One thing about having a doctorate in internet politics is that sometimes a reporter will call you up and ask, "hey, some guy says he's running ChatGPT for mayor of his town. Is this just a gimmick?"
And you then get to stroke your beard and expertly reply:
"Yes. That is indeed just a gimmick."
It reminds me of early 2017. My second book had come out. I was trying to promote it. And every reporter was like "uh huh great. Hey, have you seen this Trump tweet? Is this nutso?"
And I, as a proper academic expert, would respond "yeah. Totally nutbars."
What a time to be alive!
No, but seriously, I want to download the Varieties of Democracy database (V-Dem) and draw empirical connections between the series that are in decline domestically and the political ecosystem that has asserted itself internationally post-2014.
And if you don't have a tweed jacket then you aren't really an academic. That's the uniform. You don't have to wear it, but you are expected to have it available at all times.
