Voter outreach took on an unconventional form Tuesday night when Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez streamed her gameplay of the hit game "Among Us" on Twitch. While she played the game with friends, her stream became one of the 20 most watched streams in Twitch history. Sam chats with Wired writer Cecilia D'Anastasio who explains the streaming platform's potential to reach new voters. Also, the pandemic has hit the economy hard, but not everyone is feeling the blows. Sam talks to Scott Horsley, NPR's Chief Economics Correspondent, about the pandemic economy – who's winning, who's losing and why.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy

Getting Gamers To The Polls, Plus The Pandemic Economy

Has it been a minute since you heard a thought-provoking conversation about culture? Brittany Luse wants to help. Each week, she takes the things everyone's talking about and, in conversation with her favorite creators, tastemakers, and experts, gives you new ways to think about them. Beyond the obvious takes. Because culture doesn't happen by accident.

If you can't get enough, try It's Been a Minute Plus. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/itsbeenaminute

Society & Culture

Personal Journals

History

Philosophy

Places & Travel

Religion & Spirituality

Other

Spirituality

Christianity

Buddhism

Hinduism

Judaism

Islam

News

News Commentary

Earlier this week, pro-Palestinian protestors blocked traffic on highways and bridges in San Francisco, Chicago, New York and Seattle. On that same day, the Supreme Court made it incredibly difficult to protest in a lot of the American South. In this episode, host Brittany Luse looks at the state of protest in America. She sits down with Sandhya Dirks, an NPR reporter who covers race and identity, and Elizabeth Blair, a senior arts reporter at NPR. Together, they discuss shifting attitudes towards protest as well as new anti-protest legislation. Then, they play a game of But Did You Know?

After that, we take a look back at OJ Simpson and his impact on culture. Brittany is joined by NPR's Mandalit Del Barco and Eric Deggans to hear their account of how OJ shifted media and television as we know it. He's had an outsized influence on everything from true-crime, to TMZ, to the Kardashians.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy

The backlash against protests; plus, how OJ Simpson changed media forever

Some of us whistle while we work, but what happens when your work is whistling? This week, host Brittany Luse is joined by professional whistler, Molly Lewis. Lewis' catalogue spans across the film and music industries, from features on the Barbie soundtrack to performances alongside Karen O. From NPR's New York Bureau, Brittany sits down with Lewis to talk about the world of competitive whistling, how she hones a craft many people see as fidgeting, and why older generations are more likely to whistle. This episode also features a special live performance with songs from Lewis' new album, On The Lips.

Want to be featured on the show? Record a question via voice memo for 'Hey Brittany' and send it to ibam@npr.org.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy

An argument for the art of whistling

President Biden has been pushing new regulations to promote electric vehicle production to combat the climate crisis — and former president Trump is using those regulations as a talking point against Biden. To break down how cars became the latest weapons in the culture wars, host Brittany Luse is joined by NPR's transportation correspondent Camila Domonoske and Dan Brekke, a reporter and editor at KQED in San Francisco who covers transit. Together, they talk about why Americans are so invested in their cars — and how cars became more than just a policy battle. 

Then Brittany discusses a new HBO documentary series that is making waves right now: Quiet On Set. The show alleges a pattern of sexual harassment behind the scenes at Nickelodeon, and includes interviews with several former child stars describing experiences that range from taking part in sexualized gags to facing downright sexual abuse while working for the network. Brittany looks closer at the trouble with child performers with Joan Summers and Matthew Lawson, co-hosts of the Eating for Free podcast. They discuss what makes child performers especially vulnerable to abuse — and they ask why society demands performances from children.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy

The car culture wars; plus, the problem with child stars

Grab your cowboy hat, and saddle up that horse, because Beyoncé's highly anticipated album, Cowboy Carter is here. So far, the album has spurred praise, criticism, and questions about what the actual goal of this project is and how it fits into the Renaissance trilogy. To get into all of that, Brittany joined NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour to discuss whether this foray into country is an exercise in experimentation or industry validation.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy

Boots with the spurs: 'Cowboy Carter' and the need for validation

Following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore last week, the city's 39 year old mayor, Brandon Scott, a Black man, stepped out to address the crisis. Hours later, a tweet went viral calling Scott a "DEI Mayor." To which Brittany and her guests, NPR's Gene Demby and Alana Wise, say "wait what?" The three dig into the racism lurking under the surface of this kind of rhetoric.

Then, as March Madness reaches its final nail-biting stages, Brittany takes a look at the reality of "student-athletes." What may feel like an accurate descriptor of these players is actually a legal classification that bars them from asking for worker's compensation and other benefits - benefits usually given to employees. Brittany is joined by sports business reporter Amanda Christovich and Assistant Professor of Legal Studies in Business at Boise State University Sam Ehrlich. They discuss how the recent news of Dartmouth men's basketball team unionizing opens up doors for broader conversations around how we value "work."

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy

Getting Gamers To The Polls, Plus The Pandemic Economy

Download our free app to listen on your phone