Latest Articles

The Young and The Feckless: The Nearness of Youthful Nostalgia

by J. Maureen Henderson
May 12, 2010 at 9:42am

The other night, I found myself sitting in a concert hall with a thousand other people having an absolutely A+ time at one of the few North American dates on the farewell tour for Euro pop icons a-ha. Yes, a-ha. No matter that I'm not old enough to have fully appreciated their short-lived American heyday (although they've never ceased to be a presence on the other side of the Atlantic) in the...

Feminist Replay: MTV's The Maxx

by Latoya Peterson
May 12, 2010 at 6:34am

Writers are supposed to shock people.  We say witty and unpredictable things that are supposed to rip the shroud off a decaying society and expose it for what it is.   Well, that's the idea anyway.

---Sarah, episode 5, the Maxx

 Yesterday, Daria was released on DVD, to great fanfare and cheers from fangirls (self included)  But for me, Daria was more than just one show...

HaskinsWatch: Erin Gibson's “Modern Lady”

by Sara Reihani
May 11, 2010 at 11:49pm

HaskinsWatch (TM): bringing you Sarah Haskins news whenever there is any.

There's been a gaping lady-hole (i.e. lack of coverage of women) on CurrentTV's infoMania since Sarah Haskins stopped making "Target Women", but now that lady-hole has been filled by new contributor Erin Gibson with the very similar segment "Modern Lady"! Haskins made the introduction formal by passing...

Family Guy: Reaching new transmisogynistic lows

by Kjerstin Johnson
May 11, 2010 at 8:57pm

I like cartoons, and watch several less-than-feminist animated series, but as far as Family Guy goes, I watched my last episode years ago, fed up with its recycled gags and the way it confused political incorrectness with edgy humor (has somone already made the joke “So crass, so old” about Fox's new “So brash, so bold”? Probably?). But the show, and creator Seth MacFarlane's spinoff...

Mad World: Compromising Positions

by Kelsey Wallace
May 11, 2010 at 12:53pm

Mad World fans, take note! In cooperation with PSU's Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies Department, we're hosting a Mad World intergenerational community forum!

Compromising Positions: Race and Sex in Advertising, A Mad World Intergenerational Community Forum

June 1, 2010 / 6:30pm Portland State University Smith Memorial Ballroom 1825 SW Broadway, Portland

Now...

TelevIsm: Shh, It's On!

by Rachel McCarthy-James
May 11, 2010 at 11:53am

Hi there! I'm Rachel McCarthy James. In most internet-type contexts I go by RMJ. I write and edit the recently-revived feminist blog Deeply Problematic, and I'm here to talk to y'all about some TELEVISION. Read on for some thoughts about Television, in general!

B-Sides: Gay Vatos and Rockin' Roommates

by Kjerstin Johnson
May 11, 2010 at 11:24am

Two new gay-friendly ways to rock out...

The Lady Is a Tramp: How Lena Horne Helped Me Become a Tramp

by Andrea Plaid
May 11, 2010 at 9:44am

Oh honestly, unclutch your pearls. I’m not speaking ill of the dead.

If you ever heard the song “The Lady Is a Tramp”—and how the late Lena Horne sang it—you’ll understand why I say that about the legendary performer.

Midwife crisis: No home births, please, we're New Yorkers

by Andi Zeisler
May 10, 2010 at 1:51pm

 

Since we're already piling up the posts about both mothers and pregnancy, now seems like a good time to issue a call to action on an issue that doesn't usually come up when we talk about reproductive rights: home birth.

The 2007 documentary The Business of Being Born was, for many women (and men) an eye-opening look at the increasing medicalization of birth in America and a...

The Young and The Feckless: Gen Y's Biological Clock Talk Taboo

by J. Maureen Henderson
May 10, 2010 at 9:56am

I've hesitated about tackling this particular topic, but with the recent proximity of Mother's Day and the 50th anniversary of The Pill, I figured there was never going to be a better time to address it. My hesitation stems from a reluctance to drag biology into the equation and to bring up some unpleasant home truths that can't be advocated or educated away.

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