Getting weird: Miles Klee on chronicling the chronically online
The Rolling Stone culture writer discusses his niche beat and why it’s “awkward” to be proud of his work.
Even if you don't know who Miles Klee is, you've probably encountered a Miles Klee story. They have headlines like, “Why Porn Bots Have Taken Over Your Twitter Feed,” “How ‘Timberwolves Brasil’ Became Basketball’s Favorite Gonzo Fan Account,” and “How Dangerous is Ketamine, Really?”
The Los Angeles-based culture writer for Rolling Stone is also the author of a novel, Ivyland, a story collection, True False, and a member of the writers’ collective Flaming Hydra [which also includes Depth Perception’s Mark Yarm]. Klee covers what he says are “the weirder parts of the internet,” ranging from “extreme fandoms and conspiracy theories to micro-celebrities and the latest viral memes.” To paraphrase Ray Parker, Jr. — if there’s something strange in your online neighborhood, the obvious person to call is Miles Klee.
Klee took time away from tracking down the next bewildering online trend to play a round of Depth Perception’s Leading Questions. The following interview has been condensed and edited for length and clarity. — Parker Molloy
Why did you become a journalist?
Nepo baby! To put it another way, my mother was an English teacher and my dad was a journalist, so I grew up in a home where reading and writing were highly valued, and games of Scrabble became huge arguments.
Words were always my strong suit in school, and I loved making stumbling attempts at surreal sci-fi stories. I guess my first “media” gig was a humor column in the high school paper, because I thought Dave Barry had the greatest job in the world. I graduated from college, took temp work as a copy editor at the financial trade publication in New York where my dad was an editor — there’s the nepotism — and got hired full-time. Then the Great Recession hit, and I was stuck there for years.
Whenever avoiding work, I was writing my own stuff and reading blogs. One day I cold-pitched Choire Sicha at my favorite, The Awl, and he foolishly let me start publishing essays, criticism, and the occasional experimental piece there. This got me more freelance gigs, so that by the time I was finally laid off I had the resume to land a reporter job at the Daily Dot, and I’ve been a digital news freak ever since.
What story of yours are you proudest of?
I feel awkward taking pride in anything I do, and the article of mine that recently won an award (for humor writing) was a review of experiencing Avatar: The Way of Water on mushrooms, so the metrics for successful journalism in my niche are pretty bizarre.
I suppose I always love the opportunity to celebrate art I admire; I’m pretty sure I wrote the only in-depth, on-the-ground coverage of the first SopranosCon, which doubles as a love letter to my home state of New Jersey. And I definitely put my heart and soul into this hot take about Enya’s “Orinoco Flow” being the song of the summer, every summer. I listened to it on repeat about 200 times while writing it.
What story of yours do you most regret?
I really resent you making me bring this up, but since it’s a whole election cycle in the past, I guess I’m ready to laugh about it.
Early in 2019, when I still saw some potential in Elizabeth Warren as a presidential candidate, I wrote a piece for MEL magazine about dudes jumping on board with her campaign, trying to coin “Liz Lads” as a thing — the evolution of the “Bernie Bro,” as it were — and maybe even proof that the stereotype of the male Bernie [Sanders] voter as antifeminist had always been nonsense. Which it is!
But I was trying to create a trend, and everyone, perhaps my mutuals most of all, hated it. Lots of bloggish commentary ages quite poorly, but attempts to forecast or influence political phenomena are almost guaranteed to do so.
What’s the best journalistic career advice you ever received?
It may have to do with being a tall, straight, white man of certain confidence, but it seems to me that I have rarely received direct professional advice. A lot of it is simply internalized with no obvious source, and to me, it’s self-evident that hitting your deadlines and filing clean copy will endear you to literally everyone you ever work with.
And, as a freelancer, cultivating long-term relationships with editors so you don’t have to spray unsolicited pitches all over (and can have some mutual understanding and trust) is immensely valuable. My dad’s good advice has to do with keeping tabs on what the “money” side of the publication is doing so that you’re not stuck in the editorial bubble and blindsided when everything collapses. But I’m terrible at that!
Go down the rabbit hole
Misinformation and hate can be profitable. Truth can be easily ignored. Criticism can inspire society’s worst actors to somehow get even worse.
Conspiracy theories can even lead to political upheaval, as Darren Loucaides covered in Long Lead’s “Querdenken Everything.”
What is the worst journalistic career advice you’ve ever received?
“Learn to code.” It’s hard to imagine the right-wing chuds who say this really have my best interests at heart.
Or, to be serious, another implicit thing: the notion that a writer should be an editor-in-training. I’ve never believed that, and I’ve never sensed the slightest ability to convert my skill set to a managerial one, even when I was thrust into that role and had a roster of talented people giving me solid material to mold. Because I had no instinct there, I just cut and rewrote myself, which is very bad. All the problems I had suggested that I was supposed to be writing instead.
What is a widely accepted journalistic rule or norm that you hate?
“Don’t sleep with your colleagues.” (Lol, JK!) This may be controversial to more traditional reporters, but I’m not a fan of the nut graf. It often condescends to the reader and lets them think they have the whole story up top, which can dissipate attention and lead to them skimming or skipping the rest.
What’s wrong with letting a narrative unfold naturally, preserving a little mystery, trusting an audience to be drawn in by subtle gestures? Hard news is one thing, sure, but in longform, I hate the sense that I’ve run smack into the thesis statement from a high school book report. Not surprisingly, I get the note that “this needs a nut graf” quite a lot. Liz [Elisabeth Garber-Paul, Rolling Stone senior culture editor], if you’re reading this, I swear I’m working on it.
What was the most indulgent media event you've ever attended?
You guys are attending indulgent media events? Hmm. In the last year-plus, I’ve been on the field at SoFi Stadium before an LA Rams game and in a VIP box for an LA Kings game.
At one of my previous jobs, we had an annual retreat at a spa in the Texas Hill Country outside of Austin, though we worked our asses off and never had the chance to ride a horse or book a massage. Best you could hope for was drinks and some pool and sauna time after dinner. For me, it’s hard to beat the simple indulgence of gossiping with coworkers over sushi or martinis on the company dime.
What’s one app, tool, or service that you can’t do your work without?
A bluetooth speaker and/or headphones. Working without music is torture to me.
What makes you think journalism is doomed? Or is it not?
Private equity, thin-skinned tech billionaires, the decline of literacy.
What makes you feel hopeful for the future of journalism?
All my friends and peers in the field who see how doomed it is and keep raising the bar anyway.
Further reading by Miles Klee
“Why Porn Bots Have Taken Over Your Twitter Feed” (Rolling Stone, Feb. 22, 2024)
“'Steamboat Willie' Horror Game Devs Claim They Weren't Dropping Nazi References” (Rolling Stone, Jan 2, 2024)
“How ‘Timberwolves Brasil’ Became Basketball’s Favorite Gonzo Fan Account” (Rolling Stone, Dec. 19, 2023)
“Conspiracy Theorists Convinced ‘Shadow Aliens’ Are Loose in Miami” (Rolling Stone, Jan 5, 2024)
“How Dangerous Is Ketamine, Really?” (Rolling Stone, Dec. 15, 2023)
Dude's dogshit
First pic of Miles I've ever seen where he's not wearing a wife-beater!