Episodes

  • Katie Nolan on the sports gambling takeover, covering politics, and the slow return of the boys' club

    Katie Nolan on the sports gambling takeover, covering politics, and the slow return of the boys' club
    Jul 10 2026
    Sports media host and "Casuals" podcast creator Katie Nolan joined Mixed Signals live at Cannes to talk about navigating two decades of upheaval in sports media. Max and Ben ask Katie why she turned down gambling advertising when it was everywhere, how politics keeps inserting itself into sports whether she wants it to or not, and whether the window that opened for women in sports media is closing again. They also get into call-in radio, hockey's underrated chaos, and what it took for her to become a Jeopardy! champion. Sign up for Semafor Media’s Sunday newsletter: https://www.semafor.com/newsletters/media For more from Think with Google, check out ThinkwithGoogle.com. Find us on X: @semaforben, @maxwelltani If you have a tip or a comment, please email us mixedsignals@semafor.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    32 mins
  • Reddit CEO Steve Huffman on LLMs, fighting the bots, and why it’s good that you can't get famous on Reddit

    Reddit CEO Steve Huffman on LLMs, fighting the bots, and why it’s good that you can't get famous on Reddit
    Jul 3 2026
    Reddit co-founder and CEO Steve Huffman joins Mixed Signals during the platform's 21st birthday to talk about what it means to be the internet's anti-social media hub. Max and Ben ask Steve how Reddit thinks about its partnerships, why the company is suing Anthropic, and why it's a good thing that you can't get rich from being a prolific Reddit user. Sign up for Semafor Media’s Sunday newsletter: https://www.semafor.com/newsletters/media For more from Think with Google, check out ThinkwithGoogle.com. Find us on X: @semaforben, @maxwelltani If you have a tip or a comment, please email us mixedsignals@semafor.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    44 mins
  • Alex Cooper on flipping "Call Her Daddy" into a media business and entering the creative agency space

    Alex Cooper on flipping "Call Her Daddy" into a media business and entering the creative agency space
    Jun 26 2026
    Call Her Daddy host and Unwell co-founder Alex Cooper joins Mixed Signals live at Cannes Lions to talk about what it takes to turn a hit podcast into a real media business. Max and Ben ask Alex how Unwell's creative agency ended up going toe-to-toe with Call Her Daddy in revenue, what she learned from her interview with Michelle Obama, and why she's more interested in the marketing than most talent in her field. Sign up for Semafor Media’s Sunday newsletter: https://www.semafor.com/newsletters/media For more from Think with Google, check out ThinkwithGoogle.com. Find us on X: @semaforben, @maxwelltani If you have a tip or a comment, please email us mixedsignals@semafor.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    41 mins
  • David Droga on being “the last Don Draper,” AI’s impact on creativity, and why the boldest ads are the easiest sells

    David Droga on being “the last Don Draper,” AI’s impact on creativity, and why the boldest ads are the easiest sells
    Jun 19 2026
    David Droga is the vice chair of Accenture Song and the most decorated creative in Cannes Lions history. He joins Mixed Signals to talk about what it actually takes to sell a CMO on a bold idea (and why the boldest of ideas are sometimes the easiest to sell). Max and Ben ask David about how AI is changing the advertising business he's spent his life building, whether the creative visionary still has a place at the top of the industry, and what the New York Times' "Truth Is Worth It" campaign can teach struggling news brands about their own value. He also walks through some of his most famous ads. Sign up for Semafor Media’s Sunday newsletter: https://www.semafor.com/newsletters/media For more from Think with Google, check out ThinkwithGoogle.com. Find us on X: @semaforben, @maxwelltani If you have a tip or a comment, please email us mixedsignals@semafor.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    51 mins
  • Eli Pariser on the end of the feed and how AI will change your morning routine

    Eli Pariser on the end of the feed and how AI will change your morning routine
    Jun 12 2026
    New_Public co-director and coiner of the "filter bubble," Eli Pariser, joins Mixed Signals to walk through his new report on what news consumption looks like when AI takes over. Max and Ben ask Eli how soon your morning routine will change, which platforms are most exposed to AI disruption, and whether centralizing everyone's attention was actually a mistake. Sign up for Semafor Media’s Sunday newsletter: https://www.semafor.com/newsletters/media For more from Think with Google, check out ThinkwithGoogle.com. Find us on X: @semaforben, @maxwelltani If you have a tip or a comment, please email us mixedsignals@semafor.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    50 mins
  • The “Popcast” hosts on interviewing Taylor Swift, killing the written review, and whether literacy is over

    The “Popcast” hosts on interviewing Taylor Swift, killing the written review, and whether literacy is over
    Jun 5 2026
    The hosts of The New York Times’ Popcast show join Mixed Signals to talk about how a two-decade-old music podcast became one of the most coveted interview slots in music — landing Taylor Swift, A$AP Rocky, Olivia Rodrigo, and Bad Bunny — by offering something most celebrity press won't: no question approval, no topic restrictions, and critics who've actually been covering these artists for years. Image Credit: Lucia Bell-Epstein for The New York Times/Reuters Sign up for Semafor Media’s Sunday newsletter: https://www.semafor.com/newsletters/media For more from Think with Google, check out ThinkwithGoogle.com. Find us on X: @semaforben, @maxwelltaniIf you have a tip or a comment, please email us mixedsignals@semafor.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    59 mins
  • Bret Baier on golfing with Trump, his 2028 predictions, and making the case for civility

    Bret Baier on golfing with Trump, his 2028 predictions, and making the case for civility
    May 29 2026
    Fox News' Special Report host Bret Baier joins Mixed Signals to talk about what it's like to sit at the center of American political media. Max and Ben ask Bret how he navigates tough questions while maintaining access to President Trump, what he actually learned from the Fox News Dominion discovery process, and why he doesn't vote. They also get into his new book, his 2028 predictions, and whether CBS News has any shot at replicating what he's built. Sign up for Semafor Media’s Sunday newsletter: https://www.semafor.com/newsletters/media For more from Think with Google, check out ThinkwithGoogle.com. Find us on X: @semaforben, @maxwelltani If you have a tip or a comment, please email us mixedsignals@semafor.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    42 mins
  • Audie Cornish & Ari Shapiro’s journey from radio to podcasts — and what amateurs can learn from pros

    Audie Cornish & Ari Shapiro’s journey from radio to podcasts — and what amateurs can learn from pros
    May 22 2026
    Audie Cornish and Ari Shapiro spent years together in the buttoned-up, professional audio journalism world of NPR co-hosting All Things Considered. Now, they’re reuniting at CNN for something very different — podcasting. The two join Max and Ben to talk about how their new show Engagement Party is really just a continuation of their off-mic dynamic from their NPR days, how they’ve both dealt with the pivots and shifts that come with a career in modern media, and whether the growing crop of amateur podcasters (us included…) can learn something from the audio pros that came before them. Sign up for Semafor Media’s Sunday newsletter: https://www.semafor.com/newsletters/media For more from Think with Google, check out ThinkwithGoogle.com. Find us on X: @semaforben, @maxwelltaniIf you have a tip or a comment, please email us mixedsignals@semafor.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    46 mins