The Review Squared

The Review Squared

By Gideon KariukiNewsNews Commentary
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The Review Squared episodes

  • Infrastructure Week

    Kirsten is away on the 13th episode of the season. The stories this week are:

    • Gideon taking a look at one aspect of President Joe Biden's infrastructure plan: public transit funding.
    • John talking about the various investigations and allegations surrounding Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz.
    • Ethan giving updates on the aftermath of the Myanmar coup and how the military is cracking down on any opposition.
    • Alejandro highlighting some activists fighting anti-trans legislation across the country. You can follow everyone mentioned on Instagram: Chase Strangio, Raquel Willis, Chris Mosier, Schuyler Bailar and Alok Vaid-Menon.
    • Haley going through the top 10 moments of the Major League Baseball season opening day.

      • This episode was recorded on April 2nd. The intro music is "Dedicated to the Press" by Betty Davis and the outro is "We Are Heading to the East" by springtide. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Instagram for updates on the show and more, both are @review_squared.

      47 min
    • Mask Off?

      This episode is full of the panel mostly discussing mask off moments, both literal and figurative as Ethan and Alejandro are away on the 12th episode of the season. The stories this week are:

      • Gideon giving another update on Arizona COVID news, about the expansion of vaccine eligibility to all people in Arizona who are 16 and older, the lifting of any COVID restrictions on businesses and ending the ability for counties and cities to place mask mandates by Gov. Doug Ducey.
      • John talking about a scandal at a Chicago area hospital over giving COVID vaccines to those who were ineligible to receive it.
      • Kirsten discussing the upcoming docu-series Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.
      • Haley explaining Title IX and how it really does not apply to the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament.

        • This episode was recorded on March 26th. The intro music is "Dedicated to the Press" by Betty Davis and the outro is "We Are Heading to the East" by springtide. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Instagram for updates on the show and more, both are @review_squared.

        54 min
      • Tragedy

        Difficult conversations and some switching of the wires with segment hosts happen as Gideon is away on the 11th episode of the season. The stories this week are: 

        • Ethan discussing the mass shooting in Atlanta that killed eight people, including six Asian women and a bystander along with the context of other recent anti-Asian hate crimes. If you have the money to spare and are willing to give, the gofundmes for some of the families left behind are https://gofund.me/6653b648 and https://gofund.me/0dd50115. Also, you can support other causes in the AAPI community here, here and here. 
        • John talking about the Oprah interview with the British royals Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. 
        • Kirsten recounting the crime spree of The Doodler, a serial killer from the 70s targeting gay men in San Francisco in light of a new podcast about it, which you can find on Apple Podcasts (and a reminder to listen to Stolen: The Search for Jermain on Spotify). 
        • Alejandro taking a look March Madness and the disparities between the provisions set up for the men's and women's tournaments. 
        • Haley reviewing Justin Bieber's new album "Justice". 

          • This episode was recorded on March 19th. The intro music is "Dedicated to the Press" by Betty Davis and the outro is "We Are Heading to the East" by springtide. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Instagram for updates on the show and more, both are @review_squared.

          59 min
        • The Spring Break Special: Tier Lists

          The panel on The Review Squared (and all students at ASU) did not have a spring break, so we decided to take a break from our routine episodes and Alejandro took charge of this podcast exclusive episode with returning guest Vaughan Jones (og friend of the pod, Blaze Music Director, reporter at NPR affiliate KJZZ, among loads of other things) to host The Spring Break Special, where we spent time making two tier lists. The first tier list discussed in this episode is on Spider-Man movies and the second is on boxed cereals. You can follow Vaughan on Twitter, they're @vjonesradio over there. This episode was recorded on March 12th. The intro music is "Dedicated to the Press" by Betty Davis and the outro is "We Are Heading to the East" by springtide. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Instagram for updates on the show, to quarrel panelists over their opinions expressed in this episode and more, both are @review_squared.

          1 hr 20 min
        • Sen. Sinema's Moment in the Sun

          Only Alejandro, Gideon and Haley are on 10th episode of the season. The stories this week are:

          • Gideon taking a look at the COVAX program and African countries starting to get COVID vaccines.
          • Alejandro talking about a collaboration between Blue Wire and Wynn Resorts to build a podcast studio in their Las Vegas hotel.
          • Haley sharing news about a business venture between Sue Bird, Chloe Kim, Simone Manuel and Alex Morgan called TOGETHXR, a media outlet focused on women's sports. And she also mentions the big local sports story of the week: JJ Watt signing with the Arizona Cardinals.
          • The panel as a whole, led by Alejandro, discussing Sen. Kyrsten Sinema's controversial decision to vote against an amendment to the COVID relief bill to increase the federal minimum wage to $15 and everything that surrounded it.

            • This episode was recorded on March 5th. The intro music is "Dedicated to the Press" by Betty Davis and the outro is "We Are Heading to the East" by springtide. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Instagram for updates on the show, memes and more, both are @review_squared.

            53 min
          • The Messy Call-In Episode

            Technical difficulties reign (like how most of what Gideon said never being heard on air or on the recording either) and callers call in on this 9th episode of the season. The stories this week are:

            • Kirsten discussing the role of "web sleuths" in true crime.
            • Alejandro talking with the panel about the decision by ASU to move the vast majority of classes to in-person sessions in the fall.
            • Ethan briefly explaining the first Syrian air strikes ordered by the Biden administration.
            • John sharing a story of a reporter under fire over a tweet that many saw as body shaming.
            • Gideon sharing the news of the Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine being approved.

              • This episode comes with a ton of apologies for all of the technical difficulties and was recorded on February 26th. The intro music is "Dedicated to the Press" by Betty Davis and the outro is "We Are Heading to the East" by springtide. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Instagram for updates on the show, updates and more, both are @review_squared.

              39 min
            • Fueled by Rage

              It was a maddening week with Ethan gone and this 8th episode of the season is fueled by rage that brings us all far too close to profanity (in Alejandro's case, actually brings him there). The stories this week are:

              • Gideon giving a general overview of the situation in Texas in the preceding (the bitter winter storm, power outages, water failures, Ted Cruz fleeing all of it). You can find out how to help out (or receive help) in Texas with this article, "How to help and get help in Texas as the winter storm causes power outages" on the Texas Tribune's website. 
              • John memorializing the recently deceased talk radio host Rush Limbaugh, through reminding us of such famous Limbaugh quotes as, "A game between the Bloods and the Crips without any weapons," which he said when discussing the NFL.
              • Kirsten talking about the epidemic of violence against indigenous women. Listen to Stolen: The Search for Jermain on Spotify, starting March 1st. Donate to the National Indigenous Women's Resource Center here and the Coalition to Stop Violence Against Native Women here.
              • Alejandro sharing how he's found joy in "Garden" by Meet Me @ the Altar and "Pieces of Me" by Ashlee Simpson and the similarities between them. Listen to Kirsten's recent episode of State Press Play, "Why is pop punk thriving on TikTok?" on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. 
              • Haley breaking down the ASU baseball team roster, as baseball season is in fact back (if you missed the memo).

                • This episode was recorded on February 19th. The intro music is "Dedicated to the Press" by Betty Davis and the outro is "We Are Heading to the East" by springtide. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Instagram for updates on the show, interesting interactions and more, both are @review_squared.

                56 min
              • The Review Squared Season 3 Promo

                As a show on Blaze Radio, we are once again required to make a promo ad for this season. This is our season 3 promo, coming as we enter our second year as a show. The music is "Soaring" by Patricia Taxxon.

                1 min
              • Britney Spears and Media Accountability

                This is the 7th episode of the season, with John and Ethan out and contains:

                • Gideon giving another Arizona COVID numbers update and news of increased supply of COVID vaccine doses incoming
                • Kirsten explaining a bit about the case of Elissa Lam, given the new Netflix documentary "Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel"
                • Alejandro talking about the New York Times' new documentary "Framing Britney Spears" and media accountability
                • Haley discussing what "Olympic sports" and "revenue sports" are at colleges and the struggle of the former

                  • This episode was recorded on February 12th. The intro music is "Dedicated to the Press" by Betty Davis and the outro is "We Are Heading to the East" by springtide. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Instagram for updates on the show, fun and more, both are @review_squared.

                  58 min
                • Roundups

                  Content warning for Kirsten's segment: sexual assault.

                  This is the 6th episode of the season and contains:

                  • Gideon giving a roundup of news from the Arizona State Legislature (stories: State Senate attempting to hold Maricopa County Board of Supervisors in contempt, potential expansion of school vouchers and new state level protections for pregnancy discrimination)
                  • John talking about a viral incident of a grocery store in Florida where almost no one was wearing masks
                  • Ethan taking a look at the coup in Myanmar, what led to it and what it means
                  • Kirsten explaining the cold case of Victoria Rose Miller's death, in light of a true crime podcast released by the Boynton Beach Police Department about it and the idea of true crime media today having parallels to the past (if you have any info on this case contact Palm Beach County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-458-TIPS (8477) or reach the Boynton Beach Police Department at [email protected])
                  • Alejandro talking about the impact of the late SOPHIE's music and production on him and modern pop music
                  • Haley discussing the NFL agreeing to let their stadiums be used as vaccination sites and pro sports giving space over to help the community generally

                    • This episode was recorded on February 5th. The intro music is "Dedicated to the Press" by Betty Davis and the outro is "We Are Heading to the East" by springtide. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and Instagram for updates on the show, great memes and more, both are @review_squared.

                    57 min

                  About The Review Squared

                  From the publisher's feed

                  The Review Squared is a weekly news analysis and student lifestyle radio show and podcast on Blaze Radio broadcasting from Phoenix and Washington, DC with regular panelists Gideon Kariuki, John Brown,…