A Year of Content

Hey Friends,

This year, I'm committing to being part of the problem.

Because, see, there's too much content on the internet. Everywhere you turn, someone is asking you to like and subscribe or leave a review because it helps people find us.

You can reliably predict that if you say just about anything in public these days, someone will interrupt you by saying, with great emphasis, "Actually,..." and proceed to rectify your misguided beliefs. You know this guy. You've seen him. You've been annoyed.

Every white male has three things. Opinions, a podcast, and about 20% more money than everyone else. Behind every 'actually' is some page on the internet, produced by one of them, from which they've borrowed their party trick of correcting everyone in sight. And those pages, consisting of audio, video, and written content, are without limits.

The world doesn't have enough pudding to hold all the proof found on the internet, to support whatever argument one wants to make this week.

Well. I'll be there, too. Recording podcasts, posting articles, and more.

But I'll also be posting articles like this one, titled Blank Space, which is a reflection on how life is about taking it all in, even if it means deleting something. It's an article that advocates stepping away from screens and doing something in real life. And similarly, it's about clearing things from the calendar just the same, because if we don't have blank spaces in life, we don't have room for the most important things. The internet hamster wheel does its best to leave us room for nothing else.

But I wouldn't go back to a world without the internet. For those of you who remember, it really wasn't that great. To talk to a distant friend, you had to lick a big piece of paper, then lick a really small piece of paper, and drive to a post office, drop off the paper that contains your saliva, and then wait several days to see what happens.

If you wanted to call someone who wasn't walking distance, you had to ask yourself, "What if it's long distance?"

Without the internet, how would you know if you have Morgellons disease, and what to do about it?

The world really is a better place, but it's also worse.

The internet is flush with content that is too short to be thoughtful, too prejudiced to be reliable, and too frequent to keep up with.

But I don't want to just create more of what I criticize, so while I'm creating, I'll do my best to create something that makes the internet a better place while I'm at it. Here's what I think that looks like.

I believe in connecting. I believe in conversation. Because of that, I'll spend time talking to people, even some with different views. Whenever possible, in person. That's what Truthache allows me to do. Connect with friends, and learn something.

I believe in making people laugh. I believe in making people think. It has long been my mission on these pages. To take something complicated, research it, and make it simple or entertaining, and hopefully both. This platform allows me to entertain, think deeply, and challenge ideas.

I believe in unplugging. I believe in unwinding. And that's why the content I provide will be an off-ramp to the heavy content of the week. Something that doesn't bring more anxiety (most of the time), but rather looks at things that are serious without taking them too seriously.

So while I'm part of the problem, I'll also plan on being part of the solution.

Happy 2026. I'm glad you're here with me.

On Truthache

Last week, over the holiday break, I interviewed my daughter, Kaija, to understand Gen Z. We concluded that we both have a lot to learn.

Gen Z on Life and Taxes - Kaija Herndon | Truthache

A recent graduate tells us what Gen Z thinks about the real world, and how everyone is judging them. Kaija is a graduate of Maurer School of Law and a tax attorney. She is currently attending NYU in a Tax LLM program and is, in fact, my (Daniel’s) daughter, a guy who just does marketing (and podcasting, apparently). We talk about everything from Gen Z’s views on happiness and dating to the American dream and where they fit in the workplace. I air my grievances while Kaija implores me to invest more time in hiring and developing the Zoomer generation. Daniel still isn’t sure. We talk about the bullishness of the Mamdani election through the eyes of young progressives, whether UFOs are real, and whether the biggest addiction of her generation, social media, is more good for society or more bad. About The Guest: Kaija Herndon is found at https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaijaherndon/ or in lower Manhattan at Trader Joe’s Mentioned in this episode: An article about what bosses think about Gen Z. Deloitte study on Gen Z in the workplace. A Hims study on Gen Z dating trends. About The Hosts: Daniel Herndon is a brand strategist at HRNDN Brand Agency and the author of The Lorem Ipsum. He also produces our podcast. Michael Salemi owns Colored Threads, a company that produces branded apparel and swag, including the Truthache tumblers our guests receive. Aaron Douglas is an internet marketing and AI-readiness consultant and the owner of AIRAA.

PodbeanPodBean Development

That's it for this week.

Remember: The Lorem Ipsum doesn't make New Year's resolutions, because if you don't have any goals, you can't fail. But if we did have one goal, it would be that you share this page with friends.

Have a great weekend!