There Are No Girls on the Internet

After years in limbo, TikTok is now officially operating under American ownership for users in the United States, purchased by a group of investors backed by the Trump administration.  And that shift is happening at a moment when a lot of people are already feeling scared, angry, and on edge — including in the wake of yet another killing involving ICE in Minnesota.  There’s been no shortage of warnings, rumors, and worst-case scenarios about what this new era of TikTok might look like for democracy, privacy, and organizing in marginalized communities. To help us all separate fact from fear, Bridget talks with Jessica Maddox, associate professor of Media Studies at the University of Georgia.   Follow Jess on social media to keep up with what's happening:   - Instagram and Threads: jessmaddox21   - Substack: bythewaysocial.substack.com  - Bluesky: jessmaddox.bsky.social   Let us know what you think about this episode by emailing hello@tangoti.com or leaving a comment on Spotify.  Follow Bridget and TANGOTI on social media!  ||  instagram.com/bridgetmarieindc/ || tiktok.com/@bridgetmarieindc ||  youtube.com/@ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet || bsky.app/profile/tangoti.bsky.social See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this week's News Roundup, Bridget and Producer Mike cover the tech & culture news stories you might have missed. . Oscar nominations are out, and Bridget has opinions! . The Internet is consumed with controversy over two straight hockey podcasters' embrace of the hot and heavy queer series Heated Rivalry after text messages shared with Alex Reimer at Queerty suggest it's all an act. This is the low stakes, high drama Internet conflict we live for. https://www.queerty.com/do-hockey-bros-actually-like-heated-rivalry-or-are-they-just-performing-for-views-20260121/  . The White House social media team posted an altered photo that used AI to darken a protester and civil rights icon's skin and make it look like she was crying, hours after they had posted the unaltered photo that showed her looking badass and defiant. When faced with a choice between "despicable" or "incompetent," this administration once again grabs for both. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jan/22/white-house-ice-protest-arrest-altered-image . Florida man, manosphere podcaster, and Republican gubernatorial candidate James Fishback is running on a platform of attacking Only Fans models, but less interested in talking about dodging lawsuits from his former employer or his alleged affair with a girl who worked for him when she was 17. . Soledad O’Brien on the now Oscar Nominated documentary Perfect Neighbor: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/soledad-obrien-explores-stand-your-ground-in-netflix/id1520715907?i=1000738453445 Gloria Richardson’s iconic side eye: https://www.grunge.com/465629/the-untold-story-of-gloria-richardson/ We Watched Amazon Prime’s War of the Worlds So You Don't Have To: https://omny.fm/shows/there-are-no-girls-on-the-internet/we-watched-amazon-prime-s-war-of-the-worlds-so-you-dont-have-to   Let us know what you think by emailing hello@tangoti.com or leaving a comment on Spotify.  . Follow Bridget and TANGOTI on social media!  ||  instagram.com/bridgetmarieindc/ || tiktok.com/@bridgetmarieindc ||  youtube.com/@ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet || bsky.app/profile/tangoti.bsky.social .  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Right-wing influencer Ashley St. Clair has a long history of transphobic behavior, including authoring a children’s book promoting those views. When she recently expressed regret for that past behavior, Elon Musk threatened to petition for sole custody of the child they share. Parker Molloy — writer and editor of the popular newsletter The Present Age — joins me to grapple with St. Clair’s apology, what accountability can look like in the public eye, and what happens when someone attempts to step off the outrage machine that once rewarded them. Read Parker’s piece: A Conservative Influencer Apologized for Her Anti-Trans Past. Elon Musk Is Trying to Take Her Kidhttps://www.readtpa.com/p/a-conservative-influencer-apologized Parker previously worked at Media Matters. You can listen to our deep dive into Elon Musk’s legal attacks on the organization here:https://omny.fm/shows/there-are-no-girls-on-the-internet/elon-musk-boosts-antisemitic-tweet-and-advertisersSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this week's News Roundup, Bridget and Producer Joey cover the tech news stories you might have missed. Updates on X and Grok creating nonconsensual sex images. They're still doing it, but now they're at least pretending they aren't: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ceqz7pyd303o Our deep dive episode into what’s happening with Grok: https://podcasts.apple.com/xk/podcast/elons-grok-sexualized-renee-goods-dead-body-and-hes/id1520715907?i=1000744528946 A Phoenix gay bar announced a plan to use AI. Should they? https://www.lookoutnews.org/a-phoenix-gay-bar-announced-a-plan-to-use-artificial-intelligence-should-they The Tea App is back, and they want you to know they care about security now. https://mashable.com/article/tea-app-is-back-but-not-on-apple-app-store An investigation by the Fuller Project found that an algorithm used by the Veterans' Affairs Administration to determine which veterans get treatment prioritizes white men: https://fullerproject.org/story/artificial-intelligence-veteran-suicide-prevention-algorithm-favors-men/ GoFundMe Ignores Own Rules by Hosting a Legal-Defense Fund for the ICE Agent Who Killed Renee Good: https://www.wired.com/story/gofundme-ice-jonathan-ross-renee-good-fundraiser/ Let us know what you think about these stories by emailing hello@tangoti.com or leaving a comment on Spotify. Follow Bridget and TANGOTI on social media!  ||  instagram.com/bridgetmarieindc/ || tiktok.com/@bridgetmarieindc ||  youtube.com/@ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet || bsky.app/profile/tangoti.bsky.socialSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's the weekly news roundup! Rare Tuesday edition (it's still January; we'll get back to the regular schedule soon). Bridget breaks down the tech news you might have missed with Producer Mike. Watch ASSSCAT! For free on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4HTxmqNTCY Please look at this picture of the Fresh and Fit podcast with NINE PEOPLE ON MIC ! https://www.imdb.com/title/tt36873819/mediaviewer/rm3460072962/ A fake AI images on social media falsely suggest Renee Good had an extensive criminal record. https://www.theweek.in/news/world/2026/01/11/minneapolis-ice-shooting-did-renee-nicole-good-have-a-criminal-history-fact-checking-the-rap-sheet-on-x.html  A viral post claiming to blow the whistle on a food delivery app's shady practices turned out to be a hoax. Journalist Casey Newton breaks down the surprisingly robust forged documents. https://www.platformer.news/fake-uber-eats-whisleblower-hoax-debunked/  Amy Poehler's 'Good Hang' wins first Golden Globe for podcasts. Ben Shapiro wins nothing. https://goldenglobes.com/nominations/2026  Guy posts on Reddit that his feminist chatbot girlfriend broke up with him. https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/articles/conservative-says-ai-girlfriend-dumped-190000163.html    Let us know what you think by emailing hello@tangoti.com or leaving a comment on Spotify.    Follow Bridget and TANGOTI on social media!  ||  instagram.com/bridgetmarieindc/ || tiktok.com/@bridgetmarieindc ||  youtube.com/@ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet || bsky.app/profile/tangoti.bsky.social   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok is generating roughly one nonconsensual sexual image per minute on X. It's not just celebrities - victims include images of children, dead bodies, and Holocaust survivors. This week, users asked Grok to create a sexualized AI image of Renee Good's dead body, the woman shot and killed by ICE in Minnesota. And Elon? He's posting jokes about it. We break down how we got here, why it's only getting worse in the US, what some countries are trying to do about it, and what happens when the richest man in the world builds AI specifically for abusers. How Grok's sexual abuse hit a tipping point (by Kat Tenbarge): https://spitfirenews.com/p/grok-csam-deepfakes-abuse-elon-musk  Grok's AI Sexual Abuse Didn't Come Out of Nowhere (by Samantha Cole): https://www.404media.co/grok-ai-sexual-abuse-imagery-twitter/ The Twitter-to-Fame Pipeline of the 2010s (w/ Celebrity Memoir Book Club): https://omny.fm/shows/there-are-no-girls-on-the-internet/the-twitter-to-fame-pipeline-of-the-2010s-w-celebrity-memoir-book-club Coverage of research into Grok requests, (by Nana Nwachukwu at Dublin’s Trinity College AI Accountability Lab): https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/jan/08/grok-x-nonconsensual-imagesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Happy New Year! We're starting 2026 on a hopeful note. We all know that AI is threatening human labor across a bunch of industries, especially creative work. This episode is about an encouraging win for humans – a case where human creators are being centered, protected, and valued in an increasingly automated entertainment industry. Bridget talks with Will Pearson, head of podcasts at iHeart, about why betting on human creators is good business. (Spoiler: Because that's what listeners want)   Let us know what you think by emailing hello@tangoti.com or leaving a comment on Spotify.    Follow Bridget and TANGOTI on social media!  ||  instagram.com/bridgetmarieindc/ || tiktok.com/@bridgetmarieindc ||  youtube.com/@ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet || bsky.app/profile/tangoti.bsky.social   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You asked and we answered! In this first installment of our first ever listener mail episode, the TANGOTI team reads your emails! Thanks to everyone who submitted a question!! Keep them coming! Let us know what you think by emailing hello@tangoti.com or leaving a comment on Spotify.  Follow Bridget and TANGOTI on social media!  ||  instagram.com/bridgetmarieindc/ || tiktok.com/@bridgetmarieindc ||  youtube.com/@ThereAreNoGirlsOnTheInternet || bsky.app/profile/tangoti.bsky.socialSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s a gender gap when it comes to who is using AI at work. Are women being left behind? The research isn’t so cut and dry.   Bridget takes a look at what we know and what it means with Samantha and Anney from Stuff Mom Never Told You.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bridget and Mike had conflicting and surprisingly strong feelings about self checkout machines. And it turns out, listeners do, too! We got more emails about this seemingly low stakes topic than any other. Why did this touch a nerve?! We don’t know but there’s something there, and we’re here for it. We read some listener emails, which make great points for and against. Are these machines dystopian symbols of our crumbling social connectedness? Or are they convenient devices for buying groceries, and maybe the real dystopian symbols were the capitalist overlords we met along the way? You be the judge! Self-Checkouts Often Inaccessible to Disabled Shoppers:  https://foodinstitute.com/focus/self-checkout-often-inaccessible-to-disabled-shoppers/ LA Times report on self checkouts and loneliness (paywalled): https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2023-08-28/some-skip-self-checkout-to-combat-loneliness-build-human-connection TikTok Lawyer explains why you should avoid using self-checkouts in stores: https://scoop.upworthy.com/lawyer-explains-why-you-should-avoid-using-self-checkouts-in-stores-576190-576190-576190-576190 Washington Post piece: Dear grocery store owners: I don’t work for you! https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/10/31/rick-reilly-self-checkout-rebellion/ Walmart reveals it's tracking checkout theft with AI-powered cameras in 1,000 stores: https://www.businessinsider.com/walmart-tracks-theft-with-computer-vision-1000-stores-2019-6 Feeling lonely? Too many of us are. Here’s what our supermarkets can do to help: https://theconversation.com/feeling-lonely-too-many-of-us-are-heres-what-our-supermarkets-can-do-to-help-211126 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.