A Strong Possibility of Doom

Summary

Armstrong & Getty On Demand

Episode: "A Strong Possibility of Doom"
Date: July 24, 2026
Hosts: Jack Armstrong & Joe Getty
Notable Guest: Jeffrey Fowler (Common Sense Media & Youth AI Safety Institute)

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Episode Overview

This episode explores the growing concerns around artificial intelligence (AI), particularly its impact on children and society at large. Armstrong and Getty dive into the cultural, ethical, and economic risks emerging from AI's rapid integration into everyday life—highlighting issues from deepfake pornography among teens to the rising trend of "surveillance pricing." With guest Jeffrey Fowler, they discuss how kids interact with AI, the failures of tech giants to safeguard youth, and why users (especially parents) must push back against Silicon Valley's choices. Broader social topics, such as media bias, sports controversies, and economic trends, round out the show.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. AI: Outpacing Human Control & Societal Impact

• Opening with a reference to runaway AI and sci-fi scenarios ([01:14]), the hosts set the theme: AI is evolving faster than society's understanding or regulation.

• Notable Quote:

  “You think the concern about AI breaking free is because it broke free like a week ago with OpenAI and hacked into a company's website and all that.”
  —Jack Armstrong, [01:27]

• The conversation centers on known and unknown risks—ranging from existential threats (e.g., AI "jailbreaks") to more nuanced harms such as its effects on childhood development and mental health.

2. Interview with Jeffrey Fowler: Youth & AI Safety

a. Pervasive AI Use Among Kids

• Data Point:
  “Almost 90% of all kids age 9 and older are using AI; a huge percentage daily. Main use? Entertainment—talking about feelings, exploring, creating weird pictures.”
  —Jeffrey Fowler, [05:02]

• AI is fully embedded in children’s digital environments (e.g., Instagram, Google search, classroom tech).

• Kids now encounter AI without deliberate initiation—often unable to avoid it due to tech company defaults.

b. New Dangers: Deepfake Pornography

• Alarming Stat:
  “We found almost half of teens say they have [seen AI sexual content]. Of those, 25% said it depicted someone they knew or even themselves.”
  —Jeffrey Fowler, [05:56]

• Use of deepfake tools among teens for bullying and social retaliation is now “part of the fabric of teenage life.”

c. Inadequate Tech Safeguards

• Fowler criticizes Google’s integration of AI features by default for US minors, resulting in misleading or harmful content:

  “We gave [Google search’s AI answers] the lowest possible rating...it gave wrong answers, didn’t notice when kids were in crisis, gave bad advice.”
  —Jeffrey Fowler, [10:58]

• Policy Comparison:
  Europe requires opt-in for these features, while in the US, kids get AI search overlays by default.

d. The “Doom” Question & Parental Agency

• Armstrong jokes, “We're doomed" ([09:05]), prompting Fowler to urge activism rather than defeatism:

  “We're in charge. We the people, we the users of this technology—for now...we should be making smarter decisions and pushing back against [tech].”
  —Jeffrey Fowler, [09:21]

• Hosts debate the limits of individual responsibility vs. collective protection, referencing AI as a “proverbial apple from the tree of knowledge.”

e. Guidance for Parents

• Fowler and the hosts agree that even if not all kids can be protected, effort must be made for the "20% we can save" ([12:43]).

3. Dynamic & Surveillance Pricing—Emerging Tech/Market Concern

[Segment begins ~17:13]

Dynamic Pricing

• Adjusted pricing based on demand—a longstanding airline tactic—expands into new consumer spaces (e.g., fast food, streaming, retail).
• “It’s $5 at 2 pm, $7 at 6:30 pm for the same burger. No big deal—supply and demand.”
  —Joe Getty, [21:49]

Surveillance Pricing

• Uses personal characteristics/data to set individualized prices: browsing history, estimated income, even emotional state.

• Example:
  “Detecting that you’re a new parent…and charging extra for infant medicine.”
  —Jack Armstrong, [24:13]

• Hosts express unease about the ethics:

  • “That one seems evil…a little predatory, doesn’t it?” ([24:26])

• Discuss scenarios where exploiting desperation (funeral travel, emergency medicine) crosses commercial fairness into moral ‘ickiness’:

  “If you can figure out that my uncle died and jack up the price…that’s pretty icky.”
  —Joe Getty, [29:16]

• Suggests possible market-driven solutions (brands promising ‘fair pricing’) and user counter-tactics, like fake accounts and strategic shopping.

4. Brief Sports & Culture Interlude

• WNBA’s Sophie Cunningham under fire for stance on trans athletes ([15:43]).
• LeBron James reportedly heads to the 76ers for a deep playoff run despite a pay cut ([16:28]).

5. Media Critique & Sociopolitical Snapshots

Clips of the Week [18:35ff]

• Quick succession of recent news, political quips, and media bias critiques.
• Memorable Take:
  "Democratic Socialists of America take over the Democratic Party and the media turns a blind eye...Argentina chucked socialism, economy is growing, but you never hear a word about it. Lying liars and the lies, they lie."
  —Joe Getty, [35:41]

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Notable Quotes, Moments, & Timestamps

• On the unpredictability of AI:
  “That's part of the design...It is probabilistic, not deterministic. Every time you ask an AI model to do something, you're going to get a different answer.”
  —Jeffrey Fowler, [03:35]
• Kids and AI Deepfakes:
  “Kids are using these AI programs, using deepfake programs to create deepfake pornography featuring their classmates… this is really, you know, working its way into the fabric of teenage life.”
  —Jeffrey Fowler, [06:00]
• Public pushback: "We want to make that message really clear to Google... they should not be forcing [AI features] onto every kid in America."
  —Jeffrey Fowler, [11:10]
• Surveillance pricing ethics:
  “It’s probably perfectly legal. It probably should be perfectly legal, and I hate it.”
  —Joe Getty, [27:32]
• On saving youth from tech harm:
  “Just because you can't save every soul doesn't mean you don't try to save souls.”
  —Joe Getty, [12:43]

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Timestamps for Major Segments

• AI Out of Control – Sci-fi Reality: [01:14–02:02]
• Jeffrey Fowler Interview – Youth AI, data, dangers: [02:02–11:24]
• Opt-in/Opt-out Policy Differences (Europe vs US): [11:37–13:35]
• Surveillance Pricing Explainer & Debate: [17:13–32:11]
• Clips of the Week – Media, Politics, Culture: [18:35–21:49]
• Final Thoughts, AI Counter-Strategies, Social Commentary: [34:39–36:47]

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Tone & Language

The episode balances humor, skepticism, and concern—combining Armstrong & Getty’s trademark banter with pointed critiques and earnest worries. Fowler’s commentary is both technically informed and urgently cautionary, while the hosts use anecdotes and hypotheticals to drive home the real-life dilemmas of living in an AI-powered world.

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Summary Takeaways

• AI's relentless integration into everyday life brings both mundane and extreme risks, especially for kids who now face dangers unthinkable in previous generations.
• The industry trend of opt-out design (vs. opt-in) leaves parents and kids exposed by default.
• Surveillance pricing may become the next big ethical frontier, as corporations leverage personal data for individualized pricing—raising questions about fairness and exploitation.
• Armstrong & Getty urge vigilance, public pushback, and informed skepticism—even as they acknowledge that collective solutions remain elusive.

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(For deeper segments or specific moments, reference the timestamps provided.)

Transcript

[A]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[B]

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[C]

Broadcasting live from the Abraham Lincoln radio studio at the George Washington Broadcast Center, Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty. Armstrong and Getty. And now here's Armstrong Strong. And get. Comes as AI models are quickly advancing,

[A]

raising concerns they will break free from human control like a scene from a sci fi movie.

[C]

Open the pod bay doors, Hal. I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that.

[D]

Yeah, you think the concern about AI breaking free is because it broke free like a week ago with OpenAI and hacked into a company's website and all that. I mean, so with AI, you've got the stuff that we know we don't want it to do but sometimes can't stop it angle and then like this stuff. Jeff Fowlers worry about how AI is shaping childhood or our own brains that, you know, is just part of a new thing that's come along. It's its own. There are so many problems around AI or question marks, I guess, right?

[C]

In helping parents understand what it is and how to use it most productively and least dangerously. You may remember us talking to Jeffrey Fowler throughout the years. He was the WA technology columnist for a long time. Now he's doing new stuff, including trying to get the Youth AI Safety Institute going. Jeffrey, how are you, sir?

[A]

Hello.

[C]

Hello.

[A]

It's great to talk to y'. All.

[C]

Thank you. It's been too long. I definitely want to get into the Youth AI Safety Institute stuff in a second. But what did you make of that whole jailbreak story recently?

[A]

When I heard about that, I thought, wow, this AI is reading way too much science fiction. Because that seemed like exactly like a plot that someone had written at some point. You know, it's like, it's really hard to, I think for most people to understand and to frame. Like, what kind of risks are we talking about? Just like you mentioned, like, there's like risks to like, are we making the Terminator that will come back to get us. And then there are risks, like what is it doing to my four year old's brain that it answers all the questions for him or it gives him wrong answers. So like, we have got a lot of stuff as a society and as an industry, you know, to figure out.

[D]

Yeah, well, the concerning thing with AI to me is how often the people who developed their particular AI that did this or that don't know why that didn't happen with like the automobile, an automobile didn't just go flying down the highway by itself and run over a family or something. And you know, Henry Ford says, I have no idea why I did that. But we have that problem with AI all over the place.

[A]

Absolutely. I mean, that's part of the design of this technology. Right. It is probabilistic, not deterministic, which means that every time you ask an AI model to do something, you're going to get a different answer. And that's one reason why we have to change how we think about it and think about its expertise and the reliability of it.

[D]

Which chatbot do you use the most? I'm curious, because I use them all.

[A]

Well, as part of my work with this Youth AI Safety Institute, we crash test AI products for kids. And so we of course use them all and we're poking at them, trying to see what happens in the worst case scenarios when kids use them more could lead them awry. But in my professional work as well, I also poke at them to ask them questions and get feedback on word choice. Use it like a very sophisticated thesaurus. For that I tend to turn to Claude most. Boy, if I want to see, you know, what kind of help me imagine what a picture might look like. For that I might turn to the Gemini model from Google because it's got better imaging stuff. So it really depends on the purpose.

[C]

So help us understand because you're deep into this. How are kids and at what ages interacting with AI? Not only the obvious stuff, you give your kid the ChatGPT app, but how are they running into it in their lives?

[A]

Here is the shocking statistic. This safety institute that I'm helping to set up with Common Sense Media has been doing some surveys. We did a nationwide survey of a census of tweens and teens. And we found that use of AI by everybody from age 9 and older is almost universal now, meaning that almost 90% of all kids are using this stuff and a huge percentage of them are using it on a daily basis. What are they doing it for? Adults tend to Think like, oh, they're using it to cheat on their homework. And yes, there is some of that, but the number one use is actually entertainment. They're using it to talk about their feelings. They're using it to explore their world, to create weird pictures. And some of that might be harmless and other aspects of it might be really dangerous or damaging and giving kids a, a sort of skewed version of the world. I mean, and one example, we just this week put out some more research where we asked kids about whether they had seen AI sexual content. And we found almost half of teens say they have. And here's the thing. Of those, 25% said it depicted someone they knew or even themselves. Which means that kids are using these AI programs, using deep fake programs to create deep fake pornography featuring their classmates, their exes, their friends, their enemies. And this is really, you know, working its way into the fabric of teenage life. Right? Like if you about, if you think about us old farts back in the day, you know, we. There were ways that kids would exact revenge on each other in those, in those kinds of relationships. But now every kid has very, very, very powerful technology in their hand that could really, really disrupt the life of one of their classmates.

[D]

I have a 14 year old and a 16 year old. I mean, they're really in the sweet spot to have their lives ruined by AI. And that porn stuff you mentioned is troubling. But you said one of the main reasons is entertainment. What are you talking about there, entertainment wise with AI, what are they doing?

[A]

Well, if you've pulled up Instagram recently, for example, it is filled with what you and I might consider AI slope, but it is videos that are created by AI. Young people are creating their own videos they can have. There's like some, some kids are really into creating characters that kind of sort of exist online, only that they can chat with some have, you know, sort of relationships with some of these bots where they chat back and forth because they feel it's easier to talk with a computer than to talk with a human. That's one of the more disturbing findings we found in that census that I mentioned. So it's just a really wide range of things. And part of it is this is different than social media, right? With social media, kids had to create an account that they would go to and they might need an email address and they would have to log in. And that was something. And a special app that was something that parents could ostensibly monitor some. But with AI stuff, the industry has inserted, inserted AI where kids are Already hanging out. If your kid had an Instagram account, meta added a chatbot right on top of Instagram. So it's there. It's not like you had to go out and seek it out or Google. I mean, this is another really, really big one. Almost every kid in America uses Google. It's on their school laptop, right? It's on their phone. Well, Google went in and added AI answers into on top of search results. Everybody's seen those, and you can't turn those off. Those are always on. So kids can't help but be exposed to it now because we're sticking it right in their face.

[C]

Jeff Fowler is helping get the Youth AI Safety Institute started. Jeff, I'm gonna make a statement, and you can react to it in any way you want. Here's the statement.

[D]

We're doomed.

[C]

Doomed. Your reaction?

[A]

Well, look, I try to not look, look, over the years, we've talked about a lot of things where you had that reaction to me.

[C]

I was right.

[A]

Be it about privacy or be it about the impact on the environment of some of this technology that we're building, I personally try to not take that point of view. I think that, like, look, we're in charge. We the people, we the users of this technology for now and for now. And so we should be making smarter decisions and pushing back against a technology industry that is not necessarily going to make choices based on our best interests, but they need to hear back from us loud and clear about what we want. And I'll give you a great example when it comes to AI. So I mentioned Google Search. So my institute just did a really big kind of risk evaluation of the answers that Google search gives kids, and they were terrible. Like, we gave it the lowest possible rating for lots of reasons. It did kids homework all the time. It gave them wrong answers, like, a really big percentage of the time. And then when, when, when. When kids were in crisis and talked about things like eating disorders, it like, gave them bad. It didn't notice or it gave them bad advice. So, like, that's really bad. So the thing is that the problem with it is that Google has turned this on by default for every kid in America. And we think that that is a bad plan and it should have it off by default. So they. We want to make that message really clear to Google that it should not be forcing this onto every kid in America, and it should give parents and teachers and kids themselves the ability to turn it off. That is a business choice that. That Google has made in America. The rules are different in Europe, they don't turn it on for kids there. It's only in America where they've shoved it down all the kids throats. So let's, let's get together as users and say hey, we the use want better choices and we don't want to have this stuff shoved down our kids throats.

[C]

Jeff Fowler is working to put together the Youth AI Safety Institute. Jeff, appreciate the chat. Really thought provoking. Let's stay in touch on this, all right?

[A]

You bet.

[C]

All right, good to talk to you. Thanks.

[D]

In general, Europe has been way ahead of us on the opt in versus opt out question for all kinds of different stuff and I wish we would get to where they are. I suppose it's part of our history of free wheeling, personal freedom, all that sort of stuff. Less regulations in Europe and everything like that. But for instance in Europe and we talked about this has been going on for a very long time. Your information isn't there for the stealing unless you can figure out how to opt out on a website. No, no, it's the other way around. You'd have to opt, you'd have to go through all the hoops to opt in to give away your data. It's the, the, the automatic is they don't get to steal it. And it sounds like the same thing with the AI some of the stuff now you'd have to opt in for your kids to be able to have this on their device as opposed to it's automatic and you'd have to figure out how to opt out of it.

[C]

Yeah. So the whole we're doomed thing, I was, I was half kidding.

[D]

Obviously I think we are doomed and I think you're right.

[C]

I think, well that's where you and I often part company. Maybe it's. We're both individualists but I figure if we can save 20% of kids from getting really twisted by this stuff, got to try as hard as you can to save that 20%. Just because you can't save every soul doesn't mean you don't try to save souls. Although I really, as I've said many times, feel like this is the proverbial apple from the tree of knowledge in the book of Genesis. These are powers human beings are not made to handle. And we can't. Again, individuals, some individuals can. They will opt out. They will understand what it's doing to their hearts and souls and the rest of it. But a lot won't.

[D]

I would love to know what would hated high school. Not really part of a big social group or anything. Like that me done with AI in my life. I don't have any idea. But what have I turned to it for? Companionship or answers to any of the deep questions of life or anything like that and been led down a road? I don't have any idea.

[C]

Yeah, yeah. I've got to admit I've told the story before of I can't remember what year of high school it was. Gladys probably sophomore year, high school. But there's a guy I had a frenemy relationship with, an uneasy friendship. We played together on the baseball team. We had to get along because I was like, you know, one of the top pitchers and he was top catcher. But we were definitely rivals and had an uneasy wolves circling each other relationship. Anyway, at one point he made it clear to me that my sharp tongue actually like hurt him. And I thought, I don't want to be that. You know, I want to use my powers for good, not evil. And I picture myself prior to that realization having the tools of AI like to mock people or put them in their place or maybe I've always hated bullies and I didn't want to be a bully and there are some actual bully bullies and maybe I decided to turn my sharp tongue into creativity to bring them down a notch or two with the powers of AI. Might that have gone way too far? Might I have loved that a little too much? Yeah, I could picture that.

[D]

Well, I hope Jeff Fowler has some success in alerting parents to the dangers of AI for kids. There's just so many dangers out there from AI so many top to bottom, including, you know, will anybody have a job? And all that other stuff on the way.

[B]

Stair, Armstrong and Getty.

[C]

Many leftists are blasting WNBA star Sophie Cunningham for saying that men have no place in women's sports. They also say Sophie has no place in women's sports cuz she's hot.

[D]

That's, that's not nice. She continues to be in the news. She got asked again about her trans stance. She had to say again, that's what I believe. I'm not backing off of it. Will she ever get to just be her ever again or will she have to answer that question for the rest of her life because somebody needs to turn into a villain?

[C]

Well, they're desperate to have anything interesting to say about the wnba, I think so they're going there. She's got to be about one day away from saying, look, I've addressed this five days in a row, let's move on.

[D]

I would hope. And she has a new shoe Coming out, she just signed a $20 million deal, which is a lot for a WNBA player. So speaking of basketball, the details of LeBron's deal is he's going to the 76ers. He was down to a couple of teams. I was hoping he'd go to the warriors. But he's going to the 76ers to try to win a title. $4 million a year for two years, leaving his contract with the Lakers behind, where he made 52 million last year. He's going to go play for $4 million a year to try to be on a team that can win a championship, which I'm surprised doesn't happen more often. I don't get why these people are already richer than they could need to be for the rest of their lives. Don't only go to teams where they can win.

[C]

I don't get generational wealth for the next 40 generations.

[D]

And you go play for some sucky team at the height of your powers. Not LeBron, but a lot of players. I just, I've always been amused by that. The difference between dynamic pricing and, and I forgot the word already, surveillance pricing. A lot of times when people are talking about surveillance pricing, they mean dynamic pricing or vice versa. They're two different things. And we might have to really write some laws around surveillance pricing, like soon. It's really an interesting idea. Like they can figure out if you're in an emergency or not and what your tolerance it is and they know how much money you make and blah blah, all these different sorts of things and charge you accordingly.

[C]

I'll stay tuned for that. And super bonus, it's better late than never. We've got Cal clips of the week coming up in seconds. Hang around

[A]

and Getty.

[D]

I looked up where the odds have moved for the Philadelphia 76ers since they picked up LeBron James in the last couple of hours. And they have somewhere around 90% chance of winning the NBA championship according to your major odds makers.

[C]

90% chance? Yeah.

[D]

Similar to the defending champion New York Knicks. They put them both in the same category.

[A]

Okay.

[C]

Must not understand the numbers. Anyway, I can't wait to hear the surveillance pricing thing in just a moment or two. But first let's take a fond look back at the week that was It's Cow Clips of the week. It's cow. They call it Cowbow Clips of the Week. It's cow. The beloved bald eagles. Jackie and Shadow. What's just happened to Jackie?

[D]

We're hearing from the 65 year old man who got flipped 8ft in the

[C]

air by a bison. They move faster than you could ever imagine.

[D]

I go buffer fast.

[C]

Cases of that parasitic stomach illness skyrocketing to record levels. And if you're gonna buy a street taco, buy a real street taco, not a. Not something from one of these. You know, I'll leave it at that. Democrats.

[D]

Democrats are cowardly.

[C]

Yeah. You know, when we're cheering for the Intifada. Cut.

[D]

I'm out.

[C]

Are you tired of sitting alone and being by yourself and having no one to talk to, Being socialist? No one should have a right to a double digit return on their investment.

[A]

No one has a right.

[C]

That's not.

[A]

No.

[C]

What are you talking about?

[B]

No one's in that.

[A]

That's not in the constitution.

[C]

It ain't a scary word. It ain't me taking your house. Is democratic socialism compatible with capitalism in the long term? No.

[D]

We're anti capitalism socialism.

[C]

This time it's really gonna work. Carlos. I represent aptab. All power to all people. Zero power to Zionists, Zero power to capitalists, Zero power to colonialism. We will not be chased out of places anymore. Brothers and sisters, another heavy night of US strikes against Iran.

[D]

And they want to make a deal.

[C]

But I say they're not ready to make a deal. President Trump saying, from this point forward, anytime the Islamic Republic of Iran shoots at a ship in the Strait of Hormuz, the United States will bomb and destroy one bridge or power plant. Their policy is an eye for an eye. The President's policy is a head for an eye. Let us celebrate each other. This is football.

[D]

This is unit.

[C]

Spain, for the second time in their history, have won the World Cup.

[D]

Ferran, Great game. This AC unit is for you. Gracias, Mr. President.

[C]

He's so cool. Clips of the week.

[D]

You know, I am honestly thankful on a regular basis that Donald Trump is president, as opposed to Kamala Harris. If you gotta choose between those two, please. But who are you in the crowd? Trump says, and they want to make a deal so bad. They're begging me to make a deal. And everybody's cheering, who. Who. Who are you? What is that? You've been following the war. I just. I don't get it.

[C]

Maybe if you're in the hall, it's like you laugh at the comedian's bad jokes. When you're at the, you know, whatever. The Jimmy Kimmel show. Throw your head back because you're there.

[D]

I don't know. So we've talked about the, I think, coming normalcy of dynamic pricing. I think that's Going to become a regular thing. I'm not sure why it didn't happen in the past, but it's the idea that the double with cheese, no onions I get at Wendy's is $5 if I buy it in the middle of the afternoon, but it's $7 if I try to buy it at 6:30 because I know more people are gonna eat then be willing, want to eat, then

[A]

whatever.

[D]

And all kinds of different stuff. That's dynamic pricing where it affects everybody the same, everybody gets the same price, but it changes in different ways. That certain, that's happened to a certain extent with the Odyssey movie theaters charging way more for that particular movie at certain times and that sort of stuff. And I definitely have no problem with that whatsoever. Again, I'm not exactly sure why that didn't happen in the past. You don't need modern technology to pull that off really.

[C]

Certainly happens with airline tickets. Has for a long time.

[D]

But surveillance pricing is a different thing and we might have to write some rules around that. Even though it's not strictly illegal, we might have to write some laws around that that responds to your individual characteristics. Your browsing history looks at your device location, your income level, your credit history, your willingness to pay. All kinds of different things. And that one is kind of troubling partially because you don't have any idea what anybody else is paying for this particular item, only what you are. And I don't know, I'll be interesting to see if Joe just thinks this is a free market at work. It's fantastic or we should have some rules in place for it. It uses the example of. Your purchase history. Knowing what you buy regularly allows companies to withhold discounts from loyal customers who will buy anyway if they know if you're only going to buy this product, they don't give you the discount they give other people who are, you know, they don't care if they buy what would be Heinz ketchup or Hunt's ketchup. I don't care. I just buy one of those two for ketchup. But if you're a brand person, they're not going to give you the discount. Okay, there's that. Then there's the age, estimated income, credit range or life events. Detecting that you're a new parent based on recent baby wipes purchases and charging extra for fast delivery infant medicine for instance.

[C]

Oh my gosh, that one seems evil.

[D]

That seems a little predatory, doesn't it?

[C]

Yeah, it's funny, my thoughts went back to back when everybody had cable. How often People resented that. If I signed up for, if I'm a new customer, I get it for this much, but as an existing customer, you stick it to me.

[D]

What's up with that?

[C]

That was like the first example of that. I remember running into. Right.

[D]

And smart people. I never went through the hassle of this, but I know people who did it who would cancel their cable or Internet and then re sign up again

[C]

or jump back and forth every two years.

[D]

Yeah, yeah, I've never gone through the hassle of that.

[C]

Yeah, I actually did that for a while because I considered them interchangeable. So to your free market question, that's a really interesting one and it's a little complicated because you've got what we were talking about earlier, the opt in, opt out measure of or difference with technology. What have I consented to be used? I mean, why does anybody know my credit rating other than me, the credit agency and the bank? I'm applying to get a loan.

[D]

Yeah.

[C]

And like, I've used the chat bots for your income.

[D]

Why does everybody. Why does everybody get to know my income? The sort of information we used to not tell anybody and was a secret to almost everyone. How many people currently know your income? For the average person who's online or

[C]

can estimate it very, very accurately. I mean, because even if they don't, quote, unquote, know it, they can look at spending patterns, feed that into the algorithm and figure something out. Yeah, I'm thinking about the chatbots I've used. I can't remember there have been a couple of times where I was looking for advice on a camera lens or I can't even remember a couple of things where I said to said, well, here are your options, but this one's very expensive and blah, blah, blah. And I said, I'm not worried about the price, I just want to get there quickly or whatever. Now it knows. It's actually come back to me and said, since you've told me that you're not really concerned about what this. So it's like, all right, daddy war bucks, I got a story for you. Is that sharing that information with somebody else, because I know the airlines, they know my buying history and they know I'm more schedule driven than price driven. And so they don't bother throwing the low fares at me. I know if I sign in on the airline apps, that one really bothers

[D]

me because that's a chunk of money. And the fact that they know I, you know, I take a couple of vacations a year and I gotta go during these Dates. It's not like I'm very flexible on this, right?

[C]

I can't fly out till I'm done with the show. So, you know, I'm gonna pick a flight in the afternoon. You can't entice me with 75 bucks off to go in the morning. I just won't. So, yeah, so they stick it to me. But I'll warn you right now, I catch you doing me like that, you're done.

[D]

I think this surveillance pricing is going to fall under the category of it's probably perfectly legal. It probably should be perfectly legal, and I hate it.

[C]

Right. It'll probably fall under lots of pictures of myself at thrift stores. Boy, I wish I could afford a new T shirt. But I'm Gonna buy this $2, probably $1 used t shirt, post that to my Instagram.

[D]

Why regulators are concerned the FTC is looking. The Federal Trade Commission and consumer advocacy groups have voiced concern over surveillance pricing for several key reasons, including the lack of transparency. Because online prices are digital, consumers rarely know what someone else is being charged, making it nearly impossible to tell if you're getting a fair price. I don't know if that holds water. I mean, on an individual basis, I look up a product, that's the price. Am I willing to pay for that or not? What difference does it make with somebody else paid for it?

[C]

Well, what if I'm in line at the grocery store with a six pack of Negro Modelo under my arm? It's one of my favorite beers, certainly. And the cashier says, yeah, that'll be 12.95. Meanwhile, right over there in that line, there's some poor Hispanic guy And they say, 69695 for you, sir, or college kids. That's gonna piss me off.

[D]

They charge the college kids 8 bucks a 12 pack. They charge the, you know, guys in their 50 wearing a suit jacket.

[C]

Right?

[D]

$15 exactly. Yeah, I don't. But I can't come up with a reason why that isn't. Okay. It's supply and demand, man.

[C]

I mean, are you willing to give me 12.95 for this six pack of beer? Hell, I guess so.

[A]

All right.

[D]

Exactly.

[C]

I mean, if they start doing it with insulin, then we have.

[D]

All right, this one is a little. Bothers me a little bit. The exploitation of need. Algorithms can detect when a buyer is desperate, such as someone searching for emergency repairs, last minute travel, or medicine, and artificially inflate price. Like if you have an ability to figure out that my uncle died and you think he really wants to go to the funeral. So let's jack up the price in this. That's pretty icky. Yeah.

[C]

That's predatory.

[D]

I don't know where it crossed the

[C]

free market argument would be. People will learn that and say, to hell with you. I will never do business with you again. There will be a movement of, you know, Walmart's first out of the gate with, we charge the same price to everyone because we don't think it's fair for us to pick on people in their moment of need. And then, you know, you'll have a certified fair pricing business.

[D]

Well, and it's always been true to a certain extent with just coupons in general. I remember learning about this in college. Just they know certain sorts of people are going to. Back in the day when you get the newspaper, you know, the Sunday newspaper, and my mom would go through all the coupons and cut them out. A certain sort of people are going to do that. There's certain sort of people, out of laziness or having enough money or whatever, don't care.

[C]

Right.

[D]

What's the difference, really?

[C]

On the other hand, if I'm like, posting on Facebook that I got the cyclospora from some poopy lettuce, and. And, you know, they start charging me 50 bucks a roll for TP, that's. I'm gonna resent that.

[D]

Right. Or I just posted my bones sticking out of my leg, and all of a sudden I go to Amazon and try to buy some ibuprofen, and it's like, you know, $15 for two.

[C]

Right. Yeah.

[D]

Disguise loyalty programs. This has probably been going on forever, and there's no stopping this. Retailers often pitch loyalty apps as ways to save money. But the data harvested through those apps can actually be used to benchmark your baseline willingness to pay. What are you willing to spend for this item? Which might be different than that guy over there.

[C]

Right, Right.

[D]

It probably isn't. And what's wrong with that?

[C]

And if you're buying $35 wine instead of $12 wine, they're gonna charge you more for your ground beef or whatever. They'll figure it out.

[D]

Yeah. Again, I think it's something that's legal that I don't like.

[C]

Yeah.

[D]

Now, will we all start having fake accounts or, you know, have your. Your, Your college daughter set up an account where she does all your grocery shopping and buying airline tickets because they charge her way less than they charge you. Maybe that's the future. You need a poor friend. It's willing to.

[C]

What do they get out of it? A little cut of your savings, I guess. Win, win.

[D]

Yeah, Buy them a new pair of shoes every year. Whatever they need. Talking really poor. I want somebody poor poor. Like, can't afford shoes poor.

[C]

Wow. Wow. Used T shirt poor. Yes.

[D]

Any thoughts on any of this? You can text us. We'll finish strong.

[C]

Next, Armstrong and Getty Maga is the closest thing to the modern version of the Nazi party. This is America's version. It's the closest thing.

[D]

All right.

[C]

Yeah, Don Limon there. That was actually part of a little featurette that I forgot we had. The Media Research Council's top three worst media quotes of the week. Here are the other two nominees. Give us 35. Michael Abby Phillips on CNN.

[A]

They're not voting because they're trying to defraud the system.

[C]

They're.

[A]

They. They might have cast a ballot because they just weren't aware.

[D]

They weren't aware that they weren't a citizen of the United States.

[A]

Is this accurately described as fraud?

[C]

You've got non citizens illegally voting. She wants to know, is it accurate to call this fraud?

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Yeah, it is. Yeah. And finally, Jennifer Welch on some podcast,

[A]

ICE Officer could see these little kids and James.

[C]

Oh, are they from Honduras? Are they from Bolivia? Are they from a country that is the type of duplicity and homicidal hypocrisy that this administration stands for?

[D]

What are they talking about?

[C]

JD Advance's kids have slightly darker skin than him because his wife is of Indian heritage, and therefore ICE could come for them. Be thinking they're Hondurans and something. Something.

[D]

How about. How long is this. The. I was gonna jam in the Jon Bon Jovi can't find it.

[C]

I haven't talked to anybody about anything. But don't throw away your ticket stubs.

[D]

I'm gonna figure something out.

[A]

Okay? Don't.

[C]

Just hold on over. Figure out how to reschedule. I feel great.

[D]

I love you, John.

[C]

It's okay, baby.

[D]

So that's Jon Bon Jovi saying, I'm sorry, but I can't go on. I just. I can't. I can't do it. And so I'll refund your tickets and we'll reschedule the show. He didn't say specifically why, but it's that. But he ate a Taco Bell. But it's a lettuce.

[C]

Sinus infection is the official word.

[D]

Yeah, that's what I'd call it, too.

[C]

That's what I'd call it, too.

[D]

Yeah. He's living on a prayer.

[C]

Hey, kids, it's that time again with Armstrong.

[D]

And Getty.

[C]

Oh, my God. All our rock stars are getting so old.

[D]

I can't finish. We'll come back tomorrow night. Let's get your host for final thoughts, Joe Getty.

[C]

Let's get a final thought from everybody on the crew to wrap up the day and the week. There he is. Press the buttons in the control room. Michelangelo, Michael, what's your final thought? Yeah, I'm making my AI profile to get some cost savings. So I'm putting in stuff about pawn shops and coupons, siphoning gas and used underwear. You'll see what kind of savings on products I can get. There you go. There you go. You got to manipulate the algorithm. Jack, a final thought for us, if

[D]

you wanted something else to get excited about. The US army announced that we have deployed our hypersonic weapons to Guam. This is the first time we've announced anyway that we have put hypersonic weapons there close to China. And that's a fairly provocative, I would say defensive, but provocative move.

[C]

My final thought is the Democratic Socialists of America take over the Democratic Party and the media turns a blind eye. Argentina under Javier Milei just got its bond rating, just got upgraded for the third time in three months because they've choked. They've chucked socialism and embraced the free market. Their economy is growing by leaps and bounds. Their people are happy. It's going beautifully and you never hear a word about it. Lying liars and the lies, they lie. Can't hate the media enough.

[D]

Yeah. How much would you hear if there was a good socialism story to tell you somewhere in the world? How much would you hear about it?

[C]

A lot.

[D]

Armstrong and Getty wrapping up another grueling four hour workday.

[C]

So many people. Thanks. A little time. Go to armstrongandgetty.com Boy, we asked a lot of rhetorical and specific questions to you today. If you want to respond, email us mailbagarmstrongandgetty.com while you'[e-mail] why not grab a T shirt or hat?

[D]

Did we ask too many rhetorical questions? That's what I wonder.

[C]

How many rhetorical questions is too many?

[D]

We'll see you on Monday. God bless America.

[C]

When you're on the go, fill the time with the friends.

[B]

You know Jack on Armstrong and Joe

[C]

Getty, the podcast they make. Podcast they make has all the news you can take. All the news you can take. They call it Armstrong and Getty on Demand. Subscribe right now and remember, it's called Armstrong and Yeti on Demand.

[D]

Armstrong and Gettysburg.