Elon Musk just (allegedly) had his thirteenth child with a fourth woman — a 26-year-old conservative influencer named Ashley St. Clair. He refuses to acknowledge the child and has been publicly degrading Ms. St. Clair online. Despite Elon being the new face of the conservative party, this story has hardly generated coverage. What exactly happened to the party of traditional family values, and where does it leave the women of said party? Today, we attempt to draw from the bizarre tragedy of Ms. St. Clair conclusions about the impossibility of succeeding as a woman on the right — then and now. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today's sponsors! Protect yourself online, wherever you go. Get a discount on NordVPN at https://www.nordvpn.com/fruity.  Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at https://www.blueland.com/fruity.  Listen to Moira's and Adrian's podcast, In Bed With The Right. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Quiet luxury. Clean girl. Old money. Trad living. Kylie Jenner’s pivot from Black culture vulture to glass skin pilates princess. College youth dressed like polyester Shein replicas of Reagan-era prepsters. Something’s happened, and I’m uncomfortable. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Work smarter, not harder, with Factor meals ready in two minutes at https://www.factormeals.com/fruity50off.   Start managing your money better and cancel unwanted expenses at https://www.rocketmoney.com/fruity.  SUBSCRIBE TO KAT'S NEWSLETTER! SUBSCRIBE TO TAYLOR'S NEWSLETTER! Listen to Taylor's podcast, Power User. Follow me on Instagram. Follow A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our country is now run by a bunch of spineless billionaires who were cast out as nerds in college so they launched a vendetta against humanity. Today, Edward Ongweso Jr. of This Machine Kills helps us understand the tech bro-ligarchy’s key overlords, why they are so far up the president’s rectum, their deranged philosophy on life, and their apocalypse escape plans.  Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Work smarter, not harder, with Factor meals ready in two minutes at https://www.factormeals.com/fruity50.  Get an exclusive 60% on Incogni! https://incogni.com/fruity Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The first episode of this podcast ever recorded was about Amber Heard and the online public’s inability — or unwillingness — to distinguish between their organic feelings about celebrity abuse allegations and their participation in a strategic, well-funded smear campaign against a woman coming forward. Since that episode, journalist Kat Tenbarge and I have become best friends. She’s also reported on this exact news cycle over and over again with different women. Today, we break down the new yet familiar legal battle between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni and attempt to sharpen our critical thinking skills, because the decisions we make online matter — and the success of these misogynistic campaigns can end with us. Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Start managing your money better and cancel unwanted expenses at www.rocketmoney.com/fruity.  Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.blueland.com/fruity. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The remarkable dissonance between the public’s embrace of UnitedHealthcare CEO assassin Luigi Mangione and the mainstream media’s outward disdain for both Luigi and the public’s martyrization of him has been… bizarre. In a rare moment where the culture war has been traded in for the class war, billionaire-owned media corporations and politicians alike seem to be panicking. That panic should be a moment of clarity for everyday Americans. Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Listen to Taylor’s podcast, Power User.  Subscribe to Taylor’s newsletter, User Mag. Subscribe to Ken Klippenstein’s Substack. Work smarter, not harder, with Factor meals ready in two minutes at www.factormeals.com/fruity50.  Start managing your money better and cancel unwanted expenses at www.rocketmoney.com/fruity.  Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There was a time before Elon Musk was tweeting 60 times a day about trans people and the woke mind virus — and it wasn’t that long ago. As recently as 2018, Elon was boasting about Tesla scoring a 100 on the Human Rights Campaign’s corporate equality index and telling anyone who was bothered by that to “not buy our car.” So what happened? Today, Ryan Mac and Kate Conger, authors of Character Limit: How Elon Musk Destroyed Twitter, unpack Elon’s personal and political midlife crisis — and the price we pay for it. Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/mattbernstein Work smarter, not harder, with Factor meals ready in two minutes: www.factormeals.com/fruity50  Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.blueland.com/fruity. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A Bit Fruity was due for a good old-fashioned film analysis. Wicked is a kids movie that is actually for adults, holding up a mirror to our increasingly fascistic reality and asking us to question our struggle against it — or place within it. Glinda the Good Witch, thoughtfully delivered by Ariana Grande, is both easy to love and easy to hate. But while some characters’ politics are obvious (a fascist Wizard, a radical Elphaba), Glinda’s are harder to pinpoint. Today, we attempt just that. Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Work smarter, not harder, with Factor meals ready in two minutes: www.factormeals.com/fruity50. Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.blueland.com/fruity. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This was the first election where the online far-right radicalization of young boys and men revealed itself in exit polls. After years of being fed diet-incel podcasts, one thing is clear: Gen Z will not, by some inherent virtue of youth, save us. Today, Taylor Lorenz and I break down the “epidemic of male loneliness”, the influencers exploiting it, the conservative media machine that funds them, and why we can’t just make a “leftist Joe Rogan.” Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Listen to Taylor’s podcast, Power User.  Protect yourself online, wherever you go. Get a discount on NordVPN at www.nordvpn.com/fruity.  Start managing your money better and cancel unwanted expenses at www.rocketmoney.com/fruity.  Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In America, the only thing standing between you and wealth beyond your wildest dreams is tying for fifth with a trans person. Today, media critic Ari Drennen takes us into the bizarre world of the 24-year-old whispering policy into Donald Trump’s ear. Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Start managing your money better and cancel unwanted expenses at www.rocketmoney.com/fruity.  Follow Ari's Substack. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The slogan of YouTube’s most popular debate channel, Jubilee, is “provoke understanding & create human connection.” So why is all of its content a cesspool of bigotry, rage-bait, and pseudoscientific slop?  Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Huge thanks to the show's sponsors: Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.blueland.com/fruity. Get an exclusive 60% on Incogni! https://incogni.com/fruity Subscribe to Big Joel’s YouTube channel! Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Well, I got Swiftied. As I sat there, sifting through ever more creative and graphic death threats, I wondered: is it time for a podcast episode? Today, Amanda Montell (of Sounds Like a Cult) takes us on an exploration of how online music fan culture co-opted the harassment tactics of the far right, which co-opted the social justice tactics of Black Twitter. Let’s go, girls. Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Huge thanks to the show's sponsors: Protect yourself online, wherever you go. Get a discount on NordVPN at www.nordvpn.com/fruity. Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.blueland.com/fruity. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

H-O-T-T-O-G-O, Chappell Roan is someone we do not actually know. But what do we do with the (very real) feelings and relationships we form with the people on our screens? Today, Eliza of Binchtopia and I discuss fame — global fame and niche micro “fame” — to understand where we parasocially flew off the rails, and what the future of celebrity might look like with boundaries in place. Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Listen to Eliza's music. Huge thanks to the show's sponsors: Stay connected to the Internet wherever you're going (at a discount!) with Saily. To uncover and cancel the unwanted expenses you’ve forgotten about, try Rockey Money. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How does a harmless interest in yoga turn into a crusade against homosexuals in public schools? Specific though it seems, we’ve all seen it happen: a friend with a seemingly innocuous interest in wellness starts “doing their research”, and one year later, bam: QAnon. Sparked by some recent beauty influencer drama, Derek Beres of Conspirituality helps us identify the far right’s Goop-iest seduction tactic. Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Get an exclusive 60% on Incogni! https://incogni.com/fruity. Huge thanks to Blueland for sponsoring today’s show. Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.blueland.com/fruity. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Your gender is not determined by your anatomy, your chromosomes, your hormones, or even your internal sense of self. It is determined by J.K. Rowling. Today, Natalie Wynn (aka Contrapoints) and I unpack the harassment campaign against Algerian boxer Imane Khelif and what it reveals about people who can “always tell.” Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Get an exclusive discount on NordVPN (that I wish I had when I first signed up for it, but hey): https://NordVPN.com/fruity. Huge thanks to Blueland for sponsoring today’s show! Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.blueland.com/fruity. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is Kamala bumpin’ that? Is BRAT summer over? Who killed it? Today, Maia of Rehash and I attempt a cynical but fair analysis of meme culture, Gen Z nihilism, and political standom. Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Rocket Money is a real one for sponsoring the show. Start managing your money better and cancel unwanted expenses at www.rocketmoney.com/fruity. Register to vote here. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I stay away from heterosexual mess, but this time it came to me. Today, Taylor Lorenz and I work backwards to understand how a 21-year-old bed spring factory worker from Tennessee became a culture war symbol because of a drunken joke about fellatio. None of these words are in the bible. Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Listen to Taylor’s podcast, Power User. Rocket Money is a real one for sponsoring the show. Start managing your money better and cancel unwanted expenses at www.rocketmoney.com/fruity. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A special episode where we hear from listeners of the show who were lovers, nurses, relatives, students, and friends of people who died from AIDS. Support me + listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to Blueland for supporting the show. For 15% off a better way to clean, head to https://www.blueland.com/fruity. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A drug that needs no introduction and a culture of fatphobia that lives on. Today, we are ALL beating the Ozempic allegations.  Use code "fruity" at https://incogni.com/fruity to get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan! Support me on Patreon! To uncover and cancel the unwanted expenses you’ve forgotten about, try Rocket Money. Listen to Aubrey’s incredible show, Maintenance Phase. Me on Instagram. A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How does a white gay guy from England go from “trans-Korean” troll to a member of the conservative media establishment? It’s easier than you think! Today, Taylor Lorenz helps us unpack the anatomy of the right wing grift — because if all else fails, just become a Fox News star. Support me on Patreon! Huge thanks to the sponsors of today’s show! For a more sustainable, chicer clean, try Blueland. To uncover and cancel the unwanted expenses you’ve forgotten about, try Rocket Money.  Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Girlbossing too close to the sun can cause a real trainwreck. Today, we examine the unstable foundation of Amy Schumer's feminist brand of comedy and how it all fell apart. Support me on Patreon! Thanks to Rocket Money for sponsoring the show. Uncover and cancel your unwanted expenses at www.rocketmoney.com/fruity.  Here’s Maia’s YouTube channel, and here’s her fantastic podcast Rehash. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Until a month ago, college students in America were dweeby snowflake liberals, too socially anxious to notify the waiter of an incorrect order. Now, they’re (allegedly) well-connected, well-funded terrorists. Who are the students protesting for Palestine, what do they want, and why is the media obsessed with misrepresenting them? Support me on Patreon! Thanks to Blueland for sponsoring the show. For 15% off a better way to clean, head to www.blueland.com/fruity. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Autistic nonbinary TikTokers. Loud, flamboyant gay men. The twink who filmed himself having sex in the Senate hearing room. Are gay rights being eroded across the country because some of us are… annoying? It’s tempting to think so, but it isn’t true. Sadly, we can never Blaire White-ify or Pete Buttigieg-ify ourselves to freedom. Support me on Patreon! Find more of Devon’s work. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The new docu-series “Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV” is shedding light on the abuse that early-2000s child stars faced behind the scenes of our favorite Nickelodeon shows. The doc focuses especially on Drake Bell (of “Drake & Josh” fame), but leaves out half the story. Is a program that claims to be raising awareness about abuse ultimately just perpetuating it? Support me on Patreon! Huge thanks to Blueland for sponsoring today’s show. Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.blueland.com/fruity Find more of Kat. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From “sex is real” to Holocaust denial — if it happened to the wizard lady, it can happen to you. Support me on Patreon! Watch more from the brilliant Natalie Wynn a.k.a. ContraPoints. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2018, I called “Love, Simon” a “gay movie made by a straight woman for straight people.” Today, I tell you why I was wrong. Support me on Patreon! Huge thanks to Blueland for sponsoring today’s show. Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.blueland.com/fruity Find more of Becky. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A rant. Support me on Patreon! Learn more about Trans Lifeline. Big thanks to Rocket Money for sponsoring today’s show. Save more and get your life together at www.rocketmoney.com/fruity. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I get called a “groomer” on Twitter every day — which is weird, because I want nothing to do with your kids. What is it with queers and kids that gets conservatives so livid? Today, we explore The Gay Agenda’s exhausting past — beginning with the present. First, UK drag queen Crystal tells us how she successfully sued a right-wing activist who defamed her as a “paed*phile.” Then, Chelsey Weber-Smith (of American Hysteria) takes us through the last century of American history, where myths about the Scary Queer Predator pop up again and again, and again. Support me on Patreon! Listen to Chelsey’s podcast, American Hysteria. Find more of Crystal. Huge thanks to Blueland for sponsoring this episode! Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.blueland.com/fruity Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Peter Staley was a 24-year-old, closeted finance guy when he was diagnosed with HIV. Having been handed a death sentence, he quit his job and devoted what life he had left to fighting the homophobic governments that were letting him and his friends die. Peter tells us about living through the darkest years of gay history, the pivotal role of lesbians in the AIDS movement, and the silent mental health and drug battles he grappled with after realizing he was going to survive. Support me on Patreon! Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Try Rocket Money and start cutting your unwanted expenses! Try HelloFresh for a timesaving, budget-friendly approach to home cooking. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Taylor Swift has the power to swing the presidential election. What if nothing else matters? Support me on Patreon! Find Angela on Twitter, not X. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Huge thanks to Blueland for sponsoring this episode. Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.blueland.com/fruity Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How the manufactured hysteria over a single can of beer brought an end to the golden age of rainbow Doritos and “Homo Estás” Chipotle ads — at least until we’re profitable again. Support me on Patreon! (www.patreon.com/mattbernstein in case the hyperlink is being weird!) Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is there valor in scamming your way through a system that failed you, even if you hurt people along the way? What is the value of the lies we tell ourselves about ourselves? Can you be morally bankrupt and a camp icon? The questions of America, explored with friend of the show Kat Tenbarge. Find Kat on Twitter and Instagram. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

99% of people who transition continue identifying as transgender for the rest of their lives. The very small amount of people who stop or reverse their transitions — known as “detransitioners” — have become the center of a moral panic about children, gender, and medicine. Lucy, a detransgender woman, joins us to unpack what’s real and what’s hysteria. Find Lucy on TikTok, Twitter & Instagram Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Watch the video of this episode on YouTube. Huge thanks to Blueland for sponsoring this episode. Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.Blueland.com/fruity Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are “Queers for Palestine” really like “Chickens for KFC”? No, but understanding intersectional justice can be hard, and sharing memes is easy. Joined by Moe Dabbagh, a gay Palestinian American with family currently in Gaza, we Venn diagram gay liberation and Palestinian liberation. They’re less at odds with each other than you’d think. Gal Gadot makes a cameo.  Read Sarah Schulman’s op-ed on pinkwashing here. Thank you to Moe Dabbagh for joining me. Find Moe here. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Watch the video of this episode on YouTube. Huge thanks to Blueland for sponsoring this episode. Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.Blueland.com/fruity Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The number of kids being homeschooled today is more than double of what it was four years ago, and nobody is making the rules. While the religious right is convinced that political indoctrination is rampant in public schools, we take a look at where teaching is actually flying off the rails.  Huge thanks to Blueland for sponsoring this episode. Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at www.Blueland.com/fruity Read Christina’s and Aaron’s Washington Post story here. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Watch the video of this episode on YouTube. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At the forefront of today’s anti-LGBTQ movement is one shockingly uncharismatic woman. Journalist Taylor Lorenz helps us understand the rise of Chaya Raichik, a former real estate agent who now makes a handsome living terrorizing queer students and teachers across the country using her Twitter account, @libsoftiktok. We also hear directly from some of her former targets. Buy Taylor’s new book here. Watch the video of this episode on YouTube. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2008, Jenna Karvunidis was looking for ways to involve her distant mother in the life of her soon-to-be child. Fifteen years, thousands of acres of wildfires, and a few plane crashes later, she wishes she could put the genie back in its bottle. Find Jenna here. Watch the video of this episode on Youtube. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Like many people, sitting still and staring at the wall during the early days of the pandemic brought up new feelings for Miss Benny. Notably, that she was transgender. From viral closeted teenager to out Netflix star, she walks us through the personal and political trials of her first few years living as a woman. Find Miss Benny here. Watch the video of this episode on Youtube. Find more A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One year later, we revisit the trial that metastasized through society, leaving a culture of brutal misogyny in its wake. NBC journalist Kat Tenbarge helps us navigate a story not just about Amber Heard, but about our misunderstanding of abuse, tabloid spectacles, influencers, and money. It is also a story about Amber Heard. Find Kat’s work here. Watch the video of this episode on YouTube. Find more of A Bit Fruity. Find more of Matt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

LGBT conservatives: Why? How? Where did they come from? What can we learn from them, and how can we dismantle the LGBT conservative that lives within all of us? Natalie Wynn (aka Contrapoints) helps us psychoanalyze one of the more confusing political positions of our time. Jeffree Star makes an appearance, for better or for worse. Indulge in Natalie’s work Find more of A Bit Fruity Find more of Matt Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A Bit Fruity with Matt Bernstein is coming soon! I'm so happy you're here. Subscribe everywhere podcasts are available, and watch full episodes at https://www.youtube.com/MattBernstein1 Follow Matt: @mattxiv Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices