Pop Culture

Arts

What's Making Us Happy: A guide to your weekend reading and listening

5:00pm August 18, 2023

Each week, guests and hosts on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour share what's bringing them joy. This week: The Sparks & Bainbridge Mystery series, Good One podcast and The Kaiju Preservation Society.

Michael Oher of the Carolina Panthers celebrates with his family after the NFC Championship Game against the Arizona Cardinals at Bank Of America Stadium on January 24, 2016 in Charlotte, N.C.

Arts

'The Blind Side' drama just proves the cheap, meaningless hope of white savior films

11:19am August 18, 2023

by Aisha Harris

The true story behind the hit Oscar-winner has only gotten ickier — and Hollywood is complicit.

National

New York City officially bans TikTok on all government devices

7:19pm August 17, 2023

by Jonathan Franklin

City employees will begin to lose access to TikTok and its website from all city-owned devices and networks, according to a New York City Hall spokesperson.

Bradley Cooper plays Leonard Bernstein in a new biopic.

Arts

Leonard Bernstein's family defends appearance in 'Maestro' nose flap

5:08pm August 16, 2023

by Mandalit del Barco

Leonard Bernstein's family defends the prosthetic nose Bradley Cooper wears to portray the late conductor.

Members of the Tuohy family are speaking out after former NFL player Michael Oher alleged that they earned millions from pushing a false narrative that they adopted him. Here, Oher poses for a photograph with the Tuohy family at Radio City Music Hall for the 2009 NFL Draft on April 25, 2009 in New York City.

Tuohy family responds to Michael Oher's allegations of his false adoption

5:00am August 16, 2023

by Jonathan Franklin

In court documents filed in a Tennessee probate court, Oher alleged that the Tuohys convinced him to sign documents that agreed to a conservatorship in 2004.

The marquee at The Grove theater in Los Angeles announces the opening of Barbie in July 2023.

Arts

Can movie theaters sustain the 'Barbie boost'?

4:40pm August 15, 2023

by Elizabeth Blair

Going to the movies is hot again thanks to the so-called "Barbie boost." Barbie, Oppenheimer and other movies continue to rev up the summer box office. But can theaters sustain the momentum?

This summer, three women at the peak of their powers lead a spectacular pop culture revival. Beyoncé, left, performs onstage during the Renaissance World Tour in May 2023. Margot Robbie stars in Greta Gerwig's Barbie movie. And Taylor Swift performs during The Eras Tour in March 2023.

It's #BillionGirlSummer: Taylor, Beyoncé and 'Barbie' made for one epic trifecta

6:04pm August 14, 2023

by Bilal Qureshi

This summer, three women at the peak of their powers lead a spectacular pop culture revival. Barbie, Beyoncé and Taylor Swift shattered records and created a communal economy of irrational exuberance.

Queue Listen Now

Sam Reich in the poster for Game Changer, a game show he hosts on the streaming platform Dropout.

Amid streaming chaos, Dropout carves out its own niche

9:16am August 12, 2023

by Tilda Wilson

As big media companies struggle to become profitable, smaller companies like Dropout think they can make it work by offering niche content instead of going after a mass audience.

Queue Listen Now

This season of Bravo's Below Deck Down Under follows the crew of The Northern Sun through the waters of Cairns, Australia.

Arts

'Below Deck,' reality producers stepped in to stop a drunken assault — this time

7:00am August 12, 2023

by Linda Holmes

On Bravo's Below Deck Down Under, producers intervened to prevent a sexual assault. It was an abrupt change of course for a franchise known for encouraging bad behavior from very drunk people.

"Subspace Rhapsody" is a special musical episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. It's episode 9 of Season 2, and most shows wait a bit longer to pull out a stunt like this — but turns out it actually works.

Arts

What's Making Us Happy: A guide to your weekend reading, watching and listening

5:01pm August 11, 2023

Each week, guests and hosts on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour share what's bringing them joy: This week, Burn It Down, Seed&Spark, Brandy Clark, and the musical episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.