My Internet: Paul Krugman
The economist worries that sanewashing is worse than ever.
Embedded is your essential guide to what’s good on the internet, written by Kate Lindsay and edited by Nick Catucci.
Some weeks, we quiz a “very online” person for their essential guide to what’s good on the internet.
Today we welcome Paul Krugman, the Nobel Prize-winning economist, professor, and former New York Times opinion writer who began publishing his eponymous newsletter in December 2024. Paul never, ever watches anything about politics or animals on YouTube and is encouraged by the fact that so many writers are no longer suppressed by editors. —Nick
New on ICYMI: kelsey weekman joined the pod fresh off the plane from VidCon to talk about how, after a rough couple of years thanks to TikTok, YouTube is back on top, baby.
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EMBEDDED: What’s a recent meme or post that made you laugh?
PAUL KRUGMAN: I cracked up over some of the music played during Trump’s birthday parade. “Fortunate Son”? “Barracuda”? Hard to believe that somebody wasn’t making comments.
EMBEDDED: Do you tweet? Why?
PAUL KRUGMAN: I stopped tweeting a while back. First because I had to shut down replies—too much vileness. Then because I didn’t want to generate content for Musk.
Fairly recently someone, apparently in Russia, hijacked my account, put up one post flacking crypto, then deleted it and vanished. I didn’t bother trying to resolve the issue. I set up a different account just to be able to read tweets; Twitter closed it for “inappropriate behavior,” which was odd because I never posted anything. So now I’ve given up.
EMBEDDED: Do you post on Bluesky, Threads, or Substack’s Notes? Why?
PAUL KRUGMAN: I post occasionally on Bluesky and Substack Notes, because something is happening that doesn’t warrant a full post. But not often.
EMBEDDED: What do you use Instagram for?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Nothing.
EMBEDDED: What types of videos do you watch on YouTube?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Music and history. Never, ever politics or cute animals, both of which pollute your algorithm for a long time.
EMBEDDED: Will you miss TikTok if it is eventually banned, and if so, what will you miss most about it?
PAUL KRUGMAN: I have never watched TikTok.
EMBEDDED: Is TikTok a national security threat if it remains under Chinese ownership?
PAUL KRUGMAN: No idea.
EMBEDDED: Where do you tend to get your news?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Regular media, Bluesky and links from it, Substack and other blogs and newsletters, plus there are various informal email discussion groups with people I know—e.g., how to interpret data releases.
EMBEDDED: How do you keep up with the online discourse? How important is it to you to do this?
PAUL KRUGMAN: I get a sense of it from Substack and Bluesky, but mostly ignore it. Too much substance to care about who’s dunking on whom.
EMBEDDED: What’s the last strong opinion you had about a story, topic, or controversy online?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Right now, just livid over the Democrats who voted for the stablecoin scam.
EMBEDDED: What are your favorite newsletters?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Mostly the ones that do analysis rather than just opinion. Phillips P. OBrien on military; Briefing Book and Yale Budget Lab on economics ; these days G. Elliott Morris on electoral math; Greg Sargent’s podcast functions as a de facto newsletter. I’m sure I’m missing people.
EMBEDDED: How do you think Substack has changed media, if at all?
PAUL KRUGMAN: A lot of people who actually know something about their fields are now out there, free to get a bit wonky and not suppressed by editors who force them to dumb it down or bothsides. The quality of discussion in areas I follow has gone way up.
EMBEDDED: What’s one positive media trend? What’s one negative trend?
PAUL KRUGMAN: In areas I know, the quality of analysis has gotten much better—mainstream media as well as newsletter-land. But sanewashing, especially in headlines, is worse than ever. For most readers, honest reporting that doesn’t show up until the 10th graf might as well not be happening.
EMBEDDED: Do you have a take on the “manosphere”? Do you think personalities like Joe Rogan, Lex Fridman, and Theo Von have shaped young men’s political leanings?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Zero idea. Not my department, thank God.
EMBEDDED: Do you believe that the “artificial general intelligence” and “superintelligence” that many AI boosters have warned of actually pose a risk to humanity?
PAUL KRUGMAN: True AGI would be scary. But what we have so far is nothing like that.
EMBEDDED: Are smartphones bad for us? Where do you fall on the Jonathan Haidt-Taylor Lorenz divide?
PAUL KRUGMAN: I’ve ignored most of that controversy. I understand the downsides, especially for children, but we shouldn’t romanticize the past. Most people never read much, and social interactions have always been fraught.
EMBEDDED: How do you find recommendations for what to watch, read, and listen to?
PAUL KRUGMAN: All over. News articles, newsletters, emails from friends.
EMBEDDED: Have you had posts go viral? What is that experience like?
PAUL KRUGMAN: My audience is fairly large and pretty consistent. Currently I get 350-450K readers for almost every post. So no sense that some things take off.
EMBEDDED: Who’s the coolest person who follows you?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Mary Beard, the historian, was reading my Times newsletter, which was immensely flattering.
EMBEDDED: Who’s someone more people should follow?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Let me plug Greg Sargent at The New Republic. Deserves a bigger audience for his reported opinion.
EMBEDDED: Which big celebrity has your favorite internet presence, and why?
PAUL KRUGMAN: I don’t follow celebrities, and have no idea.
EMBEDDED: Are you into any podcasts right now? How and when do you usually listen?
PAUL KRUGMAN: I don’t listen to podcasts. Prefer to read transcripts and blog posts.
EMBEDDED: Have you ever been heavily into Snapchat? Do you miss it?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Never used it.
EMBEDDED: When was the last time you browsed Pinterest? What for?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Never used it.
EMBEDDED: How would you describe Tumblr’s legacy?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Kind of missed the whole phenomenon.
EMBEDDED: Are you in any groups on Reddit, Discord, Slack, or Facebook? What’s the most useful or entertaining one?
PAUL KRUGMAN: No.
EMBEDDED: Do you use Slack or Teams for work? What’s the best thing about Slacking with your co-workers? What’s the worst thing?
PAUL KRUGMAN: No.
EMBEDDED: What is your Wordle starting word?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Don’t do Wordle. Too much like my real work.
EMBEDDED: Do any of your group chats have a name that you’re willing to share? What’s something that recently inspired debate in the chat?
PAUL KRUGMAN: No names, just the people involved.
EMBEDDED: What’s your go-to emoji, and what does it mean to you?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Haven’t gotten into emojis.
EMBEDDED: Do you text people voice notes? If not, how do you feel about getting them?
PAUL KRUGMAN: No, and no desire to. I’m text based.
EMBEDDED: Do you pay for a music streaming service, and if so, which one? What’s a playlist, song, album, or style of music you’ve listened to a lot lately?
PAUL KRUGMAN: I basically use YouTube, and keep being surprised by the range of things I like. Lately listening to blues and synth-pop. Who knew?
EMBEDDED: If you could only keep one streaming service for TV and/or movies, which would it be, and why? What’s a show that you’re really into right now?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Hard choice. Probably Amazon Prime, but also watching Apple TV. Currently catching up with Daisy Jones & The Six and Severance.
EMBEDDED: What’s your favorite non-social media app?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Weather Underground.
EMBEDDED: What’s the most basic internet thing that you love?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Online live musical performances.
EMBEDDED: Is there any content you want but can’t seem to find anywhere online?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Can’t think of it.
EMBEDDED: Do you regularly use eBay, Depop, or other shopping platforms? What’s a recent thing you’ve bought or sold?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Nope, nothing.
EMBEDDED: Is there a site you like for product recommendations? How do you decide, for example, which air filter to buy?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Not really.
EMBEDDED: Have you recently read an article, book, or social media post about the internet that you’ve found particularly insightful?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Can’t think of it.
EMBEDDED: What’s the last thing that brought you joy online?
PAUL KRUGMAN: Lake Street Dive and Tiny Habits doing a John Denver cover.
Thanks Paul! Subscribe to his newsletter and follow him on Bluesky.
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This was a delight!