Clare Stephens is a writer, screenwriter, editor and podcaster. She’s the former editor-in-chief at Mamamia and host of the podcasts Cancelled and But, Are You Happy? Clare also worked as a writer and producer on the Binge series Strife starring Asher Keddie and is about to publish her first novel, The Worst Thing I’ve Ever Done!

It tells the story of Ruby Williams, a young woman working in digital media who publishes an article that sees her at the bottom of an online pile-on. More broadly, it’s about shame - the way it never truly leaves you, and how we bury it. Clare is here to speak about the psychology of pile ons, cancel culture, what type of people handle being cancelled better than others and the media narratives surrounding public shaming!

Today we speak about:

Why Clare chose to go out on her own after almost a decade at Mamamia
Public shame and ‘metacognition’
How the psychology of online debates and conversations is different to in person
How it feels to be at the bottom of a pile on
How and why some influencers cause pile ons of other people and use outrage to grow their own platforms
There’s no good response to a pile on; silence is interpreted as guilt, speaking back causes more headlines and fuel on the fire
What makes someone more likely to be cancelled?

You can pre-order The Worst Thing I've Ever Done (out September 30) here.

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An Over-Taxed America | WTP #140