Alive with Steve Burns

You Grew Up With Me, But We Never Met

Alive with Steve Burns

Show Notes

Steve sits down with media psychology expert Rebecca Tukachinsky Forster to break down parasocial relationships, the one-sided connections we form with TV hosts, creators, and public figures. From childhood TV to social media, they explore why these connections feel real and how easily we trust them.

They also look at how these connections can comfort, teach, and even help us feel less alone – and where they can drift into unrealistic expectations. Along the way, Steve turns the lens on himself, asking what it really means to build a relationship through a screen.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

** if you like this episode, then check out these **

Why Everyone is Choosing to Stay Single - with Eric Klinenberg https://youtu.be/V3_3xYpS108

Depression - with Jessi Gold https://youtu.be/U4KGIjd9LY0

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Exclusive Offers For Our Listeners:

Get 15% off your first order plus free shipping at BollAndBranch.com/alive with code alive.

You can try ZipRecruiter FOR FREE at ziprecruiter.com/alive

Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at shopify.com/alive

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Alive with Steve Burns - Season One Episode 25 | Rebecca Tukachinsky Forster

Instagram: @alivewithsteveburns

TikTok: @alivewithsteveburns

---------------------------------------------------------------------

There are a thousand podcasts you can listen to. This one listens back.

Alive with Steve Burns continues the conversation you began all those years ago. Back then it was letters and numbers and graham crackers. Now it’s death, sex, taxes, and all the big, messy questions of being alive. Why does money stress us out? Is the American dream dead? What’s the future of truth?

Each week, a new guest drops by Steve’s window for a genuine and respectful dialogue between two people just trying to figure it out, together.

Funny, tender, and just a little weird, this show invites you to sit down and think with Steve once again and wonder… what it really means to be Alive.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

You are not alone. You are cared for. If you need someone to listen:

National Suicide and Crisis Hotline: https://988lifeline.org/

NAMI Helpline: https://www.nami.org/nami-helpline/

Crisis Text Line: https://www.crisistextline.org/

Keywords: parasocial relationships, media psychology, why we feel connected to celebrities, loneliness and social media, emotional connection psychology, storytelling and persuasion, steve burns podcast

Watch full episodes of Alive on YouTube.

Stay up to date with Lemonada on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia.

If you haven’t yet, now is a great time to subscribe to Lemonada Premium. You’ll get ad-free episodes and bonus content from Steve. Just hit the 'subscribe' button on Apple Podcasts, or, for all other podcast apps head to lemonadapremium.com to subscribe.

Click this link for a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this show and all Lemonada shows: lemonadamedia.com/sponsors

More from Alive with Steve Burns

Apr 22, 2026

What if grief isn’t something to fix but something to understand? In this episode, psychotherapist Megan Devine breaks down the truth about loss, why we’re so uncomfortable with it, and how our culture gets grief completely wrong. From the myth of “moving on” to the pressure to feel better on a timeline, this conversation challenges everything we think we know about healing. Steve and Megan explore how trying to control or minimize grief often makes things worse. Megan offers a more honest, practical way to live with loss, support others, and stop judging ourselves for how we feel.

Apr 15, 2026

Blake Mycoskie opens up about building TOMS Shoes, chasing success, and still feeling empty. He unpacks the hidden cost of validation, the crash that followed, and how he’s redefining purpose, connection, and what it actually means to feel like enough.

Apr 1, 2026

Megan helps Steve approach the anxieties, fantasies, and obsessions we bring to our relationship with money.

Mar 25, 2026

Adam Savage sits down with Steve to discuss the future of facts, the scientific method, busting myths, and he gives us a peek inside his legendary workshop.

Mar 18, 2026

Is depression actually increasing or are we misunderstanding what it really is? Steve Burns sits down with psychiatrist and bestselling author Dr. Jessi Gold to unpack why depression is often confused with everyday sadness, burnout, or stress.

See all episodes →