“I’m not a journalist,” says the TikTok influencer turned podcaster. “I think it is insulting to journalists to say what I do is journalism”
Jake Shane wants his celebrity guests to know they have full veto power over the content of his podcast, Therapuss, where he’s talked to stars from Charli XCX to Selena Gomez. If interviewees ask for segments to be snipped out, the answer is “always, always” yes, Shane said in an interview recorded before an audience at the Rolling Stone Studio at South by Southwest. In between discussing his film debut in Wishful Thinking alongside Maya Hawke and Lewis Pullman, his upcoming semi-autobiographical Hulu comedy series, and his transition from TikTok stardom to Hollywood, he delved into his own interviewing philosophy.
Does he think celebrities appear on shows like Therapuss, hosted by other celebrities and influencers, specifically to avoid facing journalists? “Probably!” he said, after a comical gasp of surprise at the question. “I don’t care. I’m just happy to have them … What I care about is that the episode as a whole means something to the people watching it. Whether you’re laughing or you are feeling seen by it or you’re crying … What matters to me is I’m putting out something worth watching. So whatever their agenda may be is none of my business.”
He never minds losing a great moment to a guest’s edit. “There’ll always be another [great moment],” Shane said. “And I think it’s really selfish to not honor someone’s discomfort with something that they’ve said.”
Shane, whose mother spent years writing for The Washington Post, made it clear that he doesn’t consider himself a journalist. “I think it is insulting to journalists to say what I do is journalism,” he said. “And you can clip that … I’m not a journalist. I didn’t go to school for journalism. There are real journalists out there asking real thoughtful, hard questions. What I am having with people is a conversation. I want to create a comfortable, friendly environment for my guests. I’ve always said I want my show to feel like if you were just to sit down with them and get to know them.”
Does Shane think journalists — who generally don’t cede editorial control to interview subjects — should also let subjects cut their interviews? “I don’t know. I’m not a journalist,” he said. “I can’t answer that.”
To watch Shane’s full Rolling Stone Studio interview, go to Rolling Stone’s YouTube channel, or just press play above.
