H2O #119: In Which We Discuss Chewbacca Mom, Donald Trump, Animal Videos, and Coffee

It’s that nebulous otherworldly thing: the viral video. Like unicorns, Leprechauns, and high-paying jobs, the viral video is rare. It’s unique. And there’s no formula that determines when a video will blow up the internet.

So when video of a woman laughing hysterically whilst wearing a Chewbacca mask is the thing blowing up the internet, it becomes worthy of notice and discussion. What is it that makes this video so popular? Is Candace Payne, known as “Chewbacca Mom” throughout the web, deserving of her fifteen minutes of fame? Is she the type of person who should have so much attention? So much media focus? She’s been able to parley this burst of attention into an opportunity to talk about spreading the laughter around, and it’s certainly brought her plenty of opportunities to be in front of people. She’s been able to open baseball games and travel to L.A. for driving in the car with J.J. Abrams and meet with Peter Mayhew. And she’s also been able to lift the spirits of children facing medical and emotional challenges. But with all that, does she need to be charging $20 for an autograph?

We also take some time to digress into politics, touching on the Brexit vote and Mr. Harvey’s thoughts about Donald Trump, but more importantly: we talk about the importance of a good cup of coffee.

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