Ben Smith, co-founder and editor-in-chief of Semafor, joins Eric Newcomer to break down the collision between the Trump administration and Anthropic, and what it reveals about the new relationship between Washington and big tech. Ben explains why the government is taking equity stakes in companies, how the Trump family is monetizing the presidency, and why he believes this is one of the most corrupt periods in modern American governance.
The conversation also covers the politicization of the Justice Department, why CEOs now flock to Washington instead of avoiding it, the Intel deal and what it signals about industrial policy, and Ben's bet that newsletters and live events can outlast the chase for viral traffic in media.
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Chapters:
00:00 Ben Smith's New Bet
00:36 DC Meets AI Power
02:32 Industrial Policy to Intel
04:33 Most Corrupt Administration
06:56 Anthropic in the Crosshairs
08:32 Trump's AI Boom Calculus
15:24 Public Backlash to AI
20:17 Kids and Regulation
22:28 Democrats and Anti-Tech Politics
24:16 Silicon Valley Goes Direct
29:07 Journalism's Guild Standards
31:10 Conflicts and Credibility
32:14 Tech and Media Fragmentation
34:45 BuzzFeed's Collapse
38:43 Privacy, Power, and Public Life
48:29 Is Podcasting Authentic?
50:57 AI's Threat to Journalism
#BenSmith #Anthropic #Trump