Everyone wants to live like an influencer now
From Reasonably Optimistic by The Washington Post
April 24, 2026 · 14 min
About this episode
Megan McArdle explores how influencer culture has altered our perceptions of life and self-worth.
From overdone plastic surgery to open-concept floor plans, we’re designing our lives to look good on camera instead of optimizing for what we need. Influencer culture — and our constant exposure to curated, edited and optimized images — has reshaped the way we see the world and ourselves. But chasing the perfect image can leave real life feeling strangely hollow. Host Megan McArdle unpacks how we got here — and how to start seeing past the screen. Subscribe to The Washington Post here .
People in this episode
Host: Megan McArdle
Topics covered
- influencer culture
- social media
- self-image
- design
- curated content
Keywords
- influencer
- plastic surgery
- open-concept
- curated images
- self-perception
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