Ben Smith, author of the new book Traffic: Genius, Rivalry, and Delusion in the Billion-Dollar Race to Go Viral, joins the podcast to discuss how the media revolution has changed the political landscape and the implications for the future.

Ben and Steve talk about his new book, the historical relationship between media and politics, and the transformation of Facebook from a social platform into a media juggernaut. Ben also shares details about Semafor, the news platform he’s building and who on the Left is actually doing media well.

REFERENCES:

Ben Smith - @semaforben https://twitter.com/semaforben

Semafor - https://semafor.com

Traffic: Genius, Rivalry, and Delusion in the Billion-Dollar Race to Go Viral - https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/678592/traffic-by-ben-smith