There Are No Girls on the Internet - Our democracy is at risk. She’s registering half a million voters to help save it.

Episode Date: September 20, 2022

Today is National Voter Registration Day in the United States.     And founder and CEO of the Voter Formation Project (and Real Housewives of Potomac guest star!) Tatenda Musapatike is on a mission to use digital tools to register half a million  underrepresented voters.    FOLLOW Tatenda : https://twitter.com/tatendacheryl   Learn more about the Voter Formation Project: https://www.voterformationproject.org/   CHECK YOUR REGISTRATION STATUS: https://nationalvoterregistrationday.org/   Want to support the show? (thank you!) Subscribe, tell a friend, leave a review, or buy some merch at There Are No Girls on the Internet’s store: TANGOTI.COM/STORE Join our newsletter: Tangoti.com/newsletter Say hello at [e-mail]  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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There Are No Girls on the Internet is a production of IHeart Radio and Unbossed Creative. I'm Bridget Todd, and this is There Are No Girls on the Internet. Here in the United States, there are 50 days left until our midterm elections. Election season can be a bit of a mess. I used to work on campaigns, and I can continue. tell you that it wasn't always hope and change. Sometimes it was more like eating pizza for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, or crying in a storage closet. And even beyond the way that staffers are treated on political campaigns, sometimes it seems like the tactics out there to engage voters are just kind of stale, or just plain old, not effective. And with so much at stake, you know,

literally the fabric of our democracy, shouldn't things be? better? And shouldn't everyone feel represented, engaged, and checked in? So how can we make sure that all voters are showing up and that nobody is being shut out of our democracy? Using digital tools to answer that very question is Tatenda's mission in life. I am Tatenda Musapatiki, and I am the CEO and founder of the Voter Formation Project. So can you tell us a little bit about the voter formation project. So I founded the organization in December of 2020 and we went public in 21. And it's an organization that I founded to be a national organization that works in many states to use the best of digital marketing tactics in order to reach black and brown and other disadvantaged

communities. So we use digital ads. We look at different ways that corporate marketers are doing their campaigns. That way we can apply it to political work. And then also we want to be doing education with people who are running smaller organizations and may not have as much knowledge about digital to be able to provide them with resources. When we first met, you were working at Facebook, and I talk a lot about Facebook on this show. People are always like, oh, you really hate Facebook. And I used to say, like, oh, I have a lot of good friends that work at Facebook. And that no longer includes you. So can you talk to us a little bit about how you went from your work at Facebook to doing the work that you're doing now, really working to engage black and brown voters?

Sure. You know, it's more of a direct path than I think people would think. I loved my job at Facebook. And I was there. I was the client solutions manager for Democratic politics, which means that I helped people on the left. So think parties, committees, candidates and organizations, and then the agencies that support them with their Facebook strategies, their buys, thinking through how best they could reach their goals on the platform. And, really like being the voice of the company to these clients and vice versa. As you can imagine, between 2015 and 2019, it got a little rough. There was a lot of things that happened in that period of time, which made my job significantly less enjoyable. But I felt very strongly about the work I did and the causes I got to support. And also how I was treated as an employee. It was like the best employer I'd had. Wow. Which I have no home saying. And so it got to the point where the company was like rethinking how it was that they wanted to do political ads. And I liked my old job and I didn't want a different job.

And I couldn't find another role that would really fulfill what I needed in my next steps. And so I left to go to acronym to build my own program. One of the biggest frustrations of my job and truly one of the biggest ones. And given all the things that happened there, it's saying a lot that this was a frustration, is that I kept seeing the same kinds of campaigns engaging the same people over and over again. there was very, very little experimentation in terms of tactics or in terms of creative, meaning the ads that were put on or in terms of strategies that people were using for voter registration and mobilization.

And of the strategies that were being deployed, none of them used corporate best marketing practices, which also just seemed insane to me given all the things I had learned. And it's rare that political marketers or people who come up in digital political work get exposed to how corporate marketing works and get exposed to like some of the best minds in corporate marketing and how they think about building their campaigns. And so getting to see that just like blew my brain open and I just became a sponge of like, I want to learn so much more about how all these different industries do their campaigns and why they do their campaigns and the science behind them, which only led me to think that the way that we do

things is so messed up. I was like, this doesn't make any sense given how the rest, like truly the rest of the marketing industries work. So I wanted to go build my own campaign. So I, Tara allowed me to come on to acronym and said, yep, build what you want, test what you want. And that is what I did. When it comes to testing out new tactics in elections, campaigns are not really testing to figure out effective ways to engage black and brown voters, the same way they are with our white counterparts. Now, the reasons for this are kind of complicated, but one of them is just the good old-fashioned systemic racism of black and brown people being shut out of systems for so long. Oh, we're about to break it all the way down. It is a mishmash of corporate greed. racism, like, fundamentally. So let's start with, the racism is probably easier to discuss. So,

like, when folks are doing their campaigns and they're thinking about, like, okay, these are the people I need to engage. It is harder to reach people of color online. It just is. It's harder because the data systems that are used both by platforms and by campaigns to identify voters are based on things called data points and data points are things like your credit history, your addresses, your phone number, your racial identity, your ethnicity. And people of color have fewer data points because of systemic racism and society due to no access to credit, not allowed to own homes, kept from home ownership, kept from, you know, car ownership. So all of those things. Like if you're a renter, you have a lot fewer data points. If you've never bought anything with credit or don't have a

credit card, fewer data points. If you are unbanked, fewer data points. So data points are the things that algorithms have built or like targeting systems have built into many social media platforms, how they reach people. It's not exclusive, which is why the Internet is great for reaching people of color because it's not the only way you can do it. But it is a pretty heavy way of doing it and the systems that campaigns use to identify people. So because it's more expensive and because many of the ways that foundations or donors evaluate programs, programs is by cost, these campaigns to reach people of color are often viewed as more expensive and not as effective because the mechanisms used to measure them are racist based on systemic data.

And the way that programs are evaluated is based on this entire thing that makes it harder to reach voters of color. So like that's one piece. And I would say the biggest piece, it's something that I'm, the longer I'm a founder, the more I just like want to beat my head against the wall. I feel like I'm having the same conversations over and over again and they're just so frustrating. This frustration around systemic racism that limits how black and brown people are engaged by campaigns is one thing. But add in the extractive nature of the digital consultant class in the political landscape, and all of this inequality gets even more entrenched.

Because think about it. If you're a consultant being paid by a campaign, you aren't necessarily thinking about how to reinvent the wheel. And you probably are not going to take the risks necessary to learn how to do this work effect. effectively or really test anything out. In short, you might just play it safe because you want to be paid. So in, I would say, the overall digital landscape of progressive politics and even nonprofits, so civic engagement work that is outside of like partisan politics, there are a few major agencies that are hired by most folks at a certain level to do digital buying. Those people make their money based on promises that they give to clients about effectiveness of campaigns.

And when you start to experiment or go outside of that, you are introducing a risk, which means that you are less likely to deliver for your client. And then when you're talking about experimentation, the experimentation tends to be less bold because how is it that you explain to your client, like, oh, we're doing this thing and it might not work. You know, clients are like not, like, organizations that have to report to a donor are not, like, keen to tell their, like, donor, like, hey, I'm going to do this thing. And it might not work. And you all are going to pay for it. Yeah. Like, it's hard to do. I, like, came into the space, like, putting a stick in the ground that that's what I'm going to do. So it's been easier to me because I am like, I am the digital

measurement lady and I am the person who's going to say the things that no one's going to say to you. I feel like I've built a bit of that reputation. So I don't have the same fear as, like, other entrenched organizations who have made like promises on advocacy or whatnot to folks. And, you know, it's a chicken in the ad. Like there is a problem with these organizations not taking the risks and not taking the risks in an environment that is constantly changing. And folks who refuse to be more lenient about how it is that you evaluate program. If a program is more expensive by a couple hundred dollars per voter, it's not great. But it also should not be the end of the world. And it shouldn't be the overall metric by which you measure a campaign or that you decide to disperse to a campaign. And then to get back to

the racism, all of those organizations that do the digital media buying or the measurement tend to be run by white men or white women, whatever, white people who like aren't promoting people of color within their organizations or if they are like, bless up, I hope you're okay. I certainly wasn't when I was in them. And so it just, it's just this ever evolving cycle where there needs to be an organization pushing from the outside saying, this is crazy, this is not healthy. And it's actually not good for democracy because if we are saying that we know that voters of color and people are of color are kind of like the barometer for if we have a fair society, are they able to vote at equal rates as their white counterparts? And the answer is no. But then we're holding those

organizations to an impossible standard to reach the same quotas and cost effectiveness of, you know, groups that target not even just white folks, but like include white people in their audiences, because that can have a tremendous impact on cost. Like, what is the market rate for democracy? Like, you tell me, like, that's one thing I've been saying. Like, if you're going to hold groups accountable to these cost measures, what is, what's the market rate of democracy for a voter of color that's a brand new and never has voted before but may vote for the rest of their life?

And furthermore, Republicans don't do this shit. They don't. They don't care. They care about getting power. So at the end of the day, they do all these things and they have some measurement, but, like, they got power over the course of 10 years. that's how they operate. So it's all just kind of wild.

The longer I do it, the more I learn, I was like, oh, I thought I knew. And I feel like every two weeks, I have like a whole other revelation where I'm like, why am I doing this? I should have quit politics like seven years ago, like I said, I would the first time. But then I love what I do and I care a lot about it. Let's take a quick break. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends, me and hilarious guests from

Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Run a business and not thinking about podcasting, think again. More Americans listen to podcasts than ad-supported streaming music from Spot Fy and Pandora. And as the number one podcaster, IHearts twice as large as the next two combined. So whatever your customers listen to, they'll hear your message. Plus, only IHeart can extend your message to audiences across broadcast radio. Think podcasting can help your business. Think IHeart. Streaming, radio, and podcasting. Call 844-844-I-Hart to get started. That's 844-844-I-Hart. Hi, everyone. I'm Cheryl Stray, author of Wild and Tiny Beautiful Things. I'm excited to share that I have a new podcast called Mind Over Mountain.

In each episode, I interview athletes, adventurers, and adrenaline seekers to discuss the inner landscapes and life experiences that informed and inspired their extraordinary feats. I also bring a bit of advice into the mix so we too can better understand how to face our own seemingly insurmountable challenges. Do you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to pull out what you already have inside. We're coming into this world fighting for our lives.

All I'm going to do is pull out what you already got inside. We're there to support and celebrate each other. And that's not like your story versus my story. You're going to walk up and over that dang mountain. You're not just going to put your mind over it. Yep, yep, exactly. And if I can't walk up and over it, I'm going to go through it. Listen to Mind Over Mountain every Thursday on the IHeart Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Will Ferrell's Big Money Players and IHeart Podcast presents soccer moms. So I'm Leanne. This is my best friend Janet. Hey. And we have been joined at the hips since high school. Absolutely. Now a redacted amount of years later, we're still joined at the hip.

Just a little bit bigger hips, wider. This is a podcast. We're recording it as we tailgate our youth soccer games in the back of my Honda Odyssey. With all the snacks and drink. Sidebar. Why did you get hard seltzer instead of beer? Well, they had a bogo. Well, then you got it.

Do you want a white claw or something here? Just hit it. Oh, what are y'all doing? Microphones? Are you making a rap album? Oh, I wish. How could you believe? I would buy it.

Cuts through the defense like a hot knife through sponge cake. That sounds delicious. Oh, you're lucky I'm not a drug addict. You're lucky I'm not an alcoholic. You are. I'm lucky I'm not a killer. I love this team and I'm really trying to be a figure in their lives that they can rely on. Oh.

Listen to soccer moms on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And we're back. In the 2020 election, I heard so many people championing the political leadership of black women for ostensibly saving the United States from another four years of President Trump. But these very nice-sounding platitudes do not always come with meaningful investment in the leadership of black women. For instance, Tatenda is the only black woman in the United States who runs a digital-only voter engagement operation.

I feel like, especially on the left and within the Democratic Party, we love saying things like, oh, trust black women, elect black women. And I was sort of surprised to find that you are the only, you were running the only, digital only voter engagement operation led by a black woman. And obviously,

that's very exciting, but also kind of disappointing. And I guess my question would be, if we say things like, oh, black women, black voters, whether they're the backbone of the left, the backbone of the Democratic Party, why then are we, are more black women not being invested in to do this kind of work? Why are we not investing in this political leadership that folks say they want,

that folks say, like, is really leading our party? Honestly, like, to be very blunt about it, it's performative bullshit by the white people in power. Like, I don't have much else to say. Like, honestly, it's like trust black women until you have to pay us fairly. trust black women until we want a seat at the table, trust black women until we're asking for power. And to be fair, there are some black organizations, black led organizations that do the work, but they tend to be for profit or like organizations hosting for profits. Or they tend to be field groups that came out of folks who were like came up in campaigns and were told like,

oh, you can do the black people. Right. One of the things that I care a lot about is like being able to get institutional power for VFP. Like yes, we do work that's designed to reach people of color only or like disadvantaged communities only, but like, I'm the best at what I do, regardless of who else is out there doing it. And I want to very much so keep pushing the envelope so that that is something that is seen and something that is understood. And I feel like whenever I say that out loud, it's like there's a bit of arrogance in it and hubris, but at the same time, like, if I don't have that, then what, then what am I

doing here? Right. Like, I don't get to fail the way my white counterparts do. When you say things like that. What's the response? I think it's like a mixture of like people are like, okay, or they're terrified of me, which is like really funny because I'm like five foot three and I'm kind of a goofball and people who are like, hang out with me and know my friends. Like, I'm kind of weird. It's fine. But like, I guess I've been told I'm slightly terrifying when I get in that mood. And okay. You know, like I've been heard like, oh, you're a lot to swallow. Well, choke. I'm sorry. Like, this is what we're doing. We're talking about the future of a our democracy, the future of what our, the fabric of our country is going to be like. And we don't

really, people like you don't really have time to play small. People like you don't really have time to play humble when we're talking about something that it's this important. Yeah. And you're like fighting for the livelihood of your org and like your, you know, it's like my organization. I care a lot about the people I employ. I care a lot about the work I do. And so you can't go into it, you know, trying to get into a fairly entrenched system of like, oh, these are the people who do the work and these are the people they give money to or whatever. If I'm coming in and wanting to establish an organization that does this work at scale, you know, you don't get there by thinking to yourself a little bit by little bit. You kind of get there by setting a really big goal

and chasing after it relentlessly. I just don't feel like I have any other choice, to be honest. And I know I'm, again, very, very, very good at what I do. So you almost got to adopt that, Olivia Pope's Wagger and go for it because otherwise you are going to fail. And so it's almost like a catch 22. I don't know anyone who got to where they are leading an organization or leading a large organization who's like, you know, I was just hoping for the best. Like, no, like there has to be some deliberate. And there are days I wake up and I'm like, how the hell did I get here? Because my career has been wild to say the least. I've had a wild variety of experiences across a number of orgs. But yeah, you just you just have to do it and you have to think big. Well, and I know for you,

part of thinking big is the ability to pivot because, you know, our digital landscape is always changing. Like Apple's privacy change last year really limited the tracking capabilities of digital advertisers, which I'm sure changed everything about how you're reaching people online. So can you tell me a bit about your goals and how they've evolved? Yeah. So I, I would put them in kind of free buckets. I think one is I'd love to register and mobilize half a million people of color in this next like election cycle. So register or mobilize. And I think that's very doable if we reach our fundraising goals. We have to just run a very, very smart campaigns and think very strategically and be pretty relentless in our measurement. And so I think the second goal would be for us to be able to

release a lot of measurement about how doing these campaigns has changed. We've already started doing that with our 21 programs, where we uncovered just how much the Apple privacy measures have impacted certain types of advertising programs across all the platforms. So we have to retool, you know, the cost estimates that we have. We have to retool the strategies that we're using. We have to remeasure and understand what is working to reach these communities, what types of creative are getting us there, what types of data strategies are getting us there or not getting us there, right? Like eliminating this idea, if we do an experiment and the results are negative, that's not failure.

That is a learning that we can then spread to everyone and say, don't waste your money doing this. We already did. And guess what? It does not work. So that's a big one, being able to disseminate information. Another big goal of ours is to do a lot of trainings for smaller field organizations. I care a lot about being able to give the information that is in my head and in my team's head about how it is that you can understand digital to people who run organizations who haven't

really had a place to go and get information about like, this is what an ad is, this is what an impression is, this is what an influencer is. This is what people mean when they say influencer marketing. Or like, this is a text message program. You know, like these things are basic things that I take for granted because I came up in the space. But, you know, if you've been organizing in the field for years, like, you're not paying attention to like a lot of it. And so we need a place for those folks to go and learn about what these terms are, what they mean, and how they can structure their organizations and resource their organizations to be able to do experimentation and learn what works for them. So that's another big goal that I'm excited about. And then the fourth one

kind of has nothing to do with the work, but how we do the work. How do we do the work? It's a tricky question that a lot of people on campaigns don't really like to talk about. For instance, the fact that campaign work is usually pretty grueling. You work terrible hours for terrible pay and are treated terribly too. And I actually have a theory that it's one of the reasons why they're such tight-knit camaraderie on political campaigns, because staffers have all gone through something traumatic together just by being on the campaign. And it doesn't even stop when the election is over. Earlier this year, Instagram accounts like Dear White Staffer popped up on social media to shed a little bit of light onto the mistreatment of rank-and-file staff

on campaigns, nonprofits, and political offices. This used to be to Tendez life and my life. And I can't say that I really miss it. I had been loving the great resignation and the result of these like Instagrams, like dear, dear white staffer and dear nonprofit, all of them. Because I was that person when I was until recently who was just like this industry is sick and like crazy and run by maniacal people who like do not care about stabs. And there are so many things that are taken for granted because this is how it's always been done.

And one of the big things for me in starting this org is like, we're going to change how people work. And we're going to change how people work at political organizations. And we're going to treat people with dignity and respect and pay them well. And we're going to do it all under a nonprofit umbrella. And we're going to do it during election years. And we're all going to live healthy lives. I, my nightmare would be to wake up after an election and have someone tell me I had to do two all-nighters. Or like, sorry.

Like, I got to go. I picked up and out or I'll have I got to go because I was working too much. Like, no, I don't want that for any of my staff. I want my staff to be well rested. I want them to have vacations during election cycles. I want them to not be on public assistance and to be able to, you know, there's a minimum salary of 55K at our org. It is what it is. Because if people are living in cities and if you are a scheduler for me, you are still doing meaningful work and you deserve to be able to like pay rent and pay for groceries and maybe your student loans and like live your life. I don't want people picking up second, third jobs out of necessity for living. And I think in turn, what we're going to find out, I'm 95% positive, is that when you treat people with this level of dignity and respect, you get better work. Because people are arrested. So, and there has not been an example of an organization that has done this at scale. Like, I will fight anyone about it.

Like, I am sure. Like, I can't. I was a Facebook lady for so many orgs. Like, I know exactly what was going on with many of these folks based on the email times I was receiving things, let alone like how they were feeling or tone or whatever. Like, there's got to be a better way. And the only way that there's going to be a better way is if we have, like, actual disruption with a proof point so that people are leaving jobs to force it to be better. It's something I care about, like, as much as the rest of the work.

I'm so glad that you're, that that is something that's baked into. what you're doing because I am the same as the same as you. Like I came up at a time where it was just standard that if you worked in campaigns, if you were working in the progress, even the progressive movement that you were working until, you know, my, the last time that I was in that world, my nine to five was really more like a seven to ten, right? And then, you know, when you go out on campaigns, the sort of like idea that like people are working second jobs or like going on government assistance, like it wasn't great. And. And, you know, when you go out on campaigns, the sort of like, And I think that whenever we, you know, I'm a little older than some of our listeners, I think,

but whenever we would have convers- like we weren't having a national conversation about sort of how to treat people in a workplace. It was still seen as like a badge of honor that you care so much that you basically don't really have much of a life and hate, you wake up like exhausted every morning. That was seen as a good thing. I'm so happy that we're now having conversations that are getting away from this culture of hustle, hustle, hustle all the time and glorifying. that because I have done that and there is nothing to be glorified about it. Those times in my life, I cannot even imagine going back to those times. But I also think that when I would talk to others about them, it would be like, well, that's how I did it. And it was this weird thing where nobody would break the cycle because that's how they did it when they were coming up.

Or it was like a pissing contest of like, well, this happened to you this week. You know what happened to be? And then you all feel like, okay, well, it's fine because. like everyone else is in this and this is how it's supposed to be. But like, one, I was always winning these pissing contests. Like, I really have worked for some exceptionally, like, difficult people. And two, what is the, like, if someone's willing to disrespect you at one level, right? Like, I have been cursed at. There was a day I thought I was going to get hit by my manager at work, physically hit. They hit something else instead of me. They're like, and then, like, what is the line between that and then, like, oh, well, you didn't get sexually harassed. But then there are people

who are and we're not talking about it. There are predators running around that we all, We were running around doing whatever, but no one got in trouble and still frankly have not gotten in trouble to the level they probably deserve. So, like, what are we doing here? Because if we tolerate one and we tolerate the next, then we are tolerating probably most of it because the Overton window is already on the side of abuse. So, like, we got to move it completely and we have to shift about it. And I think it's like our generation that's starting to come up and like start our own orgs that's probably going to change the tide. but like this old mentality of like we need to suffer and continue to be paid discriminatory compared to our white counterparts or deal with ex abuse like uh-uh, I'm done. I can't do it anymore. I can't. And I'm so glad so many other people are getting to that point because I only not have to deal with like pay issues at one job. So what are we doing? Especially as progressives. Exactly. Well, that's my thing is that we are meant to be the folks building a different future. And how can we say that we're going to build a more free, more inclusive, more equitable future when the structures that we are operating in, the structures that we are mired in are not even more free or not even more equitable or not even more inclusive? It just

like doesn't compute to me. Yeah, because it's uncomputable. It doesn't make sense. But here we are. So I feel like it's not until more of us like snatch seats of power that what's going to be like different. And, you know, I think because of my employment past, over the last, like, what, 12, 13 years that, like, I care so much about, like, you know, everyone on my staff. And I think they know, like, to a degree where they're like, I know, I just have the sniffles. I'm not sick.

You don't need to make me go home. Like, I'm good. And I'm like, okay. But, like, are you? Because you're sniffling to, like, get off the Zoom, you know? Right. That's kind of the, like, they know I'm paying attention. Where are we in terms of voter registration?

Are we in a good place? Are we in a bad place? Like, what is the future looking like in terms of getting communities of color, registered to vote, and mobilized? I would say for me, it's a frustrating place. So from what I can gather from, you know, the campaign world, it's a midterm. And generally with midterms, people are less concerned about registration, one, because it's harder and more expensive to do. And then two, because at least in this period, we've had, like, really unprecedented growth in voter registration since about 2018. frankly, over the 2018 cycle and 2020 cycle.

And so I'm starting to hear whispers of like, we need to do less of this work because we have so many voters. And that just concerns me. Like, why should you put the breaks on getting more people involved? Like from a just like an American point of view, like shouldn't we be trying to get everyone to vote? Like, isn't our job done when everyone's registered to vote? like that that makes sense to me. But, but you know what I mean? Like campaigns and especially

organizations that have political aims are resource constrained. And so they have to spend their money on getting to like 50 plus one. And so voter registration is not going to be a priority for many of these orgs. And it's probably going to be less funded than it will be in 24 and definitely that it was in 20. So I find that disheartening, disconcerting to hear that. But the other thing that actually is quite concerning that it's disheartening to see, but also concerning, is that we do have so many new voters and so many new voters who voted in 2018 and didn't vote in 20, and we have so many new voters in 20 who probably won't vote in 22. And so mobilizing these folks who are going to be viewed as like not likely voters

who probably won't be included in these like campaign mathematics of 50 plus one, however, are so imperative to keep involved, especially because this is probably the first midterm or second midterm or first midterm after they've been registered is really, really crucial because if you aren't working to help establish those habits of regular voting, you know, you can register. someone, but that doesn't mean they'll vote. And so what is happening or like the necessity of getting folks who are newly registered over the course of the last four years is also really, really important work that I think folks are starting to pay more attention to, but something that

we're also critically thinking about is like these voters who are going to be viewed as unlikely voters in a midterm who probably won't be spoken to, who probably were recently engaged to, who may not have, you know, frequent contacts or touches from any org doing civic engagement work, we're really interested in making sure we're at least speaking to them, you know, over a longer course of time about like, hey, you should consider voting. It's good. More after a quick break. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite.

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Call 844-8-4-4-I-Hart to get started. That's 844-8-4-Ehart. Hey, I'm DeAnna Maria Riva, actress, mother, lover, and a Gen X woman walking through life one hot flash and hormonal crime drag at a time. You ladies know what I mean. I'll bet you a parameda Pazel Chin here you do. So let's talk about it.

Join me on my new podcast. How Hard Can It Be with Deanna-Mereva, where I call on my GenX squads from Ohio to Hollywood as we navigate midlife's most fantastic BS. All of a sudden, I'd had hanginess happening on my own. I was like, what the hell is that? I was married when I had her, so I didn't even consider how empty that nest was going to be.

Mood swings, night sweats, fupas, sex drive. Wait, what sex? Dating at 45. How can it be getting naked at 50 with the new guy? That one's kind of hard. Well, that's lighting. They say we can't polish a turd, but we're sure going to try. So let's get blunt with laughs, tears or tears of laughter, and dive into it unfiltered and unbothered and ask, How Hard Can It Be?

I cannot believe I'm about to say this out loud in public. Listen to How Hard Can It Be with Diana Maria Riva as part of my Cultura podcast network available on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano, and our podcast Point Game is about defying the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. finding ways to win no matter what.

He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows. Without Luca and Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup,

he has to really guard guys like Nas Reid. He has to guard Julius Randall. And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends, stop by like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nash will get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up the court, licking his fingers, why he got the ball. Like, after you go through a training camp with

that, Isaiah, you figure it out real quick. Get your ass up and down the court, and you're going to get the ball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Let's get right back into it. So if you have been a little checked out of national politics lately, I do not blame you. Or judge you, because honestly, I'm right there with you. And of course, I think that everyone should vote if they're able. But I also think that we need to have a world where candidates running for public office actually give people a reason to be excited to vote for them, where people, especially young voters, first-time voters, black and brown voters, and women voters don't just feel like we're voting to keep somebody terrible out of office or that we're

voting for the lesser of two evils. We deserve a political landscape where our elected officials engage us and don't give us so many reasons to just check out. Yeah, I guess kind of along that vein, what do you say to people who maybe got, especially like people who were first time voters back in 2020, like, what do you say to people who feel a little checked out who are like, I don't, like, they're just not feeling it right now. Like, how do you, how do you, I'm thinking of a lot of the younger people in my life who are like, I don't see a point of voting. Neither of these parties is for me. I don't feel like I'm being meaningfully engaged. I've just completely checked out. How do you, how do you speak to people like that?

I think it's a few things. One is like, it's totally fine to be. checked out of national politics. I'm checked the hell out of national politics right now. But two, like, I feel like a lot of times the conversations are wrapped up at like the Senate level and these very like serious levels of government, I guess, if you will, or like high levels of government when the things that are going to have the most impact on people's lives on a daily level is local government. And that's something that's a bit easier to track. It's people who are more connected to your community. It is things that will like carry on. It is, is your kid going to read a book by a brown person in the year 2023? It is, am I going to,

going to be paying more local like taxes on my groceries. It is, you know, so many other things. Like, am I going to have the pothole fixed on my street? Like, my God, there's like a whole thing right now in my neighborhood about like alley reconstruction. Like it's things like that that people care about that do have material differences or like, are we going to have more frequent, frequent trash pickup or, you know, things like that. So I think that's one way to get people to be more engaged just to reconnected to the local angle and say, hey, I know you might be checked out of politics, but here are some things happening that could be impacted. It impacts your daily life.

It impacts your family. It impacts your community. It impacts your work. It impacts your coin. So I think that's the big one. Like we can shift the conversation from like this big like philosophical discussion of like if the Republicans and Democrats are both bad and equal measures or whatever into like an actual conversation about what your daily life could look like under different leadership. And I just think it's I kind of take issue with like the shaming of people being checked out with. national politics. Like if you don't want people to be checked out and you govern, like, govern so that

they're not. I like don't view it as our role to, you know, stand for whatever the administration's doing or to try and make, like, it's not, I am not messaging for a C4 to make sure people think Joe Biden's great. That is not my job. And if they want people of color to, you know, or young people in particular to believe they're doing a good job, then they can go figure that out. And they should. because it's not going great. So yeah, I hope they decide to, but like, cancel the loans. Yeah, I mean, it's-cancel the loans or do something for the climate. It's really not that hard and do it big.

That's the, they'll be back. Trust. Yeah. I can't blame anybody who is like, I don't feel fired up in any capacity right now for national politics. I was like, I don't either. And I don't blame you. And I don't want to get off on a ramp of like complaining about this. But I feel like anybody paying attention right now at best a little disillusioned, right?

And so I can't blame anybody for being like, I'm not even paying attention. But you're right that that's almost the wrong conversation to be having. The right conversation to be having is perhaps like, oh, do you care about what's happening on your block, on your street, in your neighborhood? That's very different than what's happening at a national level. Yeah, because unfortunately, like my street like literally ends at the capital. So like that is my neighborhood. I am in Washington, D.C. I do not live very far from the Capitol at all. Like, I hear helicopters and I'm like, who's coming home? But like, I'm not fired up. I'm not ready to go. Like, if someone told me, like, I think the last thing I got fired up about was like Kathy Hilton was on the hill. Like that fired me up. And that was like it. I'm just not there. And I'm in the thick of it. And I was a political operative for, you know, what have you. So I can't blame anybody else who's barely civically engaged to care as much when they've got like, there. Like, there's.

There's a lot of issues out here that are, like, impacting people's daily lives. And I hate to sound like a Republican, but inflation's one of them. Like, you have to address these things or speak to them in order for people to stay engaged. Like, but I am throwing, what is it? Like, I'm not doing the hard work. So I can't really go in on it. But I've chosen for this not to be my job. I hope they're going to know. Yeah. I wish anybody who is, that's not my ministry anymore. And I wish those who have adopted that as their ministry, I wish them the best. I wish you the best of luck, especially if you're black and brown. I'm rooting for you.

I hope you get listened to. I hope you get a raise. I hope you get your pay. Like, I hope you get listened to. But otherwise, like, I'm so sorry. I have, it's, again, it's not our ministry. We can just be outside observers and commentators. I hope you get your raise.

And I'll definitely follow and like your, like the account that you're running on the side that's like, dear white stamper. I'll definitely follow it. I live. I check it every day. I like check Kanye and dear white staffer and dear non-profits every morning. I'm like, what happened that I need to know about? Oh, I love it.

And it's just abuse on all counts. That's what I am reading every morning. Abuse, whether it's Kanye or dear white staffers. It's just abuse. Yes. Okay, so I have kind of an sleeper, like, off-the-wall question before you. So we were talking earlier before I was recording about how I had long COVID. And so I spent a lot of time in bed, recovering, catching up on trash TV.

And I rewatched Real Housewives of Potomac. And I remember there is an episode with you in it. Am I right? Yes. I paused it. I called my partner in and I was like, I know her. Tell us to like, this is a real intersection of my two interests, which is like, voter civic engagement and trash reality TV. How did that come to be? Okay, so I'm a huge housewives fan.

I also have a love for just reality trash TV. I love pop culture. It is like my hobby. So I used to teach yoga. I stopped teaching in the pandemic because I like got my like what restored me about it was the human to human contact. But I taught yoga for five years and I taught at a studio that it no longer exists. It makes me so mad or sad. It's called Embrace. And it's taught by this wonderful woman named Faith Hunter. She, I think, teaches on Norda Track. She travels and has pop-up classes in D.C.

If you ever have the opportunity to go to a Faith Hunter class, I highly recommend it. She is just such a wonderful human being and a wonderful boss and, like, love her yoga classes and was so grateful she gave me my first teaching job in D.C. So she got a call from producer saying, hey, they want to shoot a yoga class. this teacher's or this housewife is interested in pursuing yoga. Guys, it wasn't as real as they made it out to be. And I don't get in trouble. But we don't have to get into it. But long story short, she had sent an email to all instructors that were like,

hey, we need people to come to this yoga class that a housewife is going to co-teach with me. Is anyone interested? And let me tell you, there were two days notice. And I was working at Facebook at the time. And I think I had like interviews. I had something important to do. And I texted my boss like immediately and I was like, hey, I need you to cover me for like these hours of whatever.

I have the opportunity to be on Real Housewives of Potomac. And I can't say no. So please don't make me come into work. Like, please do this for me. And my boss was like, the fact that you're even admitting to me that you are trying to skip work to go on a reality television show. Like, I will do it for you. You obviously care so, so much about this. Like totally fine.

I was so excited. I like hit my car on a post going out of my. like parking garage. It was like not the best day for me after it. We were there shooting for, I want to say four hours, four hours. And first off, these women are artists. They are artists at their craft of reality television. I accidentally yelled. Well, I didn't mean to yell, but like the producers don't know about yoga poses and they had us in downward facing dog for like 20 minutes. Okay. Only yoga instructors could hold downward-facing dog on their shoulders. And I finally, like, sat down in the middle of a tag and was like, we need a different pose. I can't do this anymore.

And I got to see how they, like, shoot. And it was incredible. And Giselle and Candice and Ashley are all stunning in person, like just stunning in person. But they refill a lot of stuff, which is why sometimes you'll feel like the scene moves. Yeah. Which is why I was there for four hours for what was it two minutes, two minutes worth of episode. Yes. It's, yeah, it's that. It's so short. And like, I'm in there and I'm just trying not to laugh because I can't remember what

was going on, but I just remember sitting there being like, this is ridiculous. But oh my God, I'm so happy. I'm here. So, yeah, it was like one of the highlights, I think, of the tens for me was getting to film Real Housewives, signing the releases. I knew Candace was a Housewife before anybody because that was her introductory scene. And I was not allowed to talk about the new Housewives. housewife to anyone. Like they like make you sign your life away and sign all these NDAs. Yeah. So I had to like hush,

hush that there was a new housewife. I knew exactly who she was. I knew her business because I listened to like, they do a lot of conversations when they shoot. So I heard a lot about what was going on in everyone's lives and Michael Darby. Like at one point I was like, oh. Yeah, it was fantastic. And I ended up in the the Monique Candice like reunion episode where they go at it. They should. show Candice's first scene and I am in it right behind her. So I'm watching the reunion and I was like, and my dad's like, is that you? Because my dad was watching it with me and he was just like, is that you? I was like, yeah, dad. It was too funny. You're enshrined, forever enshrined in housewives history. I just, I got to make it on another franchise. Like, have me back. I could be a

great friend of, I'm not a housewife by any means. I have no partner, but like I could be great entertainment, Bravo producers. I agree. If there's a Bravo producer listening, make this happen. So since it's almost the midterm election, how can folks get involved with the Voter Information Project? Yes, folks can follow along with what we are doing. We are very active on Twitter. You can find us at Voter Formation.

We're pretty irreverent Twitter handle, I would say, that goes in line with the voice of myself and the org. You can also head over to our website, Voter Formation Project. org. We have a blog where we highlight a lot of work that we may not be doing, but things that folks should know that are happening in the voting rights space, voting access space, and just different things that impact communities that we care about. And then finally, I would say it seems a little backwards, but one of the things that I would really love for folks to do if they want to take their activism, another level outside of donating at the links or whatnot, would be to get involved with a local organization in your town. We very much so believe in the power of people talking to people

in their communities. We very much so want to support organizers that are doing what I call the hand-to-hand combat. And so if you're looking to take it to another level, you don't need to go through us at all. Like, please find an organization in your town or in your state that is doing that work and support them either with volunteering your time or also giving them money. Got a story about an interesting thing in tech or just want to say hi? You can reach us at hello at tangoati.com. You can also find transcripts for today's episode at tangoody.com. There are no girls on the internet was created by me, Bridget Todd. It's a production of IHeart Radio and unbossed creative.

Jonathan Strickland is our executive producer. Tari Harrison is our producer and sound engineer. Michael Amato is our contributing producer. I'm your host, Bridget Todd. If you want to help us grow, rate and review us on Apple Podcasts. For more podcasts from Iheart Radio, check out the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman, help make you funnier. This week, my guest, S&L's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel,

help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast point game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season. and I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was hungry. You just understood.

That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Marquis come in too, he's like, you know I love you, dog. You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. There are times when the mind becomes a difficult place to live.

This is David Eagleman with the Inner Cosmos podcast. And for Mental Health Awareness Month, we'll talk with singer-songwriter Jewel about anxiety. I started living in my car, and then my car got stolen. I was having panic attacks. I was agoraphobic. This is a month of deeply personal and honest conversations about what happens when the brain goes off course.

Listen to Inner Cosmos on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This week on Crimless, Rory and I welcome a very special guest. When I did a podcast, I wear my sleep masks. I like where this is going. So if you guys will indulge me. That's right. The incredibly talented and hilarious Will Ferrell on an episode dedicated to crimes committed by people named Will Ferrell.

You're good for 300 crimes? Yeah. We've got two. I'm ready to go right up to present day. Listen to Crimless on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human