Oddly Specific

Fortesa Latifi, a journalist with bylines in Rolling Stone and The Cut, dives into the complex world of family vlogging and kid influencers. She discusses vital questions: Should parents share their children online? What rules should be in place for aspiring child creators? Fortesa analyzes the dark side of kid influencing, emphasizing the challenges of balancing exposure and privacy. She critiques the evolving landscape of creative professions, particularly for women, and highlights the nuances of homeschooling amid vlogging realities.

Our friends from the Private Equity Stakeholder Project are back to help us unpack what's at stake with the sale of Walgreens to private equity firm Sycamore Partners. Jim Baker, Executive Director of PESP joins us to get into Sycamore's track record and why that brings up concerns for their involvement in Walgreens. We also get into how Trump 2.0 has been responding to private equity and a few wins we have been seeing at the state level. It's an important episode of anyone who has ever needed to go to the pharmacy, so it's an important episode for basically everyone.    Follow PESP on Instagram here Subscribe to the Patreon here

First things first, BOSTON we hope you have your tickets to come see us Wednesday, June 25th at Laugh Boston. Tix here! This week on the pod the King of Kansas City is here to discuss all the wild historical things that happened on the day we recorded this. Brace yourselves because it goes from Anne Frank to OJ Simpson FAST. We discuss some of our earliest attempts at being funny (don't cancel us), cursive writing, and the Christmas where every 14-year-old boy got a Structure sweater and a gold chain. AND I uncover why men become cops! PLUS a lil Taylor Swift.  Follow Rob!  Come see us live June 25th at Laugh Boston! Tix Here!     

My cousin in Christ Molly McAleer is in the house to talk about the Revolutionary War, Karen Read, and if anyone is switching cell phone providers in 2025. We get into Turtle Boy, what happened when I discovered the fifth wave of Beatles fans, and I invite Molly to be a city planner.  Come see us June 25th and June 26th in Boston! Tix here!  Get this full conversation on Pateron. See the playground where it all went down.  Follow Mollz 

Road trips, cannibalism, and coming to terms with the stories we tell—this week on the pod, I welcome journalist and author E.A. Hanks to talk about her memoir The 10, a powerful deep dive into family, loss, and the messy contradictions of America. We covered everything from growing up with famous parents (yes, those Hanks) to the truths she uncovered while driving the full stretch of Interstate 10. E.A. opens up about writing through trauma, confronting history, and what she found at the intersection of identity, immigration, and myth-making. Spoiler: there’s World War I, evangelical poetry, and a gas station tiger. Obviously. We also talked about the writing process, creative burnout, and how making something real often takes a village. If you’re into memoirs that mix personal storytelling with sharp cultural critique, if you’ve ever lost a parent too young, or if you’ve ever wondered what America looks like when you actually go see it—this one’s for you. The 10 asks big questions about memory, meaning, and what we inherit, and EA was just as thoughtful, funny, and oddly specific as you’d hope. The 10 by EA Hanks Follow E.A. Hanks on Instagram: @EAHanks Learn more about Hardcore History's Blueprint for Armageddon: Dan Carlin's Hardcore History Book recommendation: This Republic of Suffering by Drew Gilpin Faust (on Civil War and grief) Book recommendation: Motherless Daughters by Hope Edelman Podcast: You Must Remember This (for the Manson series mentioned) Meredith’s Patreon Tickets for Boston Live Shows: Laugh Boston June 25 | City Winery June 26 Listen to past Oddly Specific episodes: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Unions are on the line with the Trump Administration and we need to chat. This week on the pod I welcome Teacher Pay with K, a high school math teacher and president of her local union to discuss all the ways in which these structures support teachers, students, and well everyone. Digressions include my storied high school math career, phones in school, and Pete Davidson, union kid at heart?    Come to my live shows!!! May 8th in LA and June 25th in Boston, tix here.  Follow Teacher Pay with K on IG and TikTok  Subscribe to my Patreon

Once upon a time you would toggle between MTV and VH1 they way we toggle between TikTok and Instagram. While much is said about the impact of MTV there is considerably less about her cool, older cousin VH1. This week on Oddly Specific my friends Emilie Begin and Margaux Poupard from the Old Millennials podcast stop by to talk about their new series that covers everything from Behind the Music to Best Week Ever. Digressions include, AOL, the Century City Mall, and where the hell are kids suppose to hang out??    Follow their podcast Follow Old Millennials on Instagram Follow Emilie and Margaux ALSO come to my live shows all tix are here For more fun, join my Patreon!

With tariffs on the rise and the stock market plummeting it's a precarious time for wallets. Most Americans are looking for deal but are dollar stores the solution or do they cause more pain then they are worth? This week on Oddly Specific Meredith welcomes Kennedy Smith, Senior Researcher at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance whose work on the impact of dollar stores on communities will blow your mind. We also look at some ways cities like Tulsa are curbing the practices of these stores along with what happens when we keep business within our cities and towns.  Learn more about Kennedy and the Institute for Local Self-Reliance here! Subscribe to the Patreon  Come see us live in LA or Boston

Subscribe to the Patreon  Come see us live in LA or Boston Follow my pal Mary Mahoney on Substack and IG The incomparable historian Mary Mahoney (Dolls of Our Lives) is on the pod today to talk all things American Girl, Titanic, and using books as medicine (not in a MAHA way). We unpack how we reflect on national tragedies, the impact of spending your childhood with Greatest Gen grandparents, and why I'm still looking for some justice for my boy Carson Daly. PLUS why were Jane Austen novels labeled as dangerous in the 1800s and how it relates to book banning today. 

Mia Chard, a TikTok content creator and mental health advocate joins me for an honest conversation about loneliness, dating, and the impact of social media on relationships. Together we chat about the cultural influences that make us who we are, personal growth, and the importance of authenticity in connecting with others. Mia's story resonates with many who have experienced similar feelings of loneliness and the pressure of societal expectations regarding relationships.    Follow Mia  Come to the Live Shows!!! LA: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/friends-only-tickets-1278304265469?aff=ebdssbdestsearch Boston: https://lilchuckboston.com/friends-only-live-with-meredith-lynch-molly-mcaleer-and-rob-schulte/