apple’s products and would-be products, you turn to John Gruber, who’s been blogging about this stuff for more than two decades at his Daring Fireball site. So...
18 Jun 20251h 4min
