Jimmy Wales on why the internet is such an angry place
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Hi, I'm Francesca Rudkin and welcome to season six of our New Zealand Herald podcast, The Little Things. And I'm Louise Erie. As you may well know, in this podcast, we talk to experts and find out all the little things you need to know to improve different areas of your life. We cut through the confusion and overload to get some information out there to help simplify your life. We sure do. We went on a date.
We did.
Didn't we? Yeah, it was so nice. We've known that for ages.
I know, I know. We went to the movies. We went to see The Devil Wears Prada 2, which I was very excited about seeing. I'd watched, just before going to see it, I'd watched the original and I'd forgotten how much I loved it. You know, I just, how clever it was, how witty it was. how it managed to kind of skewer the fashion industry, but also reminding us how incredibly vital it is to sort of global economies. You know, like it was sort of, it would take the mickey, but then it would also celebrate and uplift and remind us. Oh, and the cast. And the cast is amazing. And it kind of deals with all these topics, which most women, you know, are dealing with that sort of balance of ambition and reinvention and working and home life and raising kids and all those things.
Really clever, I thought. What did you think of the sequel?
Well, I watched the first one last night, so I watched it in reverse. So again, I haven't watched it for ages and it made the sequel make more sense. So if you're going, I would suggest that if you can, if you can access it, it's on a few different streaming platforms for free. Well, not free, whatever you're paying for your platform. And so that made it make more sense. So I kind of, my appreciation for the nuance of the A few of the little in-jokes was better after I'd watched the first one. Do you know what?
Whenever I watch these shows, all I think of is, I really should wear some high heels at some point. Do you know what I mean? I live in sneakers purely because it's just much better for my knees and all these old age kind of issues that I have. So I live in sneakers and I watch these and I go, do women really go to work in high heels and wear them all day?
Yeah.
In 2026.
I always think that when I see Catherine, you know, Princess Catherine, and even Melania Trump, I'm like, my God.
Oh, no, that documentary was just a documentary of watching Melania walk around in high heels. That was all it was. I haven't watched it. But I do. That's what I walked away with. I was like, God, I really wish I could. I think I'd last five minutes.
I just walked away going, I'm much more, yeah, I'm a bit of a basic bitch when it comes to my clothing, generally speaking.
It's like a little splash of glamour in my wardrobe. Well, we're recording this at 6am in the morning and neither of us is looking particularly glamorous to say that. What are you saying? We're in the same boat. Right, today we're going to talk about how in this age of constant connectivity, the way we engage with news and one another online can have profound effects on our day and our mental well-being and the health of our societies.
The habit of doomsday scrolling can leave us feeling overwhelmed, anxious, powerless, especially in recent times. And, you know, staying informed is important, but the challenge is there in balancing the awareness with a bit of self-care and learning how to remain mentally resilient in a fast-moving digital world. And don't we know it? I mean, God knows. If I hear the words AI together again, the letters, I'll scream. I know I go through cycles when I can't look away from the news cycle. I end up over-consuming digital media, and I know it's not healthy for me. I almost feel like I have a hangover.
It's just, you know, bilious. At the same time, online spaces expose us to a wide range of opinions, often strongly held, passionately expressed. Mm-hmm. But engaging with people who struggle to see perspectives beyond their own can be frustrating. It can be emotionally draining. And this raises important questions about how we communicate, how we listen and how we maintain respect, even in disagreement.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:01–12:23
2
How can doomscrolling affect our mental health?
12:23–16:00
3
How can we encourage respectful dialogue in online spaces?
16:00–17:19
4
What insights does Jimmy Wales provide about the internet's negativity?
17:19–46:09
5
Why do algorithms amplify outrage over kindness online?
46:09–51:35