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  Hi everybody! I was struggling to find a topic that I really wanted to shed light on this week (that hadn't already been covered by somebody else) so I've decided to just give a quick artist recommendation for spring break! Conan Gray is a pop-singer who is known for his breathtaking lyricism and vocals who was originally discovered from his semi-popular YouTube channel where he would make vlogs and bake with his best friend Ashley. He most recently released his album wishbone (pictured above) which features twelve songs exploring heartbreak, self-discovery, and emotional vulnerability. Two of the most popular songs off the album were Vodka Cranberry and This song which were popular on TikTok most of this summer. I'd recommend giving this album a listen along with any of his other albums! 

This week I want to touch on the controversy at the Winter Olympics, specifically the mens hockey team. As a women who grew up playing soccer and watching sports my whole life and being pinned or judged against male soccer players, I understand the scrutiny surrounding women's sports being insignificant compared to their men counterparts. This Winter Olympics, women made up 61% of gold medals. In the US, women won 17 gold medals compared to the 12 gold medals men won. The women's hockey team in particular went 7-0 never scoring less than 5 points in any given game excluding the gold medal game. In the game for the gold against Canada, the US won 2-1. In every Olympic Games the women's hockey team has participated in they have always placed and won a medal. The last time the men have won a medal before this years games was the silver medal game in 2010. The women's team has been significantly better than the mens team yet they don't get nearly as much credit they des...

  Pop star PinkPantheress has been named producer of the year by the Brit Awards ahead of this weekend's ceremony. The 24-year-old, whose hits include Illegal, Stateside and Boy's A Liar, is the first woman to be given the prize since its inception in 1977. "I guess it's bittersweet that I'm the first one, the first woman, to get it," she told BBC News. "As young as I am, it feels almost a bit crazy. Like, I'm not really legendary enough to be receiving it - but you know, I will definitely take it!" Previous winners of the prize include the Beatles' producer Sir George Martin, Trevor Horn, Brian Eno, the Eurythmics' David Stewart, Calvin Harris and Chase & Status. Until now, Kate Bush was the only other female producer to have been nominated, for her 1989 album The Sensual World. PinkPanteress does not publicly state that she's a feminist but her public commentary heavily aligns with feminist principles by addressing intersectiona...

  This past Sunday at the BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) Awards, a distressing event happened when black male actors Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were presenting an award. In silence, the N word was hurled at them by John Davidson who was there in attendance for his movie about his biopic, I Swear , and was audible. The tone shifted to an environment of becoming uncomfortable as well as awkward.  Actor, singer, and activist John Davidson has had Tourette’s since he was about 25 — Tourettes Syndrome is characterized as a nervous system disorder where the individual repeats involuntary, specific  movements, or vocal stems. Davidson has a sector of Tourette’s called coprolalia (about 10-30% of cases are affected) where the individual involuntary will vocally express socially inappropriate and obscene, taboo things.  According to many people who attended the BAFTA awards, Jordan and Lindo weren’t the only ones where the slur was directed at the...

 In the show Sex and the City, four different friends are very open about their friendships, careers, and, mostly, their sex lives. This show challenged the stereotypical gender roles about how women and men should act. Samantha, one of the friends, really breaks that gender norm because she is embracing herself in a way that is mostly seen/accepted by men.  This show also shows different areas of pop culture. meaning it is normalizing how women desire to be in a relationship, but then, when the LGBTQ+ community is brought in, they are sometimes stereotyped, seeing how the idea was not fully developed for them. The race that is mostly seen in this movie is mostly wealthy white women, and wealthy white men are shown at some points. This show also points out how their class can be seen by what they buy and the type of apartments they live in, as well as the type of clothing they are wearing. So what is shown is mostly the upper class, focusing on success, and some type of idea o...

  In recent years Brandy Melville has been criticized for promoting a very distinct idea of what young girls' bodies should look like. Its "one size" clothing really only fits small, thin bodies, which can make many young women feel left out or not good enough. This can be seen as body policing, meaning it ultimately sends the message that only certain bodies are acceptable or desirable. The brand sells the image of the "trendy, effortless girl," but that image is chosen for a reason and excludes many different body types. My best friend Anna used to work at Brandy Melville, and her experience made this even more clear. She felt like the employees were expected to fit the brand's ideal look, almost like they were part of the advertising. She mentioned that the hiring and styling of the manikins seemed to favor girls who matched the same skinny, trendy aesthetic. This made me realize that this brand doesn't just sell clothes, it sells a specific lifestyle...

 This week, I want to talk about the current moment that has been spinning around the media, and while it isn't about the passing of Eric Dane due to ALS, it's about the BAFTA Film Awards. I must preface this by saying I am a sucker for award shows from music, film, video games, academics, whatever it is and if an award is being handed out I am there, some would say for the fashion, for the award presenting, and some may even say for the pop culture, I truly watch is for the love of the game and excitement in seeing who wins, to see if it was deserved (i guess it gives me a way to have a bias) and most of all to see someones hard work finally pay off and most of all the speeches! So this week BBC hosted their BAFTA awards. I must admit this is something I never really heard of. It wasn't talked about much on my timeline last year, like the other award shows usually are (Grammys, Tonys, and Oscars); therefore, I wasn't aware that this award show was taking place. Unfortu...

  The trilogy Fear Street is so good. Each movie kind of goes back and forth in time trying to tell us a story of why one side of town for years has been haunted. When watching these movies you somewhat have to actually pay attention in order to really grasp what is going on and why it's the same people when it's years before they were alive etc. It definitely has its jumpscares and shows some gruesome things, but personally all three movies are so good and 10/10. When watching till the end for me it really makes me think this is how it may have been, although some people don't believe in witches, but I personally do so when watching this, this probably happened years ago and some people do hear about it. While I’m trying to not spoil it, but back then if you were a witch in a small village or you did something out of the normal that today anybody would consider us crazy such as being gay you would automatically be called a witch because it wasn’t something in the bible to ...

  I want to talk about the tragic and sad passing of Rondale Moore. Rondale Moore was a NFL wide receiver and he was just 25 years old. Over the past weekend the sports world lost a young man to a battle with mental health struggles. Rondale had missed the past 2 NFL seasons due to season ending knee injuries both years. Keeping this man off the field and away from the game he loved, leaving him all alone to battle his physical and mental obstacles. I want to share this story to shine light on the importance of mental health and the battles that all types of people struggle with. Rest in peace Rondale Moore.

When Alysa Liu stated she was returning to skating to her coaches, what stood out to me most was her emphasis that it had to be on her terms. That idea feels really significant, especially in a sport like figure skating where young women are often expected to sacrifice everything, physically, mentally, and emotionally, for coaches, judges, and national expectations. In athletic culture, there’s this long-standing narrative that success requires total obedience, push through pain, don’t question authority, and prioritize medals over well-being and mental health. For women, that pressure is intensified by gendered expectations to be agreeable, disciplined, and compliant. By saying she would only come back if it felt right for her, Liu disrupted that norm. She challenged the idea that women athletes owe constant productivity or perfection to the public. From a Women’s and Gender Studies perspective, this feels like a rejection of both patriarchal coaching structures and the broader cult...

After we discussed the ads in class and the sexualized tone people use to describe baby items, it made me think about how often other people normalize it. I started noticing baby onesies that say “Sorry Boys, Daddy Says No Dating” or “Future Heartbreaker.” I’ve also seen toddler bikinis styled like adult swimwear and photos of babies posed like fashion models, with captions focusing on how “sexy” or “flirty” they look. It’s meant to be funny, but it honestly feels uncomfortable. Why are we projecting adult ideas about dating and desirability onto infants? A baby wearing a shirt that implies they have romantic appeal sends the message that even children are defined by attractiveness. It reinforces strict gender roles little girls are framed as objects of future desire, while boys are positioned as pursuers. These ads blur the line between innocence and adult expectations. Instead of allowing babies to just be children, marketing pushes them into roles shaped by heteronormative and sexua...

 The “trad wife” trend on TikTok and Instagram reel platforms has really made me think about how feminism gets CONSTANTLY reframed in pop culture. On the surface, it tries to look like empowerment, women choosing to stay home, cook, clean, and center their lives around domesticity. But from my Women’s and Gender Studies perspective, I think it’s significantly more complicated than that. Choice doesn’t exist in this instance. Many of these influencers have financial privilege that makes staying home incredibly more possible, which isn’t realistic in the slightest for most women. It also ignores how domestic labor has historically been expected, especially from women of color, without recognition or compensation. To me, this trend shows how patriarchy doesn’t just disappear, it continuously adapts. It gets repackaged as aesthetic, soft, and voluntary. That doesn’t mean women shouldn’t choose domestic life, but we have to question who actually has the freedom to choose.

 In a recent interview released a week ago, Obama claimed "they're real but I haven't seen them" as pertaining to Aliens. He added, " They're not being kept in Area 51. There's no underground facility unless there's this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the president of the United States".  Trump had something to say of course claiming he was revealing classified information. First, Trump then procedes to say how he'll " be directing the Secretary of War, and other relevant Departments and Agencies, to begin the process of identifying and releasing Government files related to alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), and unidentified flying objects (UFOs), and any and all other information connected to these highly complex, but extremely interesting and important, matters". Although we don't have the files to interpret them ourselves, it is alarming but interesting how this is so regualrized t...

  Something that I recall happening that a lot of people will probably remember as well is the incident of Hannah Neeleman, and the egg apron. Hannah Neeleman is a professionally trained Julliard ballerina, who now lives in Utah with her husband. Julia lived in NYC due to her dream of being a ballerina, yet when she met her husband she gave it all up for him and moved to Utah to start a farm. The two have many kids, and a wide following on social media. One event that gained particular traction for them was Julia's birthday, where she was hoping for a trip to Greece. She was very vocal about this, to the point that the viewer's knew this is what she was hoping for. However, when it came down to her actual gift, her husband had gifted her an egg apron. This man gifted his wife, the woman who gave up everything for him, an apron, to complete tasks for him. The people saw this, they were outraged (rightfully so). This man is a billionaire, and he chose to get his wife, who sacrifi...

This may be a bit niche, as this is not a very recent or mainstream show, but I know of this show from my mom. She watched it years ago, and a few weeks ago, I decided to watch it myself. Doctor Foster is a British series from 2015 (very old). The premise was on a woman who seemed to have it all, but found out her husband was having an affair. She was a well-loved doctor, loving husband and son, and plenty of friends. But she became suspicious when she found hair on her husband's scarf (a very well-known trope). Things spiraled, and she found out the woman he was having an affair with was a lady in college. He's almost in his 30s, and she is new to college and life, which is despicable. I did not like this show really, because while it framed Foster in the right, everyone around her was so rude and covering up the affair!! EVERY man she met was known to have cheated at least once. It made cheating seem like something natural that every man does, and that it is the job of the wi...

 The movie focuses entirely on technology. During this movie, there is a younger woman whose mother went missing, and she uses digital technology to try to find her. She used FaceTime. security cameras, social media, etc. This movie highlighted how technology can be the main focus of people's relationships. At the start, they make it seem like the younger daughter is always connected to her phone and not involved in the outside world. Which then sets the tone that a teenage girl typically spends her time on the phone. However, while the movie goes on, the girl proves herself to be very intelligent and hands-on when it comes to finding her mother. She starts to use databases, tracking apps, and even translation apps to help he communicate with others to try to find out where her mother went. This also then challenges the stereotype that only men know how to fix technology and women do not. This movie also shows how people's identities can be false advertising to you, as well as ...

  ( Content Warnings: Mentions of Sexual Assault )   Written, directed, and starring actress Eva Victor, with their directorial debut, Sorry, Baby is genuinely one of the best films I’ve watched from 2025. Following the protagonist, Agnes, the narrative navigates her life before and after her sexual assault and how she learns to rebuild her relationships on a platonic and romantic level, additionally her finding her footing again with the world around her. Victor’s writing and acting is nothing but exceptionally amazing. Even from the ensemble and supporting cast helps to support the narrative as well. Naomi Ackie’s character, Lydie, Agnes’s best friend isn’t sidelined or given the “black best friend treatment” but actually feels like a truly fleshed out character as she not only has her own life, but is a good friend and supporter of Agnes throughout the narrative. The subject of the sexual assault is treated with respect, but something that is noticeable is the language...

  Spoiler at the end!! You is a physiological thriller series following a young man named Joe Goldburg, a deeply disturbing man who becomes obsessively fixated on women he claims to love. Joe uses multiple tactics to insert himself into women's lives like stalking, manipulation, identity theft, and murder. In my opinion You glorifies toxic behavior and violence. For example the series romanticizes toxic relationships by blurring the lines of obsession and love, normalize stalking as an act of love, and make manipulative behavior seen as justifiable. The show also depicts many acts of violence, especially through murder. Instead of the murders feeling tragic, the series portray them more as thrilling. Some viewers may misunderstand unhealthy behaviors as romantic/ overlook serious red flags in a relationship. Even in the last scenes, it is shown women writing to Joe while he is in jail, them fantasizing and asking him to act violently towards them as a sexual turn on. Overall I enjo...

  If you take this movie for what it is, a cheesy romcom, then it does the job pretty okay. It's nothing to write home about, but it hits the notes of most of your classic and often cringy romantic movies. But if you dig deeper into the scene work and begin to think about the representation of sexism in the workplace it gets interesting. For anyone who hasn't seen it this movie is about two feuding co-workers (Lucy & Joshua) who are fighting towards the same promotion in order to keep their separate companies afloat while trying to stay out of each other's way. But as most of these movies work obviously something does get in the way, feelings. I don't have anything bad to say about the romance itself, but instead I want to talk about the workspace they are surrounded by. She is constantly held at a higher standard and often sexualized by the manager of josh's side of the business. He usually makes lewd comments or chalks up her having an opinion to it being ...

Brandy Hellville & The Cult of Fast Fashion looks closely at the brand Brandy Melville and the fast fashion industry. Like I mentioned in class, Brandy Melville has a lot of controversy, not only because of its one-size-fits-all clothing, but also because of the culture and values behind the brand. One of the main issues discussed in the film is sizing. Brandy Melville only sells one size, which usually fits very small bodies. This sends a message about what kind of body is accepted and valued. For many young girls and teens, this can hurt confidence and body image. The documentary shows that this sizing choice is not random. It is part of the brand’s image and marketing, which focuses on a very narrow idea of beauty. The documentary also talks about serious problems inside the company. Former workers share stories about unfair treatment, racism, and being judged based on looks, body size, and race. These stories show how strict and harmful the brand’s standards can be. Employees f...

  Watching the Sabrina Carpenter Pringles ad made me think about what  we’ve  talked about in class  regarding  gender and advertising. Usually, when women are in commercials, their bodies are sexualized and presented in a more serious, desirab le  way, while ads centered on men tend to lean into satire and strength. This ad flips that pattern  and is   exaggerated and funny, but it also reverses the power dynamic. Sabri na  literally constructs  a boyfriend out of Pringles, which made me think about objectification. He  isn’t  treated as a full human being with depth or  personality;   he’s  just a consumable creation.  So  when  he falls apart ,   and she eats him,  it’s  humorous,  but it reflects dehumanization and control.  This made me think about the fact that  r ape culture often involves reducing women to bodies or appearances rather than recognizing them as f...

  Prior to the game, Bad Bunny faced intense  backlash  for being selected as the halftime performer,  as one of our classmates already covered . I personally disagreed with much of the backlash, particularly the criticism centered on his music being performed in Spanish. While I understand that English-speaking audiences may struggle to understand the lyrics, many popular songs succeed without lyrics at all. I believe that histor ical  and cultural  perceptions  contribute d  to why some Americans  were  judgmental   when they c ould  not relate to the music, especially in   Conway, SC.  While watching the game at a restaurant, I noticed several people scoffing, murmuring, and even shouting negative remarks during the performance. At one point, a woman nearby became visibly upset and defended the artist, which highlighted how divided reactions were in that space. There was also commentary suggesting that Bad Bunny wo...

 I just picked up this show last night, and there are only 2-3 episodes thus far, and I'm eager for more. The main actor is otherwise known as "Mc Dreamy" for all the Grey's Anatomy followers out there. I think the duality of living two lives was intriguing and suspenseful. I feel as if tv shows or movies involving a hitman typically cast the main character as white, which this show does as well, so I thought that right away. There was, though, more representation of all races through the cast. There was a sequence of scenes in episode 2 or 3 where the daughter of the hitmen was in the hospital, and the fib director, police officer, and doctor were all black. There traditionally have been more positions in movies or shows where the individuals cast as these roles are predominantly white. Obviously, there has been progress with more representation in shows, but I did think that was something noteworthy.

   Over the weekend, on Saturday, Alex Honnold. made history by climbing the Taipei 101 in Taiwan. The climb took a little over 2 hours, and he climbed the 508-meter skyscraper without anything. The event was broadcasted live on Netflix, and there were many people watching, but I thought it was interesting how many people overlooked it. Obviously, watching an individual climb something very cautiously can be repetitive, but the sheer amount of second-hand anxiety for the guy was felt by everyone watching. This was history, and we have never seen someone scale and conquer a skyscraper without ropes. Furthermore, there has been news that Mr. Harold, even though this was a life long goal of his, disregarding the money and attention, he had received a check for a lot less than he expected compared to other athletes who have been broadcast. I thought this was interesting because I'm wondering whether it's because the turnout of viewers wasn't as profitable or tNetflix didn't...

    My new obsession is Ozark. I am about a couple of episodes into the first season. What really hooked me was how chaotic it was and how the plot paced well. Marty discovers an infidelity with Wendy in his marriage, and I thought it was interesting to convey that, and then everything explodes almost instantly with the cartel's power. I thought the constant tension for each character, personally as well as collectively as a family, was accurately depicted. The stress of moving to an unf amiliar place, evading the FBI, laundering money, and fearing the cartel shows how resilient they all are. In the first couple of episodes alone, the show conveys broader themes prominently through financial crisis (owing the boss $8 million), sudden instability (leaving for  Missouri) , family breakdowns, and just the dynamic of knowing you're a criminal or knowing you're associated. There were some gruesome killings, and how graphic it was reflects how dangerous these people can be. Oza...

  "Good Will Dunkin'"YouTube · Dunkin'1 week ago The advertisement I chose to look at this week is the Super Bowl commercial from the Super Bowl last week. I find this commercial interesting as it is based in the 80s-90s era of Dunkin'. The commercial shows stars like Matt LeBlanc, Jennifer Aniston, and Tom Brady among others. At one point we see Jasmine Guy sitting at a table where she says "I will marry the first guy that can help me with the Fibonacci sequence" and all of the guys at the table next to her jump up and run over to help. At one point, the guy playing Jennifer Anistons boyfriend pulls out a picture of her from her Friends days in the early 2000s. Later in the ad, Jennifer Aniston shows up with Tom Brady declaring him her new boyfriend. I find this interesting as she looks the same in the photo as she did on camera and Tom Brady looks like himself from a few years ago rather than now. The other celebrities in the commercial do not look as ...

Sex Education  is not just a funny teen show, it talks about gender, power, and identity in clear and honest ways. The series questions unfair rules created by patriarchy and shows why consent and body autonomy matter. It supports equality by showing girls and women as strong, complex people instead of stereotypes. The show also talks about toxic masculinity and encourages boys to express their feelings and respect others. Through many different characters, it shows intersectionality in a simple way, explaining how gender connects with race, class, sexuality, and disability. The series supports LGBTQ+ identities and promotes a sex-positive message without shame. By having open conversations about relationships, boundaries, and respect, the show teaches important feminist ideas in a way that is easy to understand. If you're looking for a funny, relatable show, I would totally recommend Sex Education!

On Valentine’s Day, my friend and I watched Thunderbolts. I used to watch every Marvel movie on release day, but since starting college, I haven’t kept up with them. I hadn’t even seen the trailer for this one, so I was truly in the dark. I know Marvel had been doing shows and movies revolving mental illnesses (Moon Knight and Ironman for example), but I didn’t know how heavily centered on mental illness this movie was going to be. I think it depicted depression quite well, and it focused on the fact that you can ask those around you for help. They scripted Yelena to give Bob bad advice at first, and then admit that she was wrong in the end and tell him that you shouldn’t do what she told him to do. It wasn’t the best Marvel movie, but I think it had some good topics and was decent for what it’s worth.

 It's no secret that the NBA's All-Star Weekend has been struggling for the last few years. This year the ratings for the All-Star game on Sunday night were actually higher than the past 15 years. This ratings boost came from the new format of U.S. vs World. This goes to show that the NBA has to be willing to make changes if they want to see media success. All-Star Weekend's Saturday night has been sturggling a lot so there is desperate need for something new. This is where I think the NBA could learn by taking some notes from the WNBA. The WNBA has partnered with Unrivaled and put on a 1on1 tournament between some of the WNBA's top players. NBA fans have been begging for this event to be added to All-Star Weekend Saturday Night for the past few years but the league has not listened. The WNBA event had a cash prize for the winner which meant extreme effort by the players. This is where I think the NBA has to admit that its All-Star Saturday Night has been struggling and...

Disney’s  " The Little Mermaid"  is a popular movie about Ariel, a curious young mermaid who dreams of living in the human world. But if we look closely, the movie shows traditional norms related to femininity. Ariel is brave and adventurous, but her story is mainly about winning Prince Eric’s love. She gives up her voice to Ursula, the sea witch, which means she loses her ability to speak for herself. This shows that the movie values Ariel more for her looks and charm than her thoughts, talents, or choices. The movie also shows  heterosexual romance  and  f emale objectification . Scenes often focus on Ariel’s body and appearance, encouraging the audience to look at her as something to admire, which is what feminist theorist Laura Mulvey calls the  male gaze . On the other hand, Prince Eric is active and powerful, while Ariel’s actions depend on him. The story suggests that women are supposed to be seen and desired by men rather than acting for themselves....

One thing I want to talk about this week is the Ring Doorbell commercial during the Super Bowl. Now I might be a bit biased because I've always been one who doesn't really idolize animals over humans and all that, but intially I thought the commercial was cute. A nice way to find dogs when they get lost, and very smart. Unfortunately, the thought didn't last too long, and here's why.  First, the commercial intially showed a lost dog named Milo and how, when he got lost, the Ring cameras found him, and they showed an ecosystem of Ring cameras that use AI. Now this may be biased again because I genuinely can't stand the excessive use of AI espcially for small things. I don't think a doorbell needs advanced AI; that may be a hot take, but it's simply due to my disdain for AI and how I'm not a fan of it. I think this is creepy because the lost dog narrative really makes you think if this camera can pick up a dog on the camera, scan it, and understand that it...