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Not to be dramatic, but would you die for Hasan Piker?

For some of you, Hasan Piker needs no introduction. He is one of the leading voices in progressive political content online, boasting a massive 2.9 million followers on Twitch alone. He's polarizing, charismatic, and (kind of) a bro. And his fans love him. Just take this Instagram comment for example: "Not to be dramatic, but I'd die for this man lol."

With all the discourse about young men flocking to the political right because of online commentators like Joe Rogan and Theo Von, some have started asking if Piker is the Joe Rogan of the left? A fan on TikTok did refer to Piker as "the himbo gateway drug to leftist thought."

In this special episode, Brittany sits down with Hasan to get some perspective on what's going on with young men, and to find out what Hasan sees that the rest of us are missing.

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Many people feel that finding a lifelong partner can require a good bit of luck...but can the same be said for lifelong healthcare? Brittany is joined by Maris Kreizman, author of I Want to Burn This Place Down: Essays, to understand the precarious relationship between finding love and finding consistent health insurance.

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What are you looking for when you're picking a place to eat? And how do you find it? Michelin stars or TikTok?

You've heard them referenced on The Bear and maybe even looked out for them when deciding your next meal: Michelin stars. The prestigious one to three star rating system awarded to the best of the best in dining. But Americans are expected to spend 7% less on eating out this summer, and as menu prices increase, Brittany wonders: what really gets people into a restaurant these days?

This is... Food for Thought. And for the next few weeks, we're looking at the way food and dining shape our communities and culture.

Brittany talks with reporter and video host for The Times' Food section and New York Times Cooking, Priya Krishna, and Eater correspondent Jaya Saxena, to find out.

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Whether it's the Coldplay kiss cam or screenshots of dating profiles, it feels like any one of our private lives could inadvertently go public any minute now.

A Coldplay concert kiss cam video went viral when one couple featured jumped away from each other and hid their faces. The internet quickly identified the concertgoers, and it turned the couple's life upside-down. It makes you think though...could this happen to me too?

Brittany talks with Kate Wagner, architecture critic at The Nation, to discuss what this viral moment says about our eroding privacy in both public and private life, and how we've internalized casual surveillance. Do we all carry Coldyplay kiss cams in the form of our phones?

Read Kate's article in Lux Magazine about why internet surveillance is killing eroticism here.

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For the first time, multiple Christian musicians are charting on the Billboard Hot 100 at the same time — and staying there for weeks. Has the mainstream found God?

Brittany talks with University of Michigan-Dearborn Professor Emerita Dr. Deborah Smith Pollard and Christianity Today reporter Kelsey Kramer McGinnis to understand the multi-billion dollar machine behind the Christian Contemporary Music genre — who gets shut out, and why this holy conquering on the charts has the potential to impact your listening habits.

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What comes to mind when you think of third spaces? A place to be in community that's not a bar or a club? Try a diner...

For New York Times writer and author, Erik Piepenburg, diners were and still are institutions for the LGBTQ+ community. In his book, Dining Out: First Dates, Defiant Nights, and Last Call Disco Fries at America's Gay Restaurants, Erik goes on a culinary tour of America to uncover why they've become such unique spaces.

This is... Food for Thought. And for the next few weeks, we're looking at the way food and dining shape our communities and culture.

Today, Erik joins Brittany to dive into the golden age of gay restaurants and how diners have been unsung staples of gay placemaking.

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What's the difference between "good" work and "bad" work? And how do we talk about the rise in plastic surgery without dehumanizing people for their choices?

Rates of plastic surgery are increasing, and minimally invasive procedures like filler and Botox are even more popular. It's also evident on social media that people (including plastic surgeons) are very comfortable speculating and commenting on other people's modifications, what procedures they might've had... and if they look busted.

Guest host B.A. Parker discusses the thorniness of beauty culture with Jessica DeFino, a beauty reporter, advice columnist at The Guardian, and writer of "The Review of Beauty" Substack, and Joan Summers, entertainment editor at Paper and co-host of the Eating for Free podcast.

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Data from Gallup and the Bureau of Labor Statistics show that Americans are reading fewer books and spending less time reading than ever. There's been reporting on college kids struggling to finish longer texts. And earlier this year, in a viral post, one user lamented their loss of concentration for reading, which led to a larger online discourse about how to approach books again.

Brittany revisits her convo with Elaine Castillo, author of the book How to Read Now, and Abdullah Shihipar, Research Associate at the People, Place and Health collective at Brown University, to get into why reading books is on the decline, the battle for our attention, and what people can do to get their reading grooves back.

This episode originally published February 3, 2025.

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Anti-intellectualism is on the rise. And by "anti-intellectualism" we mean the backlash to scholars in fields like the humanities.

According to two intellectuals, Dr. Ally Louks and Jason Stanley, the humanities help us better connect to other humans. According to a lot of online haters, they're worthless. In November 2024, Dr. Louks recently posted her Cambridge University dissertation online and was piled on by a loud group of right-wing anti-intellectuals.

Today, Brittany revisits her convo with Dr. Louks, and Jason Stanley, a professor of Philosophy at Yale University. They investigate the backlash to Dr. Louks, higher education at large, and why "anti-intellectualism" is prevalent in Republican politics. For more, read Jason Stanley's book Erasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future.

This episode originally published January 27, 2025.

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