The Monday Media Diet with Kyle Chayka

Kyle Chayka (KC) had a nice breakout as a writer coining the trend “Airspace,” describing the homogeneous spaces (a dash of mid-century modernism here, some reclaimed wood there) that were painfully pervasive in Berlin, Buenos Aires, and New York alike. He’s our first return MMD, and I asked him back because he has a lot of interesting things cooking (New Yorker column, a new book in the works, etc) since we last checked in  - Colin (CJN)

Tell us about yourself.

I'd currently describe myself as a journalist and author, in that I write articles and books. I write a column called Infinite Scroll for the website of The New Yorker, covering what I always call "internet stuff." Right now I'm also finishing my second book, Filterworld, which is about how the rise of algorithmic feeds — Twitter, Instagram, Netflix, TikTok — has homogenized culture and made us all worse cultural consumers. (Sign up for my personal newsletter for updates!!) In more mundane detail, I live in Washington, DC, with my girlfriend Jess Bidgood who is a great national politics reporter and our dog Rhubarb, a 50% plott hound (they were bred to hunt bears!) who we adopted since I wrote my last MMD. She is quite aloof for a dog but also very sweet. 

I've also gradually discovered that I'm insanely restless work-wise. I co-founded two media companies. Study Hall, with P.E. Moskowitz, has been running for many years as an online community for journalists (thank you to its current staff). Dirt, with Daisy Alioto, is a daily newsletter on digital entertainment that's evolving into a full-scale web3 media company.  

Describe your media diet. Currently I'm on an algorithm cleanse for my book, so I gave up Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and basically all of the usual ways I consumed media. It's been kind of a shock! I can still use the Internet, but it has to be non-algorithmic, not driven by recommendations. I read the NYT app a ton, because it's a good experience on my phone, but even that has a "For You" tab that's supposed to recommend articles. (It updates way too infrequently.) Newsletters are a great non-algorithmic source of info; I find myself reading the Monocle newsletter almost every day. It has a great mix of subject matters — design, politics, travel — which you need when an algorithm isn't curating the perfect mix for you. (Did algorithmic feeds kill the general-interest publication?) I've been using Discord a ton as well, joining different communities to address different interests. On Dirt's Discord we talk about what streaming shows, podcasts, etc, are best at the moment; the spice company Diaspora also has a really interesting cooking-based Discord community. The real-time chats serve that Twitter addiction to constant updates. 

What’s the last great book you read?

I've plugged Orlando Figes's The Europeans before — it's a masterful triple-biography that doubles as a breakdown of how culture got made in the 19th century. That book was so good that I went immediately on to Figes's overview of modern Russian culture, Natasha's Dance. These are fantastic works of cultural nonfiction: beautifully written and informative, with a scope and scale that's only possible a century after the fact. I'd read a book like this about every country in the world. Of course, Russia is a particularly tumultuous subject.

What are you reading now?I'm currently reading the Korean, Germany-based philosopher Byung Chul-Han's short book Non-Things. He's a very punchy writer. Essentially, his argument is that non-physical information — a la the internet — has crowded out the physical objects and experiences in our lives, and it's a downgrade. Feels very true! 

What’s your reading strategy when you pick up a print copy of your favorite publication?

The only print publication I have a desire to read these days is a copy of Monocle bought in an airport, mostly for the sake of lifestyle porn and retail inspiration. Like, I mostly just want to shop. Email newsletters have replaced print magazines as my favorite container for the identity of a publication — they arrive consistently, present a limited format, and showcase a strong editorial sensibility. Plus I can read them on my phone while I walk the dog. Print books are still great, of course. 

Who should everyone be reading that they’re not?

Honestly I'm going to highlight Terry Nguyen, who Dirt recently hired as our first staff writer. She came to us from Vox.com, where she reported and wrote fantastic pieces about how the Internet works these days. She covered the new emphasis on "community," '90s Asian film aesthetics proliferating online, and the death of trends. She's the only person I want to read on Praying, a Gen Z ironically religious streetwear brand. 

What is the best non-famous app you love on your phone? 

Not enough people are on BeReal, still. I love having a kind of Instagram that I'm only allowed to update once a day, at a given moment that's the same as everyone else. Feels like the new era of social media that's intentionally limited instead of wholly addictive. 

Plane or train?

Trains, but only outside of the U.S. where they're actually nice and efficient. To be honest we've spent many days driving lately — I blame a post-pandemic rash of weddings. I've come to appreciate highway rest stops, especially the ones with serve-yourself Costa coffee machines. Saves so much time when you can just tap your card and push the buttons instead of waiting for a line at Starbucks (where the coffee is worse anyway). Pret has been taking over American rest stops too, but they're weirdly closed too often. What's up with that?  

What is one place everyone should visit? 

After going to Barcelona this year for the Spanish publication of my first book, I got obsessed with the group of vermouth bars Morro Fi. They are impossibly perfect: ideal Spanish snacks, casual drop-in atmosphere, great house vermouth, and cool branding. I can't understand why the same thing doesn't exist in the U.S. Possibly it's because fewer people drink between 11 AM and 4 PM. 

Tell us the story of a rabbit hole you fell deep into. 

I love cooking Chinese food — after studying abroad and working there after college, my palate just got molded, I can't help it. I've spent a decade trying to get back to the gaifan dishes by my old Beijing office building. My shredded pork and hot peppers execution is getting quite good. But our DC apartment has an electric-coil stovetop that I hate, so I've been on a quest to figure out the best way to get actually high wok temperatures in the kitchen. I already got an induction cooktop that can go on the counter, but it doesn't feel super secure. Now I'm wondering about these bowl-shaped induction devices made specifically for woks. Some day I'll figure it out. (KC)

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Thanks for reading,

Noah (NRB) & Colin (CJN) & Kyle (KC)

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