TSP Tuesdays | March 11th, 2025

This week’s Clippings includes: Tressie McMillan Cottom discussed masculinity and gender politics on The Opinions podcast, analyzing how Trump’s rhetoric delegitimizes women and minorities. Yolande Strengers appeared on Switched On Australia to critique the energy industry’s flawed assumptions about consumer behavior. Ana Paula Sousa spoke to The Credits about how I’m Still Here exposes Brazil’s ongoing struggles with historical violence. Bonnie Zare analyzed The Substance for the Irish Star, explaining how the film critiques societal pressures on women’s bodies. Matthew Desmond joined The Daily Show to highlight systemic economic inequalities that perpetuate poverty. Jacqueline Ho’s research, featured on EurekaAlert!, examined how Singaporean parents perceive educational inequality. Finally, Kelsey McKinney discussed the social functions of gossip on Normal Gossip, noting how it shapes our understanding of society and ourselves.

Our new piece, Social Isolation and “Loneliness” of Young Adults by Jacob Otis, examines how economic insecurity, mental health struggles, and shifting social norms contribute to young adults spending more time at home while still participating in public life. The piece explores the role of stigma, technology, and declining civic engagement in shaping social withdrawal, questioning whether this trend reflects a crisis or an evolving cultural preference.

2025 has seen a number of airplane incidents and tragedies. In this Cyborgology piece, PJ Patella-Rey extends Anthony Giddens’ work to discuss how we are living in an era within which we cannot all be experts on the technologies that we rely on every day, from our phones to airplanes. This requires extreme “trust that the institutions that deliver these devices to us have designed, tested, and maintained the devices properly.” Yet, seeing the amount of plane crashes and other incidents we’ve seen related to air travel, this trust is certainly being tested in the public sphere.

In Germany, 5 members of a far-right group have been arrested for allegedly plotting to kidnap the health minister. They are associated with the “Citizens of the Reich,” conspiracy theorists who believe that the German government is illegitimate. Last year, S Ericson summarized research on conspiracy theories, check it out here, “What “They” Don’t Want You to Know About Conspiracy Theories“.

March 8th was International Women’s Day. This post from the Council on Contemporary Families highlights research on family wellbeing around the world.