Infamous

“It” couple Chris and Tory Burch launch a wildly successful clothing company that reflects Tory’s signature boho-preppy style. When Oprah catches wind of the stylish but sensible clothing line, Tory quickly becomes one of the biggest fashion designers of her generation. Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Infamous: Retail Revenge ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As some students hear back from colleges this spring, Vanessa and Natalie dig deeper into the admissions hysteria, obsession, and scandal. The Varsity Blues case might have cracked open an illegal underworld of corrupt deals—but there are plenty of perfectly legal ways privileged parents bend the system to their will. Think test prep, tutors, and college coaches who charge hundreds of thousands of dollars to text kids reminding them to turn in their math homework. Today, Vanessa talks to Sarah Bernstein, playwright, college essay writing coach, and author of the New York Times story, “Elite College Admissions Have Turned Students Into Brands.” Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 2019, a case called Varsity Blues cracked open college admissions, revealing a nexus of corrupt athletic coaches and celebrity parents willing to spend hundreds of thousands to guarantee their children spots at top schools. At the center of the scandal was a shady, smooth-talking con-artist named Rick Singer, primed to take advantage of parents’ insecurities, fears, and ambitions for their children. In this episode, Vanessa talks with Eric Rosen, the prosecutor in the Varsity Blues case, about the juicy details—from finding Singer to wire tapping his phone—and reflects on what this case tells us about U.S. colleges and the admissions process today. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the 90s, you couldn’t escape rapper and record executive Sean Love Combs (aka Puff Daddy or P. Diddy) and his hit songs like “It's All About the Benjamins.” Now Combs is back in the spotlight, but for far darker reasons: a series of sex trafficking and abuse claims. This week, we’re delving into Combs’s decades-long relationship with the late Kim Porter, a model, singer, and actress. Vanessa speaks to Porter’s close friend, who remembers the couple’s fraught dynamic and what she says were warning signs of Combs’s alleged controlling, vindictive, and erratic behavior. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

While Natalie and Vanessa were researching Meghan Markle, another royal scandal took over the internet. Kate Middleton disappeared from public view, unleashing a flood of speculation and conspiracy theories, only to reappear with the shocking and emotional revelation that she has a cancer diagnosis. Natalie and Vanessa chat with Anna Pasternak, a fantastic biographer who profiled the Duchess of Cambridge in a controversial Tatler piece, and look at the complex relationship between the press and the monarchy in Great Britain. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The only family that might be messier than Megan Markle’s? Her husband’s. This week, we’re diving into the royals, and how the firm’s staid, slow, and highly invasive rules clashed with Meghan’s swift, go-getter, Hollywood style. Plus, we’ll tell you about the time Meghan promised to do the calligraphy for journalist Justine Harman's wedding invitations. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With Kate Middleton's "disappearance" in the headlines, we investigate another Princess who absconded: Meghan Markle. But the real question is, who is Meghan? Is she a fearless advocate speaking out against an antiquated institution? Or an opportunist obsessed with managing her public image? Or…both? This week, we’re investigating Meghan’s complicated, layered family drama, from public conflict with her half-sister Samantha to her dad’s staged paparazzi photos. Vanessa gives us the inside scoop based on her reporting on Meghan for Vanity Fair and The Cut. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How did Lindsay Lohan go from starring alongside Meryl Streep and Jamie Lee Curtis to doing court-ordered community service at the LA county morgue? Vanessa and Natalie are joined by journalists Evgenia Peretz and  Brennan Kilbane, and photographer Jill Ishkanian, to trace Lindsay’s rise, fall, and the cycle of screwups and comeback attempts she’s been on ever since. Could a Lohanaissaince finally be upon us? Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Before Harvey Weinstein’s serious crimes were exposed to the public, he was simply known for being a successful — and notoriously volatile — film producer. When journalist Andrew Goldman attends the same ritzy event as Harvey, an altercation turns into a full-on fistfight. In his hilarious telling of the unbelievable true story, Goldman reflects on the disturbing ways powerful people have wielded control over the media. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In an age where we’re all defined by our digital presence, social media savvy can be a kind of superpower. This week, Vanessa interviews Caroline Calloway, the scammer sensation who spent her pandemic trying to bounce back from a viral article that convinced the world she was a hack. (But maybe also made her famous?) Vanessa also introduces us to Peter Bogner, who was in a lengthy back and forth with reporters over issues with a Covid database. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the last decade, the “Iceman” Wim Hof has become a household name. Orlando Bloom to Oprah Winfrey have practiced his method, which includes daily cold plunges and hyperventilation breath work. But despite intense success, could Wim Hof be responsible for encouraging practices known to be dangerous — and even deadly? In this episode, Vanessa interviews investigative journalist Scott Carney, who has been looking into deaths related to Wim’s method. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Whether it’s being eroded by fast fashion, climate change or TikTok microtrends, the empire Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour presides over is dwindling. But where will Anna – and fashion – go next? We talk to veteran fashion journalist and Anna Wintour biographer Amy Odell about Wintour’s finsta, the time she was considered for an ambassadorship, and what she really thought of The Devil Wears Prada. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How is technology shifting how we think about sex? Can our virtual lives shape sex IRL? To explore these questions, Vanessa travels back to the 90s, recalling the week she spent at the very first cam girl house. Then she investigates the origins of chatroom sex and an early incident of harassment in cyberspace. Finally, she takes a look at the next chapter of sex online—from virtual boyfriends to dirty-talking ChatGPT clones. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

E. L. James, author of the Fifty Shades of Grey novels, steps into the shoes of her domineering protagonist when she is given an unprecedented level of control over her series’ movie adaptations. Would-be Fifty Shades screenwriter Bret Easton Ellis (American Psycho) weighs in on the behind-the-scenes drama.  Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You probably know Tina Fey’s iconic camp masterpiece, Mean Girls—but do you know the real-life story behind the screenplay? In this episode, Vanessa and Natalie talk to Zoe Nightingale, the original Regina George, about high school. They also talk to Zoe’s sister, Rosalind Wiseman, a sociologist who wrote Queen Bees and Wannabees, the deeply-researched sociological tome that inspired the movie. Listen to You're Welcome w/ Zoe Nightingale here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/youre-welcome-w-zoe-nightingale/id886045028 Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After breaking into celebrity homes and stealing millions of dollars in cash and luxury goods, a group of teenagers becomes famous themselves as the Bling Ring.  In this episode, Vanessa interviews Allen Salkin, one of the first reporters to cover the group. Vanessa, Natalie, and Allen dissect parasocial relationships, the psychology behind theft, and what it’s like to live in a place like Calabasas, where celebrity culture and excessive wealth is so close you can almost touch it…almost. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For the final episode on Taylor Swift, Vanessa and Natalie get caught up on what's going on in Taylor's life today. We'll hear about the epic battle between the Gaylors and the Hetlors, and how Taylor's relationship with football star Travis Kelce has brought Americans together. We'll also talk to the journalist who visited Taylor's favorite New York restaurants and hounded the waitstaff for details about the pop queen’s dining escapades. Featuring Larrison Campbell, Nicole Boyce, and Rachel Handler. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Taylor reemerges after the Kanye incident with her hard-hitting album Reputation. The reception is mixed, but Taylor’s made a big statement: she’s not just a little girl anymore. Vanessa, Natalie, and Rolling Stone senior writer Brittany Spanos take a close look at Taylor’s redemption arc. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After Vanessa finished writing about Taylor in 2009, Natalie would start following Taylor’s career while working at Forbes, and would discover not only a talented artist, but a savvy businesswoman. Brittany Spanos, senior writer at Rolling Stone, joins the conversation to talk about the various feuds Taylor has had — including Kanye’s infamous VMA interruption and her artistic differences with Scott Borchetta. As the once bullied middle school girl immortalizes each fight and breakup in chart-topping songs, has Taylor gone from bullied to bully? Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Believe it or not, there was a time when Taylor Swift wasn’t the most famous person on the planet. She was just an up-and-coming country prodigy thrilled to land a cameo on her favorite TV show. During this time, Vanessa spent hours with her, in multiple cities, even on the set of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. Listen to the never-before-heard recordings of their time together as Vanessa and Natalie look back on the early days of Taylor’s epic career. Click ‘Subscribe’ at the top of the Infamous show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts. A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices