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The Allusionist

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A PODCAST ABOUT LANGUAGE
BY HELEN ZALTZMAN

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The Allusionist

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Allusionist 156. Rainbow Washing

June 10, 2022 The Allusionist

From whitewash (the paint) we got whitewashing (the covering up of misdeeds) and from there greenwashing, redwashing, bluewashing, purplewashing, pinkwashing - and now rainbow washing, where companies will put Pride flags all over products and posts during the month of June, but behind the scenes will not necessarily be useful - and sometimes they'll be anti-useful.

Mitra Kaboli, host of the new podcast Welcome to Provincetown, helps sort the real allyship from the rainbow-washing; and writer Sarah Schulman, who popularised the term 'pinkwashing', explains the more political meaning of the word.

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In episodes Tags history, whitewashing, whitewash, greenwashing, pinkwashing, redwashing, purplewashing, rainbow-washing, Pride, Pride flag, rainbows, breast cancer, Mitra Kaboli, Sarah Schulman, LGBTQIA+, commerce, capitalism, corporate, CIA, sandwiches, beer, Stonewall, autotelic, words, language, linguistics, education, comedy, entertainment, society & culture, arts, literature, etymology, lexicon, vocabulary

Allusionist 109. East West

November 13, 2019 The Allusionist
A109 East West logo.jpg

On 9 November 1989, the demolition of the Berlin Wall began. Within a year, Germany was unified. East Germany dissolved and was incorporated into the Federal Republic of Germany, took on its currency and its rules - and its lexicon. What was that vocabulary, and where did it go?

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In episodes Tags words, language, linguistics, education, comedy, entertainment, society & culture, arts, literature, Helen Zaltzman, etymology, lexicon, vocabulary, East Germany, West Germany, Germany, German, FDR, DDR, GDR, muckefuck, coffee substitute, coffee, food, drink, dialect, chicken, Berlin Wall, capitalism, socialism, Valley of the Clueless, regional dialect, regionalisms, politics, political, Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, broadcasting, media, register, code switching, religion, loan words, state, state media, television, radio, God, Russian, translation, plastic bags, plastik, Plaste, rhetoric, official, emotions, self-expression, Mauer, Sapir-Whorf, sociolects, ostalgie, ostalgia, tatpurusha, Esther-Miriam Wagner, Ulrike Hanna Meinhof

Allusionist 26: Xmas Man

December 2, 2015 The Allusionist

Historian Greg Jenner traces the origins of that mythical beardy man who turns up in December with gifts. And I ensure my permanent removal from everybody's Christmas card lists.

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In episodes Tags language, words, etymology, history, Christmas, Xmas, Greg Jenner, Oxford Games, Passion House Coffee Roasters, festive, festivities, Victorians, 19th century, children, romance, messages, code, non-verbal communication, Christmas cards, cards, post, postal reform, Roland Hill, penny post, stamps, postage, winter, St Nicholas, saints, Christianity, paganism, pagans, myth, mythological figures, Dutch, French, Pere Noel, Norse, Odin, Captain Christmas, Jesus, Christ, metaphor, clue, clew, Greek, mythology, myths, Valentine's cards, Valentine, heaven, yule, geol, morality, capitalism, tradition, Britain, England, Santa Claus, Father Christmas, flowers, floriography, Old English, soldiers, British Empire, Kris Kringle, presents, gifts, Frost King, Winter King
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Allusionist 221. Scribe
Allusionist 221. Scribe
Allusionist 220. Disobedience
Allusionist 220. Disobedience
Allusionist 219. Making Trouble
Allusionist 219. Making Trouble
Allusionist 218. Banned Books
Allusionist 218. Banned Books
Allusionist 217. Bread and Roses, and Coffee
Allusionist 217. Bread and Roses, and Coffee
Allusionist 216. Four Letter Words: Terisk
Allusionist 216. Four Letter Words: Terisk
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Allusionist 214. Four Letter Words: Bane Bain Bath
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Allusionist 213. Four Letter Words: Dino
Allusionist 212. Four Letter Words: Park
Allusionist 212. Four Letter Words: Park
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Allusionist 211. Four Letter Words: -gate
Allusionist 210. Four Letter Words: 4x4x4 Quiz
Allusionist 210. Four Letter Words: 4x4x4 Quiz
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The Allusionist by Helen Zaltzman is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.