Journalism, Interrupted: 7 Podcast Hosts on the State of the Media
🤖 AI Summary
Overview
This episode features a lively panel discussion from the DealBook Summit, where prominent media personalities and journalists explore the seismic shifts in journalism. Topics include trust in media, the impact of political figures like Donald Trump, the rise of journalists as brands, technological disruptions, and the challenges of navigating the modern attention economy.
Notable Quotes
- Trust the media to lie to their audience to make them feel good.
– Andrew Schulz, on the media catering to audience biases.
- Trump is not the killer of journalism; he's the coroner.
– Ben Shapiro, critiquing the media's credibility before Trump's presidency.
- The messengers matter just as much as the message today.
– Amna Nawaz, emphasizing the importance of authenticity in journalism.
📰 Trust in Media
- Amna Nawaz expressed optimism, arguing that trust can be rebuilt through authenticity and credibility, which are more essential than ever.
- Ben Shapiro and Charlamagne Tha God were skeptical, emphasizing that trust must be earned by individual outlets rather than the media as a whole.
- Stephanie Ruhle highlighted the rise of credible journalism in a fragmented media landscape, while Andrew Schulz suggested audiences trust media to serve their biases rather than objective truth.
📣 Trump’s Impact on Journalism
- David Remnick warned of authoritarian tendencies in Trump’s actions, likening them to historical censorship.
- Ben Shapiro argued Trump’s critique of media exposed longstanding biases but criticized his lawsuits against outlets.
- Jon Favreau and Charlamagne Tha God highlighted the dangers of Trump’s influence on media mergers and FCC actions, which could undermine journalistic independence.
📱 The Attention Economy and Algorithms
- Andrew Schulz described how algorithms drive extreme rhetoric, dividing audiences into silos and incentivizing sensationalism.
- Stephanie Ruhle noted the viral nature of incendiary content, urging consumers to lower the temperature and seek balanced perspectives.
- Ben Shapiro advocated for breaking media addiction, suggesting people disconnect from their devices to foster real-world connections.
🎙️ Journalists as Brands
- Panelists discussed the rise of media personalities as brands, with Amna Nawaz emphasizing the importance of authenticity in building trust.
- Ben Shapiro and Andrew Schulz debated the distinction between traditional journalism and entertainment-focused platforms, highlighting the need for transparency about biases and intentions.
- Charlamagne Tha God critiqued legacy media for failing to adapt to audience demands, leading to distrust and the rise of alternative voices.
🤖 Technological Disruption
- Andrew Schulz argued that discussions about podcasting’s disruption of media are outdated, pointing to AI as the next major disruptor.
- The panel explored how platforms like TikTok have fragmented audiences, creating challenges for traditional media to maintain relevance.
- David Remnick and Jon Favreau stressed the enduring importance of investigative journalism amidst technological upheaval.
AI-generated content may not be accurate or complete and should not be relied upon as a sole source of truth.
📋 Episode Description
Warning: This episode contains strong language.
In this special episode for subscribers of “The Daily,” the host Michael Barbaro moderates a panel from The New York Times’s DealBook Summit, speaking with journalists and personalities from across the industry about the state of media in 2025.
Guest:
- Charlamagne Tha God, co-host of “The Breakfast Club” and “The Brilliant Idiots” and co-founder of The Black Effect Podcast Network
- Jon Favreau, co-founder of Crooked Media and host of “Pod Save America”
- Amna Nawaz, co-anchor and co-managing editor of “PBS NewsHour”
- David Remnick, editor of The New Yorker and host of “The New Yorker Radio Hour”
- Stephanie Ruhle, host of “The 11th Hour With Stephanie Ruhle” on MS NOW
- Andrew Schulz, host of “The Brilliant Idiots” and “Flagrant”
- Ben Shapiro, co-founder of The Daily Wire and host of “The Ben Shapiro Show”
For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.