Making It Awkward

Have you wondered how 5G conspiracies developed or what makes some people more vulnerable to conspiracy theories?

Today Jessica talks with Dr. Eoin Flaherty, assistant professor at Maynooth University to find the answers to these questions and many others. The two talk about conspiracism and the post-truth era in which we're living.

Dr. Flaherty explains 5G and why some people believe it's dangerous. The two talk about Wi-Fi and 5G-free chicken, RFK Jr., how conspiracies generate and spread and Jessica asks him if she could be the next one to spread a theory of her own.

Jessica came to his work via the article "The conspiracy of Covid-19 and 5G: Spatial analysis fallacies in the age of data democratization", which he co-authored.

NBC: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. falsely claims measles vaccine protection 'wanes very quickly'

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Jessica Wilson's book: It's Always Been Ours; Rewriting the Story of Black Women's Bodies

Closing out Pride Month with a conversation about body image in queer men. Blake Flaugher MPH returns to the show and joins Caleb Draper to talk about gym culture among queer men including a selfie-specific locker room mirror, peacocking among queer men, nudes, looksmaxxing, dating apps and body dysmorphia. The three of them got to be besties while playing kickball with Outloud Sports, stories about which you'll hear sprinkled in the episode. These two are a lot of fun and will be back next month with their reviews of the Australian horror film Leviticus.

Caleb tried Monch Monch!

Clavicular

Leviticus trailer

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Jessica Wilson's book: It's Always Been Ours; Rewriting the Story of Black Women's Bodies

The American Diabetes Assoc. conference got spicy! But was that intentional? Did it have to? Lindsay Lee Wallace returns to the show to talk about her recent trip to the Health Journalism 2026 conference and the ADA conference where police escorted researchers out of the venue after they distributed paper copies of a published editorial. The researchers detained were not allowed back, including those who were scheduled to speak.

Health Journalism 2026 was in Minneapolis, and Lindsay shares how being there post Operation Metro Surge influenced some sessions at the conference. She also talks about what was missing from the presentations, and shares a unique and unhygienic experience while eating chicken tender sliders. Lindsay provides context for the no one is covering this effect that I am always asking her about and in a fun reveal she shares her story of getting kicked out of a Sundance event regarding AI, which may be featured in an upcoming documentary.

There's some great bonus content coming from this interview including my dad in all of his Pride merch over on the Patreon!

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You can buy awkward merch!

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Follow Jessica Wilson on Instagram @jessicawilson.msrd

Jessica Wilson's book: It's Always Been Ours; Rewriting the Story of Black Women's Bodies

Happy Pride month! 🏳️‍🌈 50% off Ozempic for Pride!!! Jessica traveled to NYC in 2024 and got to investigate an ad for Ozempic. Kent Thosmas, MSW joined Jessica to talk about this ad and her visit to the clinic offering the deal, and what this means for gay men. Kent shared how his Christianity played into his eating disorder and the two talk about queer men, and how religion, queerness, and health are connected. They also talk about the normate body and hardness for gay men.

Kent's original reel

Dr. Jeff Iovanonne

Additional ad

And salmon injections…

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How to support this podcast? Follow, rate and review and subscribe to ⁠Patreon⁠ membership with access to bonus content and announcements!

Jessica's book: ⁠It's Always Been Ours; Rewriting the Story of Black Women's Bodies⁠

Spoilers! Meghan Cichy, trad wife Leslie Voorhees Means, Selena Salfen and Alison Pill are back on the show for Part 2 of a conversation about Yesteryear, a novel about a tradwife, Natalie, and her curated yet frightening life. Yesteryear offers the reader two lived experiences for Natalie. One in contemporary times, the other in the 1850s. The novel switches back and forth between these two lives without context or explanation. In this second episode the group discuss their thoughts about the twist in the book. They also share their thoughts on the book ending, including predictions they'd had.

This conversation gets into the complexities of motherhood and the different places in which the novel struck a chord for the five of them.

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Follow Jessica Wilson on Instagram @jessicawilson.msrd and TikTok @byjessicawilsonJessica Wilson's book: It's Always Been Ours; Rewriting the Story of Black Women's Bodies

No spoilers! Meghan Cichy, trad wife Leslie Voorhees Means, Selena Salfen and Alison Pill are back on the show for Part 1 of a conversation about Yesteryear, a novel about a tradwife and her curated yet frightening life. Each of them shares who, if any, of the characters they connect with. They also discuss trad wives and whether we can define them, the idea of family values and the valuing of what is typically thought of as women's work. They spend a lot of time discussing motherhood. They get into what a possible difference in Progressive and Conservative values may be, though that topic isn't fully resolved today!

Part 2 will come next week with the spoilers of the book and our analysis of the protagonist.

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Follow Jessica Wilson on Instagram @jessicawilson.msrd and TikTok @byjessicawilson

Jessica Wilson's book: It's Always Been Ours; Rewriting the Story of Black Women's Bodies

Dr. Oz has made up a new description of American women: under-babied. So it was a good time to return to this conversation with Dr. Eoin Flaherty.

The Trump administration has talked about using awards, scholarships and cash as incentives to have more children. People see Elon as a leader in pronatalism conversations. Dr. Eoin Flaherty is back on the show to connect the dots between population control, pronatalism, and the environment. Eoin talks with Jessica about the Better Baby fairs of the 1900s and the two talk about how race is the underpinning of pronatalism even if no one speaks about it directly. The two talk about fertility hysteria, and the difference between fertility rates and birth rates.

Eoin shares what research is next for him, and Jessica thinks that he might get the attention of Make America Healthy Again evangelists.

Eoin on YouTube

Some mentions from the episode:

Alison Pill's episode

Dr Paul Saladino AKA Captain Cotton Underpants

Adriana Smith

Timeline of Ireland abortion laws

Maternal death rates in the US

Dr. Harvey Kellogg RELATION OF PUBLIC HEALTH TO RACE DEGENERACY

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Questions about the show? Guest pitches? Email [email protected]

You can buy awkward merch!

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Follow Jessica Wilson on Instagram @jessicawilson.msrd and TikTok @byjessicawilson

People are hungry in America, in a country of billionaires, where food should be a human right, and the administration will no longer collect data on food insecurity in the US saying that it is "redundant, costly, politicized, and extraneous" and that number is only going to grow as people attempt to renew their benefits and the work requirements for SNAP go into effect.

In this episode Meghan Cichy, MPH RD returns to discuss her and Jessica's recent trip to DC for the National Anti-Hunger and Policy Conference, and their time walking the halls of Congress. They chat about the Farm Bill that will go before the Senate.

Meghan and Jessica get into one conference presentation in particular, and its surprising similarities to MAHA talking points.

They also reference the People vs Poison rally.

Next episode's topic will be Yesteryear.

Sec of USDA Brook Rollins said that "we now have moved 4.3 million Americans off of the food stamp program."

Food insecurity vs nutrition insecurity

SNAP work requirements

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Questions about the show? Guest pitches? Email [email protected]

You can buy awkward merch!

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Follow Jessica Wilson on Instagram @jessicawilson.msrd

Jessica Wilson's book: It's Always Been Ours; Rewriting the Story of Black Women's Bodies

Jessica attended the People vs Poison rally that was held in Washington DC on April 27th and Trampus Harmon comes back to the show to hear all about it. She shares her conversation with a Bernie Sander door knocker turned Trump supporter and the two talk about Alex Clark's speech, Cory Booker's appearance, and whether things were truly bipartisan at the rally.

Trampus also shares his thoughts and experience with SNAP, from his farmer perspective.

Watch the rally

Del Bigtree

Liana Werner-Gray

Trampus's previous episode

Steak and Shake MAHA officer

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Follow Jessica Wilson on Instagram @jessicawilson.msrd and TikTok @byjessicawilson

Jessica Wilson's book: It's Always Been Ours; Rewriting the Story of Black Women's Bodies

Jessica's UPF experiment has been in the news again! She invited journalist Lindsay Lee Wallace back to the show to see if the two could answer some questions: How has the ultra-processed food hysteria impacted politics today? And what the heck is happening with the news media?

The two talk about gender, the recent UPF coverage, who has been interviewing Jessica recently, the feedback she's gotten, and a surprise email Jessica received.

Articles discussed in this episode:

Slate and Daily Mail

NYT UPF week

Washington post had this

The New Yorker had its own contribution

Cuomo

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Follow Dietitian, Jessica Wilson on Instagram @jessicawilson.msrd and TikTok @byjessicawilson

You can watch this episode at https://www.youtube.com/@MakingItAwkwardPod

How to support this podcast? Follow/subscribe, rate and review! Jessica's dad will read reviews and comments on the air!

Jessica Wilson's book: It's Always Been Ours; Rewriting the Story of Black Women's Bodies