When did everybody become so stupid?
As the UK becomes an idiocracy, with anti-immigration rhetoric gaining traction and AI-generated news being treated as real, our culture editor Amy Kean wonders, ahead of her talk at this year's shots Out of the Box event in London which will cover a similar theme, whether we're more gullible than ever, or just dodging reality completely?
Creativity versus class; the great brain robbery
Creativity is steadily being siphoned off. It's created by the few and attended by the few, with the creative industries completely shutting out the working classes. Cannes, says shots Culture Editor Amy Kean, is a perfect example.
Is ‘people pleasing’ actually fuelling fascism?
While silence might sometimes be golden, speaking up can be the diamond-bladed tool needed to cut through lies and apathy, says Amy Kean. Mealy-mouthed acquiescence may seem appropriate to keep the peace, but holding your tongue is only fuelling the negative noise.
I’m not normal... but why do I need a label for you to tolerate me?
Labels can be useful. On jars, for example, because who wants decaf coffee after a late night? Or at large industry gatherings where there're too many names to remember. But sometimes, says Amy Kean, labels are unnecessary, and seem more about absolution than assistance.
“I’ve been white womanned”; is internalised misogyny fuelling a worrying wave of social media imitation?
While the saying might go that 'imitation is the sincerest form of flattery', that doesn't always hold true, especially if your livelihood depends on a degree of originality. So, asks Amy Kean, why do some women feel it's ok to steal another woman's idea?
The ad industry doesn't care about DEI (and it's getting harder to pretend it does)
What if you were invited to a party but, on arrival, were ignored, then told not to eat the food, or dance to the music? Your seemingly friendly, initially welcoming host sounded like one thing, but turned out to be another. But, says Amy Kean, isn't that a bit like advertising? It might say it wants you to come, might even put together an initiative to encourage your attendance, but its inaction speaks louder than words.
Why Russell Brand’s baptism is a depressing turning point for men’s mental health
If a holy hand of forgiveness is sought, does that really absolve a man's sins? If a mental health diagnosis is declared, does that truly exonerate any male transgression? No, of course it doesn't, says Amy Kean, but if famous and fallible people keep insisting it does, where does that leave the already fragile men’s mental health movement?
The real reason women use the word 'just' 100 times in every email
In 2024, when mainstream feminism seems to be focused on shiny memes and Katy Perry’s hypocritical empowerment songs, Amy Kean asks: what’s really holding us back? When women still feel the need to soften themselves, mind their language and play nice, should we be looking closer to home to fix the issues?
Why can’t we let famous women be creative geniuses instead of tragedies?
'Sex sells', the old adage goes, but so too does death, especially when it involves a famous woman. And a famous female death is, so far as the tabloids are concerned, simply a final, tragic curtain call to a life of drama, sadness, flaws and desperation. But, says Amy Kean, Whitney Houston, Amy Winehouse, Sylvia Plath, Judy Garland... they were geniuses, and should be remembered as such.
I’m a post-Barbie girl in a post-Barbie world… so what happens now?
This summer the world turned pink as Barbie cut a swathe through the cultural landscape and women everywhere rejoiced as a plastic toy celebrated feminism and overturned the patriarchy. But, reflecting in the more sober autumnal light, did that really happen, or were we all just victims of a fuchsia-coloured cult?
When parents are smashing eggs on their kids’ faces, is it time for a digital reckoning?
Social media has hit 'Peak Wicked', and when parents are inflicting low level violence on their kids for laughs, it's time to reset. In fact, it's time to get Old Testament, says Amy Kean. But if we can't rely on God to sweep away humanity's detritus, we'll have to take it upon ourselves.
Why Britney Spears is ‘manic’ again, and the rise of weaponised pop psychology
From Princess Diana to Britney Spears, a woman in pain or dubbed 'tortured' by others, is one of societies favourite kinks. But, despite more supposed understanding of mental health issues, our love of pop psychology and self-diagnosis has become an addiction, one that's dangerously out of control, says Amy Kean.
