Peter Kafka has been speaking to the most important people in media for the last decade. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

He started making tech review videos when he was 15. Now 24, he’s a YouTube powerhouse.

How the power-user web browser Vivaldi has managed to maintain a flexible design philosophy in an era when so much is decided for you online.

“This is a work of criticism. If it were literary criticism, everyone would immediately understand the underlying purpose is positive. A critic of literature examines a work, analyzing its features, evaluating its qualities, seeking a deeper appreciation that might be useful to other readers of the same text. In a similar way, critics of music, […]

This week is all about spelling. Some attempts to reform it have succeeded. (You've probably noticed that words are spelled differently in the US than in British English.) Others have failed hilariously. (You'll see.) But we're burying the lede; our first topic is that word itself: 'lede.' How did it find its current form? Then, we'll discuss the godfather of American English himself, Noah Webster. (Yes, that's where we got half our name.)

In Not Your Mother’s Morals: How the New Sincerity is Changing Pop Culture for the Better, Jonathan D. Fitzgerald argues that today’s popular music, movies, TV shows, and books are making the world a better place. For all the hand-wringing about the decline of morals and the cheapening of culture in our time, contemporary media brims with examples of fascinating and innovative art that promote positive and uplifting moral messages—without coming across as “preachy.”

Given The Intercept's vehement denials, readers are entitled to see for themselves what the truth is: transparency journalism with integrity requires.

Moments of social mobilization enliven and expand our political imagination. Among the things that sorely need reimagining is our technology.

Sarah Jeong talks to Newton about the details of his deal, subscription journalism, and what makes email such a good media format

This week, PJ looks into a theory circling the internet about who might be behind QAnon. The investigation takes him back to the beginning of the QAnon scam, and to the message board trolls who started it.

This is the third installment of a multi-part series designed to help you familiarize yourself with the tools used to make visual, data-driven essays.

The global pandemic is accelerating the collapse of independent music journalism.