Recording Woes
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No new episode this week because of audio problems. Next episode drops December 5th.
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The Death of the Author
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This week, Mason and Sean discuss Roland Barthes' influential 1967 essay "The Death of the Author"—how it is misunderstood by the chronically online and how it is a useful and important in understanding the art that we consume. We also discuss abandoning your heroes, parasocial relationships, songwriting and what it can tell us about the differences between Taylor Swift and Mitski, and remind you that—statistically—someone you love has purchased an album by Nickelback. ——— Meaning What is a product of it's no sam studios Created by Mason Hershenow Produced by Sean Ang Edited,...
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The Hell We Live In
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On today's episode, Mason and Sean talk about how the very same companies driving the "A.I." "revolution" are unravelling all aspects of life and culture. As you probably already guessed, we don't think it's a good thing. But, maybe there are legitimate uses? Maybe!? We also discuss autocorrect, photographers on Threads, how Microsoft wants to buy Three Mile Island, and the fact that we need a fact checker/producer. ——— Meaning What is a product of it's no sam studios Created by Mason Hershenow Produced by Sean Ang Edited, scored, and mixed by Mason Hershenow
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A.I. Art and Why It's Garbage
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On today's episode, Mason and Sean continue the conversation about artificial "intelligence" by turning the eyes on the art world and all the ways that procedurally-generated slop is beginning to pollute modern culture. We also discuss the difference between vocaloids and vtubers, our feelings about Woody Allen's movies, and why your five year old will never measure up to Felix González-Torrez. And make sure to stick around during the commercial break for extra content! ——— Meaning What is a product of it's no sam studios Created by Mason Hershenow Produced by Sean Ang and Lincoln...
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A.I. with John Matter
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Today we are rightsizing the org with a returning guest: self-described lapsed-physicist John Matter. John joins us to discuss the rise of machine learning and artificial "intelegence", and why it's not much more than fancy math. We also discuss corpo speak, end-user agreements, and some fun trivia about the . You can find more of John (including his excellent cats) on . ——— Meaning What is a product of it's no sam studios Created by Mason Hershenow Produced by Sean Ang Edited, scored, and mixed by Mason Hershenow
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Criticism Part 4 – Why Criticism Matters
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Here it is, the final episode in our first mini series. Here we wrap up our discussion about media criticism, reaffirm our stance on Ronald Regan, and kick off Sean’s promissing political career as a classic American moderate. There is also discussion about Chuck Berry, Matchbox Twenty, and just how cool Mason wasn't in high school. ——— Meaning What is a product of it's no sam studios Created by Mason Hershenow Produced by Sean Ang Edited, scored, and mixed by Mason Hershenow
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Criticism Part 3 – Other Media
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Mason went to a 9:45am showing of Deadpool & Wolverine a few days after this recording. ——— Meaning What is a product of it's no sam studios Created by Mason Hershenow Produced by Sean Ang & Lincoln "Link" Hershenow Edited, scored, and mixed by Mason Hershenow
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Criticism Part 2 – Pop Music
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In part two of our series on criticism, Mason and Sean discuss the world of popular music and how social media and internet culture is shaping what we listen to and the industry that produces it. There are a few tangents, but we get there in the end. Everything is good and everyone behaves reasonably, especially hardcore fans on the internet. ——— Meaning What is a product of it's no sam studios Created by Mason Hershenow Produced by Sean Ang Edited, scored, and mixed by Mason Hershenow
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Criticism Part 1 – Review Culture
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We finally renewed ourselves for a third season, and we're kicking it off with a four-part series on criticism's place in the contemporary media landscape. In this first episode, Mason and Sean discuss how review culture—Yelp, Letterboxd, Amazon product reviews, etc.—has bled into culture writ large. Spoiler: the results aren't great consumers! Meaning What is now available every other Thursday, wherever you get podcasts. Go tell somebody! ——— Meaning What is a product of it's no sam studios Created by Mason Hershenow Produced by Sean Ang Edited, scored, and mixed by Mason...
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Season 3 begins August 1st!
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Tell your friends! Tell your lover(s)! Tell your friend(s)'s lover(s)! Every other Thursday, wherever you get podcasts.
info_outlineThis week, Mason and Sean are joined by abstract painter Kathleen Larsen to discuss how personal experiences and the events of the past year or so brought about a new direction for her art practice. We also discuss the shifting landscape of art Instagram, peace and conflict studies, and navigating abstract art in mediums you’re not particularly familiar with.
Follow Kathleen on Instagram! And this is the untitled piece we reference!
We have a subscription program and Patreon in the works! Lots of bonus material headed your way in the coming months, so follow us on Instagram and Twitter for the latest updates.
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Meaning What is a product of it's no sam studios
Created by Mason Hershenow
Produced by Sean Ang and Christopher Scott McNeill
Edited by David Cox and Mason Hershenow
Mixed by Mason Hershenow
Original music by Mason Hershenow, with a special contribution this week from David Cox
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