Under the Influence with Jo Piazza

What do Britney Spears, American Pie, Girls Gone Wild, and the rise of trad wives on TikTok all have in common? More than you think.In this episode, we dive into the cultural stew of the late ’90s and early 2000s with Atlantic critic Sophie Gilbert, author of Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves. From foam fingers to foam parties, we unpack how the sparkly, bedazzled, and disturbingly sexist pop culture of that era shaped millennial womanhood—and how it's all come back in a new package labeled "soft girl aesthetic."We talk Britney, the Spice Girls as proto-influencers, and what it means that the same culture that objectified Monica Lewinsky now celebrates trad wives on TikTok. This is a conversation about memory, marketing, media—and what happens when we mistake sexualization for empowerment.Read Sophie's great piece in The Atlantic here.You can grab her book Girl on Girl here. Join our newsletter community here.Pre-order EVERYONE IS LYING TO YOU here.Visit our lovely sponsors here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dropping a great new podcast in your feed today. Normal Curves is a podcast about sexy science & serious statistics. Ever try to make sense of a scientific study and the numbers behind it? Listen in to a lively conversation between two stats-savvy friends who break it all down with humor and clarity. Professors Regina Nuzzo of Gallaudet University and Kristin Sainani of Stanford University discuss academic papers journal club-style — except with more fun, less jargon, and some irreverent, PG-13 content sprinkled in. Join Kristin and Regina as they dissect the data, challenge the claims, and arm you with tools to assess scientific studies on your own. Join Regina Nuzzo and Kristin Sainani as they dissect the infamous Sweaty T-Shirt Study and the stats behind sex, smell, and mate choice. Find all the episodes of Normal Curves here. Join our newsletter community here. Pre-order EVERYONE IS LYING TO YOU here. Visit our lovely sponsors here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What do you want to be when you grow up? For Gen Alpha, the answer might just be: a brand.This week, we enter the world of the Sweet Sisterhood—a so-called “content house” made up of girls aged 8 to 12 with a combined following in the tens of millions. Think ring lights, sassy videos, and moms-turned-managers. But behind the sequins and smiles is a bigger, messier question: Is this the future of childhood? Will every kid need a personal brand just to survive the job market of tomorrow?We're talking to Teen Vogue reporter Fortesa Latifi about the rise of child influencers, the growing legislation trying to protect them, and the very real existential dread of parenting in a world where social media clout might just be more valuable than a college degree. From influencer economics to the changing definition of a “job,” we ask: what are we preparing our kids for—and would it be bad for them to unplug?Read Fortesa's article in Teen Vogue here.Join our newsletter community here.Pre-order EVERYONE IS LYING TO YOU here.Visit our lovely sponsors here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ten days. Six bags. One baby screaming about her missing keys, her cell phone and how much she hates shoes and pants. Spring break in Vegas, Zion and Bryce had it all—drunk fairy godmothers in Vegas, kids veering dangerously close to canyon edges, and a toddler who staged daily protests against wearing pants.These are our lessons learned and a survival guide to chaotic family travel: overpacking regrets, road trip rules, the underrated joy of traveling with another family that you love so damn much, and the parenting power of well-timed candy bribes. Also: how to carry a baby for miles while singing a made-up unicorn song on repeat.Join our newsletter community here.Pre-order EVERYONE IS LYING TO YOU here.Visit our lovely sponsors here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week, we're asking the question on the Internet's bitchy lips: is Meghan Markle a tradwife? To get to the bottom of it, I'm dropping in a special crossover episode with Off With Their Headlines where I try to answer that very question. We unpack what “tradwife” actually means, why Meghan’s branding is smart (not submissive), and how capitalism, feminism, and influencer culture collide in unexpected ways. Plus, a little tea on royal family PR strategy, birth control conspiracies, and—something very unexpected—sneaky Jesus.🎧 Like what you hear? Don’t forget to check out Off With Their Headlines wherever you get your podcasts.Join our newsletter community here.Pre-order EVERYONE IS LYING TO YOU here.Visit our lovely sponsors here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why does Bridget Jones still hit us right in the feelings—decades later? Because she’s all of us. A little messy, a little lost, and still trying to figure it out.This week, we’re diving into the joy, the grief, the chaos, and the sexy normalcy of the new Bridget Jones movie—and why romantic comedies are finally having a moment again (and thank God for that). It’s a full-on love letter to the rom-com: from waxing mishaps and mom life meltdowns to why we need more midlife love stories and fewer Katherine Heigl movies.Author and rom-com scholar Erin Carlson (I’ll Have What She’s Having: How Nora Ephron’s Three Iconic Films Saved the Romantic Comedy) is here to break it all down—with the passion and encyclopedic knowledge only the queen of rom-coms can bring. Plus, a sneak peek at Jo’s next big idea: a romance novel with recipes, grief, and maybe Stanley Tucci in a towel. Yes, please.Check out Erin's book I'll Have What She's Having here.Join our newsletter community here.Pre-order EVERYONE IS LYING TO YOU here.Visit our lovely sponsors here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today I'm dropping an episode of These Packs Puck. Anyone who's a parent knows how chaotic life with kids can be — but being a professional athlete and a parent comes with its own unique challenges. On their podcast, These Packs Puck, Madison and Anya Packer, professional hockey players and moms-of-two, speak candidly about their life on and off the ice. This episode happens to feature Jo talking about social media and parenting.  You can find more episodes of These Packs Puck here.Join our newsletter community here.Pre-order EVERYONE IS LYING TO YOU here.Visit our lovely sponsors here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What happens when your life falls apart—and the Internet is watching?Jessica Turner had the husband, the kids, the career, and the perfectly curated feed. But when her husband came out as gay, everything she thought she knew about her life, her marriage, and herself shattered. In this raw and deeply honest conversation, Jessica opens up about what it really looks like to rebuild from the ground up—navigating grief, rewriting your worth, dating again, and raising kids with integrity in the spotlight.Her new book, I Thought It Would Be Better Than This, is a love letter to anyone living through disappointment and learning to write a new ending. Whether you’ve faced heartbreak, grief, or just feel like life didn’t go according to plan, this episode will remind you: it’s not over. You still get to choose what happens next.Grab Jessica's book I Thought it Would be Better Than This here.Join our newsletter community here.Pre-order EVERYONE IS LYING TO YOU here.Visit our lovely sponsors here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Most of us think we understand our menstrual cycles. We track them with apps. We count the days. Maybe we even know when we’re ovulating. But what if everything you think you know is either oversimplified—or totally wrong?And what if the tools you're using to "know your body" are collecting your most intimate data... and selling it?In this episode, Jo talks with Laura Federico and Morgan Miller, authors of The Cycle Book, about the real science behind your cycle—and the avalanche of misinformation being spread by influencers who have no business talking about hormones. From raw meat diets to cycle syncing with moon phases, social media is full of bold claims and bad advice. This conversation cuts through the noise.You’ll learn: Why most period tracking apps are wildly inaccurate (and legally allowed to sell your data) What the follicular and luteal phases actually mean for your mood, energy, and well-being How to identify hormonal patterns that impact everything from sex to chronic illness Why pen-and-paper tracking might be the most powerful (and private) health tool you’ve never tried This isn’t about becoming a hormone expert. It’s about getting real information, trusting your own body, and unlearning the junk we’ve all absorbed from magazines, apps, and wellness influencers.Find The Cycle Book here.Join our newsletter community here.Pre-order EVERYONE IS LYING TO YOU here.Visit our lovely sponsors here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Reverend Angela Denker, author of "Disciples of White Jesus: The Radicalization of American Boyhood," dives into the troubling phenomenon of how online spaces shape young boys' mentalities. She discusses the alarming radicalization influenced by toxic masculinity and traditional gender roles, linking them to issues like mass shootings and high suicide rates among boys. Denker offers hope through stories of men overcoming extremism and emphasizes the need to foster healthier male identities. A compelling exploration of vulnerability and change!