Pop Culture Debate Club with Ronald Young Jr. – Détails, épisodes et analyse

This week we wanted to share another great podcast from the BBC that you might enjoy – Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley. Lucy travels back in time to revisit the unthinkable crimes of 19th century murderesses from the UK, Australia and North America. 

In this episode Lucy is joined by Evy Poumpouras, former special agent with the Secret Service, where she protected five US presidents as part of the Presidential Protective Division.

Lucy and Evy investigate the case of Mary Surratt, a 42 year-old widow, mother and pious Catholic who was arrested in April 1865 for conspiring to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln. He had been shot by former actor John Wilkes Booth while watching a play at Ford’s Theatre in Washington DC. One of the most sensational trials in US history followed, with prosecutors pushing for death sentences for everyone involved in the murder. 

Lucy and Evy want to find out why the authorities were so sure that Surratt was involved in the assassination. They want to know what her story tells us about the lives of women at the close of the American Civil War. And they ask what happens when women step outside the domestic sphere and dare to get involved in protest and politics? 

To find out more about the background to the Civil War and Lincoln’s assassination, Lucy asks Dr Nikki M Taylor, Professor of History at Howard University Washington DC, to go to Ford’s Theatre and to the Surratt House Museum, formerly Mary’s Surratt’s tavern in Maryland. Mary Surratt, she discovers, was a slave-holder and, like John Wilkes Booth, was horrified by Lincoln’s intention to end slavery and enfranchise African Americans. 

Mary Surratt is an elusive and divisive woman. Lucy wants to know if she was a devoted mother attempting to make her way in the world – or a hard-hearted conspirator, a slave-holder and fanatical Confederate trying to reignite the civil war. 

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Which is the better franchise: the original Bachelor/Bachelorette or the spin-off, Bachelor in Paradise? Podcast host Traci Thomas loves the original franchise while radio host Mariah Smith prefers the spin-off, and they're both here today to convince Aminatou Sow that their pick should win. Traci loves the drama and romance of the Bachelor/Bachelorette and thinks that Bachelor in Paradise always fizzles toward the end of the season. Mariah argues that Bachelor in Paradise has had more successful couples come from it and says people only go on The Bachelor/Bachelorette to end up on Paradise anyway. Ultimately, Aminatou must decide which show will receive her final rose.

Follow Traci @biTRACIal on X and Mariah @mRiah on X and @mariahmariahmariah on Instagram.

Keep up with Aminatou Sow @aminatou on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram.

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Aminatou Sow must pick between actor Carl Tart’s choice of the original Space Jam (1996) and TV writer Lamar Woods’s selection of D2: The Mighty Ducks (1994). Which is a more fearsome opponent, aliens or Iceland? Who is a better coach, Michael Jordan or Gordon Bombay? How realistic is the sports action in each film? Which one better stands up to the test of time? Aminatou asks these questions and more in order to crown the best sports film of all time.

Follow Carl Tart @dammitcarl and Lamar Woods @prophmatic on Instagram.

Keep up with Aminatou Sow @aminatou on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram.

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Get ready for some pop culture hot takes! Each week, two notable pop culture aficionados do their best to convince host Aminatou Sow that their pick should win in a variety of creative face-offs between unlikely adversaries. Which TV cast would you most want to hang out with? What’s the best sports movie ever made? Who’s the best mother in media? And what fictional film feast is the one you most want to eat? Who will prevail? Find out starting on June 27.

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It’s our first literary – and marital – debate! Which is the best way to consume books: audiobooks or paper books? Essayist and critic Maris Kreizman prefers to listen to her books while comedian Josh Gondelman wants to physically hold what he’s reading. And their job today is to convince Aminatou Sow to pick their preferred format. Maris loves that audiobooks allow her to multitask and thinks the reading experience can be enhanced when an author reads their own work aloud. Josh loves being forced to only focus on the words when he’s reading a book and wants to interpret the works for himself without someone else’s performance influencing him. Aminatou must consider the arguments on both sides and declare a winner in the battle between audiobooks and paper books.

Follow Maris @mariskreizman on X and Instagram and Josh @joshgondelman on X and Instagram.

Keep up with Aminatou Sow @aminatou on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram.

For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors.

Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our show and get bonus content. Subscribe today at bit.ly/lemonadapremium.

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Who is the worst lawyer on TV? Author and TV writer Samantha Irby says it’s Will Gardner from The Good Wife and writer and podcast host Josie Duffy Rice picks Rusty Sabich from Presumed Innocent. One’s a prosecutor, the other a defense attorney. One’s accused of murder, the other bribing a judge. And they both make questionable romantic decisions. Aminatou Sow must render her verdict and declare which of the two is the worst lawyer on television.

Follow Sam @bitchesgottaeat on Instagram and Josie @jduffyrice on X and Instagram.

Keep up with Aminatou Sow @aminatou on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram.

For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors.

Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our show and get bonus content. Subscribe today at bit.ly/lemonadapremium.

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What is the best on-screen depiction of motherhood? Parenting columnist Amil Niazi picks the TV show Better Things and journalist Jane Marie chooses the 1958 movie Auntie Mame, leaving Aminatou Sow with the unenviable task of selecting a winner. Which of the two better captures the highs and lows of motherhood? How do you compare someone who chose to be a mom with someone who had motherhood thrust upon them? And how will Amil’s baby attending the recording affect Aminatou’s choice? As ever, it’s up to her to decide as she determines which TV show or movie best portrays motherhood.

Follow Amil @amil on X and Jane @SeeJaneMarie on X and Instagram.

Keep up with Aminatou Sow @aminatou on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram.

For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors.

Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our show and get bonus content. Subscribe today at bit.ly/lemonadapremium.

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Which made-for-TV movie on the Lifetime Network is the best of all time? The co-hosts of The Deep Dive take sides, with Jessica St. Clair choosing Jackie’s Back! (1999) and June Diane Raphael picking the 2016 remake of Mother, May I Sleep with Danger? But, how do you compare a shockingly star-studded mockumentary with a sexy vampire thriller? That’s Aminatou Sow’s challenge this week! She does her best to weigh the pros and cons of each pick and also puts June and Jess’s love of Lifetime movies to the test in a lightning round where they have to suss out real movie plots from made-up ones – all in order to decide which Lifetime original movie is the best ever.

Follow June @MsJuneDiane on X and @junediane Instagram and Jess @Jessica_StClair on X and @stclairjessica on Instagram.

Keep up with Aminatou Sow @aminatou on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram.

For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors.

Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our show and get bonus content. Subscribe today at bit.ly/lemonadapremium.

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Which Real Housewives franchise is the best of all time: New York or Beverly Hills? The Watch What Crappens podcast co-hosts square off – Ben Mandelker is team RHONY while Ronnie Karam is repping Beverly Hills – to try and get Aminatou Sow to select their respective installment as the winner. Who’s the bigger villain, Ramona Singer or Camille Grammer? How does Yolanda Foster’s “almond mom” moment compare to Bethenny Frankel’s Skinnygirl empire? And what do we even do with the RHONY reboot? Aminatou considers all of these questions and more on her way to declaring the best Real Housewives franchise ever.

Follow Ben @benmandelker on X and Instagram and Ronnie @ronniekaram on X and Instagram.

Keep up with Aminatou Sow @aminatou on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram.

For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors.

Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our show and get bonus content. Subscribe today at bit.ly/lemonadapremium.

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Which feast from a film would you most want to eat? Podcaster Hrishikesh Hirway would like to slurp up the noodles from In the Mood for Love (2000) while podcaster and cookbook author Dan Pashman craves the cheeseburger from The Menu (2022). And their task in today’s episode is to do their best to convince Aminatou Sow that their dish should reign supreme. Which is more compelling, the comfort of the noodles or the creative spark of the cheeseburger? Which food plays a more pivotal role in its respective movie? And perhaps a surprising consideration, which dish is accompanied by the better music? Aminatou weighs these factors and more when deciding which movie feast she’d order for herself.

Follow Hrishikesh @hrishihirway on X and Instagram and Dan @thesporkful on X and Instagram.

Keep up with Aminatou Sow @aminatou on Instagram and X. And stay up to date with us @LemonadaMedia on X, Facebook, and Instagram.

For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors.

Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our show and get bonus content. Subscribe today at bit.ly/lemonadapremium.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.