Episode 1: The Culture Detectives
Following the Clues Behind Body Image, Food & Identity
In the inaugural episode of the Align33 Media Roundtable, host Robyn Shumer is joined by historian and researcher Alice Weinreb, PhD, clinical psychologist Jennifer “Dr. Jen” Nardozzi, PsyD, and eating disorder dietitians Tammy Beasley, RDN, CEDS-C, and Debra Spector, MS, RDN, CDN, for a conversation that asks a deceptively simple question: If eating disorders aren’t simply about food, where do they begin?
Rather than beginning with diagnosis or treatment, the group looks further upstream, examining the cultural messages that shape our relationships with food, bodies, health, achievement, and self-worth long before someone ever meets criteria for an eating disorder. Together, they explore how ideas about beauty, perfectionism, morality, wellness, and “doing health correctly” become embedded in everyday life—and how difficult it can be to recognize those messages when they are presented as normal.
The conversation moves across generations and disciplines, looking at what has changed, what surprisingly hasn’t, and why today’s environment can feel uniquely intense. From the evolution of diet culture into wellness culture to the pressure to optimize our bodies, food choices, productivity, and identities, the panel considers how seemingly harmless messages can contribute to fear, shame, comparison, and disconnection from our own internal cues.
Most importantly, The Culture Detectives invites us to become more curious about the beliefs we have inherited rather than simply accepting them as facts. Which messages about food, weight, beauty, and success deserve to be questioned? Which ones should end with our generation? And what might happen if we replaced them with messages rooted in flexibility, trust, compassion, and a broader understanding of what it means to be healthy?
No debates to win. No PowerPoints. Just five curious people following the clues behind the stories our culture tells us—and asking whether it might be time to write some new ones.
At Align33 Media, we believe in connection and community over content. Each episode brings together 3–4 experts—including clinicians, researchers, authors, and people with lived experience—to explore eating disorders, mental health, body image, belonging, and well-being.
Our inaugural Roundtable features:
✨ Dr. Jennifer Nardozzi, Director of the FAB Program and eating disorder specialist.
✨ Deb Spector, MS, RDN, CDN, eating disorder dietitian and author of The Things I’ve Seen People Do With and Without Food. Available on Amazon
@debraspectormsrdncdn
✨ Dr. Alice Weinreb, Associate Professor at Loyola University Chicago whose research explores the global history of eating disorders and author of the forthcoming *Troubled Appetites*.
✨ Tammy Beasley, MS, RDN, CEDS-C, nationally recognized eating disorder dietitian, educator, author and National Director of Nutrition for Odyssey Eating Disorder Network. @tambeasrd
Hosted by @robyn_shumer Align33 Media’s Executive Producer of Storytelling & Podcasts and author of Bones: An, Anxiety and My Path to Self-Love
and produced by @mooreafriedmann TEDx speaker and host of @balancingact.podcast
These aren’t interviews—they’re real conversations designed to bring people together, challenge perspectives, and create meaningful change.
🗓️ The first episode premieres August 18. Pull up a chair—we saved you a seat.
Support our table:
Robyn’s book: https://a.co/d/0ejXX3uc
Moorea’s Podcast:
Alice’s Book: https://a.co/d/05SKKEjm
Deb’s Book: https://a.co/d/034x0720
Dr. Jen:
https://fabprogram.com
Tammy:
https://tammybeasley.com
If this conversation made you think, laugh, question something you’ve been told since approximately 1997, or yell “YES, EXACTLY” at your screen, consider supporting Align33 Media.
We are a nonprofit, which is the professional way of saying we have very big ideas and are always thrilled when someone helps us pay for them. Your donation helps us continue creating conversations, educational programming, workshops, documentaries, and resources designed to change the way we talk about eating disorders, body image, and mental health.
Interested in sponsoring an episode, partnering with Align33 Media, or supporting our work in a bigger way? We’d love to hear from you.
Because changing culture is a group project—and unfortunately, nobody gave us the answer key.
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