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Hayes: Attention mirrors hunger and digital media is in its 1970s junk-food era

Chris Hayes · The Formula for Capturing Your Attention, Price of Fame, & Algorithms as Editors — With Chris Hayes · Feb 26, 2025 · at 33:44

MSNBC anchor Chris Hayes explains his food diet analogy for digital media consumption while discussing his book with Alex Kantrowitz.

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“I always compare it to food a lot because I think attention and hunger function similarly. They're like, they're both biological inheritances, but also reflections of our deep identity as humans. And, you know, I think we're kind of in the, like, late seventies recipe cookbook jello salad casserole era.”

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