Are we losing our right to online privacy entirely?

Support my independent journalism:

🙏 Patreon: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/cw/taylorlorenz ⁠

🗞️ Buy a paid subscription to my Substack: ⁠https://www.usermag.co ⁠

In this episode of Free Speech Friday, I sat down with Cindy Cohn, former head of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and author of the new book Privacy's Defender. We dive deep into the secret history of the early internet, the terrifying reality of mass online surveillance by the US government, and how "age verification" laws sweeping the US will destroy digital civil liberties for everyone.

Cindy explains how the NSA and FBI use massive legal loopholes like Section 702 to secretly access your data for domestic purposes, the massive security dangers of forcing users to upload their IDs to access apps like Discord, and why the fight to protect encryption is more crucial now than ever.

If you care about your digital rights, free speech, and the future of the open web, this is a must-watch conversation!!

Topics Covered:

• The 90s hacker origins of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)

• How the Bernstein case saved internet encryption

• Post-9/11 mass surveillance and the government's data grab

• Why the FBI and NSA's use of Section 702 threatens your privacy

• The truth about the government buying your personal data from private brokers

• Why age verification laws banning users under 16 create massive security risks

• How to fight back and become part of the next generation of privacy advocates

Skibidi Toilet changed how storytelling works on YouTube. But behind the scenes, things got messy.

Support my independent journalism:

🙏 Patreon: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/cw/taylorlorenz ⁠

🗞️ Buy a paid subscription to my Substack: ⁠https://www.usermag.co ⁠

Back in 2023, a creator named Alexey (better known as DaFuqBoom) launched a super weird, viral series about a singing head in a toilet called Skibidi Toilet. It went viral and quickly became one of the most popular online series to ever exist. Over the course of 79 episodes, it evolved into an epic, fan-favorite story about an intergalactic war.

Then, Hollywood stepped in. A traditional (or "tra-digital") entertainment company called Invisible Narratives bought the Skibidi Toilet rights. By early 2025, Alexey took a step back to become an executive producer, meaning he was no longer making the daily videos. The studio released a new spin-off series called "Emergence," but fans instantly noticed a massive change.

Now, the Skibidi Toilet fandom community is furious. After a disastrous, leaked call between the studio and popular YouTubers, fans are demanding the original creator take his show back with the hashtag #BringBackBoom. Meanwhile, Skibidi Toilet has become one of the most valuable franchises in Hollywood.

Steven Asarch is a journalist who's been covering this controversy. In this video, he joins me to break down what is going on with the Skibidi Toilet franchise, the #BringBackBoom movement's true goals, and answer the biggest question fans are all asking: is Skibidi Toilet officially dead?

We cover:

• How Skibidi Toilet became so popular

• The creator’s role and what changed

• The studio takeover and what it means

• Why fans are upset and pushing back

• The future of internet-created IP

AI Surveillance is taking over our schools. Support my independent journalism:🙏 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/taylorlorenz 🗞️ Buy a paid subscription to my Substack: https://www.usermag.co Kent Myrtle, a Wichita bus driver, has been blowing the whistle on AI-powered cameras being installed on school buses. From Wichita to Massachusetts, school districts are partnering with companies like Samsara and BusPatrol to implement "real-time monitoring" and "hazard detection."

But is this actually about safety, or is it a massive privacy violation? We discuss how this footage is being sent to the Amazon Web Services cloud without parental consent. We also look at the "safety" claims, like AI systems mistaking bags of chips for weapons, and how these buses are being turned into roving surveillance machines for law enforcement.

Kyle Chayka is a writer for the New Yorker, and on this week's Power User he joins me to break down the rise of AI fruit slop dramas.

Support my independent journalism:

🙏 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/taylorlorenz

🗞️ Buy a paid subscription to my Substack: https://www.usermag.co

Millions and millions of TikTok users are tuning into an AI generated short form show called Fruit Love Island. On the show, AI generated fruits kiss, date, fight, and make up. The show has amassed an overnight fan base and spawned a slew of spinoffs including The Summer I Turned Fruity, The Fruitpire Diaries, Food Is Blind, and Fruit Paternity court.

The world of AI content is being flooded by this bizarre phenomenon, amassing millions of views across TikTok trends 2026. The shows all use a viral content strategy to generate hits in minutes using tools like Object Talk and Leonardo AI. These AI generated videos allow faceless YouTube channels to monetize "attention arbitrage" for massive profit.

Beneath these AI videos lies a dark undercurrent of sinister messaging. Because AI storytelling and algorithm psychology prioritize engagement, narratives frequently devolve into misogyny and graphic violence, showing fruit women being berated or fruit babies thrown to their deaths. By stripping away ethics, these social media trends deliver raw stimulation that keeps viewers in a state of stress.

We discuss:

The evolution from AI Cat videos to Fruit Paternity Court.

How "passive income" hustlers are using ChatGPT to script high-drama storylines involving betrayal and violence.

The science of dopamine vs. cortisol and why this content keeps you in a hyper-stimulated stress state.

Why brands like Olipop and Slim Jim are jumping into the fruit slop comments.

The dark side of the algorithm: How AI content naturally devolves into the "lowest common denominator" of sex and violence.

[SPECIAL BONUS EPISODE]

Why the internet is trying to "end" Chappell Roan.

Support my independent journalism:

🙏 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/taylorlorenz

🗞️ Buy a paid subscription to my Substack: https://www.usermag.co

Twitch streamer and cultural commentator Caroline Kwan joins me to break down the massive viral controversy surrounding Chappell Roan. What started as a passing interaction at a hotel breakfast in Brazil has morphed into a multi-platform smear campaign led by TikTokers, pop stans, and "Blue MAGA" accounts, pushing blatant misinformation.

Caroline and I break down what's really going on, and debunk the claims that Chappell is a "secret heiress" or a "mean girl". We talk about why Chappell specifically is always at the center of this type of vitriol, and dive into the intersection of misogyny, homophobia, and the "death of the diva" in the age of social media.

From fake claims to bot amplification to stan wars, the Chappell situation a case study in how bad actors on the internet can create controversy out of almost nothing.

In this video, we discuss:

• The Brazil incident with Jorginho Frello’s stepdaughter.

• The debunked "rich kid" allegations and fake high school "exposés".

• Why Chappell Roan cut ties with Wasserman Music and the Epstein connection.

• The role of bots and "tea" accounts in fueling the outrage.

• The double standard between female pop stars and male celebrities like Tom Holland or Justin Bieber.

#ChappellRoan #celeb #celebrity #celebritynews #pop #popstars #popmusic #oliviarodrigo #PopCulture #SocialMedia #ViralNews

Everything you've been told about the "social media addiction" trial is wrong.

Support my independent journalism:

🙏 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/taylorlorenz

🗞️ Buy a paid subscription to my Substack: https://www.usermag.co

Everyone is celebrating the $400 million fine against Meta and Mark Zuckerberg, but it's a massive win for Big Tech. In this episode of Free Speech Friday, journalist Kat Tenbarge and I debunk a slew of misinformation about the landmark "social media addiction" trials in Los Angeles and New Mexico.

The mainstream media is painting this as a victory for child safety, but the legal precedent being set is terrifying.

From government agencies using real children's photos as "bait" to entrap predators, to the secret funding behind "grassroots" child safety groups, the reality is so, so much darker than the headlines suggest.

We cover:

• How the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and the repeal of Section 230 will lead to mass surveillance and censorship.
• The disturbing testimony from the LA trial that the media completely ignored.
• Why Big Tech is actually LOBBYING for age verification and identity tracking.
• The link between these lawsuits and the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025.

If you care about the future of the open internet, free speech, and data privacy, please support my work! I will continue to cover how these laws will impact smaller platforms, LGBTQ content, and our basic right to access information.

I also highly suggest this great piece by Mike Masnick on the trials!!

Follow me:

https://www.instagram.com/taylorlorenz

https://www.instagram.com/taylorlorenz3.0

https://www.tiktok.com/@taylorlorenz

This show created one of the fastest fandoms ever.

Support my independent journalism:

🙏 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/taylorlorenz

🗞️ Buy a paid subscription to my Substack: https://www.usermag.co

Over the past few months, a series born from a niche, self-published Canadian romance novel became one of the biggest cultural phenomenons on the internet. In this episode of Power User, I dive deep into the explosive rise of the Heated Rivalry fandom and why it has the internet in a chokehold.

Fandom expert Allegra Rosenberg and writer Katherine Dee joined me to break down how the "subculture to culture" cycle that made the show a breakout hit. From its underground roots in hockey shipping and Tumblr culture to its overnight success on mainstream platforms like Threads and TikTok, we discuss the history of slash fanfiction, the "Fall Out Boy to Blackhawks" pipeline, and the "generational trauma" of fandom privacy.

We discuss the "Gateway Media" effect and how the show brought "normies" into the world of AO3 and shipping. We also discuss the clash between journalistic ethics and fandom privacy and what the show's massive success reveals about the future of media and fandom.

Follow me:

https://www.instagram.com/taylorlorenz

https://www.instagram.com/taylorlorenz3.0

https://www.tiktok.com/@taylorlorenz

The Internet Is Being Deleted.

Support my independent journalism:

🙏 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/taylorlorenz

🗞️ Buy a paid subscription to my Substack: https://www.usermag.co

We are witnessing a massive, systematic erasure of digital history. From war crime investigations to grassroots activism and historical archives, the "permanent" web is vanishing.

In this episode of Free Speech Friday, I break down the escalating censorship from Big Tech and governments that is burning our collective digital archive. Documentation of major historical events, war crimes, police violence, videos documenting things like ICE abductions, but also thousands of photos, websites, and archives that play a crucial role in documenting our cultural and political history are being systematically erased from the web.

This sort of mass censorship is escalating, especially as governments and tech platforms seek to remove any content that challenges mainstream media or government approved narratives.

In This Episode:

• The Deletion of Human Rights Data: How YouTube erased 700+ videos from human rights organizations overnight.

• The "Safety" Smokescreen: How laws like KOSA and the "child safety" narrative are being used to deputize platforms as government censors.

• The Fall of the Archive: Why Reddit is blocking the Internet Archive and what it means for the future of information.

• The Shadowban Economy: A look at how Meta and X (formerly Twitter) use algorithmic demotion to make dissent invisible.

• ICE & Surveillance: The removal of apps like ICEBlock and the crackdown on community-sourced safety data.

• The Global Free Speech Recession: Arrests for social media posts in the UK and internet shutdowns worldwide.