The Internet Ate My Baby!!!

On this episode of The Internet Ate My Baby!!!:

Joe heard a very meta and ominous video from Venus Theory about how advertising has been a necessary evil that is being taken away from content creators as AI is the new marketing hotness. This has been a trend Joe watched for a while now, much like the evolution of banner ad templates and cookie-cutter websites that removed the from-scratch design out of online aesthetics.

Joe lets you in on his secret: he doesn’t care enough about revenue to be sponsored. And while this is a unique position to be in - having a good-paying job outside of his creativity so he doesn’t have to use it for a living - it is where artists find themselves more often in today’s capitalist society. Where early America abolished slave labor to allow free workers to compete (that’s actually more true than you realize, sadly), how does one compete when the slaves are digital, don’t technically exist and don’t complain?

Today’s episode is a quick one, and I hope to throw more quick thoughts into my SubStack audio notes in the future. This is just a reaction clip to Star Wars: Tales Untold, an AI content channel that has seen lots of traffic in recent months. The comments are the typical wonder and awe from people that don’t really know this is AI, or are keeping that out of their feedback. These videos are simple editing, 8 second videos from low credit prompt workflows, and some vocal generation moving through each post. The result to me is mediocre but compelling enough to understand why people like it.

In this podcast, we explore something that is hiding behind us in all of our arguments in online media. It has been there for a long time - we could even say since human communication was invented - but we are seeing it take more material form in the age of AI and as that era evolves over time. I’m talking about information agents and the possibility of someone selecting only the information they believe align to what you are looking to hear, effectively “cherry-picking” what you absorb as truth by not highlighting contradictory views.

Joe reintroduces his podcast and new articles on theinternetatemybaby.substack.com. He discusses his latest article about ADHD and social media. That’s about it. Check it out just to hear my voice again. I’ll have better content another time. Don’t feed the Maw! WE’RE BACK!

Following an initial reading of "How To Keep an Open Mind", a Princeton Press book of translations of Sextus Empiricus by Richard Bett, I pivot to ask Nuvix (voice of Perplexity's search model) about skepticism in social media, religion, and politics.

What do you think? Are we seeing more or less skepticism in debate today? Comment on YouTube and discuss! And share with others who might have an opinion on this topic.

Presented by RepeaterSignal Media under CC BY-NC 4.0

(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)

All third-party music and likenesses are used under fair use or with permission. Intro and outro music produced by Joe Ryder and copyrighted by RepeaterSignal Media.

We sit down again with Perplexity to discuss and think critically about paying taxes. Why do we do it? What does AI pull from in terms of sources? We find out that, when you ask the opposite - why do people not pay taxes - AI tends to pull from less-than-academic sources. But the opposite question is an opinion anyway. Paying taxes is as inevitable as death. But is it just to make someone else rich or let people be lazy? Let's think through that.

Presented by RepeaterSignal Media under CC BY-NC 4.0

(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)

All third-party music and likenesses are used under fair use or with permission. Intro and outro music was produced by RepeaterSignal Media and is copyrighted.

The first Ask the Internet segment was... well... a lot about AI, a rant about ADHD and memory, some sprinklings of human experience, and a little mind map of why frogs are slimy. Seems too random? It's just getting started.

Presented by RepeaterSignal Media under CC BY-NC 4.0

(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)

All third-party music, videos, and likenesses are used under fair use or with permission. Intro and outro music was produced by RepeaterSignal Media.

Joe invites Fizgig on for a two-hoat interview to discuss the role of men in online spaces. From toxic masculinity to over corrections from patriarchy-smashing, the definition of man is still evolving. And through ChatGPT and the duo's analytical banter, we locate the next steps in man's evolution in society.

This episode music and sound effects were self-produced by RepeaterSignal Media and Joe Ryder.

A short satirical skit depicting the morning sermon broadcast of the holy church of Trumptopia. If we weren't laughing, we'd be crying.

This is Mark 1 of a series of dive logs on Getting Internet Rich.

Divemaster Fizgig takes us through the new audio-focused format of the dive logs, this time discussing the internet's fascination with the rich and powerful. From the Musks and Tates of the world to the flaunting of wealth for clout, ogling over the playboys and playgirls is a pastime we share, despite most people claiming being wealthy is not the most important thing in life.

Presented by RepeaterSignal Media under CC BY-NC 4.0

(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)