After Party with Emily Jashinsky (MK Media)

Episode: Useless “The View,” and Dangers of ChatGPT "Erotica," with Walter Kirn, and Tragedy of the Kardashians

Date: October 16, 2025
Host: Emily Jashinsky
Guest: Walter Kirn

Episode Overview

In this episode, Emily Jashinsky welcomes writer and editor Walter Kirn to discuss the week's most provocative pop culture and political stories. The conversation covers the changing norms in political media, the dangers and absurdities of AI-generated erotica, the status of American journalism, a government spy scandal, and the existential cost of the Kardashian brand. With sharp commentary and witty banter, Emily and Walter dissect key trends shaping society, media, and culture.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Zoran Mamdani’s Fox News Interview and Political Pragmatism (03:47–09:01)

• Emily recaps Zoran Mamdani’s (NYC Democratic mayoral nominee) recent Fox News appearance, highlighting his focus on affordability over hot-button cultural topics.
• Mamdani repeatedly pivots from controversial issues (like Hamas or Netanyahu) to affordability, which Emily calls a “pretty smart tactic.”
• Insight: Emily views this as a model for “left-wing populism”:

  “The best you can do in those situations, because the culture war is that brick wall for a lot of people.” (08:02–08:15)

• She contrasts Mamdani’s approach with other Democrats, such as Hakeem Jeffries, who respond to Trump's provocations with accusations of racism, calling that a political misstep.

2. The Media Blackout of the Government Shutdown (10:49–15:33)

• Brendan Buck’s critique: Print giants like The NYT, WSJ, and Washington Post are largely ignoring the ongoing federal government shutdown.
  • Walter attributes this to the lack of partisan advantage:

    “No, it's clear there are no points to be scored talking about the shutdown and so they're pretending the game's not happening.” (11:58)

• Emily and Walter note that older shutdowns were media firestorms but now seem “invisible” unless they cut through with major political consequences.

3. “The View,” Cheryl Hines, and the Theater of Media Gatekeeping (15:33–22:00)

• Cheryl Hines’s appearance on The View sparks a discussion on media condescension, with co-hosts acting as arbiters of fact.
  • Walter delivers acerbic commentary:

    “When somebody starts a sentence with respectfully, I reach for my gun.” (17:09)

  • He describes Sunny Hostin as a “bad actor” regurgitating sponsor-approved talking points, creating “an IV drip” of consensus opinion.
• Emily: "It just encapsulates a lot of the important trends in our politics and our culture right now very well, because you have this sort of self-appointed arbiter of capital F Facts..." (20:08–20:41)

4. Regional Perceptions of “Making America Healthy Again” (MAHA) (23:53–28:04)

• Why MAHA resonates differently in the middle of the country:
  • Walter: “The middle of the country is where the patients are, and the coasts are where the pharma executives are.” (24:37)
  • Skepticism about the health industry is stronger where people lack healthcare access and see less return on health spending.
  • Emily highlights pressures on political figures who challenge the status quo, especially in healthcare.

5. The AI “Erotica” Controversy and ChatGPT's Expanding Boundaries (33:20–40:25)

• Sam Altman's controversial AI announcements: ChatGPT will soon allow "erotica" for adult-verified users, but with opaque boundaries.
  • Emily: “Who the hell is Sam Altman? And ChatGPT to determine which users are having mental health crises and which ones aren’t?” (34:43)
  • Walter worries about sanitized, diagnostic AI profiling, file-keeping, and the ambiguous “erotica” category:

    “I hate the word erotica. As a writer, I'm disgusted by it... It has a sort of aroma to it, one that puts me off.” (34:43)

  • Both see echoes of the dopamine-hacking logic in social media and political discourse—a world “drowning in political erotica.”

6. AI's Assault on Human Creativity and Journalism (40:25–46:26)

• AI-generated content surpasses human output:
  • Walter: “Destroys the language after a while. AI is a leveler and a hollower out of language. It tends to shrink in its vocabulary, studies have shown, and shrink the vocabulary of those who partake of it.” (42:22)
  • He warns about journalism shifting from informing people to training AI: “They are installing opinions and... preparing [articles] in order to be consumed by machines.” (45:29)
  • Metaphor: AI’s recursive output is like a “xerox of a xerox of a xerox” — error-prone and meaning-free.

7. The "Dumbing Down" of Culture: Late Night Then vs. Now (48:12–53:33)

• Comparing Johnny Carson–era late night/Robin Williams' Shakespeare bits to now:
  • Walter: “The miraculous and infinitely surprising thing about the American mind is that it can always get dumber.” (49:21)
  • Emily laments younger generations being “cheated” of access to the cultural canon, and the fragmentation of shared knowledge.
  • Walter: “The ability to be together in knowledge is what makes a society, and that's what is obviously changing.” (53:33)

8. Spy Scandal: Ashley Tallis & Vulnerability in US Security (56:19–63:21)

• Ashley Tallis, a prominent think-tanker, is charged with espionage for leaking classified military information to China.
  • Walter: “When you realize that somebody at that level is a traitor and that they're a specific traitor giving away specific military information… you go like, wow, this could be everywhere.” (59:28)
  • Emily observes how Tallis was embedded in DC’s elite policy circles, making his betrayal both shocking and plausible.

9. The Kardashian Tragedy: Fame, Family, and the Social Internet (66:05–end)

• Emily segues alone into a critical reflection on Kim Kardashian’s Call Her Daddy interview and the gutting cost of fame by inertia.
  • Kardashian family built wealth by “selling their personal lives,” a model their children can’t escape:

    “It will never make for a happy life... Now what we're seeing is the next generation who are building their lives on a house of cards.” (66:05–69:00)

  • She draws parallels with everyday users:

  “If you grew up with social media on your smartphone, you're kind of trained to sell your personal life…for likes and replies and all of these different, these dopamine triggers, essentially.” (69:00–69:50)

  • Emily concludes: “It's inertia. It's the way that they live now, and it's really, really sad.” (70:40)

Notable Quotes & Moments

• On The View’s Tone and Expertise:

  “When somebody starts a sentence with respectfully, I reach for my gun.” (Walter Kirn, 17:09)

• On Media Ignoring the Shutdown:

  “No, it's clear there are no points to be scored talking about the shutdown and so they're pretending the game's not happening.” (Walter Kirn, 11:58)

• On AI Diagnosing Users:

  “Be very afraid, America, because you're gonna... be diagnosed by Sam Altman and ChatGPT without you knowing it.” (Walter Kirn, 34:43)

• On Social Media’s Impact:

  “Everything is porn. Everything about politics and culture on social media is porn.” (Emily Jashinsky, 38:54)

• On Writing in the AI Age:

  “AI is a leveler and a hollower out of language. It tends to shrink in its vocabulary...and shrink the vocabulary of those who partake of it.” (Walter Kirn, 42:22)

• On Celebrity and Inertia:

  “Now what we're seeing is the next generation who are building their lives on a house of cards.” (Emily Jashinsky, 68:00)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 03:47 – Zoran Mamdani’s Fox interview
• 10:49 – Media silence on the shutdown
• 15:33 – Cheryl Hines vs. The View
• 23:53 – Medical populism: MAHA
• 33:20 – ChatGPT “erotica” and Sam Altman
• 40:25 – AI vs. human writing
• 48:12 – Late night TV and cultural literacy
• 56:19 – Ashley Tallis spy scandal
• 66:05 – Kim Kardashian, influencer tragedy

Tone & Style

• The conversation is fast-paced, witty, and informed, with Emily balancing journalistic skepticism and pop culture savvy, while Walter brings a sardonic, literary viewpoint.
• The episode ranges from sharp media analysis to rueful cultural commentary, always with an undercurrent of humor and mischief.
• Emily’s solo closing segment carries a note of sadness and cultural critique, in keeping with the show’s purpose: wide-ranging, big-picture conversation you won’t hear anywhere else.

For those who missed the episode, this summary delivers the big arguments, the best quotes, and the cultural flavor of a sharp, freewheeling podcast.