Babes in Hollyweirdland: Can We Keep Young Performers Safe? (with Stacy Keanan and Christine Lakin)

Babes in Hollyweirdland: Can We Keep Young Performers Safe? (with Stacy Keanan and Christine Lakin)

Author: Tess Barker February 12, 2026 Duration: 1:17:05
Clearly, there will always be a demand for young people on screen. Shows geared toward young audiences have a huge appeal, and they usually feature kids as principal performers. Recent revelations about the conditions on kids shows like “All That” have led to serious concerns by some people over whether it’s ethical to have kids on set at all. Joining Tess to share their own experiences as child stars are Stacy Keanan and Christine Lakin lead actors on the sitcom “Step by Step.”Stacy and Christine are also hosts of the podcast “Keanan and Lakin Give You Deja Vu.” (@keananandlakin)    Follow Pop Mystery Pod on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @popmysterypod  Pop Mystery Pod is written and produced by Tess Barker @tesstifybarker. Produced by Tyler Hill.  Theme song by Rick Wood @Rickw00d. Support independent pop journalism and join us on Patreon at Pop Mystery Pod. Get access to ad free episodes, bonus content, and polls about upcoming topics. patreon.com/PopMysteryPod Follow Tess’s other podcasts Lady to Lady and Toxic: The Britney Spears Story wherever you get your pods.  Make sure to leave us a review! And tell a friend about the show! 

Ever find yourself rewatching an old awards show clip or remembering a bizarre celebrity headline and wondering what really happened behind the scenes? That’s the territory explored in Pop Mystery Pod. Hosted by investigative journalist Tess Barker, this podcast applies a reporter’s rigor to the glittering, often baffling world of pop culture. Barker, whose own deep research and firsthand reporting were instrumental in the #FreeBritney movement, brings that same tenacious curiosity to each story. Rather than just rehashing gossip, she treats these cultural moments like unsolved cases, digging into the archives and seeking out context that was missing when the story first broke. You’ll hear episodes that dissect events everyone talked about but maybe never truly understood, or incidents that seemed to vanish from the headlines a little too quickly. It sits at a compelling intersection of documentary, history, and societal observation, all filtered through the lens of film, TV, and celebrity. The result is a series that feels both like a detective story and a time capsule, revealing how these mysteries shape our collective memory. Tune in for a thoughtful, thoroughly researched deep dive that changes how you see the stories we think we already know.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 86

Pop Mystery Pod
Podcast Episodes
Us Weekly Time Capsule Mini [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 19:25
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The Incarceration of Mimi (with Kara Luiz) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:47
Mariah Carey is, in many ways, a definitive diva. She’s got the pipes, she’s got the style, and the attitude. Behind Mariah’s coy smile and wind blown curls, though, there is a person who has survived extraordinary circu…
Tri Star: The Combs to Spears Connection [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 40:04
In the past few years, two big entertainment stories stand out as exceptionally shocking and horrifying: the wrongful conservatorship of Britney Spears, and the alleged large-scale sex trafficking syndicate of Sean Diddy…
Sex and the Inequity (with MK Paulsen) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:20:18
“Sex and the City,” did more than usher in the ‘golden’ era of HBO. It created characters that endeared themselves to countless viewers with their depth, relatability, and deeply enviable wardrobes. Despite the fact that…
Injustice is Served: The Sean Diddy Combs Verdict [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 38:25
After weeks of disturbing witness testimony, the jury in the Sean Diddy Combs case has delivered a confounding, and frankly insulting verdict. How did we get here? And why?
The Framing of Pee-Wee Herman (with Erin Lampart) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:21:55
It was a place where everyone was welcome: “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse.” This magical fever dream of a show impacted an entire generation of people.
THE Dress (with Jamie Loftus) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:47
Was it white and gold or blue and black? The important thing is, when “The Dress” took over the internet for a glorious week in 2015, the internet was still fun.