Sixteenth Minute exclusive! We’ve got the first in depth interview with Bryan Gaw, aka the Left Shark himself. 

This week, Jamie revisits the 2015 Super Bowl saga that was Left Shark — the costumed cartilaginous fish that went rogue in 2015 beside Katy Perry during a chorus of ‘Teenage Dream,’ capturing the world’s heart. The person inside is just as lovable, and Jamie takes the bus to West Hollywood to meet dancer-turned-celebrity-stylist Bryan Gaw to revisit one of the internet’s few wholesome moments. 

Plus… ELLLLLVIS PRESTOOOO

Follow Bryan Gaw here: https://bryangaw.com/

And here: https://www.instagram.com/bryangaw

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This week, the curvy wife saga concludes. Jamie talks to Cate Navarrete of the Body Positivity Alliance and Tigress Osborn of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance about where this moment falls in the decades-long history of fat activism, and how mainstream media narratives tend to depoliticize civil rights issues. Also, Jamie mumbles the lyrics to "Hot Wife" by curvy wife guy to herself. Also, Jamie learns what "hotwife" means. *airhorn*

Learn about NAAFA here: https://naafa.org/

Follow Tigress here: https://www.instagram.com/iofthetigress/?hl=en

Learn about the Body Positivity Alliance here: https://bodypositivealliance.org/

Learn about Cate here: https://bodypositivealliance.org/team-and-board/cate-navarrete

Read Tigress's original essay here: https://naafa.org/blog-archive/black-history-always

For more on the history of fat activism and body positivity, start here (curated by the amazing Aubrey Gordon of Maintenance Phase!): https://www.yourfatfriend.com/fat-reading-list

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In 2017, Robbie Tripp posted about his "curvy wife" Sarah, inspiring months of discourse and a permanent internet turn of phrase. This week, Jamie revisits the saga and speaks to Curvy Wife Guy himself ahead of the release of his new single, which is obviously called "Hot Wife." How did a couple build a 'desert empire' on a controversial post, and what does that say about the internet economy?

Tune in next week for part two, where Jamie takes a closer look at how this story resonated with women and fat activists -- featuring interviews with journalist Rebecca Jennings, Tigress Osborn of NAAFA (the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance), and Cate Navarrete of the Body Positivity Alliance.

Stream Robbie's music here.

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This summer, a fish named Alice fell from the sky and directly into the lawn of junior doctor Ben Beska. And so, of course, he tweeted about it... only to lose his newly beloved fish just a week later. What followed was what it looks like to go viral in 2024. Jamie speaks with Ben Beska over the course of two months to track the journey; plus, we talk to Stanford psychiatrist Dr. Elia Aboujaoude to learn what going viral has the potential to do to your mind.

Follow Ben's fish adventures here: https://x.com/Beska 
Buy Dr. Aboujaoude's new book, A Leader's Destiny, here: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/elias-aboujaoude/a-leaders-destiny/9781541703018/?lens=publicaffairs 

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This week, we're taking a tangent -- my dad, Mike Loftus, passed away two weeks ago, and this episode is twenty minutes about that. I've needed some extra time to get our upcoming episodes together, but I've wanted to share more about him and the last two weeks. I really miss him. We'll be back to regular episodes next week.

As promised, the links:

Obituary: https://www.waittfuneralhome.com/obituary/MichaelP-Loftus 

Patriot Ledger writer Eric McHugh wrote this really comprehensive, thoughtful piece about him: https://www.patriotledger.com/story/sports/2024/07/24/family-hockey-were-ledger-bruins-writer-mike-loftus-twin-passions/74518399007/ 

My dad's good friend Mick Colageo, another hockey writer, remembers him here: https://bostonhockeynow.com/2024/07/21/colageo-boston-bruins-reporter-mike-loftus-a-pros-pro/

And the podcast I pulled a clip from is from Pucks with Haggs with Joe Haggerty, featuring Mick and fellow hockey writer Steve Conroy from The Boston Herald: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HimCsyfw3Hk&t=590s

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This week, Jamie solves an age-old internet mystery -- whatever happened to Naomi H, the Twitter furry who lost an internship after telling off a man she didn't realize was on the National Space Council to "suck my dick and balls?" After half a decade, Jamie speaks exclusively with Naomi H to get to the bottom of it, and talk about how the internet has shaped Naomi H's life for better and for worse.

Follow Naomi H: https://x.com/NaomiH_Origins 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 2017, HQ Trivia was the app to rule them all, nearly the heir apparent to Jeopardy! Millions of people would stop what they were doing every day to answer trivia for absurdly small cash prizes, most often from "Quiz Daddy" Scott Rogowsky. Less than a year and a half later, it was over -- but not before a broadcast with The Rock, a weirdly specific salad-based threat from a founder, and a tragic death took place.

So... what happened? Jamie takes the bus to Scott Rogowsky's storage unit in Marina Del Rey to find out. (Interview has been edited for length and clarity!)

Shop at Quiz Daddy's here: https://quizdaddys.com/

Follow Scott Rogowsky: https://www.instagram.com/scottrogowsky/

https://twitter.com/ScottRogowsky

Boom/Bust podcast: https://www.theringer.com/boom-bust-podcast

Jamie's cursed leeches video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-ZZbBZW2es&t=453s

Follow Sarah Prebis for her HQ TikTokumentary & more: https://www.tiktok.com/@sarahpribis

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, a bonus interview from our 65-foot-hot-dog episode — 404 Media’s Jason Koebler talks to Jamie about how we need to remind people that writers aren’t robots. Then, Jamie reminds you she is not a robot.

Listen to the 404 Media Podcast here: https://www.404media.co/the-404-media-podcast/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What happens when public artwork becomes the main character? For the last two months, a culture war has raged around a gigantic sculpture of a hot dog in Times Square... and playing right into the artists' hands. Jamie goes to New York to talk about the secret agenda of the hot dog with creators Jen Catron and Paul Outlaw.

Then, a talk with Carol Adams, the author of 'The Sexual Politics of Meat,' about why the hot dog is still a subversive symbol, why I needed to go vegan a decade ago, and how harassment has evolved from right wing radio into the internet era.

(did you seriously think Jamie wasn't going to find an excuse to do a hot dog episode? gzet a grip)

follow Jen and Paul: https://www.catronandoutlaw.com/

follow Carol Adams: https://caroljadams.com/

buy Raw Dog: The Naked Truth About Hot Dogs: https://bookshop.org/p/books/raw-dog-the-many-histories-of-hot-dogs-jamie-loftus/18785131?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwp4m0BhBAEiwAsdc4aOntkU4kENdIs91XZ-UKCNSxQ8nvIO1kakfzoI7ugVgqAWA1ABNkQBoCTtoQAvD_BwE

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Legit question for rural Americans - How do I kill the 30-50 feral hogs that run into my yard within 3-5 mins while my small kids play? This week, Jamie finds out from the 30-50 hogs asker himself -- Willie McNabb. Plus, we catch up with Professor John Tomacek about the VERY REAL issue of feral hogs, and Karl Kasarda of inRangeTV about how 30-50 feral hogs tied into a larger conversation about American gun laws.

Follow Dion Green and the Fudge Foundation here: https://fudgefoundation.org/

Follow Willie McNabb: https://x.com/WillieMcNabb

Follow John Tomacek: https://rwfm.tamu.edu/people/tomecek-john/

Follow inRangeTV: https://www.youtube.com/@InrangeTv

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the summer of 2021, hundreds of Black TikTokers went on strike and demanded proper credit and compensation for dances they made famous. Why? Because, the most famous TikTokers of the pandemic, white teens Charli D'Amelio and Addison Rae, had become extremely famous off of Black choreographers Jalaiah Harmon, Keara Wilson, and others' work -- a continuation of age-old appropriation and theft. Jamie talks with Savage dance creator Keara Wilson, commentator Amanda Bennett, and algorithmic scientist Meredith Broussard to take a closer look at the impact of this moment, and how social media is designed to amplify racism.

Follow Keara Wilson here: https://www.tiktok.com/@keke.janajah?lang=en

Follow Amanda Bennett here: https://defineandempower.com/our-team

Buy Meredith's book here: https://meredithbroussard.com/books/

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.