The folks at TWIT have an interesting discussion about AI destroying the web [53:35]:

Paris Martineau: The question I always have about these Large Language Models and generative output machines is what is the end game? Assuming something like Perplexity becomes successful, let’s say in their wildest dreams everything works, everybody uses Perplexity instead of Google search. They are looking for answers instead of combing through all these links. In 5 - 10 years what is going to happen? If you have a world where all of it is you have users coming to your site to look at your content and not going away to where the content is coming from, no one is going to be creating content to feed into that machine. It seems just incredibly short sited. And as of right now this is not a business model…like they are not making any money.

Leo Laporte: No you are right they are not making money, that’s why they are trying to raise money, but you are right, in the long run if you cannibalise all your sources, there won’t be any sources left. And then what do you do?

Since you have to eat or you will die, it only works if all the AI companies club together and enslave the content creators in a giant communist prison gulag. They give you food and you give the world content. But they will never be happy because they want to be free and you requiring food will make them think you are enslaving them, even though it is they that have enslaved you. You will be blamed for everything always, and made to pay for the horrible things they do to you, with your life, and it still won’t be enough.

I've heard two examples of this recently. I’m starting to wonder if it’s a thing people do.

First there was Louis Theroux, on a recent episode where he sits down for a catchup with fellow podcaster and childhood friend Adam Buxton. From what I remember from the show, Adam was doing an impression of Louis, and Louis then tries to mimic the impression, very effectively I might add, so he’s basically parodying himself. It’s very funny.

At the time I remember thinking I wouldn’t even know how to parody myself. I can hardly even recognise myself in the mirror most days.

Anyway I didn’t think much of it until I started listening to Ed Zitron. His recent episode with some of the Vergecast folks is pretty good for example. He’s got a very east end of London kind of accent. What occurred to me was that at times he really lays the accent on thick, it’s like a total piss take. The interesting thing is that you momentarily wonder if his accent is real or not. It feels uncomfortable. Then he returns to the normal version, and you are comfortable again. Few. It occurred to me this might be a very effective way to get people to unknowingly trust you. If you do it enough that is. Btw whether it’s a put on thing or not, Ed’s reporting and analysis is top notch.

The reason this popped into my consciousness today, is because I’d made a note to write about it a while back, but also because yesterday someone tried to assasinate Trump and he did a fight fist followed by what looked like a nazi salute as he was evacuated off stage, and everyone is ignoring it, and I thought wouldn’t it be the ultimate extreme self parody if it turned out he was taking the piss? Is he an actor or a comedian, or both? Or indeed neither?

Another extreme self parody that springs to mind is Stevo from Jackass who had an enormous tatoo of himself done on his back.

Anyway just thinking about self parody today, wondering if it’s a thing people do on purpose, or whether perhaps it’s some weird Carl Yung shit people do unknowingly. Or perhaps both.