The reality TV that made us

Today, Explained

Vox

Politics, Daily News, News

4.3 • 10.3K Ratings

🗓️ 27 February 2026

⏱️ 30 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

A new documentary about America's Next Top Model has people reckoning with its legacy and the industry that birthed it. This episode was produced by Danielle Hewitt, edited by Amina Al-Sadi, fact-checked by Andrea Lopez-Cruzado, engineered by David Tatasciore and Patrick Boyd, and hosted by Noel King. Supermodel Tyra Banks served as Executive Producer and host of America's Next Top Model. Photo by Hyungwon Ryoo/CBS Photo Archive via Getty Images. Listen to Today, Explained ad-free by becoming a Vox Member: vox.com/members. New Vox members get $20 off their membership right now. Transcript at ⁠vox.com/today-explained-podcast.⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	I think it came out when I was 12.
0:02.6	America's next top model.
0:04.8	Every conscious thought I've had about my body and sexuality and being a girl and how to eat has been guided by this show.
0:13.4	That was on until I was 28.
0:19.5	You went from an impressionable age to like young adult to like fully an adult
0:24.5	and Tyra and the show were there every step of the way.
0:27.5	Yeah, Tyra was with me through puberty and my divorce.
0:30.6	And you can't say that about a lot of people.
0:33.6	A new documentary tries to reckon with the show's toxic legacy.
0:37.9	Do you think that Tyra Banks learned anything, feels anything about all this?
0:42.7	Who cares?
0:43.8	She's like, I don't know, maybe.
0:47.1	Do I think the man on the moon considers his moral obligation to me?
0:52.1	Not really.
0:53.8	The reality TV that made us coming up on Today Explained.
0:59.6	Support for Today Explain comes from Talkiatry.
1:02.6	It's a 100% online psychiatry practice that provides evaluations, diagnoses, and ongoing
1:09.0	medication management for conditions such as ADHD, anxiety, depression,
1:13.3	bipolar, OCD, PTSD, insomnia, so much more.
1:16.9	Talkiatry says it takes just a few minutes to get started.
1:19.9	You complete a short online assessment, get matched with clinicians who fit your needs
1:24.7	and schedule your first visit in days, not in months.
	...

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