<description>&lt;p&gt;This week on Blocked and Reported, Jesse and Katie discuss a string of recent AI scandals in publishing: the &lt;em&gt;Shy Girl&lt;/em&gt; debacle, Matt Goodwin's hallucinated data, Alex Preston's plagiarized book review, and more. Plus, controversy ensues when &lt;em&gt;Washington Post&lt;/em&gt; columnist Megan McArdle admits to (gasp) using AI in her process. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="https://tubitv.com/movies/100009961/thin-skin"&gt;Watch Thin Skin (2023) - Free Movies | Tubi&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="https://bookstr.com/article/mia-ballard-on-her-horrific-feminine-rage-novel/"&gt;Mia Ballard on Her Horrific Feminine Rage Novel - Bookstr&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/19/books/ai-fiction-shy-girl.html"&gt;A.I. Is Writing Fiction. Publishers Are Unprepared. - The New York Times&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/21/style/modern-love-unfit-to-be-a-mother.html?unlocked_article_code=1.PlA.f0EI.9p0LpXmTkTIn&amp;#38;smid=url-share"&gt;I Was Deemed Unfit to Be a Mother - The New York Times&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="https://www.thewrap.com/media-platforms/journalism/new-york-times-cuts-ties-with-writer-ai/"&gt;New York Times Cuts Ties with Book Review Writer Over AI Use | Exclusive&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="https://spectator.com/article/the-illusion-and-delusion-of-matt-goodwin/"&gt;The illusion and delusion of Matt Goodwin | The Spectator&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="https://thecritic.co.uk/suicide-of-an-authors-credibility/"&gt;Suicide of an author’s credibility | Ben Sixsmith | The Critic Magazine&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="https://www.gbnews.com/news/matt-goodwin-andy-twelves-debate-suicide-of-a-nation-allegations-ai"&gt;Matt Goodwin and Andy Twelves caught in fiery clash over author’s new book Suicide of a Nation&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="https://spectator.com/article/ai-didnt-write-my-book/"&gt;AI didn’t write my book | The Spectator&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/2026/04/ai-data-centers-energy-demands/686064/"&gt;Inside the Dirty, Dystopian World of AI Data Centers - The Atlantic&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="https://tennesseelookout.com/2025/07/07/a-billionaire-an-ai-supercomputer-toxic-emissions-and-a-memphis-community-that-did-nothing-wrong/"&gt;A billionaire, an AI supercomputer, toxic emissions and a Memphis community that did nothing wrong • Tennessee Lookout&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;a target="_blank" href="https://www.cleveland.com/news/2026/02/journalism-schools-are-teaching-fear-of-the-future-letter-from-the-editor.html"&gt;Journalism schools are teaching fear of the future: Letter from the Editor - cleveland.com&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;br/&gt;&lt;br/&gt;This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit &lt;a href="https://www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&amp;#38;utm_campaign=CTA_2"&gt;www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe&lt;/a&gt;</description>

Blocked and Reported

Katie Herzog and Jesse Singal

Episode 302: It's Not Cheating. It's Leveraging Available Tools To Optimize Your Workflow.

APR 6, 202665 MIN
Blocked and Reported

Episode 302: It's Not Cheating. It's Leveraging Available Tools To Optimize Your Workflow.

APR 6, 202665 MIN

Description

<p>This week on Blocked and Reported, Jesse and Katie discuss a string of recent AI scandals in publishing: the <em>Shy Girl</em> debacle, Matt Goodwin's hallucinated data, Alex Preston's plagiarized book review, and more. Plus, controversy ensues when <em>Washington Post</em> columnist Megan McArdle admits to (gasp) using AI in her process. </p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://tubitv.com/movies/100009961/thin-skin">Watch Thin Skin (2023) - Free Movies | Tubi</a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://bookstr.com/article/mia-ballard-on-her-horrific-feminine-rage-novel/">Mia Ballard on Her Horrific Feminine Rage Novel - Bookstr</a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/19/books/ai-fiction-shy-girl.html">A.I. Is Writing Fiction. Publishers Are Unprepared. - The New York Times</a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/21/style/modern-love-unfit-to-be-a-mother.html?unlocked_article_code=1.PlA.f0EI.9p0LpXmTkTIn&#38;smid=url-share">I Was Deemed Unfit to Be a Mother - The New York Times</a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.thewrap.com/media-platforms/journalism/new-york-times-cuts-ties-with-writer-ai/">New York Times Cuts Ties with Book Review Writer Over AI Use | Exclusive</a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://spectator.com/article/the-illusion-and-delusion-of-matt-goodwin/">The illusion and delusion of Matt Goodwin | The Spectator</a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://thecritic.co.uk/suicide-of-an-authors-credibility/">Suicide of an author’s credibility | Ben Sixsmith | The Critic Magazine</a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.gbnews.com/news/matt-goodwin-andy-twelves-debate-suicide-of-a-nation-allegations-ai">Matt Goodwin and Andy Twelves caught in fiery clash over author’s new book Suicide of a Nation</a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://spectator.com/article/ai-didnt-write-my-book/">AI didn’t write my book | The Spectator</a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/2026/04/ai-data-centers-energy-demands/686064/">Inside the Dirty, Dystopian World of AI Data Centers - The Atlantic</a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://tennesseelookout.com/2025/07/07/a-billionaire-an-ai-supercomputer-toxic-emissions-and-a-memphis-community-that-did-nothing-wrong/">A billionaire, an AI supercomputer, toxic emissions and a Memphis community that did nothing wrong • Tennessee Lookout</a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.cleveland.com/news/2026/02/journalism-schools-are-teaching-fear-of-the-future-letter-from-the-editor.html">Journalism schools are teaching fear of the future: Letter from the Editor - cleveland.com</a></p><p></p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_2">www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe</a>