Advertise on podcast: A Bit Fruity with Matt Bernstein

The Boston Globe’s biggest story in 2002 was an earth-shattering expose of child abuse within the Catholic Church. The Boston Globe’s biggest story in 2026 was an earth-shattering expose of a dysfunctional lesbian community in a small town in Massachusetts trying to keep a COVID-conscious, masks-required queer bar financially afloat. It’s true, this story has everything: a co-owner ditching the bar for clown school, a therapist mediator accused of being a cop, and of course, some secular hijab-inspired accessories. But I fear an analysis of the story’s immense virality reveals a darker truth, and should encourage us all to reconsider our own online behavior. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsors! Work smarter, not harder, with Factor meals ready in two minutes at https://www.factormeals.com/fruity50off Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at https://www.blueland.com/fruity Watch Kat on YouTube. Read Kat’s work at Spitfire News. Follow Moira on Twitter. Listen to Moira on In Bed With The Right. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A cultural and political earthquake revolving around Ed Sheeran, Macklemore, and P!nk might have felt semi-plausible in 2012, but certainly not in 2026. And yet! After Macklemore called for a free Palestine at Ed’s concert, a disgruntled P!nk took to Instagram to call for apologies and refunds. In a follow-up essay, the 2000s pop icon clarified she does not need a refund, but wants to make one thing clear: as a Jew, Macklemore’s words made her feel unsafe. Today, Palestinian author and poet Mohammed el-Kurd helps dissect P!nk’s big feelings, the evolving rhetoric of Liberal Zionism, and the power of calling something what it is. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsor! Start managing your money better and cancel unwanted expenses at https://www.rocketmoney.com/fruity.  Follow Mohammed on Twitter. Read Mohammed’s book, Perfect Victims. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The homosexual fascist must be savvy, and Milo Yiannopoulos was (at least for a time) among the savviest. But it wasn’t enough. It never is. The flamboyant British provocateur who wormed his way into American politics was never destined for a seat at the winners’ table, because the winners’ table doesn’t even exist. Today, Kat Tenbarge, Matthew Sitman (of the Know Your Enemy podcast) and I chronicle the most dangerous gay demon of the 2010s, the culture that produced him, and the destruction left in his wake. May the leopards feast. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/mattbernstein Thanks to today’s sponsors! Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at https://www.blueland.com/fruity.  Work smarter, not harder, with Factor meals ready in two minutes at https://www.factormeals.com/fruity50off Listen to Matt Sitman on Know Your Enemy. Follow Matt Sitman on Twitter. Follow Kat on Instagram. Follow Kat on Bluesky. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2024, the trans TikTok influencer Jools Lebron graced the world with “very demure, very mindful.” The phrase was lightning in a bottle, and got plastered just about everywhere. Two years and two million followers later, Jools broke the news to her followers: after the lucrative brand deals stopped coming, she needed their help to afford dental surgery. The colossal backlash that ensued reveals a disconnect between the public’s understanding of influencer fame and the reality of freelancing. It also raises questions about the conservatism inherent to TikTok’s algorithm, and how we all might end up Fox News boomers if we don’t start thinking critically. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsors! Access the Internet from anywhere and protect yourself online, wherever you go. Get a discount on NordVPN at https://www.nordvpn.com/fruity Get an exclusive 60% on Incogni! https://incogni.com/fruity Watch Franchesca on on YouTube. Follow Franchesca on Instagram. Watch Kat on YouTube. Follow Kat on Bluesky. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Boy George released an AI-generated reggae Zionist fight song last month, I was not shocked. That’s only because the 1980s queer pop icon and “Karma Chameleon” singer quietly directed his ire at me (ME!) a few months earlier. How did such a legendary countercultural figure resort to… whatever this is? Today, we’re telling a bizarre story of fame, crime, geopolitics, and artificial intelligence. A lot of artificial intelligence. George Michael, as the decidedly superior 80s gay pop singer from across the pond, we salute you. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsors! Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at https://www.blueland.com/fruity Work smarter, not harder, with Factor meals ready in two minutes at https://www.factormeals.com/fruity50off Watch Caroline on Twitch. Follow Caroline on Twitter. Follow Kat on Instagram. Follow Kat on Bluesky. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lindsey Graham died doing what he loved: fanning the flames of war and hiring queer sex workers while legislating against their basic human rights. What is there to say of an evil gay man who dies in the closet? Lindsey wasn’t the first, and likely won’t be the last. Today, Moira Donegan (of In Bed With The Right) and I perform a psychosexual autopsy on some of America’s worst gays. Good riddance. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsors! Get an exclusive 60% on Incogni! https://incogni.com/fruity Start managing your money better and cancel unwanted expenses at https://www.rocketmoney.com/fruity Listen to Moira on In Bed With The Right. Follow Moira on Bluesky. Follow Moira on Twitter. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kylie Jenner is selling Meta Glasses that record people without their knowledge. Timothée Chalamet is selling Kalshi gambling addictions to teenage boys. Do a billion-dollar beauty mogul and the most bankable movie star of a generation really have to debase themselves like this? This week, Kat Tenbarge, Ed Ongweso Jr. and I waltz through the recent business exploits of Hollywood’s busiest couple. Therein lies stories of mass surveillance, legally dubious and politically corrupt virtual casinos, and good ole American greed. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsors! Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at https://www.blueland.com/fruity Work smarter, not harder, with Factor meals ready in two minutes at https://www.factormeals.com/fruity50off Read Kat’s work at Spitfire News. Follow Kat on Bluesky. Listen to Ed on This Machine Kills. Follow Ed on Twitter. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Caught on camera fleeing the NBA Finals for his $40 million Hamptons home, Jerry Seinfeld declared: “Palestine doesn’t exist.” It’s hard to imagine someone with a larger repository of goodwill and adoration than the 90s television legend, yet Jerry remains steadfast on his mission to destroy it all. This week, comedy connoisseur Emma Vigeland and I investigate Seinfeld’s growing animosity for the changing world around him. And for adult women. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsors! Access the Internet from anywhere and protect yourself online, wherever you go. Get a discount on NordVPN at https://www.nordvpn.com/fruity Everyone who signs up wins a FREE Rose toy: https://www.bboutique.co/vibe/abitfruity-pod :) Watch Emma on The Majority Report. Follow Emma on Instagram. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mel Robbins wants to Let You give her your money. The lawyer-turned-self-help guru has made an unfathomable fortune through books, speeches, and most recently, protein smoothies. Mel’s core message to her millions of fans is simple: the only thing standing in your way is you. But as the systems that govern us continue to stratify people across seemingly unmovable barriers of wealth and power, Mel’s advice feels at odds with reality. Additionally, Mel’s insatiable quest for building personal wealth requires us to ask brave questions: Can AI be girlboss? Can pyramid schemes be empowering? Perhaps, if we let them. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsors! Work smarter, not harder, with Factor meals ready in two minutes at https://www.factormeals.com/fruity50off Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at https://www.blueland.com/fruity Watch Princess on YouTube. Follow Princess on Bluesky. Read Kat’s work. Follow Kat on Bluesky. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s time to dive into one of Canada’s worst exports. Kevin O’Leary a.k.a. “Mr. Wonderful” gained household recognition by performing as a mean venture capitalist on TV. As it turns out, the meanness might be the only honest aspect of his character. Today, Emma and I excavate Kevin’s personal and professional history to reveal a nesting doll of capitalist grifter hell. Grab your $28 avocado toast and strap in. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsors! Everyone who signs up wins a FREE toy or gift card: https://www.bboutique.co/vibe/abitfruity-pod :) Support a fairer future free from religious overreach at https://humanist.org/fruity Watch Emma every weekday on The Majority Report. Find Emma on Instagram. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mallory McMorrow is one of three Democrats running in one of the most hotly contested primary races heading into the 2026 midterms: the Michigan senate race. After I interviewed her progressive opponent, Abdul El-Sayed, Mallory’s team reached out for an interview as well. After a publicized back-and-forth between my camp and hers, we are gathered here today to discuss Mallory’s support for funding Israel’s Iron Dome, her decision to not run on Medicare for All, and more. Thank you to the great Emma Vigeland of the Majority Report for joining me. This one’s for Lady Bunny. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tucker Carlson has emerged as one of the most influential voices opposing the U.S. relationship to Israel. He’s also anti-Trump. So is he your friend now? Today, the inimitable Naomi KIein makes her A Bit Fruity debut to explain the Right’s burgeoning realignment, why the Republican successor to Trump could be so much scarier (sorry), and how an inept Liberal establishment made the rise of an antisemitic nationalist movement inevitable. And, of course, what we can do. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsors! Sleep and dream well! Visit https://helixsleep.com/fruity to take advantage of their Memorial Day Sale exclusive partner offer — that’s 27% off sitewide. Get 15% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at https://www.blueland.com/fruity.  Naomi is currently platformless, but please preorder her forthcoming book, End Times Fascism. It will be brilliant. Also, read Doppelganger. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s time to podmax. The Internet’s biggest rising star is a 20-year-old from New Jersey named Braden Peters, and he wants your sons to hit their jaws with hammers so they can get girlfriends. Not great! But in my quest to explain Clavicular, I encountered other, bigger problems: a generation of young people who know the American social contract is broken, a generation of older people who don’t care, and a media industry that feeds off rage at the expense of reality.  Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsors! Work smarter, not harder, with Factor meals ready in two minutes at https://www.factormeals.com/fruity50off Start managing your money better and cancel unwanted expenses at https://www.rocketmoney.com/fruity Watch F.D. Signifier on YouTube. Follow F.D. Signifier on Instagram. Read Kat’s work at Spitfire News. Follow Kat on Bluesky. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Monday, an Arkansas grandmother of 10 children flew to Washington D.C. at the behest of DoorDash to deliver the President of the United State two bags of McDonald’s. The stunt was a promotion for the food delivery app, and for Trump’s “No Tax On Tips” policy which allegedly helps workers like DoorDash Grandma save on taxes. As you might imagine, no aspect of the bizarre stunt was what it seemed. Today, we unearth the truth about DoorDash, grandmas, and the absolute fraud that is Republican tax policy. I even try math! Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Thanks to today’s sponsors! Support a fairer future free from religious overreach at https://humanist.org/fruity and find an event near you at https://www.americanempathyproject.org/ :) Get up to 30% off a cuter, more sustainable way to clean at https://www.blueland.com/fruity.  Read Kat’s work at Spitfire News. Follow Kat on Bluesky. Watch Caroline on Twitch. Follow Caroline on Twitter. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As we teeter on the edge of war, Epstein chaos, and an AI-induced job market collapse, it’s a comfort to know that Democrats are fighting as hard as they can to defeat… Hasan Piker! The online left’s favorite hunk has created a crisis for establishment Democrats, whose allegiance to Israel and corporate interests has become career-threatening (finally!). Today, Michigander and 2026 senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed joins me to unpack the centrist smear campaign against Hasan Piker, the millions of Democrat dollars intent on crushing the left, and what we can do about it. Listen to bonus episodes on Patreon! Support Abdul’s campaign for senate. Follow Abdul on Instagram. Follow Abdul on Twitter. Find me on Instagram. Find A Bit Fruity on Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices