Lou Reads The Internet

[Digital Gonzo 2013]

Couple of weeks ago after becoming fascinated by the broader concepts of the Fan Response show and looking for a more anthropological approach to studying online human behaviour I came across a podcast called Lou Reads the Internet. On this podcast which has run for over 120 episodes since March 2009, host Lou Fernandez simply reads aloud, almost always from forums, almost always the words of people who have… special interests. Now these could be racists, misogynists, fetishists, and fantasists from all walks of life.  He proceeds for fifteen to thirty minutes and tries his level best to remain impartial. Some of his most interesting episodes are ones he is obviously ruffled by the content and breaks down repeatedly. 

I devoured show after show, hearing from Tea Partyers, adult babies, furrys, men with big penises, men with tiny penises, meth addicts, beleaguered hotel workers, those who are poised for The Rapture and white supremacists looking to make their hate-filled rhetoric more appealing to children. It is not, repeat not, I repeat once again NOT for the faint hearted or those with weak constitutions and since I have Lou with me tonight to talk about his show, I am issuing a warning to all my listeners...

This is going to get disgusting! You may end up nauseous, furious, terrified. This is effectively extreme podcasting. I will try my level best to keep the conversation under control, but I’d strongly suggest that if it gets too much you switch off and come back for next week’s episode on Thor: The Dark World. It also goes without saying that if you are a child listening to this, turn off now. There are things you need to spend more of your life not knowing about. 

Be sure to tweet me with the timestamp for where we broke you. I’ll compile a list and this will probably end up more of an endurance contest. It is, however, possible that you may be fascinated by some of this. Below is the approximate, but not exact running order of topics. And if you start listening to Lou's show because of me then be sure to let him know. 

This made me question both my tolerance levels and how judgmental I am.

• The Misogynists 
• The Anti-Liberals
• The Torture Porn Fanatics 
• The Religious Zealots 
• The Adult Babies
• The Pokevores 
• The Drug Addicts
• The Zoophiles
• The Incest Lovers
• The Bodily Fluid Fetishists
• The Beleaguered Hotel Workers
• The Pandora Dreamers
• The Super-Racists

One last thing. this show has nothing to do with the now departed singer Lou Reed. We recorded it on October 10th and he died in the meantime. Just in case anybody wonders.