Amanda Marcotte

Amanda Marcotte writes for and manages the blog Pandagon, blogs for Slate’s Double X, and has two books out: “It’s A Jungle Out There: The Feminist Survival Guide to Politically Inhospitable Environments” and “Get Opinionated: A Progressive’s Guide to Finding Your Voice (and Taking a Little Action)”. She’s written about politics, pop culture and feminism for outlets such as Slate, Salon, the LA Times, the Guardian, Bitch, and the American Prospect. A former resident of Texas, she now lives in Brooklyn, NY.

Five Ways to Ensure Scientifically Accurate Reporting on Reproductive Rights

Amanda Marcotte

The BBC was recently told it needs to value scientific accuracy over having "all sides" represented. U.S. media should do the same thing, especially when it comes to debates over reproductive rights.

‘Hobby Lobby’ Is Part of a Greater War on Contraception

Amanda Marcotte

The Hobby Lobby case is not some odd outlier regarding "religious freedom." It's just one of the many ways the anti-choice movement is trying to chip away at women's access to contraception and instill the idea in the public's mind that contraception is controversial.

Treating Teenagers as People: The Debate Over Adolescent Medical Privacy

Amanda Marcotte

A parent's freakout over the possibility that her teenage daughter might talk to a doctor without a parent present is an important reminder that adolescent rights to medical privacy are ill-defined and need to be clarified, to protect teenage health.

Do Women Need to Manipulate Men Sexually to Get Them to Behave? No

Amanda Marcotte

Anti-choice activists and other social conservatives routinely argue that men are dogs whom women need to bring under control, usually by withholding sex in hopes of extracting a wedding ring. But this strategy is completely unnecessary, and there's no evidence it works.

Michigan GOP Members Make Fun of Women by Pretending to Read Fashion Magazines

Amanda Marcotte

Last week, three Michigan Republicans joked in a photo that they "understand" women because they read fashion magazines. But the gag is proof of how deeply they hold women in contempt.

Utah Yearbook Scandal Shows ‘Modesty’ Is a Racket

Amanda Marcotte

A Utah high school made headlines recently by photoshopping some girls' yearbook photos to cover more skin. This story gives insight into the various ways "modesty" is used to police girls, make them insecure, and pit them against each other.

Would It Be Better for the Government to Pay for Everyone’s Contraception? No.

Amanda Marcotte

Rick Santorum recently made remarks suggesting that he'd prefer having everyone's contraception covered by the government instead of by insurance plans. That might seem like a good idea on its surface, but in reality it would reduce access to contraception.

Belligerent Masculine Posturing Is Ruining Our Political Discourse

Amanda Marcotte

As a recent Mother Jones article about gun control shows, men with hang-ups about their own masculinity and women's power are destroying rational political discourse on many issues, most obviously when it comes to reproductive rights.

Anti-Choicers Desperately Insist You See Things That Are Clearly Not There

Amanda Marcotte

What's most fascinating about the reactions to Emily Letts' video of her abortion is the role fantasy plays in criticisms from the right, and what that generally says about the state of debate over abortion in this country—specifically, the fantasy that there’s a “baby” or even a “fetus” involved in an abortion like Letts'.

Hobby Lobby’s Real Agenda: Taking Your Religious Freedom

Amanda Marcotte

The Green family of Oklahoma, who own and operate Hobby Lobby, says they're suing the Department of Health and Human Services over the birth control benefit in the Affordable Care Act because of religious freedom. But their other political activities show that their real agenda is forcing their religious beliefs on you, any way they can.

Amanda Marcotte

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