Episodes

  • Will virtual dates stick around after the pandemic?

    Will virtual dates stick around after the pandemic?
    Jul 15 2020
    Why’d You Push That Button? is back for a special episode all about virtual dating in 2020. The pandemic has forced us all to stay at home when we can, which means if you want to go on a date, it may have to be done online. Ashley Carman and Kaitlyn Tiffany return to talk to online daters and app makers about how they are adapting to virtual-only dating, and what features and behaviors will stick around after social distancing and the pandemic end. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    37 mins
  • What does ‘being verified’ actually mean?

    What does ‘being verified’ actually mean?
    Aug 7 2019
    I have sad news today: we’re publishing the season 4 finale of Why’d You Push That Button? The good news, though, is that it’s a really great episode! Today, Kaitlyn Tiffany and I (Ashley Carman) are asking what verification on social media accounts really means. To some, it represents more than a badge of authenticity. We wonder why people want to be verified and what they’re willing to do to get the blue checkmark.  I tell the story of my own journey to Instagram verification (weird flex, I know) and ask my friend Michelle what she thinks about me now that I have a checkmark. Afterward, we interview Verge senior reporter Adi Robertson about verification’s origins, and then we chat with two guests who differ on the importance of verification. We talk with a content creator named Mark, who once tried to pay someone to get his Instagram account verified, and artist Joseph Grazi about his Culture Cures project and why he’s slapping anti-influencer stickers onto New York City subway train cars and platforms. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    33 mins
  • Why do you use Close Friends on Instagram?

    Why do you use Close Friends on Instagram?
    Jul 31 2019
    Instagram introduced its Close Friends feature, the ability for users to assign followers to a Close Friends list and only post Stories for them, nearly a year ago. At the time, it seemed like an official product response to the user behavior of Finstagrams, or accounts that people created solely to post less-curated, raw material to a select group of friends. On this week’s episode of Why’d You Push That Button?, Kaitlyn Tiffany and Ashley Carman want to know how Close Friends is going. Who’s using it? Why are they using it? Is the Finsta in trouble? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    30 mins
  • What keeps people on Snapchat?

    What keeps people on Snapchat?
    Jul 24 2019
    In the social media world, Instagram has dominated as the most used app in 2019, but what happened to Snapchat? Ashley Carman and Kaitlyn Tiffany dive into where Snapchat is after Instagram stole their innovative "story" feature, and what the people who still use it are using it for.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    37 mins
  • Why do you slide into someone's DMs?

    Why do you slide into someone's DMs?
    Jul 17 2019
    In 2019, what's really going down in people's Instagram and Twitter direct messages? How has the behavior and usage changed over the past few years? Kaitlyn Tiffany and Ashley Carman interview people who found love in the DMs and others who didn't. Later, the director of product management at Instagram reveals why people use DMs, and how Instagram makes it easier for users to slide into them. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    36 mins
  • Is auto-replying ruining email?

    Is auto-replying ruining email?
    Jul 10 2019
    Do you use Gmail's "smart reply" feature when answering e-mails? Ashley Carman and Kaitlyn Tiffany explore the world of the automated email responses and how it makes us feel as both the sender and the recipient.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    34 mins
  • Death Online: When celebrities die

    Death Online: When celebrities die
    Jun 26 2019
    In the third and final episode of the Death Online series, Ashley Carman and Kaitlyn Tiffany analyze why people flock to Twitter after a celebrity dies. Guests include a reporter who is all too familiar with the phenomenon, a writer who fears the day his favorite celebrity passes, a musician we force to think about her own death, and a sociologist who contextualizes "celebrity death Twitter" in the broader history of public mourning.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    39 mins
  • Death Online: Mourning a robot

    Death Online: Mourning a robot
    Jun 19 2019
    What happens when your robot friend dies? Ashley Carman explores the grieving community surrounding the short-lived social robot Jibo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    40 mins