Digital Social Hour – Episode #1634

Kyla Turner: How Social Media Bots Are Destroying Political Reality

Host: Sean Kelly
Guest: Kyla Turner (aka "Not So Erudite")
Date: November 21, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, Sean Kelly sits down with political commentator and debater Kyla Turner to dissect how social media bots are distorting political discourse, eroding democratic trust, and fueling cultural and political polarization. The discussion covers the mechanics and impact of bots, media and protest literacy, wealth gaps, AI economics, U.S.-China relations, cancel culture, Christian nationalism, and the power structures of both mainstream and alternative media. Kyla brings her signature candor and analytic depth, navigating everything from insider crypto moves to the intricacies of political debate culture.

Key Topics & Insights

1. The Erosion of Political Reality by Social Media Bots

[16:40 - 25:00; 30:46 - 34:40]

• Bots on Twitter/X: Kyla outlines how bots inflate engagement, create false realities, and stoke outrage:

  "You could—I can basically at this point predict which tweets will go viral. And they're almost always partisan hack tweets... Nuanced ones don't do well." (Kyla, [17:01])

• Despite Elon Musk's claims of eliminating bots, both agree bot activity is visible, especially with politically charged tweets, live stream comments, and viral moments.
• Bots are not just boosting egos; countries like Russia and China use bot farms as assets to manipulate democracy:

  “Russian bot farms have been found. We know that Chinese bot farms have been found... It is destroying our democracy because democracy dies when the two parties can't communicate." (Kyla, [17:57])

• Kyla describes the psychological danger posed by bots, who mimic human engagement convincingly and amplify extreme voices on both sides.
• Artificial Virality:

  "If you got some money, you can artificially create a celebrity overnight... That probably happens in the political space for sure." (Sean, [24:28])

2. Peaceful Protest, Democracy, and Authoritarianism

[00:00 - 09:24; 41:05-44:40]

• The duo discusses recent protests (“No Kings”) and the effectiveness of peaceful civil action versus violent uprisings.
• Kyla draws on global examples, highlighting the Orange Revolution in Ukraine:

  "Almost all of history and data shows that, like, some of the most successful revolutions and protests are peaceful.” (Kyla, [00:00])

• She notes the threat to democracy when peaceful protests are met with violence and compares the U.S. and China’s different stances on protest rights.
• Memes and internet culture can help set the tone for modern protest movements.

3. Wealth Discrepancy and AI/Crypto Bubble

[05:00 - 06:51; 25:00-28:51]

• The conversation pivots to economic volatility, the AI bubble, and insider crypto trading among political elites.
• Kyla expresses distrust in overhyped AI companies and describes moving wealth to precious metals like silver and gold.
• On the wealth gap:

  “If you own a company with more than 40 staff and your staff's wages have stagnated while your actual profit company profits have grown or your executive's income has grown, you're a piece of [expletive]... There is no excuse for your employees wages to be stagnating." (Kyla, [25:00])

• They foresee AI-driven job loss and further wage stagnation inflaming popular discontent.

4. U.S.-China Rivalry and Global Power

[09:24 - 16:14]

• Kyla sees China as "a huge threat" due to its technological advances, economic strategies, disregard for regulation, and expansionist aims under Xi Jinping:

  "They are ahead in AI... because they have way less barriers and regulations. It creates this weird tenuousness where we're fighting against a regime that doesn't uphold any of the Western liberal democratic values…and we're losing." (Kyla, [11:06])

• She emphasizes the necessity of the U.S. maintaining its economic lead:

  “It's paramount... if America falls behind in GDP, that affects our military, our trading, our currency.” (Kyla, [12:06])

5. Media Manipulation, Cancel Culture, and Free Speech

[34:40 - 42:38]

• Kyla details the chilling effects of both left and right-wing cancel culture and the erosion of principled opposition.
• She relays her own experience with YouTube deplatforming and how even ideological adversaries rallied for her reinstatement:

  "I think it's really important that we see people of our opposition being principled. I think it's really important that we praise our opposition when they do the things that we want to see... If you tear them down, all you want is a worse world." (Kyla, [31:54])

• Sean notes the shift of influence from traditional TV to alternative media/podcasts and its double-edged impact.

  "I feel like the podcasters in the alternative media just have more impact than the television shows." (Sean, [33:52])

• Kyla worries about clout and money incentives in both spaces, emphasizing the former can be especially corrupting in alt-media.

6. Journalism, Democratic Institutions, and Authoritarian Drift

[35:30 - 40:05]

• Kyla raises serious alarms about Trump's targeting of media and staffers disloyal to him:

  “[Putin and Xi Jinping]... Media is like one of the first things. And peaceful protests is a second... You punish peaceful protesters, you call them terrorists... and you destroy media... That is not your job as president." (Kyla, [37:06])

• She highlights the difference between cultural censorship (left) and state censorship (right), arguing recent Trump-era actions are unprecedented.

7. Debate Culture, Socratic Method, and Personal Philosophy

[42:38 - 55:42]

• Kyla explains her commitment to internal critique using the Socratic method:

  "Socratic method is just like a method of interrogating your philosophy... you get down to your foundational beliefs and you know that you believe them because you've tested them against other things sufficiently." (Kyla, [42:40])

• She discusses the value of passionate, even mean, debate as long as it’s ethical and in good faith.
• Her Discord community is presented as a microcosm for robust but often ruthless philosophical debate.

8. Christian Nationalism and the Dangers of Blending Church & State

[46:40 - 49:14]

• Kyla firmly opposes the fusion of religion and state:

  "I think it's bad for the religion and it's bad for the state. I think it ruins Christianity and I think it ruins democracy." (Kyla, [47:03])

• She unpacks the risks of Christian nationalism’s rise, particularly among young men, framing it as an unhealthy quest for power antithetical to the teachings of Christ.

9. Conspiracies, Radicalization, and Media Literacy

[59:08 - 64:20]

• Kyla distinguishes between legitimate skepticism and conspiratorial thinking, warning the latter is often rooted in psychological vulnerability and driven by bot-amplified content.
• On dealing with viral conspiracies:

  “I think conspiracy theories are very like psychologically dangerous in a way that like almost nothing else is.” (Kyla, [59:17])

• They agree that censorship often radicalizes, not solves, fringe communities (i.e., when users are banned they just form echo chambers elsewhere).

10. U.S. Politics — Trump’s Second Term, Staff Shakeups, and Democracy at Risk

[69:04 - 77:26]

• Kyla’s verdict on Trump’s current term is unequivocal:

  “Based on what he said he was going to do... F minus.” (Kyla, [69:22])

• She details his firing of dissenting staff, erosion of checks and balances, admiration for autocrats, and polarized approach to governance.
• Kyla stresses that Trump’s building a “sycophantic administration” and laments the normalization of once-unthinkable attacks on democratic norms.

11. Middle East, Israel/Palestine, and the Limits of Leadership

[78:14 - 82:15]

• Discussion closes with Kyla’s nuanced take on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the role of Netanyahu, and the difficulty of finding real solutions amid so much entrenched tragedy:

  “But killing kids and starving Palestinian people is definitely not the answer. That's insane... flattening all of Gaza because you don't want to risk any IDF soldiers for extraction jobs—also insane.” (Kyla, [81:51])

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• "Almost all of history and data shows that, like, some of the most successful revolutions and protests are peaceful." – Kyla ([00:00])
• "Democracy dies when the two parties can't communicate... and we're increasingly not living in the same reality, which is terrifying." – Kyla ([17:57])
• "If you got some money, you can artificially create a celebrity overnight." – Sean ([24:28])
• “You're a piece of [expletive]... There is no excuse for your employees wages to be stagnating.” – Kyla ([25:00])
• "They are ahead in AI... because they have way less barriers and regulations." – Kyla ([11:06])
• "I think it's really important that we praise our opposition when they do the things that we want to see." – Kyla ([31:54])
• "The podcasters in the alternative media just have more impact than television... Which is terrifying." – Sean & Kyla ([33:52],[33:55])
• "You shouldn't be allowed allowing it on your side. This is why I speak up against the left all the time and why the right has to speak up now. And if you're not, you are enabling the death of your democracy." – Kyla ([77:09])
• “If you tear them down, all you want is a worse world. You just want your anger.” – Kyla ([32:12])
• “But killing kids and starving Palestinian people is definitely not the answer. That’s insane. Flattening all of Gaza...also insane.” – Kyla ([81:51])

Timeline of Important Segments

• Peaceful protest, American/Chinese democracy: [00:00 – 09:24]
• Crypto, Economy, Wealth gap: [01:25 – 06:51]; [25:00 – 28:51]
• China, Tariffs, AI Rivalry: [09:24 – 16:14]
• Media bots, Social reality fractures: [16:40 – 25:00]
• Cancel culture, Free speech, Media manipulation: [34:40 – 42:38]
• Principles, Socratic method, Philosophy of debate: [42:38 – 55:42]
• Christian nationalism: [46:40 – 49:14]
• Conspiracies & Radicalization: [59:08 – 64:20]
• U.S. Politics: Trump, Staff shakeups, Democracy risks: [69:04 – 77:26]
• Middle East leadership & tragedy: [78:14 – 82:15]

Overall Tone & Style

• Kyla is direct, no-nonsense, but philosophical, sometimes fierce but stresses epistemic humility and the necessity of nuanced, good-faith debate.
• Sean is open, inquisitive, sometimes wry, offering outsider/layman reactions and good follow-up questions.
• The episode balances political seriousness with sharp wit and high-level analysis.

Final Thoughts

Kyla Turner’s appearance is a tour de force on the modern crisis of political perception, driven by bots, failing institutions, and bad-faith actors on both sides. Her appeal for intellectual rigor, media literacy, and constructive dialogue—plus her warnings about unchecked power—offer listeners both an alarm bell and a possible path forward.