We Light Candles & Hold Hands

Summary

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Armstrong & Getty On Demand

Episode: "We Light Candles & Hold Hands"

Date: October 3, 2025
Hosts: Jack Armstrong & Joe Getty

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Overview

In this episode, Armstrong & Getty dive into a characteristically wide-ranging discussion touching on current events, pop culture, artificial intelligence, media bias, and major industry news. The hosts set a lively, irreverent tone as they reflect on the government shutdown, the cultural and business phenomenon of Taylor Swift, the latest in artificial intelligence and its societal implications, and a seismic shakeup in legacy media with Bari Weiss’s move to CBS News. The episode is peppered with offbeat humor and candid skepticism about mainstream narratives, making for a show that’s both informative and entertaining for regular listeners and newcomers alike.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Tone-Setting & General Manager Nominee (00:41–01:19)

• The hosts set their trademark sardonic mood, naming “Global Anti-Semites” as their tongue-in-cheek general manager. Armstrong shares his concern about increasing global anti-Semitism, noting, “Europe aflame with this sort of thing, people getting stabbed and run... our disaster.” [00:48]
• Getty tries to pivot, joking about the new Taylor Swift album also being a suitable general manager. The conversation shifts briskly between headlines and personal anecdotes, setting an eclectic pace for the episode.

2. The Taylor Swift Phenomenon (01:12–05:08; 13:35–14:38)

• A heartfelt analysis of Swift’s appeal transcends age and genre boundaries. The hosts note her uncanny ability to write songs that are deeply relatable for young women (and women well into their 30s), despite leading a life starkly different from her fans.
  • Quote: “Taylor Swift... can write songs that average teenage girls say, ‘That’s exactly what I’m feeling.’ That’s a talent right there.” – Getty [02:49]
• Interesting comparison with past music icons and the business acumen that sets Swift apart.
• Further banter in the segment with Katie Green, highlighting Swift’s dominance and contemporaneous mass engagement: “In the modern world of music, having music come out and you have people conversing about the songs within hours of its launch…” – Getty [13:56]

3. Government Shutdown – Media vs. Public Interest (05:08–07:07)

• The hosts lampoon media hysteria over the government shutdown, contending that, in reality, few Americans care.
  • Quote: “Get on a bus, go to a real town, sit in a diner, see how many people are talking about the government shutdown." – Getty [06:41]
• Satirical asides (“We form a circle, hold hands, and sing ‘We Shall Overcome’ during commercial breaks.” – Armstrong [05:53]) poke fun at the performativity of political theater.

4. Artificial Intelligence & Bubble Warning (07:07–12:27; 33:41–38:33)

• The episode features a deep dive into recent AI news, especially OpenAI’s soaring valuation ($500B) and questions about a looming tech bubble.
  • Discussion of so-called “Artificial Super Intelligence” (ASI) and its potentially existential risks.
  • Quote: “AI could treat us the way we treat ants when we build a building.” – Getty [10:50]
  • Armstrong interjects humor: “What if [superintelligent AIs] just obsess over tennis... and you can't play tennis anymore because there's robots on every court?” [12:03]
• Brief sidebar on AI-generated social networks and the oddities that arise from current AI training practices (e.g., watches always showing ‘10:10’ in generated images).

5. Media Landscape: Bari Weiss to CBS News (18:08–31:04)

• Breaking news: Bari Weiss appointed as Editor-in-Chief of CBS News, with CBS/Paramount acquiring her Free Press venture for $150 million.
  • Quote: “This could be a major moment in [the media’s leftward tilt] being rolled back. Where it ends, nobody knows. But it's intriguing.” – Getty [29:04]
• The hosts explore what this means for legacy media, the prospects (and challenges) of reforming CBS’s credibility, and the significance (or imminent irrelevance) of mainstream news outlets compared to emerging platforms.
• Discussion about the increasing separation between “bigfoot” media (with vast resources for international investigative reporting) and new media (Substacks, podcasts), underscoring the tension between reach and credibility.

6. News Headlines with Katie Green (Lead Story) (14:38–18:04)

• Major political, cultural, and oddball headlines:
  • Trump’s declaration of “war” with drug cartels; skepticism from Congress.
  • White House memo suggesting Democrats’ proposal for $200B health care spend for unauthorized immigrants.
  • Satirical or eyebrow-raising campus happenings (e.g., University of Delaware TV network controversy).
  • Dave Chappelle’s controversial statement: “I have more free speech in Saudi Arabia than in the United States.” – [16:30–17:03]
  • Research on aging, “Human mind actually peaks at age 60.”
  • Lighthearted story: “Egyptian wrestler pulls 700 ton ship with only his teeth.”
  • Babylon Bee parody: “Chimps honor Jane Goodall with 21 Pooh Salute.”

7. Media Bias, Censorship & Generational Divide (35:24–37:55)

• Listener email about the difficulty for high school students to access balanced or conservative viewpoints, especially using school-provided devices. Conservative sources were actively blocked while researching for a class.
  • Quote: “Google’s AI... never gave any actual information as to the Republican viewpoint. Instead, they mainly gave the Democratic viewpoint and then the Democrats’ view of what the Republicans think.” – Listener email, quoted by Armstrong [36:12]
• Armstrong and Getty reflect on the dangers of siloed media and the challenge of nuanced information-seeking in a polarized landscape.

8. Quick Hits & Lighter Notes (31:04–32:38)

• Sports: NFL and MLB recaps, including personal confessions about missed games and comical takes on umpiring errors.
• The running gag about AI encroachment in unexpected places (“That’s a good argument for the computers coming in, I guess.” – Armstrong [32:20]).
• Tease of further segments: campus culture wars, campus “madness updates,” and broader commentary on the state of education.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “But Taylor Swift, with her life [which] has got to be more different than practically any life on earth outside of like maybe Elon Musk and Mick Jagger, can write songs that average teenage girls say, 'That's exactly what I'm feeling.' That's a talent right there.” – Getty ([02:49])
• “You got people in masks outdoors alone in the blue areas of the country who still, in a weird way, worship Covid as their God.” – Armstrong ([08:12])
• “AI could treat us the way we treat ants when we build a building... we're just, you know, kind of an in the way afterthought.” – Getty ([10:50])
• “Get on a bus, go to a real town, sit in a diner, see how many people are talking about the government shutdown.” – Getty ([06:41])
• “This could be a major moment in [the media’s leftward tilt] being rolled back.” – Getty ([29:04])
• “In my opinion... CBS is completely irrelevant compared to the Free Press. And if it isn't true today, it will be in five years.” – Armstrong ([27:03])
• “Google’s AI... never gave any actual information as to the Republican viewpoint... [It] mainly gave the Democratic viewpoint and then the Democrats’ view of what the Republicans think.” – Listener email, quoted by Armstrong ([36:12])
• Humor and self-deprecation throughout, e.g., “Oh my God, I've given up trying to swim against these currents. I'm just going to float downstream and take in the scenery.” – Armstrong ([10:19])
• Sports banter: “If we lose all that and everybody and it's all just people alone in their apartments typing away, I don't know if that's the best thing.” – Armstrong ([30:10])

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Timestamps for Major Segments

• 00:41–01:19: Opening banter, “general manager” of the day
• 01:12–05:08: Taylor Swift album review and cultural impact
• 05:08–07:07: Government shutdown lampooned
• 07:07–12:27: OpenAI, AI bubble risk, ASI fears
• 13:35–14:38: Katie Green joins on Taylor Swift’s business phenomenon
• 14:38–18:04: "Lead Story" headline rundown with Katie Green
• 18:08–31:04: Bari Weiss/CBS News shakeup, legacy media vs. new media
• 31:04–32:38: NFL/MLB recaps; light banter
• 33:41–38:33: AI in media, censorship in schools, listener mailbag

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Final Thoughts

The episode showcases Armstrong & Getty’s unique tone: skeptical, sharp-witted, and unafraid to blend serious topics with comic relief. Whether skewering political groupthink, marveling at pop culture phenomena, or breaking industry news, the show delivers fast-paced, context-rich commentary that gives listeners both news they can use and moments to chuckle over—candles, hand-holding, and all.

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Transcript

[A]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[B]

Broadcasting live from the Abraham Lincoln radio studio at.

[C]

The George Washington Broadcast Center. Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty.

[A]

Armstrong and Getty. And now here's I'm Strong and Getty live from Studio C. Seal Senior.

[B]

Friday. We're in a dimly lit room deep within the bowels of the Armstrong and Getty communications compound. And today we're under the tutelage of.

[A]

Our general manager, Global Anti Semites. What? Not very cheery, but I was just reviewing all the attacks on Jews around the world. Europe aflame with this sort of thing, people getting stabbed and run our disaster. All right.

[B]

It's going to take me a while to get into that mood. I was not in that. No, no, no, that's.

[A]

I just. I'm telling you, I was up. You got another nominee?

[B]

I was a. Yes. The Life of Showgirls, the new Taylor Swift album that dropped at midnight last night.

[A]

I'm going with any semi.

[B]

I was up very late, of course, had to wait for the Taylor Swift album. So I didn't get a lot of sleep. But actually I did not get much sleep. Not because of that, but I did listen to the Taylor Swift album on the way to work today. On Fridays, I usually listen to music and I was digging it. She has got a. I don't know what people like her do. They have ability to make the pop song sound bigger somehow or more layered. I don't know if it's because she has the best producers in the world working on them or some talent she has or what, but they don't sound like, you know, the other wannabes. They sound different for some reason.

[A]

Interesting. I'll have to give it a listen.

[B]

Rolling Stone gave it five stars out of five stars.

[A]

What's Rolling Stone?

[B]

It's a magazine that they. They used to print on magazine but now it's a website. Reason. Anyway, I was reading the review in the Washington Post and you know what Taylor Swift's talent is and everybody knows this, but I was listening to the album on the way here. You know, it's not. It's not my genre usually that I listen to. So it's not the sort of thing that I normally am just gonna throw on, but for that sort of thing, it's like she's really good at that, but her ability to write songs that I can really see how if you're a teenage girl, it'd be like, yeah, that's exactly what I'm feeling. Whether it's the I just fell in love or I just broke up Or I've got, you know, my, my frenemies in the hallway that are posting nasty things about me online and I've been talking, I saw him talking to my ex boyfriend and just she, you know.

[A]

She just 20 somethings and 30 somethings too.

[B]

Oh yeah, all my nieces are super into it and they're all adults now. They liked her when they were kids but this. But Taylor Swift with her life which has got to be more different than practically any life on earth outside of like maybe Elon Musk and Mick Jagger can write songs that. That average teenage girls said. That's exactly what I'm feeling. That's a talent right there. I don't know how you do that.

[A]

But you know, weirdly enough the other night after watching my newses, I was watching my music geek hour long interviews with producers talking about what sort of microphone they like to use on the snare Dr. Type videos. And, and for some reason after that one ended, YouTube gave me Taylor Swift's Shake it off video.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Which I don't quite get but it's very, very catchy pop song so. And she's, you know, cute. So I decided to watch it. Oh by the way, now it might be an appropriate time. You're busy crafting your. I think her music sucks and I don't think she's that hot video email. Don't bother. Please don't bother. Good lord. Anyway, but I watched it and was reminded of her. Her whole thing of I'm super gorgeous and talented but secretly a dork and just like you.

[B]

Exactly. Yeah.

[A]

If I were to summarize her whole deal.

[B]

Yep, that is it. That is exactly it. And that's a lot of that in the new album too.

[A]

And the other side of that coin is hey audience, you're just like me. Yeah.

[B]

And you know, in reality heartbreak is heartbreak whether you're a billionaire or not. So you know, if you can write about it, it's relatable to anyone. I suppose it's just, you know, you just, you're. You just flew away from your boyfriend for the last time on a private jet as opposed to took the subway, you know, or whatever. But yeah, the same feelings where he.

[A]

Accidentally sat in someone's spit. Yeah, it's. Yeah, yeah, it is. On the other hand, you know, and this is more Taylor Swift talk than I intended to get into today, but you duped me. The yes, I'm rich and famous now and I'm glammed up, but I'm a dork just like you is a Much more realistic view of quote, unquote, stars.

[B]

Oh, yeah.

[A]

Standard. They're superhuman celebrities who must be worshiped thing.

[B]

That's a very good point. It's a completely accurate. They are. You know, we've met a few celebrities with this job, and obviously people are just people. Yeah, yeah, that's a. That's a good point. Anyway, so we're in government shutdown day three. So it's a little tough.

[A]

I'm trying to put off talking about that because I get so emotional. I know you know that about me.

[B]

We gotta light all the candles, Michael. They burnt out overnight. We gotta get all the candles. All right, I'll get some matches. Yes, we. We light candles to. I don't know. We're all. We're all praying that the Department of Interior being shut down for three days is somehow not going to. I don't know. What do they do? I don't even know.

[A]

We all. During commercial breaks, we form a circle and we hold hands and we sing we shall overcome and all the old songs. Pete Seeger songs.

[B]

So they're going to vote today probably. And there's no indication that anybody any more Democrats are going to flake. So it's going to go down. And the guy who runs the Senate said we're not going to vote over the weekend. So it'll be at least Monday. Monday at the earliest that they'll be able to get it opened back up again.

[A]

Too bad. I planned on breathlessly following the proceedings over the weekend.

[B]

Well, you know, the media is going to. I won't. I won't follow it. I'll bet you the Sunday talk shows all lead with government shutdown with the hilarious lack of realization that nobody else cares.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. Absolutely true. Yep.

[B]

They will lead with it with tick tock updates as if everybody's hanging on every word. How could they be so out of touch? Get on a bus, go to a real town, sit in a diner, see how many people are talking about the government shutdown.

[A]

Just do it.

[B]

Any of you. Good.

[A]

Sit down at the counter and say, how about that government shutdown? Just wait to hear what they say. Oh, yeah, yeah, I guess I heard about that.

[B]

If they've heard about it at all.

[A]

Right, all right.

[B]

Yeah, we should start the show officially. And there's. Man, there's some interesting stuff today. I took in a bunch of AI information yesterday. And then coincidentally, there's some AI news out today. For instance, OpenAI, that company that has chat GPT, just hit $500 billion. The most valuable privately owned company in the world. And there's a great article in the Washington Post about. Is this a bubble that's super interesting and. And. And frightening af. No, we'll get to that later. Let's go. But we need to start the show. I'm Jack Armstrong. He's Joe Getty on this. It is Friday, October 3rd, the year 2025, where Armstrong and getting. We approve of this program.

[A]

All right, then, let's jump into action. Precisely according to FCC rules and regulations, the show starts at Mark Insulin was.

[B]

People weren't taking it, I would imagine.

[A]

They just.

[B]

They couldn't take.

[A]

God bless you, Bobby. I hope I didn't catch COVID just there. Don't you have paxlovid?

[B]

He's got paxlovid.

[A]

Give me a paxlovid immediately. And then you got people in masks outdoors alone in the blue areas of the country who still, in a weird way, worship Covid as their God. Or certainly is this symbol of their God gathered?

[B]

My son, my youngest had a really bad sore throat last night. He said, this is the worst sore throat I've ever had. So I googled what the latest variant is. It's called. I looked it up. Doesn't really matter.

[A]

Life of a Showgirl.

[B]

It's called Life of a Showgirl. That's the latest COVID variant.

[A]

Yeah. Taylor Swift has formed a promotional tie in with the coronavirus.

[B]

Taylor Swift is so big and so powerful.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

That the new coronavirus variant is named for her album.

[A]

She has agreements with Target Stores, Anheuser Busch and Covid.

[B]

That is funny. But anyway, there's a new one out there and the most dominant one. You can get his sword through it. But I don't know if he got that or not. Who knows? And if he did, what am I going to do about. Is it is what it is. The thing about the AI bubble, though, is really super interesting stuff. We've been talking about this. How the stock market set in records constant. There's like five stocks driving the whole thing. And Washington Post broke down the percentage of all the revenue and growth of everything that has happened in recent times and how it's so incredibly narrow and how it all could just be all of them trading money to each other.

[A]

Oh, boy. Yeah.

[B]

Which is really something.

[A]

Oh, boy. Yeah.

[B]

No kidding. Oh, boy.

[A]

Oh, boy. I got a couple of calls I need to make as soon as business.

[B]

I don't know if they're right or not, but who knows. And then some other interesting stuff about when ASI might be coming. That'd be artificial super intelligence, which is the next step beyond artificial general intelligence. When. When things get really wacky, which is either going to happen never or in two or three years.

[A]

Oh my God, I've given up trying to swim against these currents. I'm just going to float downstream and take in the scenery. I don't know what to think about any of this stuff. Honestly.

[B]

I don't know if there's much you could do about it. Unless. Unless, like, you think you ought to vote for people who would be in Congress who were in favor of passing laws, blah, blah, blah, but.

[A]

Right.

[B]

I don't know if there's a head of steam for that.

[A]

It just all seems so big and full of conflicting descriptions and opinions. You know what I mean?

[B]

Well, yeah. And according to most of the experts, if it ever does happen, if it ever takes off, it'll be out of our hands very quickly. Then it'll be the computers doing whatever they're doing and harvesting our organs, training our vital juices or doing whatever. The example I keep hearing brought up before we take a break is when human beings decide they need to build a building somewhere. You know, there are tons of ants on that ground and mice, all kinds of different living beasts. But we don't worry about that. We just roll the bulldozers in and build the building because we think that needs to happen and AI could treat us the way we treat ants when we build a building. Oh my. They've got something they need to do and we're just, you know, kind of an in the way afterthought.

[A]

It's really not that we'll make more of ourselves just like ants.

[B]

Yeah, or you just don't really even think about it.

[A]

On the other hand, what if they achieve that artificial superintelligence and the computers, for reasons that we cannot comprehend, they just become obsessed with, say, tennis building tennis robots, better and better tennis robots. And they just completely obsess over tennis.

[B]

Who knows? Somehow, like their, their hallucination is the most important thing on planet Earth is tennis.

[A]

You can't play tennis anymore because there's robots on every court. But other than that, it's fine.

[B]

Better balls, better racke.

[A]

Right?

[B]

More courts in every town.

[A]

We have developed a new ball that moves at it. Okay, Nobody cares.

[B]

That's pretty funny. Okay, we got Katie's headlines on the way and lots of other stuff. Stay here.

[A]

Armstrong and Getty.

[C]

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[B]

You know, Katie, you haven't had a chance to criticize me for this. Yes, you know, Katie, I was just having a conversation with the news director out there. She said, which song is your favorite song? Because we both were listening to the Taylor Swift album on the way to work. It's been out for a couple hours. Nobody else comes close to being able to do that. In the modern world of music, having music come out and you have people conversing about the songs within hours of its launch. And I just, I'm, I'm just fascinated by the phenomena. Albums don't even really exist anymore.

[D]

Yeah, I, I'm fascinated by it too.

[B]

I, I don't know.

[D]

I liked Taylor Swift when I was in high school, but I haven't really stuck with her. But hey, there's no denying that she's.

[B]

Got a massive talent, Some, some magic going on. And business, business wise too. I mean, just, you could ignore the music and just study your business acumen.

[A]

Yeah, I remember back when Madonna was huge, I was much more interested in her entrepreneurial skills than her bubs or.

[B]

I don't feel like Madonna can hold a candle to Taylor Swift though, in terms of craftsmanship.

[A]

Different league, you know. All right, let's figure out who's reporting what. It's lead story with Katie Green. Katie, what's happening?

[D]

All right, starting with ABC News, U.S. is engaged in formal armed conflict with terrorist drug cartels, according to Trump.

[B]

Yeah. Trump sent a lender congress. We are at war with the drug cartels. There's reporting, it's from the New York Times and anonymous sources that there were members of both parties highly questioning that behind closed doors.

[A]

Yeah. Senators of both sides saying that the legal basis for this seems a little shaky.

[D]

From Fox News. From Fox News White House memo says Democrats plan could spend $200 billion on health care for illegal immigrants.

[A]

Yeah, we need to talk a little bit about that. There's one point that the Republicans are starting to get nervous on, allegedly during the shutdown.

[B]

Oh, boy.

[A]

And if they give on this, it's the end of our experiments in self governance.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, it's. Yeah, it's highly troubling. I read that, too.

[D]

From the Free Beacon. University of Delaware student run TV network offers quote, special thanks to Charlie Kirk's killer.

[A]

Wow.

[D]

School also houses the Biden Institute.

[A]

I'm telling you, that piece I read you part of yesterday from Barton Swim really opened my eyes. That out of the attitudes that explain lefty violence are quite mainstream on the left, you look at right wing violence, it's lunatics who don't believe anything conservatives believe. But lefties, they're straight out of campus. They're repeating what their professors have told them and, and using the justifications for violence that their professors taught them.

[D]

This one from the Daily Mail, Dave Chappelle says he has more, quote, free speech in Saudi Arabia than in the United States.

[B]

Oh, you've got to be kidding. I like Dave Chappelle, but that's a ridiculous comment to make. And he's one of the comedians. He's one of the comedians that took a giant paycheck to go to perform for slave holding women stoning rapists. While Dave Chappelle is all about social justice and. All right, well, but, you know, you.

[A]

Did your transgender jokes and the people yelled and screamed and tried to cancel you, and they failed and you made fun of them. But that's your lack of freedom of speech. What are you talking about? That is one of the dumbest things I've ever heard that incredibly talented guy say.

[B]

Unless that's taken out of context. I'll wait for context.

[D]

From the Times. Forget youthful brilliance. The human mind actually peaks at age 60.

[B]

Yes. No, that's bad news. I'm 60. I'm downhill from here.

[A]

I don't know if that's true.

[D]

From the New York Post, Egyptian wrestler pulls 700 ton ship with only his teeth.

[B]

Yeah, we had that joke yesterday. That's a good trick. Good for you.

[A]

Yeah. Wow. Wow. That's. You know, it really restores your faith in humanity that somebody can pull a boat that big with his teeth.

[D]

And finally, from the Babylon be Chimps honor, Jane Goodall with 21 Pooh.

[A]

Salute. Oh, I get it.

[B]

So we have some breaking news that's worth talking about. As soon as we come back. Barry Weiss named top editor at CBS News. This could be a big deal for one of your legacy news outlets. Very excited about this.

[A]

Maybe.

[B]

Stay tuned.

[A]

No, I'm not. No, no. Armstrong and Gettysburg.

[C]

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[B]

I complete I completely forgot. Completely forgot.

[D]

Taylor Swift on the brain.

[B]

Yep. Too much Taylor Swift, not enough Paying attention to the Friday schedule.

[A]

So much to come.

[B]

Hope I've learned a lesson, including if.

[A]

The Republicans cave on this, the Republic is over. But right now, in spite of Jack's carelessness, it's time for Friday tradition. Let's take a fun look back at the week that was. It's Cow Clips of the week. Cows are good, cows are neat. But this cow isn't made of meat. It's clips of the Week.

[C]

And Americans bracing for a government shutdown.

[B]

Final countdown.

[A]

Nobody likes Democrats anymore. We have no voters left because of all of our woke trans bull.

[B]

It's a disgusting video.

[A]

And is it helpful to post pictures.

[B]

Of leader Jeffries and the sombrero?

[A]

Oh, I think it's funny. I make this solemn promise to you that if you help us reopen the government, the sombrero memes will stop.

[B]

Just be you.

[A]

Just be me. Yep, you should eat with the Ital and you should drink with the Irish.

[B]

Tilly Norwood is an AI generated actress.

[A]

Gaining attention and drawing swift backlash because I was feeling good. Well, that feels good. Look out. This may lead the park.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

Ohtani second of the night.

[B]

Today's show is brought to you by.

[A]

The official animal of Long Island Ticks Tix. Get it off me.

[B]

Get it off me. Despite all all we've achieved, I cannot continue my re election campaign.

[A]

So let's go to Oregon where antifa radical left anarchists are causing chaos in that city. We're under invasion from within.

[B]

No different than a foreign enemy.

[A]

How about we all come together and say let's stop murders? How about we all come together and say let's stop attacking pedophiles? Golf teaches you very good life lessons. It teaches you etiquette. Got poop on your shirt? Are you watching Donald Trump?

[B]

We became the woke department, but not anymore. No more identity months, DEI offices, dudes in dresses. We are done with that.

[A]

Well, the whole world is waiting for Hamas formal yes or no to this deal here. This can be done the easy way or it can be done the hard.

[B]

Way, but it will.

[A]

I have a feeling that we're going to have a positive answer. Arab leaders like dealing with Donald Trump.

[B]

They say he understands us, we understand him.

[A]

As you know, Bibi, you'd have more full backing to do what you would have to do.

[B]

You know, what we got to figure out for as a rule for clips of the week is like practically every week now we have somebody in an AI voice. And if you weren't around originally when we played it, you'd obviously been misled. That that's what Trump or Schumer or whoever were playing actually said. Which is one of the problems with the whole AI thing.

[A]

Well, the solution is simple. Listen to every minute of the show every week. So there you go. I'm a problem solver. You know, I'm flipping through that. It remains to be seen whether Hamas will agree. Blah, blah, blah. I'm flipping through the New York Times and nothing, nothing. There's no headline, there's no follow up, there's no Qatari authorities say on the Hamas.

[B]

Yeah, one quick thing before we get into the news. Does anybody have the SORA code? So a brand new app just came out. It's an, it's a, it's a social media app made by OpenAI. It's all AI generated. There are no real humans or anything like that. It's all AI videos, AI voices, AI everything. But you have to have an invitation for somebody that's already a user to get on it. I downloaded the app. I know we have enough people listening in the Silicon Valley. Somebody's got the code. Send me the code so I can get on the app. All right. On a text line, 415295KFTC. Who's got the Sora code? Text line 415295KFTC. Now, we have talked about Barry Weiss a lot over Quite a few years now. She was hired at the New York Times in the opinion room as they were trying to get more conservative voices. And while she is conservative on a number of issues, she's also a gay woman married to another woman. She's pro choice. She's a whole bunch of things that don't fit in always with what is conservative. She's very pro Israel. She's very, she's very pro free speech. She's. She's a lot of things that, that we tend to like. But anyway, she said she was getting bullied so much in the newsroom at New York Times that she resigned. And then she went off and started her own gig, Free Press. And it has been incredibly successful. She hired a whole bunch of different journalists. She's done some absolutely amazing journalism in the last however many years.

[A]

It is four or five years and old school journalism. She calls out both sides, tells it as she sees it, as do her people.

[B]

Yeah, I'm a big fan of her all the way around. And so the news had been bubbling for a while now that she was that CBS was looking to Paramount. Skydance which owns CBS was looking to buy the Free Press for originally the number was a couple hundred million dollars. Well, the news just broke. Barry Weiss will be named top editor at CBS News. And they have purchased Free Press for 150 million in cash and stock. And also naming Weiss to the CBS News is top editorial job. CBS also recently hired a conservative leaning ombudsman to field complaints about the network's editorial coverage. As they are trying to go, they say trying to go more what they should have been all along. Middle of the road.

[A]

Yeah, I'm curious to.

[B]

That's not the right term. Middle of the road. Honest is better. You don't have to be middle of the road. If four stories in a row break in the direction of the conservatives are wrong, feel free to report it that way.

[A]

Sure.

[B]

But you know, just report what's happening.

[A]

Yeah, it always, I was going to say a noise. It doesn't annoy me. People say you guys are right down the middle. And I know what you mean. We try to be fair but oh no. I'm an avowed conservative and proud of it. But anyway, I'd be curious to hear and I'm sure I will hear from Barry Weiss why she and the crew went down this path or generational wealth certainly. I doubt that's an attractive office.

[B]

I doubt that's it. She's doing pretty well and she's got a lot of other avenues well, that's.

[A]

Why I'm so curious. Because the free press doesn't need Paramount. Skydance is. CBS is completely irrelevant compared to the free press.

[B]

You think so?

[A]

In my opinion. And if it isn't true today, it will be in five years. Oh, look at the demographics of who watches CBS News and who logs onto their website or whatever. It's, it's just, it's, it's clearly going down as the.

[B]

Do you think that's because of that? Mean, there's no denying that. But do you think that is because of the medium or because they got such a tarnish on them? She might think, well, we can rescue this medium. Television is still fine if it's, if people get the idea that it's someplace they can go to, to get a, you know, a decent shake on a news story.

[A]

Yeah. I have a feeling that Paramount sold her on the idea of complete editorial independence. I'm sure that was part of it.

[B]

Absolutely. There's no way she would take that job or she'll, she'll loudly scream if she gets overruled on something, she'll quit.

[A]

Right, right. But also the, all of the resources of, you know, CBS News and Paramount, Skydance and the rest of it, whatever those happen to be. Oh, my God. I'm a little worried. It's like my, my favorite indie band that I worship just got, you know, signed to Columbia Records back in the day and, and the producers known for, for the top pop hits of the day has been assigned to work with them.

[B]

But yeah, your, your idea about resources could be a lot of it. I mean, when, when you're the person in charge of news direction and you have all of the tools that exist with 60 minutes, for instance, and covering stories all around the world. Holy crap.

[A]

Well, and I'm sure she can go to her bosses and say, hey, we want to do a documentary on X. It's going to be 90 minutes long. We figure it'll cost $10 million. And they'll say, do it.

[B]

Well, I'll tell you what. With her in charge, there's no way 60 Minutes is going to do some of the ridiculously biased stories they've done about the whole Israel, Palestinian thing over the last few years.

[A]

Yeah. The whole lefty takeover of the media. Newsrooms all across America, we've witnessed it personally. This could be a major moment in it being rolled back. Where it ends, nobody knows. But it's intriguing.

[B]

Yeah. And there's just unlikely. Said there's no way she keeps her mouth shut if for some reason she runs up against them not letting her do it the way she wants to do it.

[A]

Right, Right. Yeah. I guess the. The thing that keeps sticking with me and you have more affection for CBS and 60 Minutes and Stuff than I do is all of that just seems irrelevant now. But again, Paramount Skydance is a big company.

[B]

You might be right. And I might be fighting against the tide of time or. The tide of time has already overwhelmed me and I'm at the bottom of the sea and I don't even realize it, but man, there are all these other different, you know, podcasts and YouTube channels and sub stack sort of things, whatever like that. But nobody has the resources to go do a big long piece story in the Middle east still like the New York Times or CBS or any of the bigfoot media. They just don't do it. It's true.

[A]

Yep.

[B]

If we lose all that and everybody and it's all just people alone in their apartments typing away, I don't know if that's the best thing.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah. Speaking of the battlefront over progressive control, we have a Campus Madness update coming up later in the show. I'm telling you, the only thing that I believe has been accomplished on college campuses is that we've forced some of the maniacs into a defensive crouch and. Or a strategic show of compliance just until the bad weather passes. The bad weather being the Trump administration and the attention of conservative America. The wildly angry crazy left is still firmly in charge of our educational systems, top to bottom.

[B]

I need to admit something that I'm highly embarrassed about.

[A]

Oh, no. It's good for the soul.

[B]

I turned off the football game. I thought it was over. I had no idea it went into overtime.

[A]

49Ers Rams.

[B]

I had no idea it went into overtime. I checked the score at some point and I thought, okay, that's firmly in hand. And then gave up. I didn't. I didn't. I didn't tune in. It sounds like it was freaking fantastic.

[A]

Shame on you.

[B]

Like, like an all the time great Thursday night division for the division sort of game.

[A]

It was wonderful. If it was a movie, I'd have walk to the theater saying that script was a bit much.

[B]

Damn it, I can't believe I haven't recorded. Can I still enjoy it maybe?

[A]

Oh, you can. It's. It's insane. Damn it. It was unbelievable. Yeah. Sorry, Rams fans, don't mean to gloat. And. And my Cubbies. No, I'm wearing my old school Cubs T shirt here now. Hanson plain lettering the gray in a simple Cub patch. On my left shoulder.

[B]

Hansen, as a longtime Padres fan says there was a bogus third strike call that led to the Padres losing.

[A]

Yes, but it was at a critical moment, so. Oh, that makes it worse. Sorry.

[B]

Yeah, it was a bad call.

[A]

It was a bad call.

[B]

Oh, that sucks.

[A]

Totally, totally missed.

[B]

That's a good argument for the computers coming in, I guess.

[A]

Or a good argument for protecting the plate on a three and two count. What do you got that bat in your hands for? You're not going to swing it, huh? You got to guard the plate.

[B]

Wow, Joe the Little League coach coming out.

[A]

What are you doing?

[B]

We've got Mailbag on the way and lots of news. Stay here.

[A]

Armstrong and Getty.

[C]

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[B]

Got some seriously interesting AI stuff that I can't wait to get to. There's some seriously frightening Russia, Ukraine, NATO, US stuff. That thing is about to get way hotter I think as a global story. Anyway, more on that later.

[A]

Neil Ferguson wrote a great piece for the Free Press entitled the Future of War is Here in Europe is not ready for it and we can dive into that when we discuss that right now. It's your freedom loving quote of the day. Controversial from Brendan o', Neill, the Irish writer. Think he's Irish or does he just sound Irish? Brendan o', Neill, well he was is certainly Irish family. They're good folks. Many high status women have giddily sacrificed solidarity with their own sex on the altar of validating the delusional identities of men in dresses. They betrayed womankind so that they might gain access to the rarefied realm of elite opinion. Moral treachery masquerading as progressivism.

[B]

There you go.

[A]

And some good writing right there. Mailbag.

[B]

I have I have much to say about that, but another time, feel free to reach out.

[A]

Mailbagarmstrongygetty.com is the email address. You know, this is a good idea, a really good idea. I hesitate to read it because the show is going to go down the tubes because executive producer Hanson is going to spend all of his time on this project. Sean's suggestion? You have to have Hanson and make an AI We Are the World type song to raise money for the government shutdown.

[B]

That's pretty funny.

[A]

Oh boy. And let's see. Moving along. Nice note from Sarah on media silos, the high school edition. Unplug the Internet, bring back objective newspaper journalism and an encyclopedia she writes My daughter is in her senior year public high school in New Jersey taking an AP government classes. She was asked to choose a political topic and write a persuasive essay either from the Democratic or the Republican viewpoint. As both her parents are on the conservative end. She chose to try to write something from the Republican viewpoint only to be frustrated. Everywhere she looked. Google's AI as well as most sites that were prompted by her searches, never gave any actual information as to the Republican viewpoint. Instead they mainly gave the Democratic viewpoint and then the Democrats view of what the Republicans think.

[B]

Right, which is what you get. Well, you can understand why the the AI would do that because that's what all mainstream journalism is and that's where it's getting its information.

[A]

She finally had to involve her brother who writes papers for a conservative university. Yes, there are a couple left in doing some of the research so she could find legitimate sites that she could use as sources. Several of the sites he offered she could not even access from her school issued computer. They were forbidden.

[B]

Wow, that's true.

[A]

They were mainstream conservative journalism.

[B]

Elon was talking the other day about having Grok rewrite Wikipedia. Some sort of Grokopedia you could go to where it's more fair and balanced.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. Got some interesting stuff on One of the founders of Wikipedia is trying to save it from becoming a progressive hellhole. But maybe later I thought this was amusing given the previous email. It's from the good folks at cnn. They're asking me to stand with fact focused journalism. We share your belief in the truth, power, essential journalism in a time when it matters most. And they want me to subscribe to some CNN web service and that's why.

[B]

We have have nine panelists on every story, all with the same view. And one token conservative that we scream at like he's a Nazi.

[A]

Exactly. Tied in all of the above, Jason writes. Oh, so AI is awesome, right? Pick your favorite AI app. Ask it to create an image of a watch with the hour and minute hand anywhere. Tell it what time you want. Analog watch, not digital. No matter what time you select, the image will be set to 1010, no matter what. The reason is that most, if not all online picks of watches are ads and all are set to 1010. They feel like it looks the best to show off the watch, so AI has nothing to train on other than that one setting.

[B]

It's fascinating. Of course, the the point is not the watch picture, it's just that that's what it does with everything.

[A]

Yeah, that is really interesting. Quite aptly, it's pretty crazy. It can create a meal plan for my dad with colon cancer, but can't even tell time. That's really interesting, Jason. Oh man, we're out of time. Got so much good stuff. Barry from Thailand wants to know. Someone please tell me, what's the big deal with the Nobel Peace Prize? It's an absolute fraud. Many of its recipients had nothing to do with peace, and I wish Trump wouldn't obsess over it.

[B]

Yeah, he thinks it looked cool. I hang it on his wall or on his desk or whatever. We got three more hours. If you miss any segment, get the podcast. Armstrong and Getty on demand.

[A]

Armstrong and Gettysburg. This is an I heart podcast.