Hard Fork

Deepfake Drake + HatGPT + Ben Smith on the End of the BuzzFeed Era


Listen Later

A song featuring A.I.-generated versions of Drake and the Weeknd went viral — before being taken down by streaming services. Is censorship of A.I.-generated songs the way forward? Or can singers benefit from synthetic voices, as some artists like Grimes are suggesting?

Then, HatGPT: Kevin and Casey pull headlines out of a hat and generate their own takes on the news.

And Ben Smith, the former BuzzFeed News editor, discusses the end of the 2010s digital media era.

On today’s episode:

  • Ben Smith is a journalist and co-founder of the digital media company Semafor. He was a New York Times media columnist and the first editor in chief of BuzzFeed News.

Additional reading:

  • An A.I.-generated song made to sound like Drake and the Weeknd went viral before being taken down by streaming services.
  • Grimes invited fans to make songs using A.I.-generated versions of her voice.
  • Snapchat saw a spike in one-star reviews after users criticized its “My AI” feature.
  • Taylor Swift did not invest in FTX, the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange company.
  • Researchers turned a goldfish into a cyborg.
  • The Republican National Committee released an A.I.-generated ad slamming President Biden.
  • The U.K. blocked Microsoft’s $69 billion bid for the video game company Activision.
  • Ben Smith’s book, “Traffic: Genius, Rivalry, and Delusion in the Billion-Dollar Race to Go Viral,” is an origin story of digital media.
  • A BuzzFeed article set off a viral debate on the color of a dress.

Soon, you’ll need a subscription to keep full access to this show, and to other New York Times podcasts, on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Don’t miss out on exploring all of our shows, featuring everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts.

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Hard ForkBy The New York Times

  • 4.4
  • 4.4
  • 4.4
  • 4.4
  • 4.4

4.4

5,046 ratings


More shows like Hard Fork

View all
The Book Review by The New York Times

The Book Review

3,873 Listeners

Popcast by The New York Times

Popcast

1,445 Listeners

Decoder with Nilay Patel by The Verge

Decoder with Nilay Patel

3,124 Listeners

The New Yorker Radio Hour by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

The New Yorker Radio Hour

6,585 Listeners

Modern Love by The New York Times

Modern Love

8,753 Listeners

Pivot by New York Magazine

Pivot

8,888 Listeners

Inside The Times by The New York Times

Inside The Times

132 Listeners

The Gray Area with Sean Illing by Vox

The Gray Area with Sean Illing

10,641 Listeners

The Run-Up by The New York Times

The Run-Up

2,067 Listeners

The Daily by The New York Times

The Daily

111,266 Listeners

Today, Explained by Vox

Today, Explained

10,047 Listeners

Change Agent by The New York Times

Change Agent

1,465 Listeners

Caliphate by The New York Times

Caliphate

12,629 Listeners

Charm City by The New York Times

Charm City

299 Listeners

Interesting Times with Ross Douthat by New York Times Opinion

Interesting Times with Ross Douthat

6,648 Listeners

Post Reports by The Washington Post

Post Reports

5,442 Listeners

The Latest by The New York Times

The Latest

469 Listeners

The Candidates by The New York Times

The Candidates

52 Listeners

Jungle Prince by The New York Times

Jungle Prince

2,289 Listeners

The Choice by New York Times Opinion

The Choice

380 Listeners

The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway by Vox Media Podcast Network

The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway

5,205 Listeners

Rabbit Hole by The New York Times

Rabbit Hole

6,670 Listeners

The Ezra Klein Show by New York Times Opinion

The Ezra Klein Show

15,208 Listeners

Day X by The New York Times

Day X

1,495 Listeners

The Interview by The New York Times

The Interview

1,439 Listeners

The Run-Up (2016) by The New York Times

The Run-Up (2016)

7 Listeners

On with Kara Swisher by Vox Media

On with Kara Swisher

3,151 Listeners

The Argument by New York Times Opinion

The Argument

16 Listeners

The Headlines by The New York Times

The Headlines

418 Listeners

The Wirecutter Show by The New York Times

The Wirecutter Show

1,064 Listeners

The Opinions by The New York Times Opinion

The Opinions

385 Listeners

The Run-Up Guide to 2024 by The New York Times

The Run-Up Guide to 2024

0 Listeners