Getting Better with Jonathan Van Ness

Brittany Jock a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. Dr. Jock joins Jonathan to discuss her research, which combines epidemiology with social and behavioral science to respond to the obesity and chronic disease inequities experienced by Indigenous Nations and communities. Dr. Jock is on Twitter @Wenniseriiostha. Check out this interactive map of Indigenous lands: https://nat...

Adam Ratner, MD, MPH is the Director of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Hassenfeld Children’s Hospital and New York University School of Medicine. Dr. Ratner and Jonathan sit down to discuss what germs are, how they make us sick, and if Jonathan should be cleaning all public spaces he comes in contact with with bleach wipes. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to...

Singer-songwriter and incredible badass Kim Petras joins Jonathan to talk about her writing process and how her work is reshaping how people are listening to pop music. Follow Kim on Twitter and Instagram @kimpetras. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Ch...

Jonathan does his best not to cry as he is joined by seven time olympic medalist, two-time gold medalist, and absolute icon Shannon Miller. The two discuss Shannon’s journey as a decorated gymnast, her battle with ovarian cancer, and how she is bringing a healthy lifestyle to the masses. You can follow Shannon on Twitter Follow Her on Twitter @shannonmiller96 and find more at https://shannonmiller...

Erin Brockovich is an American legal clerk, consumer advocate, environmental activist who was instrumental in building a case against The Pacific Gas and Electric Company of California. She joins Jonathan to discuss toxic water, environmental advocacy, standing against injustice, and more. Follow Erin on Instagram @the_real_erin_brockovich and Twitter @ErinBrockovich. Find out what today’s guest a...

Phoebe Robinson is a comedian, writer, podcaster, and ½ of Two Dope Queens. She joins Jonathan to breakdown their theories on Game of Thrones, the creation of Two Dope Queens, Phoebe’s early days in New York, the need for non-white and non-male voices in comedy, and more. You can find more at about Phoebe at www.phoeberobinson.com. Follow Her on Twitter and Instagram @dopequeenpheebs. Find out wha...

Playwright, actor, and two-time Tony Award nominee Heidi Schreck joins Jonathan to discuss her play “What the Constitution Means to Me,” in which she breathes new life into our Constitution and imagines how it will shape the next generation of Americans. Heidi is on Twitter @heidibschreck, and you can find out more about her work at constitutionbroadway.com. Find out what today’s guest and former...

Dr. Sara Ruane is a herpetologist and assistant professor at Rutgers University - Newark who joins Jonathan to breakdown all things snakes! She covers their environmental benefits, the differences between constrictors and venomous snakes, and more. Dr. Ruane is on Twitter @sara_and_snakes. Her website is https://sararuane.com/. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following u...

Rayka Zehtabchi is an award-winning Iranian-American film director. Her film Period: End of Sentence won the 2019 Oscar for Documentary Short. Rayka joins Jonathan to talk about the filmmaking process, how the production of Period: End of Sentence came about, connecting with the film’s subjects, her history with directing, and more. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by follow...

Stephanie Schriock is an American political strategist and president of EMILY's List, the nation’s largest organization for women in politics. She joins Jonathan to talk the formation of EMILY’s list, the importance of women in politics, the upcoming census, the 2020 election, and more. Stephanie is on Twitter @shriock1. EMILY's List is on Twitter @emilyslist, on Instagram @emilys_list, and at htt...

David Collins is a three-time Emmy Award winning producer and is the creator and Executive Producer of Queer Eye. He joins Jonathan to talk the inspiration of the original Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, how that lead to the creation of the current iteration, the selection process of the Fab Five, his own relationship with queerness, and more. You can find more at David’s website scoutproductionsi...

Dr. Nina Shapiro is the Director of Pediatric Otolaryngology and a Professor of Head and Neck Surgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. She joins Jonathan to discuss the history and importance of vaccinations, how vaccines work, good science versus bad science, thoughts from her new book, and more. You can find more of Dr. Shapiro’s work at http://drninashapiro.com. Follow her on Twi...

Tammy Baldwin is the Junior US Senator from Wisconsin & was the first openly gay woman to be elected to Congress. She joins Jonathan to talk about her involvement in American politics; being the first openly gay Senator; the power of representation in government; how to have an active role in local, state, federal government; and more. Find Senator Baldwin’s work at https://www.baldwin.senate.gov...

Dr. Stan Tatkin is author of the new book We Do, and he returns to talk with Jonathan about relationships, couples therapy, what goes into forming a functional relationship, the physical effects of a bad relationship, determining happiness, stress, and more. Find Dr. Tatkin’s work at https://stantatkin.com. He’s on Twitter and Facebook @DrStanTatkin and Instagram @StanTatkin. Find out what today’s...

Dr. Caroline Leaf is a cognitive neuroscientist with a PhD in Communication Pathology and a BSc in Logopedics and Audiology, specializing in metacognitive and cognitive neuropsychology. She joins Jonathan to discuss how negative interactions can affect a person, optimism bias and our neurologically need for it, why we remember bad experiences instead of the good ones, and more. You can learn more...

Sally Kohn is a liberal political commentator, writer, community organizer, as well as a contributor to Fox News and CNN. She joins Jonathan to discuss her time being a liberal commentator on Fox News, the current political landscape, interacting with those with opposing political views, past presidential scandals and more. Find Sally Kohn’s website and her new book, The Opposite of Hate, here htt...

Jameela Jamil is an actress, activist, and host who joins Jonathan to talk about a wide array of topics, including how she landed the role of Tahani on The Good Place, the importance of loving yourself, dispelling shame, using her various platforms for good, the struggles marginalized people face, and more. Find Jameela on Instagram @jameelajamilofficial, and on Twitter @jameelajamil Check out the...

Victoria Tsai is the founder & CEO of skin care company Tatcha. She joins Jonathan to talk all things skin; starting a skincare company, how we can take care of our own skin, why it's important too, what skin is for, and more! Find VIctoria’s company Tatcha at https://www.tatcha.com. She’s on Instagram @vickytsai. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram...

Noor Tagouri is a Libyan-American journalist, activist, motivational speaker, producer, and host of the podcast series “Sold in America: Inside Our Nation's Sex Trade.” She sits down with Jonathan to discuss her activism, the realities of Muslim-Americans, the world of sex trafficking, and more. Noor is on Twitter @NTagouri and Instagram @Noor. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up...

Jodi Picoult is an American writer who currently has approximately 14 million copies of her books in print worldwide, translated into 34 languages. She joins Jonathan to talk the process of writing, what goes into being a successful author, tackling tough subjects, and more. Find Jodi’s work at https://www.jodipicoult.com. She’s on Twitter and Instagram @jodipicoult. Find out what today’s guest an...

Beth Porter is Green America’s Climate & Recycling Director, as well as the author of "Reduce, Reuse, Reimagine: Sorting Out the Recycling System." She joins Jonathan to talk all things recycling: what is is, how it works, whether plastic straws are as dangerous we’ve been told, how oil prices affect recycled plastic demands, and more. Beth is on Twitter and Instagram @bethrecycles, and at www.bet...

Anastasia Khoo is Chief Marketing Officer of Conservation International. She has led ground-breaking campaigns around critical moments in America’s history, including the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and the Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage. She joins Jonathan to recap her career working for the Human Rights Campaign, the struggle for LGBTQA rights, the impact climate change...

Bishop Briggs is a British musician and singer-songwriter. She joins Jonathan to discuss how she broke onto the music scene, growing up in Asia, the importance of being an ally & using your voice for good, the need to “keep going” once you’ve become successful, utilizing your platform for good, and more. Find Bishop’s work at https://bishopbriggs.com. She’s on Twitter and Instagram @thatgirlbishop...

Rebecca Givan is an Associate Professor of Labor Studies and Employment Relations at Rutgers University. She joins Jonathan to discuss the ins and outs of trade unions: what they are, how they work, why they’re needed, the benefits and protection they offer members, and much more. Professor Givan is on Twitter @rkgwork, and her website is www.rkgivan.com. Find out what today’s guest and former gue...

Dr. Jessica Rett is an Associate Professor in UCLA's Linguistics Department who joins Jonathan to discuss the power and nuances of words, breaks down the concepts of what "dog whistles" are, code-switching, how words evolve, endangered languages, and more. Find Jessica’s work at http://linguistics.ucla.edu/people/Rett/index.html. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following...