The New Gurus

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BBC Radio 4 FM

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From WhatsApp leaks to group chat nightmares, how instant messaging changed the world.

From WhatsApp leaks to school group chat nightmares, via war propaganda on Telegram and Slack meltdowns at work, how instant messaging took over our lives.

Helen Lewis Has Left the Chat. Have you ever been trapped in a group chat nightmare, either grabbing the popcorn or wondering how to leave without causing a scene? Who's the admin in your family group, and do they wield that power responsibly? Do you ever wonder if it's appropriate to use emojis when talking to your boss? The rise of instant messaging has made our social and professional lives faster, more casual — and more chaotic. But amid all the discussion of the effects of public social media, such as Facebook and Twitter, there has been relatively little attention paid to private social networks—the direct message and the group chat — and how they are shaping our relationships and our world. In this series, Helen Lewis looks at the secret world of instant messaging, meeting a woman who married a chatbot, discovering how Russian dissidents are fighting a propaganda war, and hearing the inside story of how Britain ended up governed from a single WhatsApp group. It's a strange new world where workplace rebellions are conducted through duelling emojis and military secrets are traded on chat forums about a children's cartoon. It's also a world where you can never be quite sure who you're talking to—and who's eavesdropping on you.

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Influenced: The New Gurus: New Gurus: 8. Prophets of Doom

New Gurus: 8. Prophets of Doom

BBC Radio 4 - Influenced, The New Gurus, New Gurus: 8. Prophets of Doom

Does collective anxiety explain our new age of gurus? Helen Lewis looks to the future.

Jessica Lanyadoo has seen civil war written in the stars. Peter Turchin has seen it in the data. Does collective anxiety explain our new age of gurus?

Jessica Lanyadoo thinks civil war is coming — she has seen it in the stars. But it isn’t just astrologers who think we’re living through an age of upheaval. Peter Turchin, a Soviet-born professor who studies historical cycles, has already seen one political system collapse in his lifetime. He calls this decade  the Turbulent Twenties. 

Could our collective anxiety explain the rise of the new gurus?

The New Gurus is a series about looking for enlightenment in the digital world.

Written and presented by Helen Lewis

Series Producers: Morgan Childs and Tom Pooley
Story consultant: Geoff Bird 
Original music composed by Paper Tiger
Sound design and mix: Rob Speight
Editor: Craig Templeton Smith

A Tempo & Talker production for BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds

Influenced: The New Gurus

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

Helen Lewis meets the new gurus promising us enlightenment in the digital world.

From productivity hackers to dating coaches, from crypto bros to wellness influencers, when did the internet get taken over by gurus? Helen Lewis investigates.

Everywhere you look on the internet, people are giving - and receiving - advice. Advice that promises to transform our lives. How to eat. How to think. How to get rich. How to manage our time. 

Across eight episodes, Helen Lewis travels through the strange, powerful and sometimes hidden digital spaces created by these new gurus. Where did they come from? How much power do these charismatic individuals wield? And why are so many of us turning away from the mainstream - mainstream medicine, mainstream politics and the mainstream media - and embracing the power of charismatic individuals instead?

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