Articles of Interest: Empathy Entropy

Today in It Can Only Get Stranger news: empathy under attack by the right, empathy under attack by our relationship with chatbots, AI sex cult compounds gone wild, and so much more.

Over at 404 Media, Sam Cole and Sherry Turkle discussed how AI Chatbots Are 'Deskilling' Human Empathy:

The technology today is wildly different than it was in the 80s, but as Professor Turkle explores in our conversation for the 404 Media podcast, the need for empathy, vulnerability, and to feel understood remains central to the human experience. With increasing reliance on conversational “companion” chatbots like ChatGPT and Replika, we risk misinterpreting machine programming as care, and risk misattributing human qualities like empathy and emotional intelligence onto unfeeling, incapable robots. The result, she argues, is a population forfeiting its empathy skills at an alarming rate, trading difficult feelings and conversations with humans for convenience and instantaneous feedback.

Speaking of empathy... While I am a year late to watching it, Lindsey Ellis' The Unforgivable Sin of Ms. Rachel is a must-watch. It's about a million different things, but it uses the right wing attacks against Ms. Rachel to examine what the politicization of empathy means (and has meant historically). If you're ever wondering what the right wing culture war is all about and in service of, I can't recommend enough giving this your time and attention.

According to The New Republic:

Former members of the Washington-based Alcoholics Anonymous chapter known as the Midtown Group call it more of a “sex cult” than a support group. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr was reportedly a member for a decade.

Matthew Chapman at Raw Story reports that in a speech delivered on Capitol Hill, Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) ranted:

"Many airline pilots, flight attendants, and air traffic controllers are part of the furry community," said Tuberville. "Lord help us. It's terrifying when you think about this. When you walk onto a commercial flight, it's possible that the pilot flying your plane could have a deranged fetish of dressing up like an animal. You can't make this up."

Alys S Brooks of Assigned Media asks Is Trans Loneliness Causing an Epidemic of AI Use in Our Community? (There's not a ton of data.)

While I must have missed the "drawing incest porn is woke" memo, Wilhelm Reich would have loved this post:

At New York Times, Kirstin Gold reports:

But what has unfolded in [Silicon Valley mansion-based hacker party communes] has sometimes gone far beyond socializing and networking. Some houses have become the sites for sexual harassment cases and rape allegations, as well as infighting among residents, according to previously unreported police reports obtained by The New York Times, court records and more than 20 people in the A.I. industry.

[...]

At the mansion in Hillsborough known as AGI House — named for “artificial general intelligence,” a technology that can match the powers of the human mind — the local police have logged 37 incidents since 2022. At least 17 were related to complaints about large parties and events, according to the reports.

The others included an episode in December when a woman called the police and told them that a male AGI House resident had pressured her to have sex; she climbed over a gate to escape. Last year, the police were also asked at least four times to perform welfare checks, which typically happen when people experience mental health issues or are considered unsafe to themselves or others.

While I must have missed the "drawing incest porn is woke" memo, Wilhelm Reich would have loved this post:

Related to literally nothing at all, I was reminded that Cats 2 exists. This is my favorite song from Cats 2. I think its the best psych song of the 2020s.

Taylor Vessel of Spectrum News reports:

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Law enforcement agencies are examining how to respond to artificial intelligence being used in child sexual abuse material and sextortion cases as national reports involving AI continue to rise. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children said reports involving AI to its CyberTipline increased 8,411% from 2023 to 2025. The center said the tipline received 400,000 AI-related reports last year, and almost half involved AI-generated nude photos.

And speaking of this phenomenon:

5 News Online reports: Bentonville photographer accused of using AI to generate child sex abuse material expected in court

KSAT reports: Man re-arrested after accusations of using AI to generate sexual images of teenage girl, BCSO says

KSL reports: Southern Utah man given 5 years for using AI to make photos of children explicit

Peta Pixel reports: Photographer Stops Posting Kids’ Photos After Judge Rules AI Child Sex Abuse Images are Protected

Fox 59 reports: Indianapolis man accused of creating sexual videos of children with AI

CBS News Atlanta reports: Former Georgia school vendor sentenced for using AI to make child sexual abuse material

Valley News Live reports: Fargo man sentenced for creating AI child sex abuse material

KATV reports: Report: 26,000% surge in AI child sexual abuse videos

K8 News reports: Jonesboro man charged with 44 counts of possessing child sexual abuse material

The Jonesboro man in question sported what is effectively a pro-Trump shirt in his mugshot:

Speaking of which, more than a few members of the Trump Administration have in common being accused of sexual assault or helping to cover for sexual assailants.

And Adam Uren of Bring Me The News reports that Republican former Sen. Justin Eichorn was sentenced to 16 months after child sex trafficking sting.

I covered Girls Trip, a funny and incredibly strong sex comedy about 40-something black women, on You Are Good with my great friend Leslie Gray Streeter.

Kayleigh Donaldson wrote in Pajiba about how a lot of folks in the entertainment industry are hurting much more than folks are aware of. The latest rount off discourse was triggered when performer Jack Haven "took to social media to ask for more work so that they could keep their SAG insurance" and "some were surprised." I talked a bit about this in the aforementioned episode of You Are Good. I know people who have millions of Instagram followers who have roommates. Everybody I know in the industry is—at best—making half of what they were making 5 years ago. It's a fucking mess. One thing A LOT of people believe — especially people who don't live in Los Angeles — is "if I recognize you, you must be fucking rolling in it." People have no idea what the actual reality is, and the reality is that things are pretty grim.

Finally, Kotaku reports that a parent company that owns a sex robot maker has started pitching schools on AI teachers (though a series of corrections indicate the company did not appreciate the framing of this piece)

And don't forget that the director's cut of Ken Russell's The Devils may soon be playing at a theater near you.