This week on The Last Archive, the story of the composer Raymond Scott’s lifelong quest to build an automatic songwriting machine, and what it means for our own AI-addled, ChatGPT world. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Player Piano

The Last Archive​ is a show about the history of truth, and the historical context for our current fake news, post-truth moment. It’s a show about how we know what we know, and why it seems, these days, as if we don’t know anything at all anymore. The show is written &amp; hosted by Ben Naddaff-Hafrey, and was created by the historian Jill Lepore. iHeartMedia is the exclusive podcast partner of Pushkin Industries.

Society & Culture

Personal Journals

History

Philosophy

Places & Travel

This episode features an essay from Jill Lepore’s ‘The Deadline.’
Why are there so many stories about the end of the world these days? Jill’s essay “No, We Cannot,” elaborates a political theory of dystopian fiction. And then, after the essay, Jill and Ben talk about the use and misuse of the genre. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

No, We Cannot - ‘The Deadline’

This episode features an essay from Jill Lepore’s ‘The Deadline.’
Today on the show, Jill and Ben travel back in time to the disrupt-or-die 2010s to revisit Jill’s essay about the gospel of disruption. And afterwards, they talk about the consequences and challenges taking on controversial subjects, Ben’s time as a media disruptor, and Jill’s time as a temp worker. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Disruption Machine - ‘The Deadline’

This episode features an essay from Jill Lepore’s ‘The Deadline.’
Why do we insist on misreading ‘Frankenstein?’ Hardly a day goes by without someone comparing some new technology to Frankenstein’s monster. But there’s a much richer set of lessons to draw from Mary Shelley’s book.
Today on the show, Jill reads her essay “It’s Still Alive.” And then afterwards, Jill and Ben talk about the meaning of the story, the biography of its author, and how what you read shapes who you are. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s Still Alive - ‘The Deadline’

This episode features an essay from Jill Lepore’s ‘The Deadline.’
Jill reads her essay on the tangled history of Barbie. And then, after, Ben and Jill talk about how the film fits in with the core concerns of the essay — the tangled web of intellectual property, IP theft, and the relationship between corporations and feminism. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Valley of the Dolls - ‘The Deadline’

In our first installment of essays from The Deadline, we’re bringing you ‘The Ice Man,’ a story about the history of cryogenic freezing, and the perils of being unable to let go. 
After the essay, Jill and Ben talk about where the essay began and the moral challenges of writing about a living person.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Player Piano

Download our free app to listen on your phone