Skip to content

You're one post away from becoming the internet's main character

April 29, 2026 · 1 h 15 min

Show notes

Remember Chewbacca Mom, Damn Daniel, BeanDad, or most recently, Chappell Roan? These are just some examples of people who have become the “main character” on the internet — for better, or mostly (maybe always) worse. Today we’re talking about the old adage that “each day on [Twitter] there is one main character. The goal is to never be it.”
How has the internet warped our perception of celebrity (or “cewebrity”)? What does it mean to be swatted or doxxed now, versus a decade ago? Taylor Lorenz, someone who has been the main character on the internet several times, joins us to discuss.
Our guest Taylor Lorenz is a journalist. She hosts the podcast Power User, and writes about tech and online culture for her Substack, User Mag at https://www.usermag.co/. You can also follow her YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/taylorlorenz and everywhere else @taylorlorenz.
Want even more Panic World content? Like ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and access to the Garbage Day Discord? Sign up for a membership at https://www.patreon.com/PanicWorld.
Sponsors
Mint Mobile: Shop plans at https://mintmobile.com/courier for three months of coverage at $45.
Surfshark: Go to https://surfshark.com/panic or use code PANIC at checkout to get 4 extra months of Surfshark VPN.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

All episodes of Panic World

Settings

Display

Language

Decides which stations you see first on the home page.

History

Recently played stations and episodes and your latest searches are only stored in this browser.

Notifications

A short notice when a podcast you follow has a new episode. Turn off single podcasts with the bell on their page.

Account

Save favorites – in the app and on the website.

Keyboard shortcuts

/
Open search
Space
Play or pause
← →
In the player: back 15 s, forward 30 s (episodes) · in a row: next tile
↑ ↓
In a row: target within the tile
Home / End
In a row: first or last tile
Esc
Close window or menu
?
This overview
Now playing

Go to station page

Play next

    Add episodes with “Play next” – they play after the current episode.