Frames of Space

Katherine Dee on the Nature of Internet Subcultures

Katherine Dee is an internet culture reporter who writes the Substack "default.blog," which observes the quirks and tendencies of various subcultures on social media.
In this episode, I got a chance to talk with her about her history covering different facets of the internet, how she approaches AI, and the different incentives of online interaction compared to in-person interaction.
Show Notes
"The Billionaire, the Influencer and their Baby" by Katherine Dee, Wisdom of Crowds

Jessica Grose on Technology and Post-Pandemic Divides

Jessica Grose is an opinion writer for The New York Times. What I admire about Jessica's writing is that she doesn’t just cover politics as a horse race or culture as a meme war; she zooms into the kitchen tables, classrooms, and waiting rooms where policy choices land on real bodies. Her beat is ​parenthood and education, faith and loneliness, COVID aftershocks and TikTok doom-scrolls — basically, all the places where our ideals crash into our everyday lives.
In this episode, I got a chance to speak with her about how our social media has been affecting kids, how student performance has changed in recent years, and the ways that modern medicine has become a victim of its own success.
Show Notes
"Parents Don’t Know It but K-12 Students Are Falling Into ‘the Honesty Gap’" by Jessica Grose, The New York Times
"Measles, MAHA Moms and Robert F. Kennedy Jr." from The Opinions

Micah Sifry on Government Protest and American Authoritarianism

Micah Sifry is a writer and organizer behind the Substack "The Connector." He has decades of experience in covering how technology is changing politics, and how to participate productively in the political process.
In this episode, I got a chance to talk with him about the history of mass protests in the US, the recent authoritarian cuts to government spending, and public perceptions of government service.
Show Notes
"A Different Kind of Anti-Trump Resistance Is Brewing" by Micah Sifry, The New York Times

Noah Smith on the Crisis of Trump's Tariff Madness

Announcement: this podcast will be publishing episodes twice as often as before (so every single week on Thursdays) for the next several weeks at least, and hopefully for longer. Count yourself lucky in that regard :)
Noah Smith is an economist who writes the Substack "Noahpinion" and co-hosts the podcast "Econ 102." He is known for his commentary on economic issues like inflation, trade policy, deficit spending, and more.
In this episode, I got a chance to speak with him about Trump's latest tariffs, how harmful they will be for all of us, and how the economic world order is changing.

Cathy Reisenwitz on Navigating Gender Norms

Cathy Reisenwitz writes the Substack "Sex and the State," which covers the intersection between feminism, sex advocacy, and how our society shapes our perception of gender roles.
In this episode, I got a chance to talk with her about her upbringing as an Evangelical, how her views on gender and sex have changed over time, and the tension between our desire for rigid structure and our desire for autonomy.
Show Notes
"How to fight fascism" by Cathy Reisenwitz, Sex and the State
"Politics, Sex, and Sexuality: The Growing Gender Divide in American Life" from Survey Center on American Life
"Our intelligentsia has abandoned our illiterati" by Cathy Reisenwitz, Sex and the State

Shauna Daly on the State of Young Men in America

Shauna Daly is the co-founder of the Substack "Young Men Research Initiative," which covers how people can reach out to young men who are increasingly drifting rightward.
In this episode, I got a chance to talk with her about the ways that young men are lacking a script for what type of person they should be, the recent decline in romantic relationships between young men and women, and which masculine-coded traits might be worth promoting in the future.
Show Notes
"What’s Love (And Sex and Porn) Got to Do With Elections?" by Young Men Research Project
Timestamps
00:00 Graceful Dialogue on Gender Issues
10:37 Gen Z's Growing Political Divide
16:09 How Digital Media Consumption Affects the Gender Divide
22:55 Changing Gender Roles and Economic Disparities
27:31 Rethinking Gender Performance Differences
33:13 Diversity Enhances Health and Connection
37:32 Marriage and Population Policy Debate
42:41 The Right-Wing Ideological Divide
49:38 Balancing Gender Equality and Modern Masculinity
53:18 Reimagining Modern Masculinity
59:30 Negativity in the Left's Sex Discourse
01:07:25 Election Trends and Gender Attitudes
01:11:21 Condemning Blatant Misogyny
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Erik Engheim on How He Misjudged Trump Supporters

When we see people acting in ways that seem irrational or incomprehensible, it’s easy to see them as ignorant or evil. But what if there’s more to it? What if, beneath the surface, there’s a much more complex mix of emotions—joy, fear, loyalty, and even desperation—that we tend to dismiss or fail to see?
Erik Engheim writes the Substack "Erik Explores," which covers politics, history and culture from a Nordic perspective.
In this episode, I got a chance to talk with Erik about how he was wrong about Trump supporters, and his apology to them for misjudging their morality. We discuss the nature of Republican support for Donald Trump, and the sense of joy that is present within the MAGA movement.
Show Notes
"My Apology to Trumpers" by Erik Engheim, Erik Examines
President Donald Trump addresses a joint session of Congress, March 2025
"The 3 cognitive scripts that subtly rule our lives" by Anne-Laure Le Cunff, Big Think
"I Welcome Trump Supporters" by Erik Engheim, Erik Examines
"David French: Checks, Balances, and the New Trump Era" from Good Faith

Lauren Harper Pope on Democratic Coalitions and Fundraising

Lauren Harper Pope is the co-founder of WelcomePAC, an advocacy organization to help elect centrist Democrats in swing districts. Beyond helping to raise political funds in that regard, she is known for her political commentary, including Substack writing and hosting the podcast The Depolarizers.
In this episode, I got a chance to talk with her about the most productive Democratic candidates to fund, the nature of political polarization, and the importance of reaching out to politically disengaged voters.
Show Notes
"The Awkward Politics of Evasion" by Liam Kerr and Lauren Harper Pope, WelcomeStack
"The Case for Strong Parties" from The Depolarizers
"Democrats Are Losing the War for Attention. Badly." from The Ezra Klein Show
"Invest to Win The Middle" from WelcomePAC

Robin Hanson on the Problem Behind Declining Fertility Rates

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Robin Hanson is an associate professor of economics at George Mason University, and a former research associate at the Future of Humanity Institute of Oxford University. He is known for his commentary on cultural drift, which examines how the nature of cultural shifts has changed over time.
In this episode, I got a chance to talk to him about what causes cultural change, how that relates to the debate over declining fertility rates, and what could be done to address cultural drift.
Show Notes
Fertility Rate from Our World in Data

Greg Sargent on Immigration and Electoral Strategy

Greg Sargent is a staff writer at The New Republic and the host of the podcast "The Daily Blast."
In this episode, I got a chance to talk with Greg about the electoral popularity of immigration reform, how shifts in voter turnout have affected Democrats, the role of media responsibility during election cycles, and how to cover Trumpism without burnout or fatigue.
Show Notes
"Why Democrats Got the Politics of Immigration So Wrong for So Long" by Rogé Karma, The Atlantic
"Trump Just Laid a Brutal Trap for Dems, and They're Walking into It" by Greg Sargent, The New Republic
"Democrats Have a Better Option that Biden" by Ezra Klein, The New York Times
This interview was recorded on January 17th, 2025.