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Rachelle Hampton won’t admit how long she spent charting the use of ‘murmur’ in Twilight
Rachelle Hampton, co-owner of Defector Media and host of the podcast Normal Gossip, describes how she organises her digital life and which online spaces she enjoys. She says she is less plugged into social media after years of hosting an internet-focused podcast, and prefers platforms where she has more control over what she sees.
Hampton relies on her phone’s Notes app for everything from shopping lists and recipes to drafts and doctor questions, and says it also holds a journal dating back to 2018. She dislikes texting but keeps her messages, uses Spotify and the farming game Township, and favours Reddit and YouTube over Instagram, X and Bluesky. She recalls Tumblr in 2013–16 as her happiest online period and says she has avoided using generative AI tools.
In short
- Hampton uses Notes as a personal archive and nearly decade-long journal.
- Reddit and YouTube are her preferred social platforms.
- She says she has avoided generative AI tools.
Explained simply
Rachelle Hampton is a writer and podcaster who has spent much of her working life covering internet culture. She co-owns Defector Media, an independent news and sports site, and hosts Normal Gossip, a podcast about the small dramas of everyday life.
Her comments describe how she uses everyday digital tools, from her phone’s Notes app to music and games, and why she prefers online spaces where she can choose what to see. Her memories of Tumblr also point to how people’s relationships with social media can change over time.
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