INSIDE AND OUTSIDE: Nature + Pop Culture News with Jessica Murnane · Jessica Murnane

How Nature Can Help Attention Fatigue + How To Get Off Social Media with Amelia Hruby (author of Your Attention Is Sacred Just Not On Social Media)

·1 hr 1 min·4 clips

Amelia argues social-media algorithms changed from solving a problem to making Meta money from your attention.

Jessica brings Amelia into a conversation about attention, algorithms, and the feeling that it is not your fault when you have a hard time putting your phone down. Nature stays close. Jessica says this is part of why she became a horticultural therapist: to help people disconnect and reconnect with themselves and others. The episode keeps circling the idea of rewiring habits toward things that may give a better return than endless scrolling. Amelia is introduced as a feminist writer, podcaster, producer, founder of Softer Sounds podcast studio, and host of Off the Grid, a podcast about leaving social media. She also has a new book called Your Attention is Sacred Except on Social Media. The conversation then shifts to music listening. Amelia says her listening changed after years of Spotify-curated playlists, and that she quit Spotify at the end of last year to discover more music and send more money to independent artists. She describes finding more kinds of music, hearing more songs she does not like, and also finding more treasured songs and albums. She says that feels more active and more pleasurable than letting Spotify play in the background. Jessica follows that thread into the practical side of listening apps and how habits can shift over time. Amelia says she uses Apple Music and buys a lot of music on Bandcamp, and she talks about artist pay as part of that choice. The episode keeps moving between personal choice and broader systems without pretending the choice is simple. By the end, it lands as a warm case for giving more attention back to nature, music, and yourself.

As heard by us

A thoughtful conversation about attention, social media, music, and making room for more meaningful listening.

Jessica Murnan uses her horticultural therapy perspective to frame a conversation about attention, algorithms, and the way social media can tug at a person all day.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

If your phone keeps stealing your focus, this is the reset you probably need.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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