Best Jake Fischer Podcasts (2025)

1
Why the Algorithm is Making Comedy Boom, Again 58:53

2d ago58:53

58:53

The last time I talked to Jesse David Fox about the comedy boom it was… March 5, 2020. Since then, some things have changed. But in other ways it’s just the same: comedy - or at least, some kinds of comedy - seems almost custom-built for our current technological and cultural moment, and it’s easier than ever to get this stuff on your devices whene…

1
What is TV’s endgame? 47:28

9d ago47:28

47:28

A decade ago, Disney CEO Bob Iger freaked out the media industry by acknowledging something many of us saw coming — his previously unassailable TV business was starting to erode. But even with a 10-year warning, today’s moguls seem unable to cope with 2025’s reality: The pay TV business is permanently eroding, and there’s nothing in its place that’…

1
Why Trump is defunding NPR and PBS - and suing Rupert Murdoch 35:59

16d ago35:59

35:59

Reporting on the place you work is not fun. But it is an occupational hazard for media reporters — particularly for NPR’s David Folkenflik. That’s because National Public Radio — along with Public Broadcasting Service, its TV counterpart — is quite frequently the target of attacks from critics on the right, who would like the federal government to …

1
Inside the Rise and Fall of Condé Nast with Michael Grynbaum 47:38

23d ago47:38

47:38

Here's one way New York Times reporter Michael Grynbaum described Condé Nast to me in this week’s chat: “A real exporter of American cultural influence in the late 20th century.” And here’s another one: "A kind of enchanted land” but also a “lost world." And here’s one way I’d describe it: it’s hard to imagine in 2025, but just a few decades ago, m…

1
Inside the NYT - and Everywhere Else - with Semafor's Max Tani 48:09

30d ago48:09

48:09

You’re probably a normal person, so you didn’t spend your holiday weekend talking to people at the New York Times about a local politics story that some people didn’t like. But that’s Max Tani’s job: He’s Semafor’s media reporter, which means he’s supposed to burrow into the paper of record — as well as other important media institutions — and tell…

1
Black Mirror's Charlie Brooker on the problem with tech - and people 43:47

1M ago43:47

43:47

"Black Mirror" creator Charlie Brooker knows that everyone thinks his show is about tech-fueled dystopias. But he says it's really about humans, not their tools. I loved this chat back when we recorded it in 2023, when Brooker was promoting the sixth season of his Netflix show. Now there's a new season - and Brooker's vision of the world is as rele…

1
On the NBA Beat Ep. 193: "Mike Donlin" Book Special With Steve Steinberg 39:38

1M ago39:38

39:38

Steve Steinberg, co-author of Mike Donlin: A Rough andRowdy Life From New York Baseball Idol to Stage and Screen, joins the show. Enjoy! Here are some highlights – 8:34-9:55: “Our interest is what was really ticking in the guy’s mind, what was he feeling, what was he thinking. And the years that we write about, and especially Donlin’s years, there …

1
How to become a Substack Star with Emily Sundberg 47:07

1M ago47:07

47:07

What's the best way to describe what Emily Sundberg does? Substacker? Influencer? Journalist? Brand-builder? Let's go with "yes". And she does a much better job of describing herself in our conversation, where we talk about how she went from being a laid-off marketer at Meta to a one-woman business with a devoted following and a revenue line that’s…

1
Why did Apple ice out the most famous Apple blogger? 1:04:48

2M ago1:04:48

1:04:48

If you want smart, nuanced insight into Apple’s products and would-be products, you turn to John Gruber, who’s been blogging about this stuff for more than two decades at his Daring Fireball site. So in March, when Gruber announced that Something is Rotten in the State of Cupertino — focusing on Apple’s botched plans to imbue its ailing Siri servic…

1
On the hunt for media optimism, with Semafor’s Ben Smith and The Rebooting’s Brian Morrissey 28:22

2M ago28:22

28:22

Here’s one where we try to do two things at once: Have a convo about green shoots in media with two smart guys who know media really well — Semafor’s Ben Smith and The Rebooting’s Brian Morrissey. Try to find new audiences for our respective podcasts, by cutting up that conversation into 3 parts, and distributing those parts to our respective feeds…

1
Scott Frank on Netflix, the future of Hollywood, and Dept. Q 43:42

2M ago43:42

43:42

Scott Frank used to write great movies, like “Out of Sight.” Now he’s a Netflix guy, and a super successful one: he made “Godless,” a horses-and-everything Western for the streamer, then had a pandemic-era phenomenon with “The Queen’s Gambit.” Now he’s back with “Dept. Q”, his take on the British mystery genre. You can find that one on Netflix’s to…

1
Bluesky Wasn’t Supposed to be a Twitter Rival. Now It Is. 37:01

2M ago37:01

37:01

I admit it: I most definitely rolled my eyes in 2019, when Twitter announced vague plans to build an "open and decentralized standard for social media". At the time I didn't really understand what then-Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey was trying to do — or why the head of a social media company with plenty of problems was messing around with plans to create…

1
5 Pure Noise Albums that Shaped the Label with Founder Jake Round 1:17:39

2M ago1:17:39

1:17:39

To celebrate the (slightly belated) 15th anniversary of Pure Noise Records, label founder Jake Round joined us for a rare interview in which he reflects on the past, present, and future of the label, and also picks five releases that he feels altered the trajectory of Pure Noise. -- The BrooklynVegan Show is brought to you in part by DistroKid, a s…

1
How to Reinvent a Magazine, with Wired’s Katie Drummond 47:58

2M ago47:58

47:58

Today we’re talking about how you take a media property that’s been around for a long time, and find a way to bring in new eyeballs — and new revenue. That property is Wired — the place that told you about the internet before the internet even existed — and the person who’s reviving it is Katie Drummond, who has been running the property for a coup…

1
Meta's Adam Mosseri explains how Instagram really works - and how he wants to build Threads 58:46

3M ago58:46

58:46

Adam Mosseri's official title is head of Instagram, Meta's massive photo and video app. He also runs Threads, the Twitter clone the company launched two years ago. Unofficially, he's become one of Meta's chief explainers, frequently jumping on social media to defend and proselytize on behalf of his employer. So when I got a chance to interview Moss…

1
Pelican: 10 Albums That Influenced 'Flickering Resonance' 1:01:12

3M ago1:01:12

1:01:12

Laurent Schroeder-Lebec and Trevor de Brauw of Chicago instrumental band Pelican join us on the latest episode of the BrooklynVegan podcast to discuss 10 (technically 11) albums that influenced their new album, 'Flickering Resonance,' which arrives May 16 via Run For Cover. It's Pelican's first album in six years, first with Laurent back in the ban…

1
How Apple trapped itself in China 1:07:32

3M ago1:07:32

1:07:32

The iPhone you’re reading this on was made in China. For a long time, that fact was a huge part of Apple’s success story: Working hand-in-hand, Apple and China built a sophisticated supply chain that let Apple manufacture very complicated technology at an enormous scale. Now that relationship seems like Apple’s achilles heel, says Patrick McGee. Mc…

1
Ian Rogers tells me I need a crypto wallet 1:04:41

3M ago1:04:41

1:04:41

I wanted to talk to Ian Rogers about his fascinating career. He wanted to talk to me about Ledger, the crypto wallet company he’s working at now. So we did both things. Background: Rogers was an important figure in the digital music business, back when the music business was being fundamentally reshaped by digital. He helped the Beastie Boys get on…

1
How to fight Apple and (maybe) win, with Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney 33:43

3M ago33:43

33:43

Today's podcast is an in-depth discussion of Apple's App Store rules and how they... wait! Don't leave! I could try to tell you why Apple's App Store rules are important to both Apple and the digital economy (sadly, I just realized I've been covering them for nearly 15 years, so they better be important). But a better messenger for that task is Tim…

1
Tariffs, Trump, TikTok: What’s going to happen to ads in 2025? 54:50

3M ago54:50

54:50

There are all kinds of ways to measure the health of an economy. The one I rely on is ad spending. One reason for that is simple: I work in ad-supported businesses, so I want to know about things are going to affect me personally. A less self-interested reason: The health of the ad business is tied directly to the way companies feel about their ove…

1
Roblox CEO David Baszucki knows what your kids are doing. 44:08

4M ago44:08

44:08

Every day some 85 million people - most of them kids - show up to play, chat and spend money on Roblox. That’s a massive audience just about any tech or media company would like to have. But David Baszucki wants more: He thinks his platform can eventually command 10% of the worldwide gaming market. I spent time talking to Baszucki about those ambit…

1
How to make money in Washington, with Punchbowl’s Jake Sherman 40:19

4M ago40:19

40:19

Some people don’t want to pay for media. But lots of people are paying Jake Sherman and his team at Punchbowl News: The 4-year-old startup is thriving by providing super-insidery news and data about what’s happening in Congress. I chatted with Sherman because I wanted to get an update on his business (he says he’s not going to sell it anytime soon,…

1
On the NBA Beat Ep. 192: "The New York Game" Book Special With Kevin Baker 50:18

4M ago50:18

50:18

Historian, journalist⁠ and novelist extraordinaire Kevin Baker, author of⁠ the 2024 CASEY Award-winning book on the history of New York and baseball, The New York Game, Baseball and the Rise of a New City, joins the show. Enjoy! Here are some highlights – 6:23-7:28: “I had this contract some years ago. I had to write several other books through it;…

1
NYT publisher AG Sulzberger on Trump, OpenAi and the economy 1:05:07

4M ago1:05:07

1:05:07

The New York Times faces the same challenges every other news organization faces in 2025. But it’s also in way better shape to take those challenges on: Thanks to a business model built on 11 million subscribers, it’s not nearly so worried about things like the fluctuations of the ad business, or changes in Google’s algorithm. That comparative stre…

1
Trump vs The Media, Round 2, with Sara Fischer 46:29

4M ago46:29

46:29

The Trump 2.0 era is less than three months old. But it’s already creating havoc for journalists and the companies they work for. In Washington, Trump and his team are demoting traditional media - or kicking them out of the White House entirely. In corporate boardrooms, he is forcing media owners to settle lawsuits they would normally fight, and to…

1
How long can sports keep TV alive? 43:58

4M ago43:58

43:58

Call it symbiosis. Call it co-dependency. However you want to characterize it, there’s zero debate that Big TV and Big Sports are deeply intertwined. So if the TV business is shrinking, what happens to sports? That’s the main question I had for John Ourand, the longtime sports business reporter who’s now at Puck. But I had lots of related ones, lik…

1
Inside PJ Vogt’s low budget, super successful podcast 1:05:40

5M ago1:05:40

1:05:40

Anyone who makes things thinks they could do it better if they had more. More money, time, headcount, infrastructure. Some of us find there can be upsides to doing it with less, too. That's not exactly PJ Vogt's story but I think it's directionally accurate: Vogt cohosted a huge hit podcast - Reply All - and when he decided to try again - with Sear…

1
Bayside S/T at 20 with Anthony Raneri 1:30:52

5M ago1:30:52

1:30:52

2025 marks 25 years of Bayside and it also marks 20 years of their self-titled sophomore album, which vocalist/guitarist Anthony Raneri joined us on the BrooklynVegan podcast to discuss. The album came at a pivotal moment for both the band and the 2000s emo boom that they were part of, and Anthony discusses all the factors that led to this album tu…

1
Twitch CEO Dan Clancy wants to hang on to the live-streaming crown 1:00:49

5M ago1:00:49

1:00:49

Back when I first started covering the internet, the idea of broadcasting yourself for hours on end seemed like a pipe dream for weirdos. Now it's how some people make a living. Twitch more or less created live-streaming in the U.S., which is why Amazon bought it for about $1 billion back in 2014. But now there are plenty of places to watch, and cr…

1
On the NBA Beat Ep. 191: "Charlie Hustle" Book Special With Keith O'Brien 42:55

5M ago42:55

42:55

New York Times bestselling author Keith O'Brien⁠⁠, author of⁠ the widely acclaimed Charlie Hustle: The Rise and Fall of Pete Rose, and the Last Glory Days of Baseball, joins the show. Enjoy! Here are some highlights – 9:32-11:24: “From a process standpoint, what the records really helped me to do was create timestamps on a timeline. When you’re wri…

1
'Peripheral Vision' at 10 with Turnover's Austin Getz 1:33:18

5M ago1:33:18

1:33:18

Drastically changing up your style as a young, rising band is a risk, but Peripheral Vision teaches us that making a beloved record never really comes down to style as much as it comes down to great songwriting. Turnover went all in on their newfound love of dream pop/post-punk for Peripheral Vision, and they still had the driving backbone and the …

1
Matt Belloni: what the Oscars tell us about Hollywood 39:48

5M ago39:48

39:48

We had to stop recording this one for a minute, because Matt Belloni got a text. More on that below. Big picture: Matt is a longtime Hollywood reporter - and lawyer before that - who now has the industry's ear via his writing at Puck and his The Town podcast. I asked him to talk about what lies ahead for the Oscars, the out-of-step TV production th…

1
Free speech is under attack 53:21

5M ago53:21

53:21

The most useful class I ever took in college was a media law class, where I learned two things: 1) Journalists in the U.S. (along every other American citizen) have enormous freedom to say and write what they want, without fear of a defamation suit and 2) this freedom exists largely because of New York Times v Sullivan, a seminal Supreme Court case…

1
Matthew Ball: Why the games business is broken 38:03

6M ago38:03

38:03

Everyone knows that video games are giant, fast-growing business that's going to swamp traditional media. Except that's not true: The games business is now in a prolonged and confusing funk. Investor and analyst Matthew Ball has been diving deep into the industry, so I asked him to take a stab at explaining what's going on. Bonus question: When doe…

1
BuzzFeed wants to build a… social network? 34:52

6M ago34:52

34:52

A decade ago BuzzFeed was the bleeding edge of digital media, and Serious People thought it was going to be a threat to the likes of the New York Times. Many rounds of layoffs and asset sales later, BuzzFeed is a much more modest operation. But say this for Jonah Peretti: He continues to pitch Very Big Ideas for his company. Now the BuzzFeed CEO th…

1
On the NBA Beat Ep. 190: "The Original Louisville Slugger" Book Special With Tim Newby 47:14

6M ago47:14

47:14

Writer and historian Tim Newby⁠, author ofThe Original Louisville Slugger, a fun, thorough and important narrative covering the life and baseball career of Pete Browning, joins the show. Browning, one of the best hitters of the 19th century, a deeply flawed but charismatic and pioneering man, has largely been forgotten more than a century later, al…

1
Why Michael Lewis is worried about the sports betting boom 57:34

6M ago57:34

57:34

It’s hard to remember now. But just a few years ago, sports betting was illegal in almost all of United States. And sports leagues and the media companies that worked with them wanted nothing to do with anything that even referenced gambling. Things are very, very different now! And it happened so quickly that very few people have stopped to ask wh…

1
How Silicon Valley really feels about Trump, TikTok and DeepSeek 47:15

6M ago47:15

47:15

I haven’t checked in with Jessica Lessin in some time — and I have to say I picked a pretty good time to catch up with her. Because Silicon Valley is undergoing something meaningful right now, and she’s in a great position to tell us more about it: Lessin is a veteran technology reporter who founded The Information in 2013, and it has been a go-to …

1
How TikTok (still) works 36:03

7M ago36:03

36:03

TikTok banned itself for less than a day. Now it’s back in the U.S. - despite a law that says it shouldn’t be operating. We’re not going to weigh in on all of the… weirdness around the last few days on this episode, in part because we don’t know how it’s going to play out. But in the meantime I wanted to talk to someone who knows how TikTok actuall…

1
How does Wall Street think about Trump, media and tech? 42:14

7M ago42:14

42:14

Why didn’t Meta’s stock move when Mark Zuckerberg announced his pro-MAGA pivot? Why do big media companies want to dump their cable TV networks — but hang on to their broadcast TV networks? What’s going to happen in Google’s antitrust case?These are all good questions, right? I think so, too. So I posed them, along with many more, to MoffettNathans…

1
On the NBA Beat Ep. 189: "Season of Shattered Dreams" Book Special With Eric Vickrey 47:37

7M ago47:37

47:37

Nonfiction baseball writer Eric Vickrey comes on to discuss his terrifically poignant and inspiring book, Season of Shattered Dreams, which recounts the deadliest accident in the history of American professional sports, the 1946 Spokane Indians’ tragic crash as their bus was passing over Washington's Snoqualmie Pass. Here are some highlights – 12:2…

1
On the NBA Beat Ep. 188: "Not When, But If?" Book Special With Evan Ream 47:58

7M ago47:58

47:58

Evan Ream, Communications Manager for NorCal Premier Soccer, comes on to discuss his colorful and inspiring debut book, Not When, But If? Here are some highlights – 8:35-9:17: “Nobody really knows what Sacramento is, especially from a national standpoint. The chapter of branding the team there, ‘Well, we need to brand the team, but first we need to…

1
Why Katie Notopoulos still loves the internet 51:43

7M ago51:43

51:43

I’m a lucky man. Whenever I’m baffled by the internet, and social media, I turn to my co-worker Katie Notopoulos, who is there to explain it to me. That’s because Katie’s job at Business Insider is to explain how the internet works — how the people who run big internet platforms want it to work, and what the people who actually use those platforms …

1
Looking back, and ahead, with Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw 43:51

8M ago43:51

43:51

I don’t love a lot of year-end #content . But I do love talking to Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw every year, to help put the year in media in perspective, and to think about what might be coming in 2025. And that’s exactly what we did here. Enjoy it now, or over your break. We’ll see you again in January. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastcho…

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