Panic World
by Garbage Media
Latest episode
The family influencers who will do anything for views
The family influencers who will do anything for views
About this podcast
A weekly podcast, hosted by Ryan Broderick, about how the internet warps our minds, our culture — and reality.
Episodes
The newest 50 of 118 episodes
- The family influencers who will do anything for views · 1 h 17 minHave you ever wanted to know what life is like in a McMansion somewhere in the suburbs all across America? Today we’re talking about family vloggers, the “parent influencers”…
- The internet is freaking out about Rocky Horror Picture Show again · 1 h 13 minEarlier this year, prolific and beloved actor Tim Curry passed away, and of course, his loss was the perfect time to kick off some discourse about his most well-known role…
- How Bronies won the internet · 1 h 8 minIn 2010, Hasbro launched a new generation of My Little Pony toys, and debuted a nice little television show to accompany it. It was called My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic…
- When the internet convinces you you're being followed · 1 h 9 minHave you ever been gang stalked? Or gang stalked someone? Hopefully not. But if you don’t even know what that is, today we’re talking about a weird little thing called “gang…
- Why are we addicted to disgusting food videos · 1 h 5 minWhy are food videos so popular online? And why are the most viral ones also the grossest? Today we’re looking back at the history of food videos, from Food Wishes to the…
- BONUS PREVIEW: "Primetime" gets it · 11 minSit down and take a seat with Ryan & Grant. They discuss the recent release of Primetime as a follow-up to this week’s episode. Want to hear the rest of this conversation? Or…
- Why "To Catch A Predator" videos feel so gross · 1 h 5 minTo Catch A Predator launched in 2004 and was immediately a massive hit, but despite its long-lasting cultural impact — highlighted by last week’s release of Primetime — it only…
- The original looksmaxxer who created our hell world · 1 h 12 minWho created the strongman hellscape that we’re currently living in? Today, we’re talking about the original looksmaxxer, Zyzz. He got his start online in 2006 with a popular…
- We're going independent · 10 minA little over a year ago, we had a big announcement — that we were adding video to the podcast with our partner Courier. Just as we go into the third year of exploring how the…
- Charlie Kirk didn't matter · 29 minHappy (?) Kirkiversary. One year ago today, Charlie Kirk was killed by someone the right-wing wasn’t able to effectively use for fearmongering. Ryan & Grant look back at what…
- BONUS PREVIEW: Is social media actually "dead" now? · 21 minWill we ever get another new platform to communicate with on the internet? Today, we’re talking about the various eras of social media platforms — from Myspace to Facebook…
- The sicko who invented prediction markets · 1 h 12 minWhere did prediction markets come from, and why are they more popular than ever? Charlie Warzel joins the pod once again to discuss the proliferation of these strange companies…
- Bad things happen when we let robots decide what’s good · 1 h 4 minWhy does culture feel so much less... human than it used to? Wyatt Cenac joins Ryan to discuss the “crisis of taste” — or how, in the past 10-15 years, tech companies have…
- Our autopsy of the DNC autopsy · 1 h 8 minWhy did the Democrats lose so badly in 2024? Rob Flaherty joins us to dissect the "DNC autopsy" — the formerly internal report about what went wrong in 2024 — about which he…
- BONUS PREVIEW: Enhanced masculinity crisis · 33 minDid you catch Peter Thiel's Enhanced Games in Las Vegas on May 24th? You know, the libertarian-minded, steroid-fueled, biohacked Olympics. No? Still nothing? After recruiting…
- The Onion's big plans for InfoWars · 56 minVenerable satirical Chicago-based outfit The Onion is truly on a mission to save democracy — and it starts by relaunching FKA Alex Jones’s InfoWars, which The Onion’s parent…
- We went to the UFC fight at the White House lol · 39 minThis past weekend, Ryan & Grant went down to see what the UFC Freedom 250 fight on the White House lawn was all about. What they found was $30 margaritas, $120 graphic tees, one…
- This celebrity murder case feels like fan fiction · 1 h 8 minToday we’re talking about the D4vd murder case, one of the darkest stories in pop culture at the moment. D4vd — or David Burke — got his start as one of the original Fortnite…
- BONUS PREVIEW: This is the dot-com crash all over again [Part 2] · 11 minWhat would the internet look like if major tech companies like Meta and Google were no longer usable? With Google more deeply integrating AI into Search and changing how it’s…
- BONUS: How the internet destroyed TV (and itself) [Part 1] · 1 h 0 minWhy is everything online just clips now? We’ve reached a point with digital video that’s made it impossible even for a normal, non-sicko to ignore: we’re awash in slop (whether…
- Fauxbituaries (Hyperfixed) · 43 minWe’re taking a breather to let Grant out of his cage and get some fresh air, but we didn’t want to leave you without something to panic about. So this week we’ve got an episode…
- New York hipsters and the antichrist · 55 minToday we’re talking about billionaire Peter Thiel and his many fascinating, varied interests. You might know him for secretly funding Hulk Hogan’s lawsuit that destroyed Gawker…
- Revisiting "Her" in the age of AI relationships · 60 minIf you forgot to add this important event to your calendars, Spike Jonze’s 2013 sci-fi film, Her, was actually set in 2025. Ryan and Grant watched the Joaquin Phoenix and…
- Why AI cat videos are becoming the internet’s newest weird obsession · 1 h 15 minWhy are cats so popular on the internet? It started with cat memes like I Can Haz Cheezburger and Keyboard Cat, then we became enamored with cat celebrities like Lil Bub, Grumpy…
- How trad wives took over the internet — from 4chan to TikTok · 59 minWhere did the "tradwife" trend come from — you know, aside from the 1950s — and why has it become increasingly popular online? Today, we’re talking about not just how men aren’t…
- You're one post away from becoming the internet's main character · 1 h 15 minRemember Chewbacca Mom, Damn Daniel, BeanDad, or most recently, Chappell Roan? These are just some examples of people who have become the “main character” on the internet — for…
- PREVIEW BONUS: Clavicular's crash out and the death of clipping · 34 minAre we watching the collapse of short-form video and on the cusp of yet another pivot to (a different kind of) video? Today we’re talking about the rise of livestreaming and what…
- When sex is "optimized" · 1 h 12 minToday we’re talking about Aella the e-girl and “rationalist," who is probably also pretty smelly — at least if her birthday gangbang breakdown is to be believed. She's known for…
- Why the internet's grossest influencer is more powerful than you think · 1 h 10 minToday we're joined again by journalist Kat Tenbarge to talk about one of the grossest guys on the internet. He’s also one of the most popular Twitch streamers there is. His name…
- The internet sucks, and Congress might make it worse · 1 h 7 minThe law Section 230 is maybe the invisible force that governs everything in our lives. With a California court ruling against Meta, what are we to do? How responsible should…
- Cicada 3301: The internet puzzle that might’ve been a psyop · 1 h 13 minIn 2012, a strange message appeared on 4chan: “We are looking for highly intelligent individuals….” What followed became one of the internet’s most mysterious puzzles: Cicada…
- Boomer brain rot started long before Facebook · 1 h 1 minWhy did boomers “go crazy” — and was the internet actually to blame? Ryan is joined by Sam Seder to trace the long history of boomer radicalization, from the Fairness Doctrine…
- BONUS: The Oscars snubbed "The Secret Agent" · 27 minRyan & Grant convene their movie club to discuss The Secret Agent, one of — or maybe the — best film(s) of 2025, and what it says about where we're at as a society. Want to hear…
- The people who think every celebrity is secretly trans · 1 h 7 minToday we’re talking about the moral panic around “transvestigation,” an online “game” where people try to identify who is or isn’t trans. Particularly popular in right-wing…
- How Epstein weaponized the internet · 1 h 20 minDid Jeffrey Epstein destroy the internet? Ryan posits his theory, after not going totally insane (we think) reading through hundreds of Epstein files: Epstein was the Forrest…
- Who killed cool? · 1 h 1 minWhat’s cool and what’s cringe, and which generation gets to decide? Today we’re talking about Gen Z, formerly known as “iGen,” and its relationship with millennials (and vice…
- How being straight became gay · 1 h 2 minWhen did liking women, as a straight man, become gay? Today, we posit that the “logical” endpoint of being in the manosphere is that eventually being so hateful toward women…
- Are we all going to end up in AI relationships? · 1 h 8 minFrom research to vibe coding to therapy to girlfriends and boyfriends, how are we using AI these days? Let’s do a check-in on one of those topics that inevitably fires everyone…
- BONUS: How Epstein broke the internet — and our lives · 11 minRyan recounts everything he's learned from the Epstein files so far, and with Grant, begins connecting all the red threads. Turns out, there's basically no major event this…
- lonelygirl15 and when lies could be fun · 1 h 8 minOne of the first “internet things” that reached beyond a bunch of inevitably really cool people who hung out in chatrooms, was YouTube. Today, we’re going back in time to look…
- BONUS: Abolish ICE · 55 minRyan and Grant discuss the latest in Minneapolis after ICE shot and killed Alex Pretti – the second Minnesota resident to be killed be ICE in a matter of weeks. This bonus is on…
- Meet the guy trying to release the Epstein files · 52 minWhere are the Epstein files? Representative Ro Khanna joins us to urge listeners why we need to keep asking that question. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit…
- The myth of the Antifa super soldier · 1 h 1 minWe recorded this episode prior to the killing of Renee Good, but the resulting federal crackdown on the protests in Minneapolis has made this conversation even more relevant…
- We were at ICE’s invasion in Minneapolis · 54 minAfter an ICE agent killed Renee Good, Ryan & Grant flew to Minneapolis to cover the resulting protests. This special episode documents their experience with protestors, law…
- Why we always blame video games · 1 h 12 minThere’s been a moral panic around video games basically since they first debuted. From too much sex to causing laziness and violence, just about the only thing society and the…
- BONUS: Kitchencels solves the male loneliness crisis · 31 minYou may have heard Ryan and Grant mention the term “Kitchencels” a few times throughout this year. Or maybe several times. Or every other episode (second only to gooning). But…
- The worst things on the internet this year · 1 h 20 min2025 wasn’t exactly a “good” year, but how “bad” was it? Well, that depends on what you think is good or bad. We’ve reconvened the connoisseurs of the worst things on the…
- The age of the lolcow · 1 h 18 minToday, we’re examining the idea that the Republican Party and its co-option of extremist online culture like 4chan and Kiwi Farms — and all of their posters and lurkers alike —…
- Did Russiagate matter? · 1 h 2 minEven now our beloved host Ryan doesn’t know what he thinks about Russian interference in the 2016 election. So, he is joined by Garrett Graff, a journalist and author who…
- Our favorite middle school conspiracies · 59 minWe’re joined by No Such Thing for a crossover episode to (try to) get to the bottom of some of the most infamous conspiracies we (aka millennials) heard in middle school. We’re…
