In the wake of the leaked Supreme Court draft decision suggesting that Roe v. Wade is imperiled, many took to social media encouraging women to delete apps that help them track their menstrual cycles. Countless messages and memes circulated on social media telling...
Gender Issues
What’s ‘Problematic,’ When, and Why
In my previous blog I discussed the (real and performative) outrage over Will Smith attacking Chris Rock at the Oscars, and the curious lack of outrage over co-host Amy Schumer’s long history of (alleged) racism. From racist jokes to behavior,...
Squaring the Strange #168 – Sex Urban Legends
Did you miss out recent show on Sex Urban Legends? First, all the way from New York City Skeptics, Russ Dobler drops in to tell us about AIPT Comic's skepticism month -- and we also chat about Joe Rogan and Ivermectin. Then our main topic is sex urban legends, a field...
Squaring the Strange #166: Episode 165 – Moral Panic Series: LITERATURE AND COMIC DANGER!
Our last Squaring the Strange episode of 2021 is out, and unlike other podcasts, we are giving you fresh episodes... even a BONUS episode like this one, well ahead of our usual biweekly schedule. Our final episode of the moral panic series deals with panics...
“Más allá del mito: Las Brujas de Salem”
I'm quoted in a news article in the Spanish-language newspaper Clarin on the social and cultural drivers of witchcraft, including at Salem: "Más allá del mito: Las Brujas de Salem, la verdad de la ciencia a 330 años." ¡Léelo ahora!
‘Wonder Woman’ And The Alamo Theater Publicity Stunts
I wrote an article investigating the infamous "Women-Only Wonder Woman" screenings in 2017. It was a fascinating hoax that exploited social media and social justice, reaping huge publicity and lawsuits--and an apology from the theater. The long-delayed,...
Squaring the Strange #164: Moral Panic Series Part 3: Film and TV Danger!
This penultimate episode in our moral panic series starts with a discussion of the TikTok worries that interrupted schools last week as authorities braced for possible gun violence. Then we talk cinema and television from old to new, and the themes in moral panicking...
‘Birds Of Prey’ Misogyny: When Clickbait Harms Women
In February a headline widely shared on social media decried poor reviews of the new film Birds of Prey and blamed it on male film critics hating the film for real or perceived feminist messages (and/or skewed expectations; it’s not clear). The article, by...
‘Bring Back Our Girls’ At 5: Boko Haram’s Forgotten Captives
It was a bold and brash attack on innocent girls that outraged the world and spawned unprecedented online activism: Boko Haram, an extremist Muslim group in Nigeria, abducted about 276 schoolgirls from a rural secondary school in the town of Chibok on April 14, 2014....
‘Bring Back Our Girls’ At 5: Boko Haram’s Forgotten Captives
It was a bold and brash attack on innocent girls that outraged the world and spawned unprecedented online activism: Boko Haram, an extremist Muslim group in Nigeria, abducted about 276 schoolgirls from a rural secondary school in the town of Chibok on April 14, 2014....