Gen Pre-Z

We were all rooting for you, Tyra! When America’s Next Top Model premiered, we didn’t expect a side of blackface and cultural appropriation. Yet the show remains a stalwart of the early reality TV boom. Are Tyra Banks and her franchise too hot to cancel?

The long running sitcom It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia is known for tearing into uncomfortable topics. In the pilot episode, its straight white cast deals with their conscious and unconscious biases towards the Black and gay communities. Nonetheless, the creators and stars of the show have failed to gain recognition from their peers. Is it having conversations a so-called 'woke' America's still not ready to hear? 

Tina Fey broke barriers as the first female head writer for SNL. She wrote and starred in the iconic Mean Girls, and created the celebrated series 30 Rock and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. But when cancel culture came for her, she refused to stand down. Did her gambit work out?

America's beloved aquatic theme park, SeaWorld, enjoyed a sensational rise to fame. Then in 2012, the documentary Blackfish exposed the park's dark secrets, ensuring the public would never see its killer whales the same way again. Now SeaWorld is desperately rebranding in order to bring back parents, but will its efforts sink under the tide of popular opinion?

Tropic Thunder was the most controversial comedy of 2008. The movie risked alienating a significant portion of America due to its portrayal of blackface and people with disabilities. But when we look deeper, we find a lot of layered commentary. Was it too woke for its time?

We add our voices to the national conversation on law enforcement by analyzing a unique American invention: the show COPS! Why would Americans consent to being filmed at the lowest point of their lives? And why did we watch?

Listen to the trailer for Gen Pre-Z!