There Are No Girls on the Internet

  Welcome to #SkinnyTok — a corner of TikTok where extreme thinness is framed as “discipline,” wellness becomes control, and disordered eating is dressed up as aesthetic. Even though TikTok banned the hashtag and popular creators like Liv Schmidt , the content hasn’t disappeared,  it’s just gotten harder to spot. In this episode, journalist Kat Tenbarge joins us to unpack how TikTok’s design glorifies harmful beauty standards and quietly funnels users — especially women and girls — toward content that can distort how we see our bodies and ourselves.  She explains why simply banning it doesn't work, and how creators are effectively pushing back to confront it head-on. Read more: Eating Disorder Content Is Infiltrating TikTok. Some Creators Are Going Viral Debunking It – by Kat Tenbarge, Wired Follow Kat’s work at Spitfire News: https://spitfirenews.com/   💜 Struggling or need support? Visit The Project HEAL     If you’re listening on Spotify, you can leave a comment there or email us at hello@tangoti.com!    Follow Bridget and TANGOTI on social media! Many vids each week.   instagram.com/bridgetmarieindc/    tiktok.com/@bridgetmarieindc    youtube.com/@ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, Bridget is joined by Producer Mike to break down the tech stories you might have missed. Weird AI-generated videos depicting Black women in racist tropes and stereotypes are suddenly showing up in our feeds. Bridget provides an update on how the videos have rapidly evolved even since Tuesday's deep-dive episode on the topic: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tiktok-minstrel-shows-are-mocking-black-women-using/id1520715907?i=1000714408197 A band that seems to have been created by AI has hundreds of thousands of monthly listeners on Spotify. Who is behind it? This rabbit hole goes deep: https://musically.com/2025/06/26/velvet-sundown-are-a-seemingly-ai-generated-band-with-325k-spotify-listeners/   RFK Jr is a reckless liar who is destroying our health system, but he'd rather talk about wearable devices: https://www.thenation.com/article/society/trump-science-health-purge/ The man who murdered Minnesota Speaker of the House Melissa Hortman seems to have used data brokers to find her address. Americans should demandA list of legal-but-sketchy brokers: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/25977763-1-1/ Mattel struck a deal with OpenAI to explore fun, not at all dangerous ways to put AI in children's toys. This prototype looks particularly promising: https://www.tiktok.com/@filmsmtvofficial/video/7154710464696438043 Conspirituality podcast on MAHA: https://www.conspirituality.net/episodes/259-maha-is-project-2025-trojan-horse Our TANGOTI episode about data shady brokers: https://podcasts.apple.com/ye/podcast/doxxing-101-our-personal-information-is-available-online/id1520715907?i=1000577153294See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Have you seen this wave of racist over the top AI generated videos featuring Black women on TikTok?  Since the release of Google’s VEO3 AI video generation platform in May, which allows users to create realistic videos from text prompts, there has been a wave of viral AI generated videos on TikTok depicting Black women using racist stereotypes and tropes.  Although the first videos were made with good intentions, their popularity has sparked copycat creators to recreate more and more extreme versions. Just like 19th-century minstrel shows reinforced a political and social climate hostile to Black people, today’s AI-driven content is being used by some to affirm a similarly hostile climate toward Black women, and prop up a political and economic system that benefits others at their expense.  Bridget studied minstrel shows in grad school, and has a lot to say about these videos that are essentially white supremacist propaganda masquerading as entertainment.  The original, not-so-bad, actually-clever video from account AI Clapback King: https://www.tiktok.com/@aiformobile/video/7512729952618286378    Conference talk about Black representation in AI, posted by AI Clapback King: https://www.tiktok.com/@aiformobile/video/7517712586712812814?_t=ZP-8xQFrwYvZqY&_r=1    EXAMPLE - Increasingly violent, decreasingly funny iteration of the original Karen video: https://www.tiktok.com/@hubbabubbablast400/video/7516178273047498015?_r=1&_t=ZP-8xQIaauZ0LX   EXAMPLE  - Big Foot (2 million views): https://www.tiktok.com/@femalebigfoot/video/7514190146695154987?_r=1&_t=ZP-8xQUzlvCtqQ    EXAMPLE - Slave Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@cottonvlogsss/video/7514846240031444254?_r=1&_t=ZP-8xQV5CnNAQI    If you’re listening on Spotify, you can leave a comment there or email us at hello@tangoti.com!    Follow Bridget and TANGOTI on social media! Many vids each week.   instagram.com/bridgetmarieindc/    tiktok.com/@bridgetmarieindc    youtube.com/@ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dating apps aren’t broken; they’re working exactly as designed. And for Black women, that’s a problem. In this season premiere of IRL: Online Life is Real Life, host Bridget dives into how dating apps reinforce harmful beauty standards rooted in whiteness, automating what researcher Dr. Apryl Williams calls “sexual racism” into the user experience. This is the first episode in a four-part series from Mozilla and PRX exploring how tech shapes our most personal decisions. Subscribe now to catch every episode: irlpodcast.orgSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the 2010s, MoviePass became a cultural phenomenon, but behind the viral success was Stacy Spikes, a Black entrepreneur and visionary who co-founded the company. Then, he was pushed out. But today, he’s back in charge. Stacy joins Bridget to talk about the rise and fall of MoviePass, the power of culture and human creativity, what it was like to be sidelined from his creation, and the rare second chance to take back the company he built from the ground up. Stacy Spikes is an award-winning entrepreneur and inventor who USA Today named one of the 21 most influential Black professionals in technology. He is the co-founder and CEO of the viral phenomenon MoviePass, now the subject of the HBO documentary MoviePass, MovieCrash. He is also the founder of Urbanworld, the largest international festival dedicated to nurturing Women and Diverse filmmakers.    Stacy's critically acclaimed memoir: Black Founder, The Hidden Power of Being an Outsider On Reddit, read Stacy's forum: Ask Me Anything   If you’re listening on Spotify, you can leave a comment there or email us at hello@tangoti.com   Follow Bridget and TANGOTI!    instagram.com/bridgetmarieindc/    tiktok.com/@bridgetmarieindc    youtube.com/@ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, Bridget is joined by very special guest Ed Zitron, host of the Better Offline podcast, to break down the tech stories you might have missed — from disappearing tech bros to billion-dollar AI fails. What Side Are the ‘All-In Pod’ Bros On? https://gizmodo.com/what-side-are-the-all-in-pod-bros-on-2000613146 Senators Demand Meta Answer For AI Chatbots Posing as Licensed Therapists: https://www.404media.co/senators-letter-demand-meta-answer-for-ai-chatbots-posing-as-licensed-therapists/ When billion-dollar AIs break down over puzzles a child can do, it’s time to rethink the hype: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/10/billion-dollar-ai-puzzle-break-down X’s Sales Pitch: Give Us Your Ad Business or We’ll Sue: https://www.wsj.com/business/media/x-twitter-ad-revenue-campaign-lawsuit-a882b5c6?gaa_at=eafs&gaa_n=ASWzDAimcjU5eU89AMytxSvmFp6PmZhcNpON86osFJupKMQnziyRXOKarL8dMFshDFo%3D&gaa_ts=684c8c2f&gaa_sig=E3KGTOGP-dVC0729K2mM6iwMRj0nLkS5829g4j-aRhDBSGRZxOZmd9Q5yCDlJgb05XH2MlQQUGjrWvXsAf2Y3Q%3D%3D FanDuel bans bettor over heckling incident with Olympic champion sprinter Gabby Thomas: https://www.mankatofreepress.com/ap/sports/fanduel-bans-bettor-over-heckling-incident-with-olympic-champion-sprinter-gabby-thomas/article_b258ffa7-34e0-5f2c-966f-eceb36d2ef1a.html 🎧 Listen to Better Offline: betteroffline.com 📰 Subscribe to Ed's newsletter "Where’s Your Ed At?": wheresyoured.at 📱 Follow Bridget + TANGOTI: IG: @BridgetMarieInDC TikTok: @BridgetMarieInDCYouTube: There Are No Girls on the InternetSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're not just a tech podcast; we're a tech & culture podcast. So today, we’re revisiting the charming and prescient 1999 Disney Channel Original movie Smart House. Directed by the multi-talented Levar Burton, it explores the role of smart home technology on a suburban family from a time when that technology was pure science fiction. It's not only a fun movie, but underneath its G-rated Disney veneer is a movie that has a lot to say about gender, relationships, labor, and the human experience. A major part of the movie is the kids' grappling with the loss of their mother, which hits home for Bridget at this time in her own life.    Bridget recaps the film with Producer Mike to explore what it gets right, what it gets wrong, and what it’s trying to say about technology and the people who use it.    Do you like film recap episodes like this? Should we do more of them? Should we never do another? Please let us know what you think, and send movie suggestions! If you’re listening on Spotify, you can leave a comment there or email  hello@tangoti.com    Follow Bridget and TANGOTI!   instagram.com/bridgetmarieindc/   tiktok.com/@bridgetmarieindc   youtube.com/@ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Coco Hill Productions’ new podcast, Our Ancestors Were Messy, might be my favorite new pod of the year, perfect for avoiding the heavy news cycle!   LISTEN AND SUBSCRIBE: https://thesecretadventuresofblackpeople.com/our-ancestors-were-messy  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Musk started working with Trump last year, we all knew it was only a matter of time before they had a big, messy, public split-up. We waited and we waited. Dear listener, the day has arrived. Today, June 5th, 2025, Donald Trump and Elon Musk have spent the day tearing each other apart on social media. It has been personal and it has been viscius, with all the drama of a big celebrity break-up or a Real Housewives reunion. So at the last minute, we decided to skip our regularly-scheduled News Roundup, and instead do an emergency episode about this extraordinary turn of events. Bridget and Producer Mike recap how the Musk-Trump bromance got started, how it unravelled so spectacularly over the past couple days, and what this fight between billionaires really means for the future of Democracy in America. It’s been grim times for folks on the left, and I think we’ve all earned the right to kick back and enjoy the drama as these two dangerous narcissists try to destroy each other. MUST READ: Ronan Farrow’s 2023 piece about Elon Musk’s singular power over the U.S. government: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2023/08/28/elon-musks-shadow-rule As a young ghoul in college, Stephen Miller was morally offended by the idea of giving a janitor a birthday present: https://www.newsweek.com/stephen-miller-trump-white-house-aide-essays-op-eds-duke-774534 Video of college-age Stephen Miller, his undead flesh blistering in the purifying rays of the Carolina sun, declaring: “I’m sick and tired of being told to pick up my trash when we have janitors.” https://www.instagram.com/reel/DIUi1j0sbXo/?hl=en   Email us to say hi! Please, we’re lonely! hello@tangoti.com   Follow Bridget and TANGOTI! IG: instagram.com/bridgetmarieindc/ TikTok: tiktok.com/@bridgetmarieindc Youtube: youtube.com/@ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternetSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Culture has always had the power to move people. To shift narratives. To shape politics. Which is why when Bridget heard that one of Trump’s first moves after taking office was to take over the Kennedy Center — Washington D.C.'s premiere venue for performing arts — she had questions. Why would Trump care about a cultural institution best known for theater, music, and the arts? If you ask Carri Twigg — co-founder of Culture House Media, co-host of Twig and Jenkins, and a former member of President Biden’s Advisory Committee on the Arts that oversees the Kennedy Center — the answer is: a lot. In her Rolling Stone piece, "Trump’s Cultural Power Grab: Why His Kennedy Center Takeover Matters," Carri breaks down just how influential culture is — not just in politics, but in shaping hearts, minds, and futures. In this fascinating interview, Bridget and Carri talk about the enduring importance of cultural power, and how the left can reclaim culture as a force for justice and progress.  Read Carri's article in Rolling Stone: www.rollingstone.com/politics/political-commentary/trump-kennedy-center-cultural-power-grab-1235268600/  Subscribe to Carri's Substack: substack.com/@carritwigg  Follow Carri on Instagram: instagram.com/carritwigg/    Follow Bridget and TANGOTI!   instagram.com/bridgetmarieindc/   tiktok.com/@bridgetmarieindc   youtube.com/@ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.