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Brian Lehrer: Brian Lehrer on WNYC. We're going to end today by opening up the phones to hear news from your corner of the internet. Now, if you were listening last week, you heard us do a call-in on news from your block, a hyper-local call-in, then we did news from your country of origin if you're an immigrant, a hyper-global call-in, now we're going to do a hyper-virtual call-in, news from your corner of the internet. (212)-433-WNYC, (212)-433-9692, or tweet @BrianLehrer.

What does this mean? Well, we're inviting you to call in and share the big news from some of the websites or online communities that you frequent. What's the news from your corner of the internet? Tweet @BrianLehrer, or give us a call at (212)-433-WNYC, that's (212)-433-9692. This is not necessarily about politics even though we talk about a lot of politics on this show, and we're not restricting you from talking about politics here, but we are also wondering about what's going on in the forums you visit or the parts of social media, the sites that the algorithm is feeding you.

What is the internet pushing you toward? What's the most exciting news in your Facebook groups, parenting LISTSERV, or Reddit feed? (212)-433-WNYC. Maybe that sums up what we're asking for and interested in here as well as anything I say could. What's the most exciting news in your Facebook groups, parenting LISTSERV, or Reddit feed? (212)-433-9692. Like here's one from BookTok, which is a subcommunity on the app TikTok focused on books and literature. The hashtag BookTok has 80 billion views today according to CNN and is influencing readers and the publishing industry itself. Maybe you want to call in and explain how you've interacted with that hashtag or report which book is trending now on BookTok if you're in the know.

Have you read Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us, and was it worth the hype? Times had an article on her this weekend selling so, so, so, so many books contrary to what the publishing industry thought would happen with her. A lot of that is from algorithms or just word of mouth, we should say, from people spreading things on their corners of the internet. Or anything, if you're following any other hashtag or community on TikTok, tell us what's going on. (212)-433-WNYC.

Do we have any K-pop fans listening? Another example, just this morning, the BBC reported that BTS, the world's biggest boy band, will be joining the South Korean military for national service. "All able-bodied men between the ages of 18 to 28 must serve about two years in South Korea," they say. This news ended speculation of whether the stars might be exempt. BTS fans, what do you think about that?

Something, as another example, that's both online and pretty local, on the Long Island subreddit, one recent post that has racked up nearly 300 comments posed the question, "Is it me or is Long Island in a state of decay?" With Reddit users weighing in on whether Long Island is experiencing worse brick-and-mortar closures compared to the rest of the nation and why that might be that took off.

Those are a few examples. Listeners, give us the news. Now that we've done a hyper-local call-in and a hyper-global call-in, we're doing this hyper-virtual call-in. Give us the news from your corner of the internet. Is it Corn Boy for anybody? Anybody eating more corn because of Corn Boy? With butter, everything changed, as he said. Anyway, Roya on the Upper West Side, you're on WNYC. Hi, Roya.

Roya: Hi, Brian. Thanks so much for taking my call. I wanted to talk about just the movement that's happening in Iran that's kind of living virtually in my opinion. I don't want to talk so much about the history that's going on there, but there is so much action that's happening online through social media, through Instagram, and we're really, really, really trying to get it into mainstream media.

For example, there are just a number of Instagram handles that folks can follow that I'd be more than happy to share. There's a massive march that's happening in D.C. this weekend to just rally, rally, rally in support of the amazing people that are just fighting constantly day after day against brute force that's deathly. Again, another 16-year-old died at the hands of the national army there just because she decided not to go to a forced protest that was pro-regime.

The girls in that country have redefined feminism to include men, the intersectionality of political uprisings. Women in the Middle East and in the world will never be the same because of them. Let's really, really just rally together to get this movement off of social media and into the real world. Anyways, so that was a long little rant there, but I'm just hoping that it can move-

Brian Lehrer: Roya, thank you.

Roya: -from Instagram off-- [chuckles] Thank you.

Brian Lehrer: Thank you very much. That came up a lot, not that particular reference but, obviously, this issue when we did our hyper-global call-in the other week. By the way, I mentioned Corn Boy. Somebody tweeted what I asked, "Anybody eating more corn because of Corn Boy?" Somebody tweeted, "Out of context." Context, honestly, I really don't know but go look at the Corn Boy video if you haven't seen it yet, it's so cute. Also, on the food beat, Abby in Westchester, you're on WNYC. Hi, Abby.

Abby: Oh, hi. I can't believe I'm on. I've called in a few times. I just wanted to shout out the cake decorating and baking community on Instagram and on TikTok. I'm mostly on Instagram, but everything on TikTok has pushed them into Instagram as well. It's just a really fun community, mostly women who just share tips on baking and support each other and give each other tips on pricing.

Also, we've done some fundraisings. Like when the war in Ukraine started, there was a huge bake sale that went on all around the country and around the world, and we were able to connect using this awesome community.

Brian Lehrer: Thank you for that, Abby. Thank you very much. Somebody else tweets- You can tweet us as well as call in, tweet @BrianLehrer. -from their corner of the internet, "Got Wordle in one today," says, "I always use the same start word, so this will never happen again. Wordle 485, one out of six," meaning they got it on the first word. How about that? Stacy in Manhattan, you're on WNYC. What's the news from your corner of the internet?

Stacy: The future of Peloton with a lot of Pelotoners who have spent lots of money on bikes. There's a lawsuit with one of the instructors against Peloton. It's a hot item on the internet.

Brian Lehrer: Very interesting. Do you use a piece of Peloton equipment?

Stacy: I have just used the app, I don't use the equipment.

Brian Lehrer: Oh, right, good. Thank you very much. All right, listeners, news from your corner of the internet, our hyper-virtual call-in. What's happening on your social media, what's happening on your Facebook feed, what's happening on your favorite subreddit, or anything else? (212)-433-WNYC, 433-9692. Here's Gabriel calling from St. Simons Island, Georgia. Gabriel, you're on WNYC. Hello from New York.

Gabriel: Good morning, Brian. Hello from Georgia.

Brian Lehrer: What you got for us from the virtual world?

Gabriel: In the corner of the internet that is devoted to vintage clothes, there was a recently a pair of denim jeans sold for $76,000-

Brian Lehrer: Woah.

Gabriel: -at a vintage convention in Colorado.

Brian Lehrer: That is not Aaron Judge's $2-million 60-second home run ball, but $76,000 for a pair of vintage jeans. Was there something particularly special about it, do you know?

Gabriel: They're from the 19th century. They were fished out of a mine somewhere out West. I guess what makes them good is that they're one of the oldest, most intact pair of Levi's that have ever been found.

Brian Lehrer: Is that just a random thing that you saw that's interesting, or are you part of some kind of vintage clothing community or something like that?

Gabriel: This has broken the vintage clothing community Instagram world in the last couple of weeks. I think it's the highest amount paid for a pair of jeans at least from a vintage person's standpoint. I'm not sure if the Levi Corporation has spent more on a pair of jeans in their vaults. I'm also curious to know if the Levi's Corporation is now interested in this pair of jeans and how much it would then go for. It certainly has risen the bar on how much an old pair of pants can go for.

Brian Lehrer: Thank you very much, Gabriel. Really interesting. Matt in Bergen County, you're on WNYC. Hi, Matt.

Matt: Hey, thank you so much for taking my call. I appreciate it. Long-time listener.

Brian Lehrer: Thank you. News from your corner of the internet go.

Matt: From my corner of the virtual world, we'll say hyper-hyper-local, because I just started a social media company to help businesses in their small corner of the internet promote themselves online, email blast, obviously Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok is big and I figured I'd let you guys know and see if you would give me a plug. I appreciate you taking the time.

Brian Lehrer: I guess you just gave yourself a plug. Do you feel like you're fighting against certain other virtual giants in doing this?

Matt: Yes, [laughs] for sure. I focus mostly on the small mid-size businesses but you know a lot of the big organizations are out there and cold calling and knocking on doors and sending mailers. The competition is there, but I think competition is healthy. You talk to people and they do obviously recognize the importance of being online and promoting their business through email, social media, TikTok, what have you, but you do it.

I think even fewer, do it correctly. It's like a lot of things. It's consistency and repetition and strategy and planning. Then to do that, you can certainly take hold and have a presence. There's a lot of good groups out there that do it. My company is called Integr8, and if you'd allow me to give a website, I--

Brian Lehrer: Go ahead real quick.

Matt: Cool. It's integr8 with an I-N-T-E-G-R-8.net.

Brian Lehrer: Matt, thank you very much. Good luck. By the way, those vintage jeans that I didn't know about, a few people are tweeting that they have a racist comment attached to them, to that pair of jeans. A racist slogan, which I'm seeing here in a tweet, I'm not going to repeat it, but indicating what ethnic group made or did not make those genes allegedly. I guess that's one of the things that makes them interesting, if not necessarily virtuous. Ron in Manhattan, you are on WNYC? Hi Ron.

Ron: Hey, Brian. How are you? I have this little website called I love the Upper West Side or something like that and just saw minutes before you started the segment, that a car slammed into a dining shed and shocking of course, just a couple blocks from where I live in the West 80th. I think that they may be running their course. This happens another couple of times, I can see that that's the end of it for them.

Brian Lehrer: Ron, thank you very much. That's disturbing. Let's see, another one from Twitter before we run out of time, a Twitter user, "Masked and vaccinated rights. There is a dark but beautiful corner of Facebook where caregivers of the sick, dying, and elderly support each other. These are lives lived hidden due to neglect and fear by the general population. There are more of us than you think, and you are not alone."

Nice way to end your news from your corner of the virtual world. That's The Brian Lehrer Show for today, produced by MaryEileen Croke, Lisa Allison, Amina Srna, Carl Boisrond, Esperanza Rosenbaum, and Emily Lowinger, today. Zach Gottehrer-Cohen produces our Daily Politics podcast. Our interns this term are Trinity Lopez and Briana Brady. I'm Brian Lehrer.

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