Episode 330: Toxic Love

This week on Blocked and Reported: hockey. First, Jessica the ‘80s Baby investigates the NHL’s ill-advised attempts to harness hockey’s thirstiest online fans. Then, Katie explains the AI scandal tearing apart the Heated Rivalry fan fic community.The NHL bans Pride Tape, setting off a backlash from players and fans—NPRThe NHL is trying to capitalize on hockey romance — but so far it’s missed the markWhen A.I. Invaded ‘Heated Rivalry’ Fan Fiction, the Meltdown Was Epic—The New York TimesHeated Rivalry is at the Center of Fanfic’s AI Reckoning—Fansplaining‘Wake Up Call:’ Fanfiction Writers and Readers React to AO3 Outage—404 Media This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

This week on the Primo show, the blue tsunami. Featuring: socialists versus normies, trans issues on the ballot, how the online right is coping, and how and when the Dems mess this one up (sorry). To hear more, visit www.blockedandreported.org

This week on Blocked and Reported, Jesse and Katie discuss how RuPaul made drag mainstream, the legend of problematic queen Sharon Needles, and the Pittsburgh drag bar caught in an accidental blackface scandal. Plus, a fond farewell to the Last Ditch. Village Underground with Jeff MaurerNext In Line Comedy with Jeff MaurerRuPaul Apologizes for Drag Race “She-Male” Segment in Response to Transphobia Criticisms—SlateDragged Into Debate: Reality-TV Fame Puts Spotlight on Sharon Needles’ Controversial Act—Pittsburgh City PaperSharon Needles’ Racist Aftermath—HuffPostWorld of Wonder: Get Sharon Needles’ Title Revoked—Change.orgSomething Wicked This Way Comes: The Sharon Needles Controversy—Queer Space MagazineQueer/Bar Re-Opens This Weekend With Sapphira Cristal—Seattle Gay SceneAfter Blackface at Blue Moon, black Performers Are Asking Pittsburgh’s LGBTQ Community to Do More Than Be Outraged—QBurghHexxus “Toxic Love” Open Stage Performance—Facebook$20 Million Suit Says Bay Area School Forced Boys Out Over Face Mask Photo—San Francisco Chronicle This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

This week on Blocked and Reported, Jesse and Katie dig into Initiative-638, the Washington ballot initiative that would bar male athletes from girls’ sports. Will it mean genital exams in the school gym, as the No campaign claims, or just a checked box on a form, as the Yes side argues? Plus: the Camas cross-country walkout, the short life and shorter death of Marsha’s, and a mysterious campaign impersonating a trans rights group in Texas. Jesse’s upcoming live shows:New York: Village Underground with Jeff MaurerPhiladelphia: Next In Line Comedy with Jeff Maurer, TuesdayIndiana ACLU in turmoil: Leadership change leads to attorney resignations—IndyStarTransgender ballot initiative could require genital exams for WA secondary school students—KUOWMedical Eligibility Form—WIAA“The fun wasn’t there anymore”: Teen runners say media circus over trans teammate ruined the season—LGBTQ NationCamas cross-country girls runner forced to bunk with trans-identified male student during away meet—The Post MillennialAG Brown leads coalition supporting Minnesota’s trans-inclusive policy for youth sports—Washington Attorney General’s OfficeChildren’s Sexual Development and Privacy: A Call for Evidence-Based Ethical Policy—Clinical PediatricsUrsula: Allowing a trans student to race against girls in Camas only fuels hate toward the trans community—MyNorthwestTrans advocates, GOP rep want answers after Texans get texts impersonating group—KXANTexas transgender rights group says it didn’t send texts that prompted call for an investigation—The Texas TribuneTENT’s statement—Transgender Education Network of TexasTexas Families Got Mail From a “Texas Transgender Student Union.” The Trans Group It Promotes Says It’s an Impersonation.—The New TranssexualFalse pamphlets causing backlash and confusion, Texas transgender rights group says—The Texas TribuneMystery transgender mailers sent to Texas students traced to newly formed Wyoming company—CBS News TexasWest Texas DA opens forgery investigation into disputed transgender mailers—The Texas Tribune This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

This week on Blocked and Reported, Jesse and Katie head to Madison, Wisconsin, where a fatal police shooting in July sparked a protest encampment in the vein of CHOP/CHAZ. You will be shocked to learn that the protest zone quickly turned into a homeless camp, complete with a needle exchange. Plus, Jesse’s old beef is new again.How CBS News’ Middle East … To hear more, visit www.blockedandreported.org

This week on Blocked and Reported, Katie is joined by Brad Polumbo to discuss a revelatory panel on fat liberation held at Harvard Medical School, featuring New York Times contributor Roxane Gay, fat activist Ragen Chastain, and Da’Shaun Harrison, the socialist commentator who recently went viral for arguing that GLP-1s are “fascistic.” Plus, for Primos, Brad answers your questions.Brad vs EveryoneNormal GaysRoxane Gay calls to free Luigi Mangione at Harvard Med School event | Fox NewsThis week on Blocked and Reported, Katie is joined by Brad Polumbo to discuss a revelatory panel on fat liberation held at Harvard Medical School, featuring New York Times contributor Roxane Gay, fat activist Ragen Chastain, and Da’Shaun Harrison, the socialist commentator who recently went viral for arguing that GLP-1s are “fascistic.” Plus, for Primos, Brad answers your questions.Brad vs EveryoneNormal GaysRoxane Gay calls to free Luigi Mangione at Harvard Med School event | Fox News This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

Jesse’s 70-minute conversation with the man who uncovered* James Talarico’s hidey hole in an Ohio psych ward. Note: Listen to the episode first! *Did not uncover To hear more, visit www.blockedandreported.org

This week on Blocked and Reported, Jesse and Katie break down the viral rumor that Texas Senate candidate James Talarico was secretly being treated at an Ohio psychiatric hospital. Featuring: attempted HIPAA violations, deeply amateur flight tracking, Jesse’s adventures in X Space… To hear more, visit www.blockedandreported.org

This week on Blocked and Reported, Jesse and Katie go to Baltimore, Maryland, where the Baltimore Rock Opera Society fired its brand-new executive director following objections to her Burning Man cornrows. This one features a bizarre, never-before-reported internal memo that lays out exactly what happened. Then, Mattress Girl revisited, and the surprising trajectory of Emma Sulkowicz.Baltimore Rock Opera SocietyBackstage as Baltimore Rock Opera Society prepares its latest: “Valhella”—Baltimore BrewBaltimore Rock Opera Society 990 filings—ProPublica Nonprofit ExplorerAfter cornrows controversy, Baltimore Rock Opera Society’s new leader is out—The Baltimore BannerBaltimore Rock Opera Society leader defends Burning Man cornrows that she says got her fired—The Baltimore BannerAccusers and the Accused, Crossing Paths at Columbia University—The New York TimesColumbia Student: I Didn’t Rape Her—The Daily BeastHow to Make an Accused Rapist Look Good—JezebelEmma Sulkowicz’s annotated Facebook messages—ScribdNungesser v. Columbia University complaintColumbia Settles With Student Cast as a Rapist in Mattress Art Project—The New York TimesDiscredited, the Legend of Mattress Girl Just Won’t Go Away—ReasonAllegedly False Rape Accusations as Sexual Harassment for Title IX Purposes—The Volokh ConspiracyIn Landmark Case, Jury Says Falsely Accused Males Are Victims Of Sexual Harassment—The Daily Wire‘Mattress Girl’ Emma Sulkowicz Walked Into a Libertarian Happy Hour. No, This Is Not a Joke.—ReasonDid Emma Sulkowicz Get Redpilled?—The Cut This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.blockedandreported.org/subscribe

Thank you everyone who joined my live chat with Sarah Hepola about her new book, her old book, drinking, sex, consent, and more. The entire two-hour conversation is available for Primos only. To listen to (or watch) the whole thing—and get many more perks—join us. To hear more, visit www.blockedandreported.org