The Polyester Podcast

What do Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant have in common? They're all girlies! This week Ione and Halima are exploring gender in the world of technology and artificial intelligence. Is the fact all of our 'virtual assistants' women sexist? Does it reinforce backdated gender roles? Or are we other thinking it? Ione and Halima break it down, looking at the research and history of female voices in the virtual world.Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Want to support the podcast? If you're a brand or organisation that could help us continue the show, Please fill in this form. Can't wait to hear from you!We'd love to know what you think about our podcast. Fill out this survey here to have your say <3 Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, leave a review, or drop us a DM on Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Everyone, including The Kardashians, are very very upset with Instagram. After the head of the app was forced to make a statement following an onslaught of complaints by high profile users towards Instagram's insistence to become TikTok - we're once again taking a deep dive into all of the current social media drama. Why are people protesting outside Meta's HQ? Do celebrities have a right to complain about the algorithm? And did you know high follower users get special treatment when it comes to community guidelines? Ione and Halima are here to break it all down while contemplating how to move forward when using an app that clearly holds contempt for its users. Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Want to support the podcast? If you're a brand or organisation that could help us continue the show, Please fill in this form. Can't wait to hear from you!We'd love to know what you think about our podcast. Fill out this survey here to have your say <3 Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, leave a review, or drop us a DM on Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Ione and Halima are discussing the ick. Defined as; Something someone does that is an instant turn-off for you, making you instantly hate the idea of being with them romantically. We've all been there. But is the ick a natural response, and something we should talk about openly with each other. or does it signal a toxic strand of #DumpHim feminism that views people as disposable, replaceable commodities? We'll be deep-diving into all of the above and much more, including some of your reasons for getting the ick.Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Want to support the podcast? If you're a brand or organisation that could help us continue the show, Please fill in this form. Can't wait to hear from you!We'd love to know what you think about our podcast. Fill out this survey here to have your say <3 Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, leave a review, or drop us a DM on Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sugar, spice and everything nice; thats what coquette girls are made of. But is the trending aesthetic as innocent as it seems? While self proclaimed coquettes love frills, heart shapes, Lana del Rey, all things french AND all things Americana — and want everyone on TikTok to know their aesthetic is totally unique — the saccharine style reminds us of one thing, Lolitas. But has this new wave of ultra-feminine girlies managed to shrug off the damaging stereotypes associated with Lolita style? Or do coquettes also fetishise youth, whiteness and skinniness, creating yet another unattainable standard for women? Ione and Halima discuss!Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Want to support the podcast? If you're a brand or organisation that could help us continue the show, Please fill in this form. Can't wait to hear from you!We'd love to know what you think about our podcast. Fill out this survey here to have your say <3 Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, leave a review, or drop us a DM on Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The girlies on TikTok are using their vagina fluid as perfume, practising their 'O' faces under the assumption it helps attract a lover, and practising pseudo spirituality as a means of empowering their 'dark femme energy'. But are these practises feminist, or simply pick up artist techniques for the girls? And do these behaviours enable women to take a greater portion of control in relationships, or is it all an illusion? Ione and Halima are discussing all this and much more this week. Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Want to support the podcast? If you're a brand or organisation that could help us continue the show, Please fill in this form. Can't wait to hear from you!We'd love to know what you think about our podcast. Fill out this survey here to have your say <3 Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, leave a review, or drop us a DM on Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Cultural critic Rayne Fisher-Quann tweeted "Ottessa Moshfegh is on the verge of getting woman’d I can feel it (woman’d is what I call it when everyone stops liking a woman at the same time" at the end of June and opened up the debate for whether female celebrities always deserve to be "cancelled". This week's episode debates whether it is always a case of misogynistic hatred, which women have suffered from being woman'd and how the internet is becoming a more and more toxic place for women to exist. Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Want to support the podcast? If you're a brand or organisation that could help us continue the show, Please fill in this form. Can't wait to hear from you!We'd love to know what you think about our podcast. Fill out this survey here to have your say <3 Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, leave a review, or drop us a DM on Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

All across our social feeds, girlies online are embracing religion and creating memes out of catholicism. Whether you've bought the Praying 'father, son, and Holy Spirit' bikini, or still can't stop thinking about Julia Fox praying in her cut editorial - christianity is back baby! But is this appropriation of religious iconography a harmless foray into aesthetics, a subversion of their power, or simply in bad taste? We're discussing the origins of the trend, its current incarnation, and if we should be aestheticising a religion that still harms so many people. Please note, this episode was recorded prior to the overturning of Roe vs Wade on the 24th of June 2022, we'll be discussing this news in upcoming episodes.Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Want to support the podcast? If you're a brand or organisation that could help us continue the show, Please fill in this form. Can't wait to hear from you!We'd love to know what you think about our podcast. Fill out this survey here to have your say <3 Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, leave a review, or drop us a DM on Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Love Island is back! And as the reality series returns, so does the age old discourse; should reality tv be inclusive? Or is inclusivity on these shows a poisoned chalice that sets the 'diverse' contestants up for failure? This week Ione and Halima are discussing whether its best to let reality tv be trashy, guilty pleasures that do not reflect the wider world; or if there's a better way forward, in which inclusivity is not retroactively fitted and those of us who love the genre aren't left with a bad taste in our mouths. Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Want to support the podcast? If you're a brand or organisation that could help us continue the show, Please fill in this form. Can't wait to hear from you!We'd love to know what you think about our podcast. Fill out this survey here to have your say <3 Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, leave a review, or drop us a DM on Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this live Sleepover Club special, Halima and contributing culture editor Misha MN sit down with director Ninja Thyberg to discuss her debut feature film, Pleasure. A raw and groundbreaking exploration of the adult film industry, we chat with Ninja about her decision to use actors from the adult industry, maintaining safety on set, challenging conceptions about porn, how she went from anti-porn activist to advocate, and much more.We've also teamed up with MUBI to offer 30 free days of MUBI to all podcast listeners, meaning you can check out the film and join in our digital watch party this Monday, 20th, over on our instagram @polyesterzine. Click here to watch the film! Pleasure is now showing on MUBI in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Turkey and Latin AmericaOrder Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Want to support the podcast? If you're a brand or organisation that could help us continue the show, Please fill in this form. Can't wait to hear from you!We'd love to know what you think about our podcast. Fill out this survey here to have your say <3 Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, leave a review, or drop us a DM on Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Musicians are being held captive! Forced to step onto the content treadmill and churn out TikTok's that they supposedly don't want to make, this week Halima and Ione are discussing whether the social media platform is helpful or harmful to those in the industry. We'll be dissecting the impact of those videos; the ones in which musicians lament the fact their labels are forcing them to partake in TikTok trends. As well as debating autonomy, whether forcing artist's into content creation is stifling their creativity, or if they're just being snobs towards a platform that isn't necessarily made for them. Order Ione's book, Poor Little Sick Girls, here!Want to support the podcast? If you're a brand or organisation that could help us continue the show, Please fill in this form. Can't wait to hear from you!We'd love to know what you think about our podcast. Fill out this survey here to have your say <3 Have an opinion and want to be featured on an upcoming episode? We want to hear from YOU! Send us your thoughts on this episode to ione@polyesterzine.com, leave a review, or drop us a DM on Instagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.