How About A Listen? 'Lean Back' with Lisa Corrigan, Laura Weiderhaft

Lisa Corrigan is shown in this file photo.
Lisa Corrigan is shown in this file photo.

Did you know we have a plethora of funny, educational, captivating and insightful podcasts produced and hosted by the amazing talent in our own Northwest Arkansas? In this series, we'll continue to highlight some of these local offerings, so keep an eye (or an ear) out for something that may tickle your fancy.

'Lean Back'

"Lean Back" started out as a response to the terrible messaging that Sheryl Sandberg's "Lean In" and other supposed "women's empowerment" brands were selling, which was asking women to embrace a white supremacist, sexist, exploitative culture for their own personal gain, its hosts explain. "Lean Back" asserts a critical distance from the popular narratives of success and strategizes new approaches to empowerment -- through inclusive dialogue, intimacy, humor and community building.

Hosted by: Dr. Lisa Corrigan and Laura Weiderhaft

Airs: On all major podcast platforms, and at Leanbackpodcast.com

Q: What kind of gap in reporting or storytelling did you perceive in the world of audio that you wanted your program to fill?

A: With "Lean Back," we wanted to interrogate facets of our culture that are causing mass alienation and perpetuating inequality. We're not telling a story so much as unpacking the cultural framework that makes us powerless and strategizing ways to reclaim and share power. Our podcast is meant to be an accessible conversation that listeners can draw from to challenge the norms that feel oppressive to them and to collaborate with other anti-racist feminists.

Q: Who would be a dream guest for the show, or dream topic to discuss for an upcoming episode?

A: Honestly, what we're most looking forward to is doing a live recording for our friends in Fayetteville as soon as we're on the other side of the pandemic.

Q: What's next?

A: We think that our podcast provides a useful space to think through the cultural shifts that we're seeing with the social and political unrest of the last year. It's obvious that our economy and our systems of justice are massively failing most people, so if we can continue to strategize new models of power, networks of survival, and opportunities for progress, we want to keep sharing that critical work through the podcast.


Send information about your podcast to Jocelyn Murphy at [email protected].

University of Arkansas professor Lisa Corrigan, left, and comedian Laura Weiderhaft bill their podcast “Lean Back” as “critical feminist conversations.” Find the show wherever podcasts are streaming, at Leanbackpodcast.com and on Facebook and Twitter @leanbackpodcacst.

(File Photos)
University of Arkansas professor Lisa Corrigan, left, and comedian Laura Weiderhaft bill their podcast “Lean Back” as “critical feminist conversations.” Find the show wherever podcasts are streaming, at Leanbackpodcast.com and on Facebook and Twitter @leanbackpodcacst. (File Photos)

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