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It's Been a Minute

NPR

Want in on a secret? Your likes and dislikes didn't develop by accident. There are subtle and not-so-subtle forces around you, shaping what you think, how you act, and even who you think you are. Brittany Luse is here to break the spell and help you feel wiser in a society that makes things blurry.THE BEST POP CULTURE PODCAST AWARD WINNER AT THE 2025 SIGNAL AWARDSIt’s Been A Minute with Brittany Luse is the best podcast for understanding what’s going on in culture right now, and helps you consume it smarter. From how politics influences pop culture to how identity influences tech or health, Brittany makes the picture clearer for you every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.It’s Been A Minute reaches millions of people every week. Join the community and conversation today.If you can't get enough, try It's Been a Minute Plus. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/itsbeenaminute

  1. Many women don't want kids. And for good reason.

    13 HRS AGO

    Many women don't want kids. And for good reason.

    Everyone has to make the decision to have or not have kids. There are good reasons for both. Are you sick of dating? Terrified of how expensive everything is? Frustrated with America's so-called social safety net? Horrified by the state of healthcare? If you answered yes to any of these, you might be one of the many people deciding to go childfree. Host Brittany Luse is joined by Sarah McCammon, Senior Fellow at Third Way, and Emma Gannon, author of the novel Olive, to explore the reasons people feel like life might be better without a child -- and how that impacts everyone. (0:00) Why women choose to go childfree(1:53) The economic & ideological responses to declining birth rates(6:01) Pushing back against negative assumptions of childfree women(10:39) How to deal with society's judgment of family size and choice(17:33) How childfree women shape modern society(25:45) How culture and policy lag behind women's expectations of life(31:02) What true childbearing freedom looks like for everyone Want to hear more about modern womanhood? Check out these episodes: Enough is enough. Is it time to leave America?Why are people freaking out about the birth rate?The myth of modern "adulthood" Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus. Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub. To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below: See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

    36 min
  2. Don't get got by big MILK

    1 DAY AGO

    Don't get got by big MILK

    Why is the government obsessed with whole milk? In January, the USDA account on X posted a picture, possibly AI generated, of President Trump with a milk mustache. The caption was, “Drink up America. #DrinkWholeMilk.” Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. posted what seems to be an AI video that shows him being transported to a nightclub when he drinks milk. The caption is, “when you take that first sip of whole milk.” Whole milk is also at the top of the new food pyramid. But what’s all this for? How do we make sense of this push for whole milk, especially when milk has some unsavory ideological associations? Brittany gets into it with Yasmin Tayag, staff writer for The Atlantic who covers science and the future of food, and Andrea Freeman, Second Century Chair Professor of Law at Southwestern Law School and author of the book Ruin Their Crops on the Ground: The Politics of Food in the United States from the Trail of Tears to School Lunch. Want more about modern health? Check out these episodes:Were Americans actually healthier in the past?The difference between losing weight & being "healthy" Is tech making us too obsessed with our bodies? Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus. Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub. To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below: See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

    20 min
  3. Meet the billionaires who control your media

    4 DAYS AGO

    Meet the billionaires who control your media

    What happens when tech billionaires control the media you consume? With the help of his father, Paramount CEO David Ellison's purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery has gained him a roster of franchises and networks, from Looney Tunes to CNN. But the sale hasn't come without serious concerns, from data privacy to the rising costs of streaming services to what this means for workers in the entertainment industry. Brittany is joined by Mandalit Del Barco, NPR culture correspondent, and David Folkenflik, NPR media correspondent, to cut through the corporate drama and figure out what this deal means for all of us. (0:00) Why Brittany thinks you should be interested in the Paramount/Warner Bros deal(4:12) How this deal will impact journalism and what you watch on TV(7:19) Who are the Ellisons? And what's their relationship to Trump?(11:49) Why cuts to the entertainment industry impact the entire country(16:45) Who really controls American culture: the people or the rich & powerful? Interested in more TV conversations? Check out these episodes: Sinners vs. One Battle After Another: who should win Best Picture?Melania Trump’s multi-million dollar “infomercial” Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus. Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub. To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below: See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

    21 min
  4. The unbearable fear of being cheated on

    6 DAYS AGO

    The unbearable fear of being cheated on

    It's easier than ever to cheat and to catch a cheater, but is that a good thing? For example, there are apps and social media groups dedicated to outing a cheater. But what if that paranoia about cheating is actually hurting our relationships? And on top of that, definitions of "cheating" vary widely. How do you decide for yourself what really counts as cheating? And what's really fueling our fear of being cheated on? Brittany is joined by Kathryn Jezer-Morton, writer of the Brooding column from The Cut, and Shannon Keating, freelance culture journalist, to get to the bottom of why fear of infidelity haunts our culture and our dating lives. Want more about modern dating? Check out these episodes:The embarassing truth of dating menIs he a good guy? Or is he manipulating you? Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus. Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub. To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below: See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

    17 min
  5. The beauty industry has an Epstein problem

    17 MAR

    The beauty industry has an Epstein problem

    The Epstein Files have revealed social and financial relationships throughout the beauty industry - and a toxic veneration for youth. Is it time for the public to reckon with what the powerful tell us is and isn't "beautiful?"  Host Brittany Luse wonders: can society let go of decades old obsession with youthfulness? Luckily, Jessica DeFino, reporter, critic, and author of the FLESH WORLD substack, joins the show to answer that question and unpack how we’ve made beauty our God. (0:00) How the beauty industry shows up in the Epstein Files(3:24) Why the language of "self-care" is hypocritical post-Epstein(6:06) The beauty industry's obsession with youth(11:55) The secular religion of beauty(19:59) America's Next Top Model & the internalization of beauty standards(24:30) Tyra Banks & the power you lose in pursuit of power Correction, March 19, 2026A previous version of this episode incorrectly said that the 1970s tagline “because innocence is sexier than you think” was used to promote Maybelline products. It was used in advertisements for Love’s Baby Soft products. Want more about beauty and power? Check out these IBAM episodes:"Looksmaxxing" is teaching men that pretty hurts.Peptides & the pursuit of the "perfect" bodyThe privilege of being "skinny" Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus. Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub. To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below: See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

    33 min
  6. Is tech making us too obsessed with our bodies?

    16 MAR

    Is tech making us too obsessed with our bodies?

    All this health tracking might not be actually very...healthy. There's a lot of evidence that health tracking can be good for us. Studies have shown that fitness trackers are effective at increasing physical activity, and can pretty accurately detect issues like arrhythmia. And now they're getting a promotional boost from some very influential people: Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and doctor and wellness influencer Casey Means – President Trump's nominee for surgeon general and founder of Levels Health, a company that analyzes data from continuous glucose monitors. But even as health wearables have benefits – how do they fit into the Make America Healthy Again vision for health? What does all this data really do for us – and who else could access it? Brittany is joined by Adam Clark Estes, senior technology correspondent at Vox, and Lindsay Gellman, a freelance journalist who reports on health and business, to get into it. Want more about modern health? Check out these episodes:Were Americans actually healthier in the past?The difference between losing weight & being "healthy" Exercise is more important than ever Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus. Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub. To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below: See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

    20 min
  7. Young women are struggling, too. Why can't we see it?

    13 MAR

    Young women are struggling, too. Why can't we see it?

    Yes, young men are in crisis, but young women are too. Why aren't we talking about it? Over the past two years, statistics about men's mental health, educational advancement, and financial well-being have made headlines. And, in turn, sparked an industry of organizations, pundits, and others ringing the alarm about men, particularly young men, being in crisis. But, the data shows young women are struggling at the same rates in most categories. In this episode we're looking at broader data — across genders — to see if it paints a more accurate picture of what's going on and to understand why when one gender suffers...all genders do. Brittany is joined by Faith Hill, staff writer at the Atlantic, and Dr. Meg Jay, clinical psychologist and author of the Twentysomething Treatment to unpack the unspoken crisis women are facing. Interested in more conversations about modern adulthood? Check out these episodes:The myth of modern "adulthood"The political power of Gen Z womenMake America Male Again? Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus. Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub. To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below: See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

    16 min
  8. Sinners vs. One Battle After Another: who should win Best Picture?

    11 MAR

    Sinners vs. One Battle After Another: who should win Best Picture?

    The stakes feel especially high for this year's top Oscars prize. It feels like every few years there are two films that really set the tone for where American culture is headed. In 2017: it was Moonlight versus La La Land. In 2019: it was Green Book versus BlackKKlansman. And now, in 2026: it’s Sinners versus One Battle After Another. And there’s one question that host Brittany Luse has at the top of her mind: How do these films capture what it means to live in this moment? And how does the conversation surrounding them become so contentious? Host Brittany Luse is joined by Nadira Goffe, staff writer of culture at Slate, and Robert Daniels, associate editor at rogerebert.com to unpack the discourse taking the internet by storm. Interested in other episodes about cultural critique? Check these out:Pop culture has a 'bean soup problem'Yes, romance & fantasy novels are political.What's so hot about Heated Rivalry? Support Public Media. Join NPR Plus. Follow Brittany on Instagram: @bmluse For handpicked podcast recommendations every week, subscribe to NPR’s Pod Club newsletter at npr.org/podclub. To manage podcast ad preferences, review the links below: See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

    28 min
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About

Want in on a secret? Your likes and dislikes didn't develop by accident. There are subtle and not-so-subtle forces around you, shaping what you think, how you act, and even who you think you are. Brittany Luse is here to break the spell and help you feel wiser in a society that makes things blurry.THE BEST POP CULTURE PODCAST AWARD WINNER AT THE 2025 SIGNAL AWARDSIt’s Been A Minute with Brittany Luse is the best podcast for understanding what’s going on in culture right now, and helps you consume it smarter. From how politics influences pop culture to how identity influences tech or health, Brittany makes the picture clearer for you every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.It’s Been A Minute reaches millions of people every week. Join the community and conversation today.If you can't get enough, try It's Been a Minute Plus. Your subscription supports the show and unlocks a sponsor-free feed. Learn more at plus.npr.org/itsbeenaminute

Information

  • Creator
    NPR
  • Years Active
    2017 - 2026
  • Episodes
    1.1K
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2015-2025 NPR - For Personal Use Only
  • Show Website
    It's Been a Minute
  • Provider
    NPR

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