It's Been a Minute

How does it feel to be called hostile?

What about barren? Inhospitable? Geriatric? These are all words women over the age of 35 have heard in doctor's offices for decades to describe their reproductive health as they explore options for childbirth. The terminology has been changing, but for some, not quickly enough.  When the culture is pushing for more humane ways to talk about women's bodies, how long will it take modern medicine to catch up? Brittany talks with Rachel E. Gross, author of Vagina Obscura: An Anatomical Voyage to understand what the use of these words reveal about our cultural expectations of pregnant people.

Want more on the culture of women’s health? Check out these episodes:

Sex is pleasurable. It should feel safe too.
The key to thriving later in life: menopause

Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus.

Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse

For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Is social media giving you analysis paralysis? You’re not alone.

In his new book, ‘Minor Black Figures,’ novelist Brandon Taylor explores this vicious cycle and what it does to our self-worth. His characters are artists hyperaware of how social media can make or break their careers - and how it affects the art they make too.

In this episode, Brandon joins Brittany to talk through what it means to make art in a world of critics - online and off - and the beauty of giving yourself grace.

This episode originally aired on October 15, 2025.

Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus.

Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse
For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Political podcasting is said to be a men's game (and predominantly conservative). But two women stood up and said "I've had it!" Now they are revolutionizing political commentary in America.

The hosts of the ‘I’ve Had It’ podcast: Jennifer Welch, a lifelong atheist, and Angie “Pumps” Sullivan, a former evangelical conservative, started their podcast to air petty grievances. But, as American politics got heated so did their podcast. Wine jokes became unfiltered takedowns of both Democrats and Republicans. In the process, they gained millions of followers and changed how the progressive media system works. And there's no slowing them down. 

Host Brittany Luse sits down with Jennifer and Angie to talk about the power women have for shaping politics, why women just can't let go of Trump, and how Democrats can actually listen to progressive women.

(00:00) IHIP's success as an indictment of the Democratic party
(03:16) Jennifer and Angie's personal political journey
(10:30) White women leaving the right
(15:11) Jennifer's journey to progressivism
(20:45) Why IHIP's unfiltered approach resonates
(25:00) Why Democrats like Jack Schlossberg seek out IHIP's platform
(30:28) The importance of women's voices ahead of the midterms
(35:03) Why we should pay attention to how women do their politics

Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus.

Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse

For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Can AI really do everything by itself?

AI has impressed a lot of people with its output. But even though it’s sold as an autonomous, inhuman tool, there’s a lot of human work that goes into it. While that work does happen in the US, many AI laborers also live overseas – and get paid less to do it. Everything that goes into making AI function – from the data it feeds on to the labor that trains it – smacks of colonialism, according to some scholars and researchers. This has led to the emergence of the term "data colonialism." Is this comparison a fitting one, and what are the broader implications of data colonialism for society at large?

Brittany gets into it with Regine Cabato, a freelance journalist based in the Philippines who’s written about AI laborers there for The Washington Post, and Ulises Mejias, professor at SUNY Oswego and co-author of the book Data Grab the New Colonialism of Big Tech and How to Fight Back.

(00:00) Does AI really do everything by itself?
(04:20) The human labor behind AI
(06:46) The work conditions of overseas AI laborers
(09:43) Why AI companies recruit some workers from the Global South
(14:56) The narrative of AI's magic
(18:04) Is AI shaped by colonialism?
(24:53) Is an ethical generative AI possible?

For more episodes about AI and modern life, check out:
You might be suffering from AI brain fry
Me and my partner don't see eye-to-eye about AI. Now what?
The hard work of having "good taste"

Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus.

Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse

For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

The Kennedys are the first family that comes to mind when Americans consider homegrown, pseudo-royal dynasties. From Joe to John and Jackie, they have been elevated to a mythical cultural status. But is it possible that they share more in common with another prominent American family, the Kardashians? Today, Brittany is joined by MJ Corey, author of Dekonstructing the Kardashians: A New Media Manifesto, to find out how these two American 'royal' families share a cultural Krown.

Want more about famous families and the narratives they spin? Check out these episodes:

Inside the Michael Jackson legacy industrial complex
Melania Trump’s multi-million dollar “infomercial”

Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus.

Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse

For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy