Oct 27

The Rahm Emanuel Profiles Will Continue Until Morale Improves [TEASER]

This month's bonus episode is about Rahm Emanuel, a man whose political constituency consists entirely of prestige magazine editors.To hear the rest of the show, support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodSupport us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

42m 26s

Oct 5

Why Men Love Bitches

A 2002 dating guide has found new popularity on Tiktok using an old fashioned method: Have a catchy title and four pages of good advice.Where to find us: Our PatreonOur merch!Peter's newsletterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:The Tragedy of ... Show More

1h 11m

Sep 1

Surrounded By Idiots

Peter and Michael discuss "Surrounded by Idiots," a book that dares to ask: Can the mystery of human relationships be unraveled by a workplace personality assessment?Where to find us: Our PatreonOur merch!Peter's newsletterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenan ... Show More

1h 9m

Sep 2024

602. Is Screen Time as Poisonous as We Think?

Young people have been reporting a sharp rise in anxiety and depression. This maps neatly onto the global rise of the smartphone. Some researchers are convinced that one is causing the other. But how strong is the evidence? <ul><li>SOURCES:<ul><li>< ... Show More

40m 29s

Oct 2025

The Anxious Generation with Jonathan Haidt

Is social media rewiring childhood and fueling a mental health crisis? Neil deGrasse Tyson, Chuck Nice, and Gary O’Reilly explore the costs of growing up online and how to take back childhood with social psychologist and author of The Anxious Generation, Jonathan Haidt. ... Show More

1h 7m

Jul 2023

Peak social media: The debate over young users’ mental health

There’s a growing feeling that social media is bad for us: bad for society and bad for our wellbeing. That trend has culminated in a new wave of legislation in the United States aiming to address social media’s impact on young people’s mental health. But in this episode, Elain ... Show More

26m 13s

May 2024

Babbage: Teens and their screens

Ever since there have been smartphones and social media, there have been concerns about how they might be affecting children. Over the past decade, doctors have seen a decline in mental health in the young in much of the rich world. But whether that rise can be attributed to t ... Show More

42m 16s

Nov 2024

Will Kids Online, In Fact, Be All Right?

In her new FX docuseries “Social Studies,” the artist and filmmaker Lauren Greenfield delves into the post-pandemic lives—and phones—of a group of L.A. teens. Screen recordings of the kids’ social-media use reveal how these platforms have reshaped their experience of the world in ... Show More

52m 43s

Jul 2023

Peak social media: The debate over young users’ mental health

There’s a growing feeling that social media is bad for us: bad for society and bad for our wellbeing. That trend has culminated in a new wave of legislation in the United States aiming to address social media’s impact on young people’s mental health. But in this episode, Elain ... Show More

26m 13s

Jun 2024

This is your kid on smartphones

Old people have always worried about young people. But psychologist Jonathan Haidt believes something genuinely different and troubling is happening right now. He argues that smartphones and social media have had disastrous effects on the mental health of young people, and derail ... Show More

53m 58s

May 2023

We Need To Talk About Teens, Social Media And Mental Health

This week, the American Psychological Association issued its first-of-kind guidelines for parents to increase protection for children online. It comes at a time of rising rates of depression and anxiety among teens.This episode, NPR science correspondent Michaeleen Doucleff looks ... Show More

13m 12s