Yeah, rough week. Jon and Max reckon with Tuesday’s result and break down how Donald Trump — once again — was able to grow his coalition. They dissect how Trump won despite his very online campaign, not because of it — and why that may be cause for hope. Then they share their own experience knocking doors in swing states, talk about the role misinformation and foreign interference played in the election, and return to Offline’s most important question: How can we make democracy work in our current information environment? Plus, Max offers up what may be the only fun question about the next four years. How long will it be before Donald Trump publicly and nationally humiliates Elon Musk?

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

The 2024 election is almost upon us, and if you’re not anxious…please give us some of whatever you’re taking. Barton Gellman, Senior Advisor at the Brennan Center for Justice, joins Offline to talk about how election officials are safeguarding your vote. This spring, Gellman co-lead a series of table top exercises involving current and former politicians, military officers, and analysts. Together, they played out worst-case scenarios under a second Trump presidency to better understand the true threat he poses to democracy—and brainstorm how conscientious objectors, state governments, and even protesting priests could slow him down. But first! Max and Jon talk about whether newspapers should endorse presidents, Jeff Bezos’s cringey letter, and the many ways they’re quelling their own election anxiety.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

The Good Liars, a MAGA trolling comedy duo, join Offline to share what it’s like on the ground at Trump rallies this close to the election. Davram Stiefler and Jason Selvig have been churning out political satire since they occupied Occupy Wall Street, and they talk to Jon about finding the humor and holes in the Trump camp’s rhetoric. But first! This week the app formerly known as Twitter announced a major change to the block function: it’s gone. Max and Jon discuss whether the ensuing X-odus will finally make Bluesky relevant, and why Jon doesn’t like to give his haters the satisfaction of being blocked. Then, it’s bros vs. brobots as the guys face down their own obsolescence and listen to an AI-generated podcast from NotebookLM. The platform is trained on whatever data–or book about saving democracy–you upload, and can synthesize the material into a jokey conversation between two hosts with a good rapport…sound familiar?

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

Why are FEMA workers being threatened for trying to help clean up after Hurricane Helene? Jon and Max break down the misinformation spreading on social media, including the now infamous girl-with-puppy AI image. Then, they discuss the leaked documents that show TikTok knows exactly how harmful their app is, and check in on Elon Musk. The Tesla CEO is going all out to help Trump’s campaign, but fortunately the porn industry is lending a hand to beat it back.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

Hasan Piker, Gen Z’s favorite left wing political commentator and Twitch streamer, joins Offline to talk about the Trump campaign’s bro-first election strategy, the right wing’s dominance of the digital media landscape, and why, 25 days until the election, he’s feeling mostly…tired. Jon and Hasan debate the Biden-Harris policy agenda, particularly with regard to immigration and Israel-Palestine, and Hasan shares how he avoids burnout while talking politics live for 50 hours a week.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

Alex Jones’ conspiracy media network, InfoWars, is up for sale, as is the at-home genetic testing service 23andMe…and potentially the DNA of 15 million people who used it. Meanwhile, TikTok grifters are using AI to fake defecting to North Korea, and it’s for a dumber reason than you could possibly imagine. But first! Silicon Valley thinks it’s finally figured out how to make smart glasses that someone will actually want to buy. Max and guest host Jane Coaston (What A Day) break it all down. Then, Max interviews New Yorker correspondent David Kirkpatrick about the rise of left-wing. internet vigilantes who are infiltrating white nationalist groups.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

New York Times tech reporter Kate Conger joins Offline to discuss Character Limit: How Elon Musk Destroyed Twitter, a new book she coauthored with Ryan Mac. It’s the best coverage out there of Elon’s takeover and the subsequent deterioration of the platform, with behind-the-scenes reporting on how and why he bought the company, and the decisions he’s made since. But first! Jon and Max discuss whether the danger of Donald Trump has become more abstract since his forced migration to Truth Social. Then they unpack Chappell Roan’s decision to support but not endorse Kamala Harris, and John Mulaney’s hilarious takedown of Salesforce at the company’s own conference.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

Critic Emily St. James and Crooked’s Halle Kiefer join Max to discuss “Blade Runner,” the 1982 classic that asks the question: could an AI chatbot become so hot that it would be unethical to delete it? Perhaps no other movie has had as big an impact on sci-fi or the aesthetic of futurism as Ridley Scott’s film. Is this Harrison Ford’s peak hotness? Which Silicon Valley Overlord is our Tyrell? If life imitates art, does tech imitate sci-fi? Listen to the final installment of Offline Movie Club to find out.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

Tristan Harris, co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology and ex-design ethicist at Google, joins Offline to chat about the attention economy, why tech execs don’t let their own kids on the apps, and how our AI arms race is one giant game of Jenga. But first! Jon and Max break down Instagram’s new sweeping changes for teen users—do they address child safety concerns? Why now? Will kids be able to outsmart the new rules? Then they turn to pet-obsessed Springfield, Ohio, which has been suffering through some of the most pestilent (and catchy) misinformation of this election cycle. To close it out, the guys break down North Carolina Lt. Governor Mark Robinson’s slew of scandals, and how Republicans are shamelessly endorsing him nonetheless.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

Since “Fight Club” hit theaters in 1999, the movie has become both a cinematic cult classic and a building block of how people (mostly men) express themselves online. Film critic Emily St. James and Crooked’s Erin Ryan join Offline Movie Club to talk about whether David Fincher’s opus deserves its top tier rankings, how the movie has been misappropriated by disillusioned Gen Xers and online chauvinists alike, and whether there are any feminist messages to be found. In essence, it’s Edward Norton playing a bored shitposter with Brad Pitt as his edgelord sock puppet account—what’s not to love? 

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

Robert Putnam, renowned political scientist and author of Bowling Alone and The Upswing, joins Offline to explain why bowling alone and scrolling alone are two sides of the same coin. Putnam has spent his life deciphering why social capital—our connection to each other and our communities—has been withering away for the last 50 years. The consequences of this trend are the focus of a new documentary, “Join or Die,” which explores the importance of civic engagement in America. Bob and Jon talk about the film, why social capital undergirds democracy, and why the internet is no substitute for joining an in-person club.

Join or Die is the inaugural film of the IRL Movie Club - a new initiative for Americans to gather in art house cinemas, watch documentaries in the public interest and then talk about them. To learn more, visit https://www.irlmovieclub.org/

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.