Let's Talk Media with Vedant Akhauri

On May 2, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) approved a strike, the first of its kind since the 2007-08 strike.

I'm joined by a person who's a former Post Production PA. In this episode, Leah Ettinger explains why the WGA has gone on strike, her experiences at the strike, The WGA's demands from the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), scabbing, and the strike's ramifications.

Ryan Ng is a YouTuber with 3+ million views. In this episode, we discuss how YouTubers get burned out and pigeon-holed by the algorithm, and how YouTubers can avoid that.

His channel is called Ryan Ng Films.

Micah Tremblay is a queer actor, writer, and Cinema alum from Ithaca College. We discuss the best and worst representation of queer people in media, stereotypes, right-wing paranoia about queer people, the lack of racial diversity, the portrayal of queer characters by straight and/or cisgender actors, and how some media companies exploit queer stories for attention and profit.

Resources for the LGBTQ+ community can be found at https://www.glaad.org/resourcelist

Matt Price is a Multimedia Journalist with extensive experience in news and sports coverage. We discuss the symbiotic relationship between politics, the news cycle, and sports coverage. Examples include the rush for information, echo chambers, and treating news like a sports match. 

Clarification from Matt about Lia Thomas: Lia Thomas is a trailblazer. I did not boo her. When referring to "I", I meant in terms of people who oppose and boo her for being transgender, which is wrong.

Megan Handley is a Communications student at Ithaca College. As someone living with disabilities, Megan has written articles about her personal experiences and how the media depicts people with disabilities. In this episode, we discuss: 

Megan's articles can be found on bookstr.com

Black Girls Don't Get Love is a multimedia brand that uses media to change the way Black women and girls are perceived in society. This includes adultification, the strong Black woman trope, and their erasure from the coming of age genre.

I interview founder Eden Strachan about her brand's numerous initiatives - A book, a Film training program for girls of color, a prom to celebrate girls of color, and an upcoming feature film. 

Black Girls Don't Get Love (book) - Written by Eden Strachan and Grace King; Illustrated by Katarina Sibley

Black Girls Don't Get Love (website) - https://blackgirlsdontgetlove.com/

Black Girls Don't Get Love can be found on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube Let's Talk Media will return for more episodes in January 2023.

We discuss Squid's Game long development, its commentary on poverty and sexism, our favorite games and characters, and predictions for Season 2 [SPOILERS].

YouTube Videos Reference: https://youtu.be/73KslfnGmrQ, https://youtu.be/J21l1bTvsyo

Ithaca College professor, Chrissy Guest, worked on "Beyond Ink and Paint: The Women of Animation," a docu-series that celebrates the influential women of the animation world. We discuss the docu-series and the historical, academic, and cultural barriers for women in animation

Fareeha Abrar is a former Chemistry student and an avid Breaking Bad fan. We discuss the show's difficult origins, our favorite and least favorite characters, all 5 Seasons, and our thoughts on Better Call Saul and El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie.