The News Diet

This week: an SNL joke that was not, in fact, a joke, a $50 million bra that has us asking whether “sexy” has moved on at all, France’s teenagers showing everyone how to protest, and Sally Rooney’s books vanishing from UK shelves. Plus a few opinions nobody asked for. The internet ate our first recording, so you’re getting take two...Links: The Real Joke? Spouting Tired Old Misogyny And Calling It “Comedy”, by Claire Cohen for Vogue | https://www.vogue.co.uk/article/shane-gillis-snl-jokeVictoria’s Secret Brings Back the Fantasy Bra — and an Old Stereotype of Sexy, by Vanessa Friedman for The New York Times | https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/19/style/victorias-secret-fantasy-bra-sexy.html Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week's episode we're covering the botched execution of Christa Pike (and the overall treatment of women and the justice system), Zack Polanski in hot water, the buy-now-pay-laterfication of weight loss medicine and, of course, Celeb Traitors! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we’re getting existential about whether AI could ever be conscious, and what it would mean to teach machines morality. We also unpack why some new dads cheat during pregnancy or early parenthood, examine the wider questions around fraternity culture and sexual violence following the Cornell 7 case, and look at the UK’s plans for new safe routes for vulnerable refugees - and whether compassion and tighter immigration controls can really coexist.LinksReligious scholars met with Anthropic. What they heard stunned them.https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/29/us/anthropic-claude-morals-ai.htmlThe new dads who cheathttps://www.thecut.com/article/why-do-new-dads-cheat.htmlInsta: @newsdietpodTiktok: @newsdietpod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Links:Don’t knock Sydney Sweeney for having breasts that pass the pencil test, by Camilla Tominey for The Telegraph | https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/09/15/sydney-sweeney-breasts-pass-pencil-test/Donations of £72m make Reform’s prospects both rosier and riskier, by Peter Walker for The Guardian | https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/sep/12/reform-uk-billionaire-donations-analysis Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we explore the end of the Clean Girl aesthetic (finally!) and Taylor Swift and Bad Bunny’s quiet response to Donald Trump’s use of their music in immigration deportation videos - and whether refusing to engage is actually a powerful political strategy.In UK politics, we look at Andy Burnham’s bounce, Labour’s recovery in the polls and whether small, everyday policy wins can rebuild voter confidence.And finally, it’s chaos in Clacton as Nigel Farage attempts to return to Parliament in one of the strangest by-elections yet.LinksPolitics, culture, beauty and the stories everyone’s talking about — all in this week’s News Diet.Is the era of the Clean Girl over?https://observer.co.uk/style/features/article/is-the-clean-girl-era-over-beauty-messy-girlTaylor Swift and Bad Bunny Dealt With Trump Quietly. It’s a Smart Movehttps://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/taylor-swift-bad-bunny-trump-remove-tik-tok-songs-1235606235/*Correction: We say Hollywood Reporter in the podcast. We actually meant Rolling Stone*Insta: @newsdietpodTikTok: @newsdietpod Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.