On this minicast, Matt talks to one of our listeners about how terms of abuse are used to dehumanize certain segments of society.

There are many ways people refer to the human penis, but one word sticks out as the most vulgar. Join us as we learn about the other c-word, its complicated origins, and why it doesn’t mean the same thing to all people.
With guests:
​Mark Morton, Emily Feuerherm, and Ben Westhoff

Matt talks to Superhero PhD, Peter Coogan about why Superman is a d*ck and a Batman is an a-hole. 

​In this episode, Matt tries to find out if a study saying that swearing has "opiate" like effect on pain is actually true. He calls in journalist Jeff Harder, doctoral Northwestern student, Jim Kloet and pain psychologist Dr. Samantha Rafie to help him figure it out. Plus, he first gets some help from Helen Zaltzmen of The Allusionist to explain a little more about the brain and pain.

In this Minicast, Matt goes to a Karate Dojo to chase a story about swearing and pain.

Is the B-Word the “most stinging word that we use carelessly”? To explore this, the word’s history, and other questions regarding this common expletive, we talk to Shannon Dea, associate professor in philosophy and women’s studies at the University of Waterloo and BitchMedia co-founder, Andi Zeisler. ​

In this Minicast, Matt briefly chats with Shannon Dea about who gets to reclaim words like "slut" and the B-word.

Matt is back after a break with a bunch of new topics around swearing and taboo language. In this Minicast, he lets you all know a little about what he has coming up for Very Bad Words.

Matt tells a story about his foul-mouthed Irish friend and wonders what you would like to get out of the new season of Very Bad Words.

Matt is joined by Dan Savage, creator of "It Gets Better" and Savage Love to talk about the cultural impact and reclamation of the Fa-word. He also talks with Mark Morton, author of Dirty Words: The Story of Sex Talk, to discuss the origins of the actual word. ​