Writer E. Alex Jung on the Internet Culture of Quarantine

KQED's Forum

KQED

News, Politics, News Commentary

4.2 • 726 Ratings

🗓️ 16 December 2020

⏱️ 36 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

When shelter-in-place began in March, we watched as TV hosts filmed shows from home, unstyled and in casual clothes, and later followed the NBA into its bubble. And we turned to the internet even more for connection and entertainment, spurring a unique “Quarantine Culture” according E. Alex Jung, senior writer at New York Magazine. It’s a culture where, as Jung wrote, "the internet became more internet — an ever-thickening soup of private derangements and niche dramas." Whether it was comedian Sarah Cooper lip-synching Trump’s speeches for the app TikTok, building a virtual world in games like “Animal Crossing” or enjoying the otherwise unlikely opportunity to see your favorite artists perform a show from home — “we were all extremely online,” Jung said. We talk with Jung about the year in “Quarantine Culture” and the forms of entertainment we enjoyed — or made ourselves — on the internet. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Support for Forum comes from Rancho La Puerta, a wellness resort in Baja, California, just an hour from San Diego,
0:07.4	recently voted the number one destination spa by readers of travel and leisure magazine.
0:12.8	Summer retreat packages of three, four, or seven nights including hiking, water classes,
0:19.0	mindfulness, spa therapies, and culinary adventures with
0:22.8	farm-fresh ingredients. Learn more at Rancho LePuerta.com.
0:27.3	Support for Forum comes from Broadway S.F. presenting Parade, the musical revival based on a
0:33.2	true story. From three-time Tony-winning composer Jason Robert Brown comes the story of Leo and
0:39.7	Lucille Frank, a newlywed Jewish couple struggling to make a life in Georgia. When Leo is accused
0:46.3	of an unspeakable crime, it propels them into an unimaginable test of faith, humanity, justice,
0:53.4	and devotion.
1:02.6	The riveting and gloriously hopeful parade plays the Orphium Theater for three weeks only, May 20th through June 8th.
1:06.9	Tickets on sale now at Broadway, sF.com.
1:09.5	From KQED. From KQED. From KQ forum, we get an update on how hospitals are dealing
1:28.4	with the virus surge, particularly in hard-hit Southern California, where health officials worry
1:33.3	about widespread flouting of lockdown rules. And we continue reflecting on our pandemic year, this time with a look
1:40.4	at the viral entertainment we created or sought out to cope with the fear and confusion invading our lives.
1:46.9	From Animal Crossing to Versus battles to comedian Sarah Cooper lip-syncing Trump speeches,
1:52.4	what online moments encapsulated 2020 for you? Tell us next on Forum. Support for forum comes from San Francisco Opera.
2:14.6	Amidst a terrible storm, Idemineo promises the God Neptune that he will
2:19.2	sacrifice the first person he sees if he and his crew survive the tempestuous waters. But as he
2:26.4	arrives safely to shore, his relief transforms into horror when the first person he lays eyes
2:32.2	upon is his own son.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from KQED, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of KQED and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.