Popaganda can be found anywhere you listen to podcasts
Why Pop Culture & Abolition?
Monday September 18, 2023
In the first episode of Popaganda, Shannon Perez-Darby and Tashmica Torok make some pretty big confessions. Shannon has spent hundreds of hours watching the Kardashians and as if that’s not bad enough, Tashmica spent much of 2022 soothing herself by secretly watching The Cosby Show. They say they’re abolitionists but, do they even go here?
Listen in as they talk about how they discovered Transformative Justice (TJ) and where they see connections between the pop culture they love and the abolition work we all need to accomplish in order to remake the world into a more just place.
Content Warning
We talk about domestic and sexual violence, not in detail but our relationship to it
Copaganda
Monday September 25, 2023
In the second episode of Popaganda, Shannon Perez-Darby and Tashmica Torok talk about what Copaganda is and how it impacts survivors as they attempt to seek out justice for themselves and their communities. Cops are always singing, whatcha gonna do when they come for you but we want to know, whatcha gonna do when they don’t.
As children, McGruff taught us to take a bite out of crime but something must’ve gone wrong because he’s not taking our calls.
Bachelor Nation
Wednesday October 4, 2023
In the third episode of Popaganda, Shannon Perez-Darby invites Tashmica Torok for a hometown visit to one of her favorite pop culture stomping grounds -- Bachelor Nation!
Listen in as we reflect on examples of harm, accountability, and repair lived out by Bachelor Nation contestants. And because we have a few extra roses to hand out, we'll throw in a conversation about a couple of our favorite podcast hosts - Dax Shephard and Jonathan Van Ness.
This may be the most dramatic episode of the Popaganda Podcast yet!
TIKTOK Beef
Monday October 9, 2023
One thing about Shannon Perez-Darby and Tashmica Torok is they're gonna get to the bottom of a TikTok beef. In episode four of Popaganda, join them as they scroll through a collection of bookmarked beefs and discuss cancellations that have pushed popular influencers into digital exiles.
Whether we're creating parasocial or for real social relationships online, we are creating patterns that we can all learn from.
True Crime
Monday October 16, 2023
In episode 5 of the Popaganda Podcast, Tashmica Torok guides Shannon Perez-Darby through where her love of True Crime began and how it has changed over time. The people who are the most interested in the True Crime genre are also those who experience the highest rates of sexual and domestic violence. How can this be?
Listen in as we explore what may be our unhealthiest relationship with Copaganda or a tool to help our loved ones see the criminal legal system for what it truly is.
Radical Visions:
It Takes More Power to Build Than to Burn
Monday October 23, 2023
It takes more power to build than to burn and Shannon Perez Darby and Tashmica Torok want to build.
In the season finale of the Popaganda Podcast, you are invited to jump into a time machine and look into their radical visions for a future where transformative justice practices and abolition frameworks are realized. Listen in as they reflect on how their lived experiences in childhood and within their family systems have helped them see the sci-fi possibilities that have helped sustain their hopefulness in a future that they will likely never see.
But what can we build if we feel connected to and are willing to sacrifice for that bolder, more just future?