PODCAST · arts
Tertiary
by Heaven-Leigh and Justin
Neither your primary nor secondary source for news, culture, and critical thinking: Meet Tertiary, a podcast from two people you’ve never heard of—Heaven-Leigh and Justin—who went to grad school together and can’t shake the feeling that talking it out is better than doomscrolling. Join us every other week to laugh, cry, and digest whatever we’re watching, reading, and thinking about. No degree necessary.
Episodes
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EP16: Kazuo Ishiguro, Stories, Connections
In his 2017 acceptance speech for the Nobel Prize in literature, Kazuo Ishiguro said that stories “communicate feelings, that they appeal to what we share as human beings across our borders and divides.” We started this podcast because we believe sharing stories, making deep connections, and...
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EP15: The Emmys, “Does TV Suck,” Walter Benjamin
The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards have come and gone, but we’re still glued to our TVs—“binge watching” is a year-round affair, after all. For this week’s podcast, your favorite Tertiary hosts Heaven-Leigh and Justin respond to Emily Kirkpatrick’s recent Substack, “Does TV Actually Suck Now?”…
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EP14: Anthony Bourdain, Travel, Open-mindedness
Is “travel” a requirement on the road to being a well-rounded, empathetic person? And if so, is there a correct way to travel? This week, your Tertiary hosts, Heaven-Leigh and Justin, take inspiration from the late, great Anthony Bourdain to discuss the ways travel and new experiences can change...
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EP13: Fan Fiction, Fandom, Genre Politics
Whether you’re a fan of “Fan Fiction” or not, the underground subgenre is making waves in the literary and entertainment industries—and we at Tertiary are paying attention. For this week’s episode, we examine fan fiction on several levels, including the ways literary norms reify gender bias and...
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EP12: “The Odyssey,” Translation, Film Criticism
What happens when a classicist, novelist, and pundit enter a bar? (ha ha) Bad jokes aside, we are living through a *moment* in popular culture, fraught with man-splaining, flooded with click-bait nonsense, and—most worryingly—oozing sexism, racism, and transphobia. Who better to guide you through…
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SQ3: “Obsession,” Incel Horror, Consent/Obsession
Ever get out of a movie and wish you could sit down with your closest, smartest friends and yap about it? Well, Movie Clubbers, that’s the gist of this very special Sidequest. In the heart of a heatwave, we brought our mics all the way to the movie theatre parking lot, just for you. But we aren’t...
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EP11: Søren Kierkegaard‘s “Either/Or,” Existentialism, The Meaning of Life
What does it mean to lead a good life? What does it mean to be a good person? We can all agree the universe doesn’t tend to offer clean answers to these kinds of questions—but your favorite Tertiary hosts, Heaven-Leigh and Justin, decided to tackle them anyway. The trouble, of course, is that a...
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EP10: Tom Nichols’ “Death of Expertise,” Healthy Skepticism, Sex on TV
You’ve been lied to. We all have, in one way or another. In this episode, your Tertiary hosts Heaven-Leigh and Justin discuss how to create a healthy relationship with skepticism, when (and when not) to “trust the experts,” and why it matters that we consume information with a grain of salt. This...
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EP9: Social Isolation and Therapy with Shelby Rubino, PsyD
Shelby Rubino is a person too. Sure, she just finished her doctorate in Clinical Psychology—and yeah, she recently published a peer-reviewed study in Integrative and Complementary Medicine observing the adverse effects of social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic—but she also binge watches…
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EP8: Artificial Intelligence, Art, the Protestant Work Ethic
Listen, listeners—you spoke, and we listened. For today’s episode, Tertiary hosts Heaven-Leigh and Justin dive head first into our first-ever listener question: “ What do you think it will take for art-based platforms to regulate/condemn AI ‘art’ over profit?” For a topic as gargantuan as...
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EP7: “The Man in the High Castle,” Technofascism, Progressivism
The rightwing techno-elites are trying to hijack your dreams—and the only way to stop them is to listen to Tertiary’s latest episode! In a spiritual successor to our series on “Speculative Creatures,” your hosts Heaven-Leigh and Justin picked up where EP6: Eugenics, Fatalism, “The Last Messiah”...
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SQ2: “Acrosanti,” Arcology, Communism
“The city is the necessary instrument for the evolution of humankind.” —Paolo Soleri You’ve heard of architecture, you’ve heard of ecology … but what happens when you smoosh those words together? You get “arcology,” a concept coined by Italian-American architect Paolo Soleri, out of which…
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EP6: Eugenics, Fatalism, “The Last Messiah”
There is a sense of despair in the air, driven by war, genocide, fascism, climate change, and so on. As tempting as it may be to throw up your hands, the real question is: How does resignation actually serve us? What should we be doing instead? This week, your Tertiary hosts tackle issues ranging...
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EP5: Intersectionality, Privilege, Identity
Identity politics are more contentious, today, than ever. As the cultural tug-o-war wages on, your Tertiary hosts Heaven-Leigh and Justin take a step back to examine the ways race, gender, and sex politics overlap and interact. Leaning on Kimberlé Crenshaw’s pivotal text defining...
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EP4: Adoption, Utopia, the Welfare State
In one of Tertiary’s rowdiest episodes yet, co-hosts Heaven-Leigh and Justin explore the politics of the American family unit—namely, the complicated culture of adoption in the United States. Beginning with Heaven-Leigh’s personal experience as an adoptee, we touch on everything from America’s…
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EP3: Ursula K Le Guin, Science Fiction, the End of the World
It’s dreary out there, folks. Not just because Punxsutawney Phil cursed us with six more weeks of winter, either—the world has become a particularly dark place over the past few weeks. With that in mind, this week Tertiary hosts Heaven-Leigh and Justin crack a window to let in a little fresh air...
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EP2: “Wake Up Dead Man,” William James, Religion
You just know a podcast is going to be good when it begins with the words: “I’ve been thinking about God, lately.” This week, Tertiary co-hosts Heaven-Leigh and Justin discuss the latest installment in Rian Johnson’s “Knives Out” series of films, Wake Up Dead Man (2025). Along the way, they break...
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SQ1: Dumbledore v. Gandalf, Cancel Culture, Nostalgia
I know what you’re thinking: Tertiary posts new episodes on Tuesdays, right? Well, our first episode (“Decolonization is Not a Metaphor”) sparked so much debate, we decided to introduce an entirely new series to respond to listener feedback, circle back to particularly hot topics, and reserve for...
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EP1: ”Decolonization is not a Metaphor,” Theory, Action
What does it look like to put your money where your mouth is? Beyond voting, protesting, and donating to grassroots movements, what can people TODAY do to help solve the problems they see in the world? This week, Tertiary hosts Heaven-Leigh and Justin break down the shortcomings of left wing...
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TRAILER
Get to know your hosts, Heaven-Leigh and Justin, and the inner workings of their brains through a quick Q&A session. What starts with covering the who, what, when, where and why behind Tertiary concludes with imagining life as Patient Zero in the apocalypse and creating solutions for all the...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Neither your primary nor secondary source for news, culture, and critical thinking: Meet Tertiary, a podcast from two people you’ve never heard of—Heaven-Leigh and Justin—who went to grad school together and can’t shake the feeling that talking it out is better than doomscrolling.
Join us every other week to laugh, cry, and digest whatever we’re watching, reading, and thinking about. No degree necessary.
HOSTED BY
Heaven-Leigh and Justin
CATEGORIES
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Tertiary have?
Tertiary currently has 20 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Tertiary about?
Neither your primary nor secondary source for news, culture, and critical thinking: Meet Tertiary, a podcast from two people you’ve never heard of—Heaven-Leigh and Justin—who went to grad school together and can’t shake the feeling that talking it out is better than doomscrolling. Join us every...
How often does Tertiary release new episodes?
Tertiary has 20 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to Tertiary?
You can listen to Tertiary on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Tertiary?
Tertiary is created and hosted by Heaven-Leigh and Justin.
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