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PODCAST

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza

Under the Influence is a deep dive into social media, a place haunted by aspirational marketing where it feels like every other person is a social media influencer trying to sell you something, all while posed in perfect houses that never seem to get messy. And behind this airbrushed perfection is money, so much money. Billions and billions of dollars. Journalist and mom Jo Piazza looks at how we got here, what it all means and how the commodification of every single aspect of our lives is driving

society & culture personal journals

All Episodes

65:08

Bridget Jones, Real Lady Necks, and the Golden Age of...

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/04/15

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

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55:46

Sunday Nice Things: Parenting in the Digital Age with...

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/04/13

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

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41:36

Did You Think Life Would Be Better Than This?

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/04/10

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

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48:35

Your Hormones Aren’t the Problem—This Is

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/04/08

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

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42:57

How Toxic Masculinity and Online Spaces Are Reshaping...

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/04/03

Online spaces and societal expectations are radicalizing young boys at an alarming rate. The haunting TV drama "Adolescence" depicts a 13-year-old boy arrested for murdering a female classmate—a fictional story that reflects real concerns about how toxic internet communities are shaping vulnerable minds.Reverend Angela Denker, author of "Disciples of White Jesus: The Radicalization of American Boyhood," offers a nuanced perspective on two painful truths: white boys and men are both dangerous and

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46:17

What's Worse Than The Glass Ceiling? The Broken Rung!

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/04/02

You've earned the degree, landed the job, and crushed your first assignments—so why aren't you moving up? The shocking truth: it's not you, it's the system. "For every 100 men at the entry level that get that first big promotion, only 81 out of 100 women make the same leap." Join us as McKinsey senior partner Lareina Yee, co-author of "Broken Rung," reveals why the first step on your career ladder might be sabotaging your entire professional journey—and what you can do about it.Our guest, a

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66:03

Will You Ever Be Enough? A Chat With Melissa Arnot?

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/03/27

In this deeply personal episode, we sit down with extraordinary mountaineer Melissa Arnot, whose achievements include multiple Everest summits including one without supplemental oxygen. But this conversation goes far beyond climbing mountains.Melissa's new book explores the universal struggle many women face: never feeling like we're enough despite accomplishments that prove otherwise. From her tumultuous upbringing to becoming an elite mountain guide while balancing motherhood and relationships,

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51:32

Are Influencers Ruining Italy?

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/03/25

From wine windows that went viral during the pandemic to churches becoming TikTok sensations, we unpack how influencer culture is changing the way we experience historic and cultural sites all over the world, but particularly in Italy. Plus, we tackle that other burning question: with so many Americans dreaming of escaping to Italy, is it actually feasible? And would those same people just become part of the problem? Is all of it just a social media induced fever dream for most Americans?Listen to

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44:56

Sunday Nice Things: Too Much Money

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/03/23

Today on Sunday Nice Things I'm dropping in an episode of the show Too Much Money that I made with my friend Doree Shafrir. The show is a wild ride through the crazy ways that billionaires spend their money. And now that we live in a world with a billionaire ruling class it's a more interesting listen than ever.This episode is about why billionaires love to buy media properties and then ruin them. In this ep we discuss the various billionaires (Jeff Bezos, Patrick Soon-Shiong, Mort Zuckerman, Sam

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45:54

America Gets a Failing Grade in Women's Health—SURPRISE!

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/03/20

The misinformation about birth control and women's rights on social media has reached a fever pitch. The other day I was served a reel telling me that taking birth control will both give me cancer and make me more attracted to my cousin. How can we fix this? With information. Can a report card help save reproductive rights in America? This week, I'm chatting with Jennie Wetter from ePROs Fight Back to discuss their groundbreaking report card grading all 50 states on reproductive health and rights

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67:40

What if Social Media Were Good for Tween Girls?

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/03/18

Professor Katherine Phelps is shattering the stereotype that social media is purely destructive for young girls. After spending a ton of time with these young women and interviewing them about their online habits for her new book Digital Girlhoods she's discovered that social media plays a valuable role in community building and identity formation.Katherine discusses the complex dynamics of online bullying, privacy, and visibility, as well as the broader societal influences that shape young girls'

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40:17

Navigating Grief and Grief Influencing Online

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/03/13

Today we're talking to Susie Shaw, a mother who bravely shares her journey through the devastating loss of her child, William. Susie recounts the harrowing day William went missing during a family ski vacation and the aftermath of that tragedy. Our conversation delves deep into the challenges of grieving, the dire need for better bereavement support, and the role of grief influencers online, both the good and the bad. You can follow Susie on Instagram here. Learn more about William's Be Yourself

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48:33

Can You Change Your Personality?

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/03/11

Have you ever wondered if you could stop being so neurotic, or become more of an extrovert? Are our personalities set in stone when we are born or can we adapt them over time? To find out Atlantic journalist Olga Kazan set out on a year-long experiment to become more extroverted, less neurotic, and more agreeable.Discover how Olga successfully changed aspects of her personality through simple practices like meditation, social activities, and volunteering. She debunks the myth that personality is

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51:44

Sunday Nice Things: How Do I Balance My Hormones?

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/03/09

I'm a little obsessed with this week's Sunday Nice Things. I am very excited to bring you the CRAMPED podcast. Cramped is one nerd’s quest to find out why we know next to nothing about period pain. Tired of suffering from "death cramps" with no diagnosis for 20 years, Kate Downey has to look for her own answers. What she finds will change how you think about your own body and the medical system. Because having a microphone gets you more answers than having a uterus.In this episode Kate gets sucked

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48:06

How Will You Measure Your Life?

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/03/06

What if taking a step back from your career wasn't seen as slacking, but actually celebrated? Harvard Business School professor Christina Wallace discusses why we all deserve a season to dial it back at work. She'll make you question how you're measuring your life (spoiler: it's probably not just about that paycheck) and why the "lean in" mindset did women zero favors. We dig into why companies should let employees hit the brakes occasionally, how to tell your boss you need breathing room without

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49:40

Blowing up Your to Follow Your Dreams Life with Elle...

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/03/05

In celebration of the release of Elle Cosimano's latest book Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave we are re-releasing our much beloved interview with Elle about how she blew up her life to follow her dream of becoming a writer. This is a must listen for anyone looking to pivot or make a change right now.Elle was miserable in her job working in real estate. Then her mother offered to care for her children for the summer and take on the physical and mental load of parenting so that Elle could try to

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67:52

Scrubbing Toilets to the Today Show: Tyler Moore's...

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/03/04

Tyler Moore, better known as @TidyDad, accidentally became an influencer while maintaining his day job as a NYC public school teacher and showing off his housekeeping skills on his blog and social media. The episode covers practical organizing hacks like using denture tablets to clean water bottles and taking advantage of vertical door organizers for stuffed animals, but we also explore how Tyler's openness about mental health challenges and his approach to modern fatherhood have struck a chord with

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33:11

Sunday Nice Things: How to Build a Bookish Community

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/03/02

I genuinely believe that books bring people together and I want to create space for more book events, book clubs and book discussions. Robin Kall is amazing at this. She has been running the Reading With Robin series in Rhode Island for decades now and she regularly brings together hundreds of people to chat about books. Robin is first and foremost a book lover and today we are diving into how to build a bookish community, how we can use reading as self care during these trying times AND how to

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48:02

Having a Baby Can Break You with Sarah Hoover

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/02/27

Get Sarah Hoover's The Motherload 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 megaphone.fm/adchoices

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49:40

How to Communicate Better On and Offline with Charles...

Under the Influence with Jo Piazza ·

2025/02/25

How good are you at communicating? The truth is that we can all be better at being heard and hearing others. Communicating well is not a super power, but rather a skill that any of us can learn. And in this age of intense digital communication, we all need to find ways to stop just shouting or whispering into the void and truly connect with one another. Our guest today is Charles Duhigg, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and the author of Supercommunicators. He's giving us practical tips for

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338 results

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