Popaganda

At the end of summer, when the super hot days get rarer, the signs of fall appear: reddish leaves, leather jackets, people talking about football, and pumpkin spice lattes. Like death and taxes, the pumpkin spice latte seems inevitable, and it takes up an incredible amount of space in the public consciousness. So yes, we’re succumbing to the siren song and devoting a whole episode to the PSL. So why are we so obsessed with pumpkin spice? And why is it so easy to hate on the drink and the people who consume it? How did this assortment of spices from the Indian subcontinent become the hallmark of basicness, and what can its autumnal popularity tell us about capitalism, misogyny, and the need to belong? On this episode, we have a special guest! Backtalk’s Amy Lam reads an excerpt of a spicy ode to squash. In our first segment, you’ll hear from Tiffany Midge, a poet and humorist who wrote “An Open Letter to White Girls Regarding Pumpkin Spice and Cultural Appropriation.” After that, you’ll get the specialty coffe

This week, Dahlia and Amy discuss how the #MeToo movement can evolve beyond survivors exposing their own traumas and the role of abusers in creating real change. From public radio to the Supreme Court, what can a true reckoning with misogyny and abuse look like? We’ve also got a Petty Political Pminute—with a bonus! And in our latest Amy vs. Dahlia, we’re asking the important question of plant lady or cat lady?! Text “Pussywillow” to 503-855-6485 to let us know!

The Internet, which connects us to each other in ways that were pretty unimaginable to most people a century ago, has become a totally casual part of daily life. It’s changed so much: from the way we do business to the way we unlock our front doors. But it’s also changed the way we see ourselves and our relationships to other people. We live in a time when even children are able to use social media to juggle a front-facing, personal brand with their imperfect, true selves; and when a small gaffe could bring the rage of hundreds of thousands of strangers into your life. So Soleil wanted to take a step back and ask: how did things get this way? And does the Internet have to be like this?

This week, Dahlia and Amy talk about what went down at the U.S. Open and how it hurt both Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams. In a sport with a history of sexism and racism, specifically anti-Blackness, it's tough to ignore the unfairness lobbed at Williams during this championship match and how it overshadowed Osaka's win. And we've got time for a Petty Political Pminute! We want to know if you like your cooking shows baked in delight or like an overheated kitchen—text “Food” to 503-855-6485 to let us know!

Whether they expose past tragedies or family tragedies, ghosts reveal what is hidden away, under the layers of social etiquette, historical revisionism, and taboo. A poltergeist may expose unethical building practices as a ghost on videotape may reveal an unsolved murder. In that way, the monster is really a messenger: of a past that won’t stay buried, of feelings that haven’t been acknowledged, of a heartache that still stings. In this episode, we’ll be talking about the storytelling potential of ghosts and the truths that emerge when they appear. First, Stu Maddux, the independent filmmaker behind the web series Queer Ghost Hunters, will speak on the task of unearthing hidden queer histories. Then you’ll hear Margaret “Maggs” Williams of the Bench Breaking Broads, an all-woman ghost-hunting crew that operate in the American South. Enjoy the show, and don’t forget to check out our Ghosts issue of Bitch magazine, on newsstands now!

On her Netflix one-woman show, Nanette, Hannah Gadsby opines, “There’s only ever been two options for a little girl to grow up into: virgin or whore…. And I don’t fit neatly into either of those categories. Virgin or whore? I mean, on a technicality, I’d get virgin.” Virginity is a weird, nebulous idea that’s mostly measured in heterosexual terms. So what value does virginity hold for queer and trans people? Is it worth pulling it out of the patriarchal muck? So on this episode, Soleil talks to Juno Roche, a trans writer and advocate who recently authored a book called Queer Sex. Then she discusses the theological aspect of virginity with Presbyterian minister Mihee Kim-Kort, author of "Outside the Lines: How Embracing Queerness Will Transform Your Faith." Enjoy the show!

This week, Dahlia and Amy talk about a report that Asia Argento paid a settlement to a former castmate who accused her of sexual assault amidst questions about whether Argento’s behavior undermines the #MeToo movement. Another case has come to light about a female NYU professor who harassed and assaulted a male student and how the #MeToo movement can be inclusive for all survivors. Plus, we need your votes about the worst Marky Mark film text “Mark” to 503-855-6485 to let tell us which film was suckier.

Pro wrestling hasn’t been the kindest entertainment industry for women. Relegated to Playboy-sponsored pillow fight matches or mud wrestling, women wrestlers didn’t get to shine for their athleticism or fighting prowess very often until Chyna came around in the late 90s. Her storylines were pretty meta, with male wrestlers and announcers who questioned her qualifications being on the receiving end of her feminist rage. But even then, women wrestlers like her had to constantly endure being sexually objectified and called “yapping female dogs” by the commentators. Yet pro wrestling is still very much a part of American pop culture, with folks making connections between it and other forms of expression, as an art form. So what’s the draw? Why does pro wrestling affect people so much, to the point of emotional catharsis? And… is it art? Today’s guests are two people who’ve shown me just how cool wrestling can be. First, I talk to Julian Burrell, producer of a really great podcast called Tights and Fights, about a

This week, Dahlia and Amy dig into the trolling of writer and lawyer Sarah Jeong with accusations of racism against white people. Jeong was recently hired to the New York Times editorial board when conservative trolls dug up tweets where she mocked white folks with the likes of #CancelWhitePeople. It’s too bad that punching up with bad jokes about white people isn’t enough to get someone fired because it doesn’t cause concrete harm. Plus, this might be the spiciest Amy vs. Dahlia—text “Animal” to 503-855-6485 to let us know your pick for best pet!

As we go into the 2018 midterm election season, we’ve got a lot of unknowns to think about. What can we expect to change this time around? Will there be more political upsets, like we’ve seen during the Democratic primaries in New York with the ascendancy of first-timer Alexandria Ocasio Cortez? One thing’s for sure: this year, more women, especially women of color, are running for public office than have ever before. Today, I’ll talk to two people with unique insight into how this all happened and what we can look forward to in November. First, I talk to Erin Vilardi, the founder and CEO of VoteRunLead, an organization that trains women to run for office. Then I speak to Minnesota State Senator Patricia Torres Ray, who is seeking her party’s nomination for a Congressional seat in a few weeks, about why she’s running. SHOUT-OUTS Last November, Lillyanne Pham wrote an article for Bitch on women of color candidates to watch Curious about those Rutgers numbers? Here’s more data on women candidates than you can

This week, Dahlia and Amy dig into Hannah Gadsby’s tremendous, heartbreaking, and honest Nanette. Gadsby’s Netflix special gives us insight into what it means to to tell one’s story to wide acceptance—at one’s own expense. Using comedy as an example, Gadsby asks: Is it enough to be in control of our own narratives and art if we’re still creating and consuming it through a colonized gaze? When do folks from marginalized communities get to be messy, frank, show their whole selves? Plus, let us know what you want Dahlia and Amy to argue about—text “Fight” to 503-855-6485!

The Internet, which connects us to each other in ways that were pretty unimaginable to most people a century ago, has become a totally casual part of daily life. It’s changed so much: from the way we do business to the way we unlock our front doors. But it’s also changed the way we see ourselves and our relationships to other people. We live in a time when even children are able to use social media to juggle a front-facing, personal brand with their imperfect, true selves; and when a small gaffe could bring the rage of hundreds of thousands of strangers into your life. So I wanted to take a step back and ask, how did things get this way? And does the Internet have to be like this?

This week, Dahlia and Amy got to thinking more about the ubiquity of gaslighting after seeing a Twitter thread by writer Carmen Maria Machado and the case against Junot Diaz. The term originates from an eponymous play and film about a husband who gaslights his wife into thinking she’s going mad and is now commonly used to describe making another person feel as if their own thoughts and memories are untrue and inaccurate. This episode explores how gaslighting operates on a larger scale when organizations and institutions use it to make us doubt our own feelings. Plus, an Amy vs. Dahlia worth getting animated about—vote by texting "Disney" to 503-855-6485!

On her Netflix one-woman show, Nanette, Hannah Gadsby opines, “There’s only ever been two options for a little girl to grow up into: virgin or whore…. And I don’t fit neatly into either of those categories. Virgin or whore? I mean, on a technicality, I’d get virgin.” Virginity is a weird, nebulous idea that’s mostly measured in heterosexual terms. So what value does virginity hold for queer and trans people? Is it worth pulling it out of the patriarchal muck?\ So on this episode, I’ll talk to Juno Roche, a trans writer and advocate who recently authored a book called Queer Sex. Then I discuss the theological aspect of virginity with Presbyterian minister Mihee Kim-Kort, author of Outside the Lines: How Embracing Queerness Will Transform Your Faith. I hope you enjoy the show! SHOUT-OUTS Read our interview with Juno Roche on their book, Queer Sex. Curious about what it’s like to have sex with a fake hymen? Check out this funny review from The Cut! Here’s the trailer for Daddy I Do, a documentary on purity bal

This week, Dahlia and Amy survived another week where hell is empty and all the devils are here on earth. It’s been a couple weeks of horrifying news and the last thing we need to hear is how progressive folks need to be civil to the inhumane Right. It feels the the least possible harm that Stephen Miller, Kirstjen Nielsen, and Sarah Huckabee Sanders can face is to have their restaurant meals interrupted while they’re supporting an administration that’s tearing families apart at the border and putting them in detention centers. More in bad news: Screw SCOTUS. But in an attempt at some fun: a new Amy vs Dahlia!

Why do romance novels get such a bad rap? The genre is often maligned as being inferior to more “literary” writing, but there’s so much more to it than shirtless cowboys and inaccurate portrayals of BDSM etiquette. Romance writers like today’s two guests live in a complicated world. They navigate arcane sorting algorithms, racism, and more intracommunity drama than you can shake a stick at. But despite all of the hardships, they keep on working hard to make sure their readers get the happy endings they’re looking for. First, we have Tracey Livesay, a former criminal defense attorney and current author of interracial romance novels. She talks about how she became a fan of the genre and why she loves its community. Second, CK Gold, writer of LGBTQ fantasy romance ebooks, shares some fascinating things she’s learned about race, marketability, and metadata. SHOUT-OUTS https://www.buzzfeed.com/bimadewunmi/meet-the-black-women-upending-the-romance-novel-industry https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/01/books/review/jai

This week, Dahlia and Amy are ringing in the summer raving about some of the best anticipated film and television shows coming out. Dahlia has rounded up Bitch-approved TV shows and movies premiering soon, and is obviously really loving all the great horror and true crime shows and films. Spending a few hours watching some of great television and films can be a balm against all the horrible news we’re seeing everyday. Plus, some Amy vs Dahlia results!

Almost half of millennials do freelance work—that is, they work as contract laborers, often in fields like writing, design, and computer programming—and the majority of those workers are women. The idea of ditching the office, the 9 to 5, and the butthead coworkers can be so tempting, but is this life all it’s cracked up to be? How do you find community when you don’t have to go anywhere to do your job? And what are your rights as a freelance worker? First, we talk to Danielle Corcione, a freelance journalist who recently looked into how #MeToo intersects with the lack of labor protections for freelancers. Then, we speak with Emma Denny, a lawyer who specializes in workplace harassment litigation, on what the options are for folks who want to fight back against sexist workplaces, both physical and digital. And finally, we go to The Coven, a coworking space for women and nonbinary folks in Minneapolis, MN, and talk to the founders about how they took the work of building a safe and equitable space into their o

This week, Dahlia and Amy talk about the spate of incidents of racists calling the police on Black people and POC doing everyday things. When Black and Indigenous people took up space at a Starbucks, enjoyed themselves at a park BBQ, and went on a campus visit at a university, anxious white racists took to dialing 911. This is a case of white supremacy literally policing where non-white people are allowed to go in their daily lives, posing a danger to the lives of people of color in these situations. Let’s keep talking about these incidents so they don’t become normalized. Some communities have come together to show they won’t be scared off, like the folks in Oakland around Lake Merritt. Plus, we still really want to hear about your fave Golden Girl!

Music interacts with gender in surprising and strange ways: sometimes upholding the binary, sometimes undermining it. In this episode, we’ll talk to three people who’ve thought deeply about that dynamic and come up with their own interpretations of what it all means. First, we discuss how gender identities are constructed through music with Marcy Nabors, an independent composer. Then we talk to Musicology scholar Emily Masincup about how the musical motifs of the Lord of the Rings trilogy—known sausage fest—helped her enjoy the films on a deeper level. Finally, you’ll hear from Aiden Feltkamp, an opera librettist and producer, about “pants roles” and his fight to make opera more accessible and welcoming for LGBTQIA folks. SHOUTOUTS Check out the Bandcamp article Marcy references on the different ways composers are using Vocaloid audio. For more on Pyotr Tchaikovsky and how sexuality figured into his work, start with this book on his 6th, or Pathétique, Symphony. And here’s Joni Mitchell on her “sus chords.