Culture Study Podcast

If you've ever attended a Christian church, you know that place might be led by men — but it's run by women. Women making the coffee hour cookies. Women making the felt banners that hang at Easter. Women showing up, tithing, and singing in the choir. Women are the core constituency of the Christian church — and for the first time in history, young women are leaving the church at higher rates than men.
Journalist Sarah Stankorb has spent years talking to women about all the reasons they've left the church. Some left because of how their leaders handled the pandemic. Others left because of Trump, or the refusal to grapple with sexual abuse in the church, or Black Lives Matter — or a dozen reasons that come together into a loss of faith, either in God or the institution of which they'd been a part. For this episode, we explore those reasons for leaving, but also ask: what's the future of the Christian church in America? What becomes of these spaces when and if women are no longer there to organize and keep them running? And if these women are leaving their churches... where, exactly, are they going?

Thanks to the sponsors of today's episode:
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Show Notes:
Go buy Damned If She Does here!
Find more of Sarah's excellent work here
The Pew study that Sarah repeatedly references can be found here
Sarah's recent Slate piece on trad wives leaving the church (including the original 'stay-at-home daughters')
We're currently looking for your questions on the following topics:
SIMPLE COOKING WITH YOTAM OTTOLENGHI! We're talking about his new cookbook, Simple Too, and want to talk about the entire concept of "simple cooking" — but you can also ask for tips, specific recipes for specific situations that hew to "simple," or any other questions you have for one of the most renowned cookbook authors of our time.
FANCY JOURNAL / PLANNER CULTURE with Alex Sujong Laughlin — what fantasy of self are we chasing? What works, what pisses you off, what feels like pandering?
WTF IS GOING ON WITH TELEVISION RIGHT NOW with Phil Maciak and Kathryn VanArendonk — podcasts-as-television, Netflix's Second Season Problem, what the networks aren't learning from Widow's Bay, ask us more!
VENMO CULTURE: People who won't let you treat, people who say they're gonna Venmo you after you put a big dinner on your card and then don't, the utility (and annoyance) of Splitwise, Venmo-ing for a $4 coffee... convince Melody that there's an episode here
LOW KEY SUPER RICH PEOPLE — ever since I read this piece on 'American Gentry' I've wanted to do a big episode about how the real (diffuse) wealth in this country is people who own car dealerships, HVAC companies, and other "pass-through" S-Corps. How does that wealth persist, what power does it wield, why do they vote the way they do, WHO ARE THEY, REALLY? (We're talking with some economists who've really crunched the numbers on this, so it's gonna be fascinating)
Anything you need advice for/want musings about for the AAA segment. You can ask about anything — it’s literally the name of the segment.

Join the ranks of paid subscribers and get bonus content, access to the discussion threads, ad-free episodes, and the knowledge that you're supporting an indie pod trying to make its way in the world.
Got a question to submit, a prompt for Ask Anne Anything, or an idea for a future episode? Tell us here.
Catch up on everything else happening in the Culture Study universe here.
Transcripts will be available here within 24 hours of publishing.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Last week, Anne went on Slate's podcast about internet culture, ICYMI. The conversation felt very in line with what we talk about on Culture Study, so we're dropping this episode in your feed as a special weekend treat. Enjoy!
The “tradwives” are retreating. Nara Smith went on Call Her Daddy to renounce any association with the term, and has been in the middle of a full-on rebrand as the promotes her new cookbook. Other figureheads, like Hannah Neeleman aka Ballerina Farm, are taking a step back to put their business first. Meanwhile, the actual former tradwives are suffering. On today’s episode, host Kate Lindsay is joined by author and Culture Study host Anne Helen Petersen to talk about why these women are making such public shifts, and what happens when the word “tradwife” loses all meaning.

Join the ranks of paid subscribers and get bonus content, access to the discussion threads, ad-free episodes, and the knowledge that you're supporting an indie pod trying to make its way in the world.
Got a question to submit, a prompt for Ask Anne Anything, or an idea for a future episode? Tell us here.
Catch up on everything else happening in the Culture Study universe here.
Transcripts will be available here within 24 hours of publishing.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Coworkers using AI to respond to emails written using AI. Coworkers who put the entire email, in caps, in the subject line. Other coworkers who seemingly refuse to use their email at all. Coworkers who send you a Teams Chat, then an email, then a text, then call you on your personal phone. Organization-wide freakouts about moving from Slack to Teams. What made contemporary workplace communication into such a sh*t show — and what can we do about it? Amy Gallo joins us to answer all your questions about annoying, bewildering, and time-sucking coworker comms, and to give some provocative takes on which generation is actually the worst at email.
Thanks to the sponsors of today's episode:
Don’t miss NOBL’s Biggest Sale of the Year! Head to NOBLTravel.com for up to 67% off your entire order!
Go to https://zbiotics.com/culturestudy and use CULTURESTUDY at checkout for 15% off any first time orders of ZBiotics probiotics.
Thanks to Article for sponsoring this podcast! Article is offering our listeners $50 off your first purchase of $100 or more. To claim, visit ARTICLE.COM/CULTURE and the discount will be automatically applied at checkout.
Taking care of your health just got easier – start here with Zocdoc: https://zocdoc.com/culture
Show Notes:
Find out more about Amy Gallo and her work here
Follow Amy on Instagram here
Buy Amy's bestselling book Getting Along: How to Work with Anyone (Even Difficult People) here
We're currently looking for your questions on the following topics:
SIMPLE COOKING WITH YOTAM OTTOLENGHI! We're talking about his new cookbook, Simple Too, and want to talk about the entire concept of "simple cooking" — but you can also ask for tips, specific recipes for specific situations that hew to "simple," or any other questions you have for one of the most renowned cookbook authors of our time.
FANCY JOURNAL / PLANNER CULTURE with Alex Sujong Laughlin — what fantasy of self are we chasing? What works, what pisses you off, what feels like pandering?
WTF IS GOING ON WITH TELEVISION RIGHT NOW with Phil Maciak and Kathryn VanArendonk — podcasts-as-television, Netflix's Second Season Problem, what the networks aren't learning from Widow's Bay, ask us more!
VENMO CULTURE: People who won't let you treat, people who say they're gonna Venmo you after you put a big dinner on your card and then don't, the utility (and annoyance) of Splitwise, Venmo-ing for a $4 coffee... convince Melody that there's an episode here
LOW KEY SUPER RICH PEOPLE — ever since I read this piece on 'American Gentry' I've wanted to do a big episode about how the real (diffuse) wealth in this country is people who own car dealerships, HVAC companies, and other "pass-through" S-Corps. How does that wealth persist, what power does it wield, why do they vote the way they do, WHO ARE THEY, REALLY? (We're talking with some economists who've really crunched the numbers on this, so it's gonna be fascinating)
Anything you need advice for/want musings about for the AAA segment. You can ask about anything — it’s literally the name of the segment.


Join the ranks of paid subscribers and get bonus content, access to the discussion threads, ad-free episodes, and the knowledge that you're supporting an indie pod trying to make its way in the world.
Got a question to submit, a prompt for Ask Anne Anything, or an idea for a future episode? Tell us here.
Catch up on everything else happening in the Culture Study universe here.
Transcripts will be available here within 24 hours of publishing.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

GOD THIS EPISODE IS GOOD. I absolutely love talking about the publishing industry with Alyssa Morris: she has such a sharp eye for what makes people feel things (and what does and does not make people buy books). Every time we talk I swear we could go another two hours, but this time we try our best to limit ourselves to just over one. We talk about the feeling that "high-concept" books are everywhere, Yesteryear and its siblings, cozy fantasy, Dungeon Crawler Carl's Audible exclusive deal (and what the author is doing to make it more accessible), why SO MANY NOVELS take place in WORLD WAR II, how Theo of Golden went big with boomers, and, of course, the slow burn success of The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion. It's such a fun ride.
Also: when we recorded, I'd only read the first Emma M. Lion — I am now fully obsessed, on Volume Five, and can't wait to do a whole pod on the series when Volume Nine comes out in February. I have also been apprised by ex-Mormon/Mormon pop culture expert Meg Conley that Brower is absolutely Mormon, so take this as an update to our uncertain discussion of Brower's religion.

Thanks to the sponsors of today's episode:
Get 15% off OneSkin with the code CULTURE at https://www.oneskin.co/CULTURE
Get $35 off your first box of wild-caught, sustainable seafood—delivered right to your door. Go to: https://www.wildalaskan.com/CULTURE.
Ready to upgrade your eyewear to something functional, fashionable, fun, and affordable? Head to goodr.com/CULTURE to claim $10 off your first order.
Ollie. Feed the Obsession. Go to ollie.com/culture and use code culture to get 70% off your first box!
Show Notes:
Follow Alyssa on Instagram here
Learn more about her work as an agent here
GO SUBSCRIBE TO ROMANCING THE PHONE (and read the most recent piece on ACOTAR's very curious period panty partnership)
We talk about The Poison Daughter (which hit #1 on the NYT Bestseller List and Alyssa agented)
Beth Brower's Substack is a must for Emma M. Lion fans — a real treasure trove of sidequests
A transcript for this episode is available here
We're currently looking for your questions on the following topics:
FANCY JOURNAL / PLANNER CULTURE with Alex Sujong Laughlin — what fantasy of self are we chasing? What works, what pisses you off, what feels like pandering?
WTF IS GOING ON WITH TELEVISION RIGHT NOW with Phil Maciak and Kathryn VanArendonk — podcasts-as-television, Netflix's Second Season Problem, what the networks aren't learning from Widow's Bay, ask us more!
WOMEN LEAVING THE (CHRISTIAN) CHURCH — what are you seeing, what are you curious about, what are they leaving for?
VENMO CULTURE: People who won't let you treat, people who say they're gonna Venmo you after you put a big dinner on your card and then don't, the utility (and annoyance) of Splitwise, Venmo-ing for a $4 coffee... convince Melody that there's an episode here
LOW KEY SUPER RICH PEOPLE — ever since I read this piece on 'American Gentry' I've wanted to do a big episode about how the real (diffuse) wealth in this country is people who own care dealerships, HVAC companies, and other "pass-through" S-Corps. How does that wealth persist, what power does it wield, why do they vote the way they do, WHO ARE THEY, REALLY? (We're talking with some economists who've really crunched the numbers on this, so it's gonna be fascinating)
Anything you need advice for/want musings about for the AAA segment. You can ask about anything — it’s literally the name of the segment.

Join the ranks of paid subscribers and get bonus content, access to the discussion threads, ad-free episodes, and the knowledge that you're supporting an indie pod trying to make its way in the world.
Got a question to submit, a prompt for Ask Anne Anything, or an idea for a future episode? Tell us here.
Catch up on everything else happening in the Culture Study universe here.
Transcripts will be available here within 24 hours of publishing.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A psychological thriller about writing with three movie stars — sign me up! Let's do this! This is extremely my shit! But Verity has so much going wrong: bad writing, incoherent acting, a hesitancy to embrace the abject, a text that wishes it was Rebecca, a distractingly cool house, Dakota Johnson being Dakota Johnson.....it's quite bad. And yet, both Margaret and I agree: we had a pretty fun time at the movies. Contradictions abound.
Also discussed: the bad mother trope, favorite worst passages from the book version, the return of Josh Hartnett, a very weird understanding of book publishing, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, what Gone Girl does that Verity cannot, and naming your kid Crew.

Join the ranks of paid subscribers and get bonus content, access to the discussion threads, ad-free episodes, and the knowledge that you're supporting an indie pod trying to make its way in the world.
Got a question to submit, a prompt for Ask Anne Anything, or an idea for a future episode? Tell us here.
Catch up on everything else happening in the Culture Study universe here.
Transcripts will be available here within 24 hours of publishing.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.