Laugh at the RichIn an ‘Eat the Rich’ Era of Discourse, ‘The White Lotus’ Delivered TV and movies -- including season 1 of The White Lotus -- have been grappling with the destructive callousness of the 1%. Season 2 looks beyond. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Big Tech CheckGenerative AI Puts Us on the Brink of a Deepfakes Crisis Generative AI is an emerging paradigm in tech that makes the creation of deepfakes much easier -- and more monetizable. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Object of All My DesiresThe Feminist Debate: Is Being Objectified Disempowering? The feminist debate on being objectified isn't settled yet -- sometimes, consensual sexual agency can't be separated from objectification. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Restoring JusticeStalking Is Romanticized as Passion. How Can Justice Systems Validate the Harm to Survivors? Restorative justice is touted as the feminist answer to an unhelpful carceral justice system. For survivors of stalking -- it can't change what happened, but it can recognize that harm has taken place. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Royal WoesThe Buzz Cut: Couple Releases New Documentary Spotlighting How They Left the Spotlight This week in The Buzz Cut: a couple navigates the spotlight, a pan-India song breaks barriers, and an aged woman baffles the press. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
On the Edge of CollapseStriking Academics, Journalists, Show How Knowledge Work Is Increasingly Precarious New York Times staffers, academics at the Universities of California, and publishers at Harper Collins all have a common message: building public discourse is valuable labor. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
K-ResistFeminists in South Korea Are Protesting a Wave of Anti‑Feminism The current movement was catalyzed by the suicides of K-pop stars in 2019, and a subsequent rise in misogyny in the country’s national discourse. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Paying A PriceSome Research on Tackling Obesity Pays People to Lose Weight. What Does It Get Wrong? Financial incentives for weight loss stigmatizes weight as a moral failure, equates size with health, and individualizes a systemic crisis. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Overprotected SexualityIndia’s Moral Panic About Teen Sexuality Is a Public Health Crisis When authorities in Bengaluru schools found condoms and oral contraceptives in students' bags, it should have been an educational moment. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
All in Mansplain SightThe Buzz Cut: Man Helpfully Explains to Prime Ministers What Prime Ministers Do This week in The Buzz Cut: a man helps two Prime Ministers a woman watches her in-laws unravel, and an engagement arrives on time. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Zombie Apocalypse In the NewsThere Is No ‘Zombie Virus’ – Just a Dormant Virus That’s Been Revived Media reports about a ‘zombie’ virus deliberately misstate facts. What are the public health implications of misleading information? By Rohitha Naraharisetty
The Great DNA DepressionThe Great Depression Changed People’s DNA, Study Finds Children born during this time of recession showed genetic markers of accelerated aging. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Coal For ActionIndigenous Youth in Australia Halted the Development of a Coal Mine on Human Rights Grounds A court in Queensland added to growing legal recognition of the connection between the environment and human rights. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Don't Kill the Happy PillThere’s Still No Scientific Consensus Linking Serotonin With Depression. Why Did the Theory Get So Popular? “I believe we are in the phase of mental health care where we recognize that we may have to discard old findings, modify the existing ones and research newer possibilities." By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Accented BiasHow the ‘Neutral’ Indian Accent Erases Our Histories Indian-English accents differ by region -- but class-caste dominance coupled with globalized work cultures shapes what the "right" one is. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Tweeting a StormThe Buzz Cut: Woman’s Tweet Simultaneously Upsets National Security and Secure Nationalists This week in The Buzz Cut: a woman upsets a stable nation, another woman stuns by existing, and a man sues for the stars. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Sex and SensibilityThe Media Is Oversexed. Accurate Asexual Representation Can Fix That When it comes to popular culture, it’s not just ace representation that’s needed. It’s a reckoning with sex itself. By Rohitha Naraharisetty
Space to ThriveEurope Names Its First Disabled Astronaut A former Paralympic athlete will participate in a feasibility study to see how disabled people can live and work in space. By Rohitha Naraharisetty