# The Personal Essay Is Back. The Internet Isn't Ready.

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/icymi-1580479/the-personal-essay-is-back-the-internet-isn-t-ready
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/icymi-1580479/the-personal-essay-is-back-the-internet-isn-t-ready.md
Podcast: [ICYMI](https://stenobird.com/podcast/icymi-1580479)
Published: 2026-05-02T07:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://shows.acast.com/icymi/episodes/69f4e8e18beeba5310774120
Audio file: https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/695ff52ed8ac698e7e1291b4/e/69f4e8e18beeba5310774120/media.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/icymi-1580479/episodes/the-personal-essay-is-back-the-internet-isn-t-ready
Duration seconds: 1948

## Resource

On today’s episode, host Kate Lindsay is joined by author Leigh Stein, who landed her first book deal in the 2010s personal essay boom. With new memoirs from Lindy West and Lena Dunham, it feels like confessional writing is getting a 2020s rebirth. However, reactions to viral personal essays, like those in The Cut, prove social media has become a much different beast. Now, writing a personal essay is not only much more fraught, but can be downright dangerous. Did the personal essay change, or did we? This podcast is produced by Vic Whitley-Berry, Daisy Rosario, and Kate Lindsay. Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you subscribed through Slate.com, check out our FAQ at slate.com/podcastfaqs for easy instructions. Members subscribed via Apple Podcasts get automatic access—no setup required. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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## Transcript

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