Hi friends, Penn here. As some of you know, I am obsessed with all things sci-fi. This traces way back to my childhood during the Star Wars and Star Trek days that sparked a lifelong fascination for all things space. It’s the main reason that I always wanted to be an astronaut. Fast forward to today, you can see that life took me in a wildly different direction. (Plus I have terrible vertigo so I would have made a horrible astronaut.) Dashed childhood dreams aside, the impact these movies and shows had on me got us thinking. 

Turns out, the stuff we consume has a greater impact than you think. Walt Hickey wrote a fascinating book called You Are What You Watch: How Movies and TV Affect Everything that discusses just that. In it, Hickey dives into (among many other things) the power of entertainment, how it can have an actual physical effect on us, and how it can greatly shape who we are as individuals and as society. So we invited him on this week’s podcast! Also bonus–after the interview, Kim and I test our 90’s pop culture knowledge with our producer, Ann Marie. (And I remain the champ of Britney Spears knowledge…IYKYK.) 

Special Announcement: We launched a 3-part bonus podcast series about ADHD! You can listen to the Part 2 now and pre-order our new book ADHD Is Awesome!

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Kim and Penn are online content creators known for their award-winning videos, including original music, song parodies, and comedy sketches. Their videos have resulted in over 2 billion views and 8 million followers across their social media platforms since they (accidentally) went viral in 2013. They have a best-selling book on marriage communication, a top-rated podcast, a fun-filled family card game, and most recently, they were the winners on Season 33 of The Amazing Race.

The Holderness Family Podcast is edited and engineered by Max Trujillo of Trujillo Media and produced by Ann Marie Taepke, Julie Frahm, and Sam Allen.

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