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Can We Have Your Attention?

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Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. New episodes every other Thursday, wherever you get your podcasts.

Your Guides to the Attention Economy: Hosted by Claire Coady, a marketing expert who has advised governments and global brands on how to win the battle for attention, and James Wickham, a former BBC journalist who has spent a career inside the 24-hour news machine.

This is a Phonogram production, in association with The Attention Practice.

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Thursday · 46 min
The Social Reckoning - and what the film tells us about how social companies operate
Claire and James discuss Aaron Sorkin’s film, The Social Reckoning, a companion to The Social Network. The film follows former Facebook employee Frances Haugen and the period from 2018 to 2021, when she shared internal company documents with journalists and lawmakers. We also look at Facebook’s “meaningful social interactions” change, which shifted the feed to show more content from friends and family. Internal documents described how the algorithm favoured posts that prompted strong reactions and sharing, and how this could increase the reach of extreme content. Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.
October 7 · 1 hr 5 min
Learning from the Dark Side, Part II: 5 - or is it 7? - Tricks from News
You can also watch this episode on our YouTube channel! https://www.youtube.com/@CanWeHaveYourAttention We all know what the news is. But how is it put together, and why? What makes the news news, and what can we learn from the decisions journalists make on a daily basis - and how do we apply those to brands? Join Claire and James this week as they talk tricks of the trade - live, in the same room, for only the second time in twenty years (and two weeks). Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.
September 26 · 46 min
Learning from the Dark Side, Part I: 6 Tricks from Advertising
You can also watch this episode on YouTube! Anyone can buy an ad (well, almost anyone…). But what are some of the tricks of the trade? Are we really suckers for shiny things? And what does Gillian Anderson have to do with it? The answers to the above are yes, and everything, always. Join Claire and James this week as they talk tricks of the trade - live, in the same room, for the first time in twenty years. Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.
September 3 · 43 min
“If Tony Soprano were alive today, he’d be in ad tech” - Understanding Ad Tech w/ Check My Ads
Ad tech, the backbone of digital advertising, is a lucrative business. But why? Who is profiting from it? And at what cost? Claire and James are joined this week by Claire Atkin, Co-founder and CEO of the Check My Ads Institute. They discuss ad tech: what it is, how it works, why it makes money, for whom it makes money - and what the consequences are. More about Check My Ads: Check My Ads - Public Policy Platform: https://checkmyads.org/policy/ Real-Time Bidding explained: https://checkmyads.org/rtb-explained/ Advertising Role in the Southport Riots: https://bit.ly/46ncAkJ National security challenges of ad tech: https://bit.ly/4zP1F0s Location data isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be. This problem is known in the ad industry as ‘signal loss’. In short, location data is much more unreliable, it’s driving up digital ad buying costs, and nobody is entirely sure whether the data it returns is reliable anymore. It’s a problem the ad industry is frantically grappling with, but as silently as possible (because, you know, money). ‘IAB Finds Signal Loss Driving Higher Ad Cost, Shift To Contextual’ via Mediapost https://bit.ly/3T5zFoR This article describes how advertisers attempt to deal with the challenge. It generally relies on being able to sell stuff through a website, to a large number of people, for a reasonably long time. (via Forbes) https://bit.ly/4qZy54w More Background Documentary about data brokers and surveillance (via Die Welt on YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y07j3hXAI-g Data lakes and their role in ad tech, i.e. ‘The Dark Horses of Surveillance Capitalism’ - Helena Malikova (Harvard Kennedy School): https://bit.ly/4gz7QhM Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.
August 19 · 44 min
Fact-Based Election Advertising with Alex Tait & Reform Political Advertising
For the past 25 years, claims on packets of crisps have been subject to more regulation than claims in election campaigns. But that could finally be about to change. Amendments to the Representation of the People Bill promise to apply some of the UK’s strenuous - and effective - advertising standards to election advertising. We are joined by Alex Tait, ad industry veteran and founder of the non-partisan campaign organisation Reform Political Advertising, one of the groups advocating these changes. Alex, together with Benedict Pringle, set up Reform Political Advertising to change the law. What does fact-based election advertising mean in practice? How can regulation that applies to commercial brand advertising improve political trust? How long does it take to turn an idea into a law? And can turkeys really vote for Christmas? Find out more about Reform Political Advertising: https://reformpoliticaladvertising.org/ Ask Your MP to Prevent Lies in Political Advertising: https://reformpoliticaladvertising.org/take-action/email-your-mp/ The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) advertising codes: https://www.asa.org.uk/codes-and-rulings/advertising-codes.html Marketing and Advertising - The Law: https://www.gov.uk/marketing-advertising-law Also mentioned: Vote for Claire (by which we mean, vote to support 6 Ways to Save the Ad Funded Internet at SXSW 2027): https://bit.ly/4gqY9Rf In 2017, Claire interviewed a bunch of political strategists about campaign tactics, and boy did they tell her stuff. Full paper here: https://bit.ly/3TWgsWV Related: Electoral Commission: Concerns about misinformation are rising, trust in political messaging is falling, and social media may be normalising abuse: https://bit.ly/46fIv6c Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.
August 6 · 37 min
Is what's Good for News, Bad for Society?
We're told the news is an important part of a functioning society. But is our 24-hour, always-on news culture, with bad news to the fore, actually harming us and our institutions? In this episode, James Wickham and Claire Coady explore the nature of news, its impact on society, and how media practices influence public perception and trust. They discuss whether quality journalism has declined, the rise of social media, and whether regulation would foster a healthier media ecosystem. From the episode: The Reuters Digital News Report 2026: https://tinyurl.com/tun9ddad Reach pivots away from... reach: https://tinyurl.com/48an4ww5 James' media training services: https://www.phonogram.co.uk Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.
July 23 · 54 min
AI and Disinformation with Sam Stockwell (The Alan Turing Institute)
Is AI like steroids for disinformation? Claire Coady and James Wickham are joined by Sam Stockwell from The Alan Turing Institute to discuss their research into AI-generated disinformation – from AI songs and fake rappers, to fabricated forensic "evidence" and chatbots that repeat whatever is popular on social media. They discuss why the real problem isn't just deepfakes but sheer volume, and what governments and AI firms can do about it. And do brands and advertisers, who fund the whole ecosystem, hold more leverage than they realise? From the episode: Adding Fuel to the Fire: AI Information Threats and Crisis Events via CETaS (The Alan Turing Institute): https://tinyurl.com/3jsaykca CETaS AI Disinformation Repository: https://tinyurl.com/nhdb6c6r Check My Ads – the digital advertising watchdog: https://checkmyads.org/ Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.
July 9 · 43 min
Attention! The Revolution has Already Begun
Has the Age of Attention Scarcity given way to the Attention Revolution? Recent data from Ofcom shows that over the past 12 months, discontent with online life is growing – and people’s behaviours are changing too, with major consequences for the media, advertisers, and communications. As more people avoid the ad-funded internet, and public support for restrictions and bans increases, what’s stopping industry and government from changing? Claire Coady and James Wickham discuss a year after Claire's Attention Scarcity paper, how we should rethink the media ecosystem, and how attention-aware thinking can help us save it. Mentioned in this show: The Age of Attention Scarcity - the paper that started this: https://tinyurl.com/2mejpyp2 Ofcom: 59% of UK adults say that the benefits of being online outweigh the risks - down from 71% one year ago. https://tinyurl.com/3sbdp6yn Deloitte: 29% of Gen Z smartphone users have deleted a social media app in the last 12 months, citing fatigue, misinformation, and a negative effect on their mental health https://tinyurl.com/3kmfk8ps Ofcom: AI usage reduces Google search clicks, growth in traffic to AI services in 2025 coincides with decrease in traffic to search engines, increase in traffic to news aggregators and health services at the expense of ad-funded news and information websites https://tinyurl.com/4sv662vy Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.
June 23 · 51 min
How can the BBC win trust when nobody trusts anything? Legacy media, disinformation, and winning tactics with Rebecca Skippage
Trust in news is down, and news avoidance is up. Many people don’t know what to believe, or who to trust. How can legacy media convince audiences to trust them when they're under attack – but loathe to change? Rebecca Skippage, the former Global Disinformation Editor at BBC News, joins Claire and James this week to discuss misinformation, disinformation, legacy media, meeting people where they are, and how organisations like the BBC can rise to the challenge. Find out more about Rebecca Skippage: https://rebeccaskippage.com/ In the UK, trust in news is at 30% (-5pp) – an all-time low – while news avoidance is at an all-time high of 50% (+4pp). More from the Reuters Institute Digital News Report 2026: https://tinyurl.com/mr36zdpx Email your MP and ask them to support amendments to stop lies in election advertising (via Reform Political Advertising - a politically neutral campaign) https://tinyurl.com/59bbhz2w Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention scarcity and the War for Attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.
June 9 · 39 min
Tired of Britain, Tired of Life? Populism, Polarisation, and Discontented Britain with Steven Lacey
Is Britain broken, or is everyone just tired? Steven Lacey from cultural research company The Outsiders and the think tank Resilience & Reconstruction joins Claire and James to talk about their fascinating research into the forces of life driving populism. What is driving discontent? Why hasn’t politics been able to meet this challenge? And does the answer lie in reviving communities and the high street? The Outsiders: The cultural insight agency founded by Steven Lacey https://outsidersinsight.com/ Resilience & Reconstruction Think Tank: https://www.iorar.org/ The webinar recording on their recent research into the language, drivers and motivations behind right-wing populism: https://tinyurl.com/3psjjk4f An example of a local third space in action - “How Barnes & Noble Became Private Equity’s Most Radical Retail Experiment” via Bloomberg Businessweek: https://tinyurl.com/ypskz7kd (paywall) The best museum I have ever, ever visited on a work trip - The ABBA and Eurovision Museum in Stockholm. Run, don’t walk: https://abbathemuseum.com/en/ Claire's favourite piece of Swedish Pop: https://tidal.com/track/3922178/u And James': https://tidal.com/track/103017037/u Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention scarcity and the War for Attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.
May 26 · 43 min
Attention, Misinformation, and Polarisation: Tracking Election Misinformation with Tom Garnett, CEO of Refute
How is your attention being exploited by people who deliberately make misinformation? Claire Coady and James Wickham are joined by Tom Garnett, the CEO of disinformation monitoring company Refute, to talk about misinformation and election interference. For more on Refute and the work they do to combat misinformation and disinformation, visit their website: https://refute.com/ Refute’s report on misinformation in the Romanian and Moldovan elections: https://tinyurl.com/3zwhehww BBC News on the Moldovan parliamentary elections: https://tinyurl.com/dttukyvv CNN on the Romanian presidential election: https://tinyurl.com/ye2935tz Excellent reporting from the New York Times on how Generative AI is starting to, “wear down democracy”: https://tinyurl.com/4p9bczbf Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about attention scarcity and the War for Attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.
May 12 · 42 min
The Content Creator Economy: Content Creators, Influencers, and the Economics of a Social Media Business
Do social media content creators make money? If so… how? Claire Coady and James Wickham discuss how content creators build their business: how they get started, build their audience, build businesses – or just make money. Why do they do it? What does it take to keep going? How do some make money on political content? And why haven’t we called them ‘influencers’? Mentioned in this episode: Research from HMRC and NatCen on the social media content creators as businesses (from Nov 2025) https://tinyurl.com/5y6x3tvt Market Oriented Disinformation Research by Carlos Diaz Ruiz - download for free via Taylor & Francis https://tinyurl.com/5dtub6wk The Attention Economy and How Media Works - Karen Nelson-Field https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16591/9789811515392 Fascinating interview with two X users who made money during the US election - via BBC News https://tinyurl.com/4fw8jbyr Example of a content creator who has found their niche (IG libbyythorntonn), and their audience (Claire) - what historic English monarchs would order from Spoons if they were alive today https://tinyurl.com/hkjm4dzc We would like to thank every content creator who has contributed to our anonymous survey so far. We plan to cover this topic in more detail in future episodes. If you would like to share your experience, you can do so anonymously here: https://forms.gle/iRLgew5C2dsYL63w9 In memory of Ian Deeley, a talented broadcaster, technical wizard and most of all a fine friend. James’ tribute in full on his Substack: https://tinyurl.com/ykuss66d Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast all about the War for Attention. Join hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham as they dive into how your attention is attracted, tracked, traded, and manipulated in the modern attention economy. Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Like this episode? If you enjoyed this episode, please click subscribe. If you really liked it, please leave a rating - every rating helps this podcast reach more listeners like you.
April 28 · 29 min
The War on Business as Usual: The Pentagon, Brands, and the War for Attention
Claire Coady and James Wickham discuss the Department of Defence/Department of War rebrand and its fights with partners and suppliers. In September, Pete Hegseth suggested the U.S. military was being weakened by forces within - forces the Department would fight. How far will it go in that fight? If the US public doesn't want a war overseas, then is the war on business as usual - and are suppliers exposed? Plus, if political campaigning is harder in an overheated attention economy, and picking fights with business becomes more common, how can business prepare? This episode recaps Claire’s Substack post ‘Weaponised Brands in the War for Attention’: https://open.substack.com/pub/attentionscarcity/p/weaponised-brands-in-the-war-for The attention economy is harder to navigate - especially for political campaigns. More in ‘The Age of Attention Scarcity’: https://open.substack.com/pub/attentionscarcity/p/the-age-of-attention-scarcity Also: Gallup, 5 March: 1/3 of Americans say US defence isn’t strong enough https://news.gallup.com/poll/702767/americans-views-nation-global-image-power.aspx Band names are a strong, identifiable “message” in a two-second world - System1 Group & TikTok: https://system1group.com/creative-effectiveness-tiktok Save your sanity and stay informed - introducing The Scroll, Scream, and Stop: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/clairecoady_were-back-on-the-latest-episode-of-can-activity-7449795220747137024-vR4I On the history of the term “war fighters”: https://angrystaffofficer.com/2022/04/11/whats-in-a-name-the-problem-with-warfighter/ Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast exploring the unseen forces that shape what we see, what we buy, and who we become. Hosted by Claire Coady and James Wickham, we dive into the mechanics of the Attention Economy to understand how value is created (and manipulated) in a distracted world. Production Credits: Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Enjoying the episode? If you found this conversation valuable, please follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred player. Leaving a rating or review helps us break through the noise—and get the attention of more listeners like you.
April 14 · 38 min
When Brands Go Viral
Claire Coady and James Wickham discuss what happens when brands become news. From the Kit Kat heist to Nutella in space to McDonald’s CEO attempting to eat a burger like a human, Claire breaks down what happens in the marketing teams, while James picks up what happens in the newsrooms. What goes through a brand teams’ minds? What do journalists think? And when is it ever really news? Mentioned in the show: McDonald’s CEO Went Viral. Now He Has to Win Back Customers | WSJ https://youtu.be/rZxnFI2OW9k?si=au3QAkZUI4lu6tfx The Great KitKat Heist–Truckload of Formula 1 KitKats Stolen https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterlyon/2026/03/30/chocolate-grand-theft-auto-italys-missing-f1-kitkat-shipment/ Breakdown of KitKat’s market entry strategy in Japan, which has wildly influenced its brand and marketing strategy worldwide https://blog.btrax.com/kit-kats-market-entry/ F1’s Corporate Brand Strategy - how it sells itself as an entertainment brand https://corp.formula1.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Formula-1-Strategic-Plan011320.pdf If you like heists… Narconomics: How to run a Drug Cartel https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16591/9781785030420 And weird robbery trivia… how Tide detergent became the most popular target for thieves in the United States https://nymag.com/news/features/tide-detergent-drugs-2013-1/ And finally - on brand valuation (i.e. why F1 Kit Kats were stolen, but Kit Kat itself was all the public could register): https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/what-is-brand-valuation Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast exploring the unseen forces that shape what we see, what we buy, and who we become. Hosted by Claire Coady and James Wickham, we dive into the mechanics of the Attention Economy to understand how value is created (and manipulated) in a distracted world. Production Credits: Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Enjoying the episode? If you found this conversation valuable, please follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred player. Leaving a rating or review helps us break through the noise—and get the attention of more listeners like you.
March 17 · 40 min
Is it time for a movement to reclaim attention? Discussing Attensity! with the Friends of Attention
In this episode Claire & James speak to D. Graham Burnett, the Henry Charles Lea Professor of History and History of Science at Princeton University and co-editor of Attensity! A Manifesto of the Attention Liberation Movement; and Peter Schmidt, the Program Director of the Strother School of Radical Attention. They form part of the The Friends of Attention; a loose network who share an interest in all things attention. Their book, Attensity! A Manifesto for the Attention Liberation Movement, argues that a movement of collective resistance is needed to tackle the 'human fracking' of attention. Strother School of Radical Attention https://www.schoolofattention.org/ The Friends of Attention https://friendsofattention.org/ Attensity! A Manifesto for the Attention Liberation Movement: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/478341/attensity-by-attention-the-friends-of/9780241810965 Other books/resources mentioned this week - so you can start studying, organising, and finding sanctuary: The Attention Merchants by Tim Wu: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16591/9781782394853 The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16591/9781802063271 The Sirens’ Call: How Attention Became the World’s Most Endangered Resource by Chris Hayes: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16591/9781914484940 Finally, Louis Theroux’s documentary ‘Inside the Manosphere’ on Netflix (paywall) https://www.netflix.com/gb/title/81920687 Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast exploring the unseen forces that shape what we see, what we buy, and who we become. Hosted by Claire Coady and James Wickham, we dive into the mechanics of the Attention Economy to understand how value is created (and manipulated) in a distracted world. Production Credits: Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Enjoying the episode? If you found this conversation valuable, please follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred player. Leaving a rating or review helps us break through the noise—and get the attention of more listeners like you.
March 3 · 39 min
The Fog of Everything: Iran, War, Uncertainty, Anthropic and OpenAI with Andrew Cheatham
Claire and James, with guest Andrew Cheatham, dive into the U.S. and Israel's attack on Iran, examining the flow of information in modern conflict and how AI has transformed it. The discussion focuses on the U.S. government's controversial decision to ban Anthropic's AI tool, Claude, labelling it a "supply chain risk." With OpenAI securing the same limits Anthropic requested, we ask: Is this ban about national security, or is it a political signal against "woke" ethics in technology? Wired: X is drowning in disinformation following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran https://www.wired.com/story/x-is-drowning-in-disinformation-following-us-and-israels-attack-on-iran/ Politico: Trump orders all U.S. agencies to cease using Anthropic https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/27/trump-orders-all-federal-agencies-to-stop-using-anthropic-00804517 New York Times: Pentagon standoff is a decisive moment for how AI will be used in war https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/27/technology/defense-department-anthropic-ai-safety.html?unlocked_article_code=1.QFA.zOQ2.S3TCzxNbYYX8&smid=url-share Andrew Cheatham is a Senior Security Analyst at Global Guardian and Chief Counsel and Managing Director of Pragmatic Panic Legal and Social Services, a US non-profit supporting communities affected by global threats. He directs research on training AI in accordance with the laws of armed conflict. An Adjunct Professor at Boston University and Visiting Senior Research Fellow at King’s College London, he has led initiatives on disruptive technologies and conflict at USIP and served with the UN in New York, Iraq, Libya, and Tunisia, and the African Union in Somalia. Support Pragmatic Panic's mission: https://www.pragmaticpanic.org/. Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast exploring the unseen forces that shape what we see, what we buy, and who we become. Hosted by Claire Coady and James Wickham, we dive into the mechanics of the Attention Economy to understand how value is created (and manipulated) in a distracted world. Production Credits: Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk in conjunction with The Attention Practice https://www.theattentionpractice.com Find out more on our website https://canwehaveyourattention.com Got a story for us? Email us: hello@canwehaveyourattention.com Enjoying the episode? If you found this conversation valuable, please follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred player. Leaving a rating or review helps us break through the noise—and get the attention of more listeners like you.
February 17 · 30 min
Turning our attention onto… this podcast: what we’ve learned about making a podcast (so far)
In this episode, James & Claire - who host the show - talk about... the show. We have not, promise, completely vaulted over our own collective shark. Instead we are looking at the barriers to entering the creative attention economy; setup costs, technical issues, avoiding view farms, excessive editing time - through the prism of this very podcast. We also explain why we're going fortnightly - it's related to all this stuff above. Remember if you would like to feed back on anything we mention in the podcast, or you have ideas and people you'd like to hear from and about, please message: canwehaveyourattention@protonmail.com About The Show Can We Have Your Attention? explores the unseen forces that shape what we see, what we buy, and who we become. Hosted by Claire Coady and James Wickham, we dive into the mechanics of the Attention Economy to understand how value is created (and manipulated) in a distracted world. Production Credits: Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk Enjoying the episode? If you found this conversation valuable, please leave a rating or review - it helps us break through the noise—and get the attention of more listeners like you.
February 3 · 31 min
How the NFL decided to ignore sports and start entertaining
In this episode of the Can We Have Your Attention? podcast, hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham get overexcited about the upcoming Super Bowl between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots. We speak to veteran sports business journalist Dan Kaplan to explore how the NFL has developed its product to prioritise growth & reach, and is constantly innovating in an effort to retain eyeballs and attention. We look at its international expansion plans, how the future might involve flags, and how the NFL has decided to make itself an entertainment product first, and a sport second. Oh, and we tell you who’s going to win the game. Probably. An absolutely crucial link: The Chicago Bears ‘85 – The Super Bowl Shuffle: https://youtu.be/KrYp6DUTG-M?si=_xdsNs7YdFJWm9A-&t=15 About The Show Can We Have Your Attention? is a podcast exploring the unseen forces that shape what we see, what we buy, and who we become. Hosted by Claire Coady and James Wickham, we dive into the mechanics of the Attention Economy to understand how value is created (and manipulated) in a distracted world. Production Credits: Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk Enjoying the episode? If you found this conversation valuable, please follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your preferred player. Leaving a rating or review helps us break through the noise—and get the attention of more listeners like you.
January 27 · 30 min
Strongmen, Algorithms, Stans and Kendrick Lamar: How the War for Attention reached Davos
Has President Trump’s foreign policy become the ultimate celebrity beef? Claire and James unpack how Trump uses international relations to flex his strongman image. They explore the collision of geopolitics and Stan culture, asking whether algorithms reward this spectacle and what world leaders can learn about dealing with Donald Trump from the Kendrick Lamar vs Drake feud. Plus analysis on how devoted fanbases are cultivated online and how algorithms have accidentally changed politics. What happens when diplomacy descends into diss tracks? How should world leaders respond when the attention economy dictates global power? We take a look at the new rules of engagement. Trump “torched allies” with leaked screenshots and trolling https://www.politico.eu/article/donald-trump-america-allies-eu-diplomats-greenland/ A bit more on Stans and the music industry - required reading for, well, anybody working in influence https://www.soundspheremag.com/news/stans-are-changing-the-music-industry-as-we-know-it-but-how/ Wired (4 Nov 2025): “It’s been a year since Trump was elected. The Democrats still don’t get the internet.” https://www.wired.com/story/do-democrats-get-the-internet-yet/ Not a new problem - from MIT Technology Review: older liberals are quick to celebrate Stans when they affect conservatives, but they don’t understand them or their motivations: https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/06/23/1004336/tiktok-teens-kpop-stans-trump-resistance-its-complicated/ Supreme Court rejected Trump’s use of Illinois state militia to support ICE https://www.scotusblog.com/2025/12/supreme-court-rejects-trumps-effort-to-deploy-national-guard-in-illinois/ About The Show Can We Have Your Attention? explores the unseen forces that shape what we see, what we buy, and who we become. Hosted by Claire Coady and James Wickham, we dive into the mechanics of the Attention Economy to understand how value is created (and manipulated) in a distracted world. Production Credits: Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk Enjoying the episode? If you found this conversation valuable, please leave a rating or review - it helps us break through the noise—and get the attention of more listeners like you.
January 20 · 38 min
Can X’s rage baiting strategy survive? X, Grok AI, algorithms, and the war for attention
In this episode of the Can We Have Your Attention? podcast, hosts Claire Coady and James Wickham dive into the escalating crisis around algorithms, free speech, and corporate responsibility in the attention economy. We explore how platforms like X and its AI, Grok, promote "complete freedom of speech" as a core product feature, and the disruption it creates - how does a business like X versus a business like Meta weigh up the reward of influence and attention against risks of public backlash, or breaking local laws? We dissect the complex balancing act that global tech giants like Meta and Alphabet (Google) must perform, comparing their publicly traded strategies with the decisions made by privately-owned companies like X, and uncover how they try to satisfy users, advertisers, and global lawmakers all at once. Algorithms: Washington Post: Evolution of the Facebook algorithm https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/interactive/2021/how-facebook-algorithm-works/ Excerpt from Emily Baker-White’s book on the history of TikTok and its algorithm, Every Screen on Every Planet: https://www.forbes.com/sites/emilybaker-white/2025/09/27/origins-of-tiktok-algorithm-every-screen-on-the-planet-book-excerpt/ Buy the book here: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/16591/9781035049264 Business Insider on every change made by Elon Musk after taking over Twitter (now X): https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-twitter#november-2022-2 New York Magazine on how algorithm changes affect creators, looking mainly at YouTube - ‘The YouTube Vibecession’: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/the-youtube-vibecession.html For a laugh: Facebook ad from 2012, unaffectionately known as ‘Chairs’, created by world-class ad agency wieden+kennedy, and directed by Oscar-winning film director Alejandro Gonzalez Iñarritu. I know. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSzoDPptYNA Parodied to perfection on the HBO series ‘Silicon Valley’ - the Pied Piper ad, ‘Tables’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQ4CuJm_lws About The Show Can We Have Your Attention? explores the unseen forces that shape what we see, what we buy, and who we become. Hosted by Claire Coady and James Wickham, we dive into the mechanics of the Attention Economy to understand how value is created (and manipulated) in a distracted world. Production Credits: Hosted by: Claire Coady & James Wickham Produced by: Phonogram https://www.phonogram.co.uk Enjoying the episode? If you found this conversation valuable, please leave a rating or review - it helps us break through the noise—and get the attention of more listeners like you.

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