Punk Journalism

Multi-level-marketing, pyramid schemes, whatever you want to call it, is a predatory business practice that exploits the vulnerabilities of those who fall for the façade of a legit opportunity. Roberta Blevins was one of the primary subjects of the Amazon Prime original docuseries LulaRich where she explains her experience with LuLaRoe and the toxic and sleazy nature of MLM's.

Conservatives trivialize very important and complex issues, such as drug addiction, by saying things like "Just say no!" rather than exploring the societal root cause of an issue. Ronald Reagan did this, and it led to a myriad of issues such as dramatically increased incarceration rates. Did this conservative gold standard do much, if not hurt, the working class who continue prop him up?

The title pretty much says it all, doesn't it? We talk about who among us are basically just taking up space in society, and probably shouldn't reproduce (yet, unfortunately, reproduce the most).

Climate change is arguably the most pressing issue that we face globally. The evidence couldn't be any more explicit, yet there's hardly a sense of urgency in addressing it. We spoke with Dr. Laurie Adkin from the University of Alberta and Dr. Christopher Wright from the University of Sydney Business School who have both written on how capitalism, corporatism and consumerism are major obstacles in the way of addressing this dire issue.

The growing popularity of conspiracy theories in recent years has proven to go beyond a harmless hobby, as shown by the January 6th insurrection on the capitol and the anti-vaccination movement. We spoke with psychologist Mikey Biddlestone about the research he’s done on conspiracy theories, and the various personality traits many of these people display.

How has social media and video games contributed to our regression into the lowest common denominator? We speak with clinical psychologist Dr. John Arden about how he felt technology was dumbing us down in 2003 compared to where we are today.

Abortion is an incredibly complex and nuanced topic with many variables to be considered on a case-by-case basis. Conservatives in Texas, though, have discarded this complexity by imposing their morals by recently making it illegal to receive an abortion after six weeks without exception. We spoke with feminist philosopher Dr. Cori Wong who offered incredible insight and education into this very sensitive topic.

Quick! Tell me what the ingredients are in Tylenol! Also, are your essential oils FDA approved??

It seems that no social issue goes without being yet another divisive topic, and COVID-19 is certainly no exception. Largely fueled by conspiracy theories, the vaccine has become a source of contention, as many would rather risk getting the virus, or infecting others, than deal with the uncertainty of what’s otherwise been deemed safe and effective. We discuss the reservations among the folks abstaining from the vaccine, and also get some enlightening perspectives from folks on the street.

We ask one another some personal questions so our audience can get to know us.

We discuss critical race theory with activist and author Dr. Frank Douglas. He shares his experiences of moving to the U.S amidst the civil rights movement, how that impacted him as a black man from outside the U.S., as well as his desire to fight injustice through peaceful, and powerful means.