In this episode of the Back Row podcast, veteran fashion journalist Dana Thomas joins Amy Odell to talk about Emily in Paris! She reveals what it was really like to actually live the fantasy of moving to Paris at 18 years old to work in fashion, how it influenced her style, and how actual French fashion is so different from the show.

CHAPTERS

00:00 Why Emily in Paris works as fantasy

01:30 Dana Thomas’s real “Emily in Paris” story

03:40 Modeling and learning French beauty and style rules

06:40 French chic vs. American cool

09:50 Life as a teenage model in the 1980s

12:00 Falling in love and moving to Paris

14:00 How French women actually dress

17:20 Scarves are very important

22:30 The French style formula, explained

26:20 Handbags, pockets, and why French women don’t carry much

29:00 Men’s style in Paris vs. the "Emily in Paris" fantasy

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amyodell.substack.com

Can a 2.5-hour artsy, originally scripted film open at the box office? The Marty Supreme cast is so determined to get us to the theater for this movie that they're wearing full monochromatic orange for promotional appearances. Gwyneth Paltrow is being strategic with her fashion choices in other ways, and helping daughter Apple's prospects in the process.

This is the audio version of the Back Row newsletter ⁠published Thursday, December 18, 2025⁠.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amyodell.substack.com

World-renowned Real Housewives expert Dame Brian Moylan joins Amy Odell on the Back Row podcast to talk about Rachel Zoe's debut on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills! They analyze what Rachel and Bravo gain from her joining the cast and why fashion people are so eager to get on this show. Then they recap all of Rachel's scenes in the first two episodes of season 15, and do some investigative journalism on Mauricio "Mo" Umansky's disturbing Chanel couch.

Chapters:

00:00 - Intro to Dame Brian Moylan

02:41 - Why did Rachel join the cast?

07:26 - Why fashion people are joining Real Housewives

11:09 - Recapping Rachel's scenes in episode 1

12:38 - DOES MAURICIO HAVE A CHANEL COUCH?

13:28 - Why are all the Birkins unclasped?

27:11 - Rachel and Roger's shocking split

33:22 - Rachel cooks bacon and eggs

36:00 - What is Rachel implying about Roger's girlfriend?!

FOR PART TWO OF THIS PODCAST, sign up for Back Row Premium in ⁠⁠Apple⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠. In part two, Brian and Amy recap RHOBH season 15 episode 2 and play the game "Cast or Pass," in which Amy gives Brian a fashion person and he decides whether or not to fantasy cast them as Real Housewives.

Links & Resources: ⁠

⁠⁠Follow Amy on Instagram⁠

Brian Moylan

⁠Instagram⁠⁠

RHOBH Vulture recaps⁠⁠

The Housewives: The Real Story Behind the Real Housewives

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amyodell.substack.com

This is the audio version of the Back Row newsletter ⁠published December 9, 2025⁠.

0:16 - Fashion enters its "great unsettling"

1:47 - Prada Group acquires Versace

2:24 - Broader instability across the fashion industry

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amyodell.substack.com

Tech journalist and creator​ ⁨Taylor Lorenz⁩ joins Amy Odell on the Back Row podcast to explain how social media has completely reshaped fashion. From the backlash against fashion creators to why facts barely matter online, they dive into Vogue World, The Row's viral sample sale, and more.

Taylor, formerly at The Atlantic, The New York Times, and The Washington Post, now runs her own newsletter, podcast, and YouTube channel covering the creator economy.

Chapters:

00:00 – Intro: Amy Odell welcomes Taylor Lorenz

00:53 – Why fashion people are frustrated with social media

01:49 – Why audiences trust creators more than experts

02:42 – How algorithms reward outrage

03:36 – Why being first beats being accurate

04:25 – “Facts don’t matter”: the validation economy

05:55 – Platforms secretly boost and suppress creators

06:41 – Why follower count no longer matters

07:29 – The death of critics (and why creators can’t be honest)

08:15 – Will AI actually help creators?

11:40 – How creators really make money in 2025

12:38 – Advent calendars, meme marketing, and virality

14:23 – The Row sample sale goes viral

16:55 – Can fashion brands control their image? (No.)

18:36 – The famous "Open letter to The Row"

19:32 – Brands vs creators: a toxic relationship

20:20 – Why brands can’t stop creators from posting

22:05 – Why chasing access will break your heart

22:49 – Anna Wintour’s decline and cultural relevance

25:08 – Vogue World and the struggle for relevance

26:41 – The Met Gala red carpet isn’t what it used to be

29:46 – The Devil Wears Prada prequel problem

30:38 – What it takes to survive online long-term

32:13 – Why Becca Bloom fascinates people

33:15 – The obsession with “capitalism slop”

34:07 – Hustle culture and the fantasy of success

Links & Resources: ⁠

Back Row newsletter⁠

Taylor Lorenz

⁠YouTube⁠ channel ⁠

User Mag⁠ (Newsletter)

Power User (Podcast in ⁠Spotify⁠ and ⁠Apple⁠)

Links: ⁠

"Open Letter to The Row"⁠ (Neelam Noted)

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amyodell.substack.com

"Hermès playing cards are my go-to."

Chapters:

01:35 - VIC no. 1: The Expat Living in Dubai

03:10 - VIC no. 2: The Personal Shopper for Upper East Siders

03:32 - VIC no. 3: The expat living in Hong Kong

05:31 - VIC no. 4: The New Yorker who's feeling uninspired

06:42 - VIC no. 5: The Personal Stylist to Upper East Side Billionaires and Centi-Millionaires

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amyodell.substack.com

Fashion critic Rachel Tashjian joins Amy Odell to unpack the biggest shifts happening right now in fashion media. From Vogue’s future to the creator vs. critic debate, AI-generated fashion models, $26,000 Versace dresses, and why fashion discourse seems to be getting meaner.

Rachel, formerly the Fashion Critic at the Washington Post and now Senior Style Reporter for CNN, talks to Amy about:

Chapters:

00:00 – Intro: Amy Odell welcomes Rachel Tashjian

00:21 – Rachel’s new role at CNN

02:34 – Why video matters in fashion journalism

03:54 – Are people still reading? Changing media habits

04:22 – Amy on books, audiobooks, and audience shifts

05:49 – The rising tension in fashion discourse online07:16 – When commentary overshadows the clothes

08:22 – Algorithms flatten expertise in fashion

09:29 – Creators vs. traditional editors: a 15-year evolution

10:43 – Substack, TikTok, and where fashion criticism lives now

11:35 – Access, honesty, and the cost of true criticism

12:46 – Do creators need editors? The “no safety net” problem

13:19 – Dior controversy: when brands exclude influencers

14:31 – Should influencers follow critic standards?

15:35 – Does Vogue still matter in 2025?17:06 – Why Vogue covers still trigger huge reactions

18:33 – Anna Wintour’s influence across culture

19:32 – How AI is about to transform fashion media20:55 – Performative fashion vs. post-Instagram design

22:33 – Can AI replace fashion creators?

23:54 – AI’s role in fashion advertising and image-making

24:43 – Will AI replace human fashion voices?

25:31 – The future: will Vogue become just covers?

27:14 – The price conundrum: $26,000 dresses and who they’re for

28:55 – What fashion brands really want from the public

30:49 – TikTok’s misinformation problem in fashion

31:49 – The Vogue rumor and how fake fashion news spreads

31:57 – Three fashion creators Rachel loves

33:29 – Three fashion creators Amy loves

Links & resources:

Back Row newsletterhttps://amyodell.substack.com

Amy Odell Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/instamyodell

Rachel Tashjian CNN announcement: https://cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com/2025/10/07/rachel-tashjian-joins-cnn-as-senior-style-reporter/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theprophetpizza/

Creators mentioned

Kim Russell @TheKimbino: https://www.instagram.com/thekimbino/

Jay Tibbits: https://www.instagram.com/jaytibbitts/

Rashida Renée @:howtobeafuckinglady: https://www.instagram.com/howtobeafuckinglady/

Mandy Lee @OldLoserinBrooklyn: https://www.instagram.com/oldloserinbrooklyn/

Timothy Chernyaev @relaxitsonlyfashion on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@relaxitsonlyfashion?lang=en

Fashion Roadman: https://www.youtube.com/@FashionRoadman/videos

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amyodell.substack.com

And a bunch of other pieces from her clothing line. This is my story. ⁠Check out the photos in the Back Row story.⁠

2:16 - Trying the gray T-shirt and jeans

4:23 - Trying the legendary black pants

5:10 - The oversized gray suit

6:13 - The Blair midi dress (one with the rouching)

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amyodell.substack.com

Brown may be the new black — but brands are the new cults. Amy talks to CUNY professor, author, and ex-marketing executive Dr. Mara Einstein about how brands exploit cult-like marketing tactics to get us to buy, particularly during events like Black Friday. They discuss the real reason brands pushed Christmas shopping before Halloween (!) this year; how brands get us to buy in a world where we're increasingly disconnected from each other; why the "attention economy" is really the "anxiety economy"; and more.

Chapters:

00:00 - Intro to Dr. Mara Einstein and her research

00:52 - How brands are like cults

04:43 - How the luxury industry employs scarcity marketing to get people to buy things like Birkin bags

06:59 - The power of scarcity marketing

09:52 - How the economic blackout might affect retailers on Black Friday in 2025

12:45 - How brands like Lululemon and Cos harvest your data

16:54 - Why the "attention economy" is really the "anxiety economy"

19:47 - How brands "rage bait"

28:32 - How fashion marketing got people to buy Lucky Strike cigarettes in 1934

35:03 - Dr. Einstein weighs in on the de-influencing trend

Links & resources:

• Amy Odell's ⁠Back Row newsletter⁠

• Get Dr. Mara Einstein's book: ⁠⁠Hoodwinked⁠ How Marketers Use the Same Tactics as Cults⁠

• Listen to Dr. Einstein's podcast, Hoodwinked ⁠in Apple or ⁠Spotify⁠

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amyodell.substack.com

The Atlantic staff writer and ⁠Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves⁠ author Sophie Gilbert joins Amy to talk about All's Fair. The new Ryan Murphy show starring Kim Kardashian has received uniformly dire reviews — yet has triumphed in the face of its badness with pretty respectable ratings. Is this the end of competency in culture? Did All's Fair's creators intend for this show to be so terrible? Plus what Kardashian's captivating blankness, on unflinching view in All's Fair, says about the state of culture today.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction: All's Fair and its reception

02:27 The show's themes and stars

05:02 Why the Kardashians took off as reality stars

06:53 All's Fair's depictions of plastic surgery and the Kardashian-Jenner influence on plastic surgery more broadly

11:54 Kris Jenner's 70th birthday party and depictions of extreme wealth in popular culture

20:02 Are we reaching the end of competence in culture, as we are in politics?

24:15 Why girlbossing is back

29:07 Comparing All's Fair's fashion to And Just Like That's

32:32 What does Ryan Murphy really think of women?

37:21 How Kim Kardashian is handling the show's scathing reviews

41:16 Sophie on the most surprising thing she found when researching her book 'Girl on Girl'

46:49 Sophie's thoughts on Lily Allen's astonishing new album about the dissolution of her marriage

Links and resources:

Get Sophie's book: ⁠Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves⁠

⁠Read Sophie's All's Fair review⁠ in The Atlantic.

⁠Read Sophie's essay about how money is ruining television⁠ in The Atlantic.

⁠Read Jill Filipovic's essay, "The End of Competence" in her newsletter.⁠

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amyodell.substack.com