Good Faith Katelyn Beaty on Celebrity Culture, AI, and the Risks of Disembodied Faith
Mar 26, 2026
Katelyn Beaty, author and journalist who studies evangelical culture, critiques how persona and platforms reshape Christian life. She discusses persona versus fame, the shift from embodied relationships to content-first platforms, platform temptations for leaders, megachurch limits, and how AI might detach teaching from real community. Short, sharp, and provocative takes on faith, publicity, and belonging.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Persona Is Media Projection Not Ordinary Fame
- Persona is a projected, media-driven image distinct from ordinary fame and relies on mass media to disembody relationships.
- Katelyn Beaty warns persona tempts creators with dopamine hits and positive reinforcement from strangers that outweighs formative embodied friendships.
Cultivate In-Person Friends Who Speak Truth
- Protect your spiritual formation by cultivating embodied relationships that can speak truth and love beyond platform feedback.
- Katelyn advises leaning into friendships, family, and in-person critics who value you apart from your online persona.
Platform Content Warps Discipleship Into Atomized Therapy
- Platform-centered teaching changes what discipleship looks like by making formation atomized and therapeutic rather than communal and accountable.
- Beaty emphasizes that content consumers often don't know a teacher's character or how they treat staff and congregation.
