Reagan Conrad

I love a good true crime documentary as much as anyone, but lately I've been asking myself if our obsession has gone too far. From binge-watching murder documentaries to treating real cases like entertainment, I wanted to take a deeper look at how true crime may be shaping the way we think, feel, and respond to real-world violence.

Americans are obsessed with true crime. “Crime Junkie” is still one of the biggest podcasts in the world. The Idaho murders documentary just hit number one on Netflix.When I was growing up, true crime was my favorite genre. I would sit inside with my friends on hot summer days to watch the latest episodes of “SVU” and all things Olivia Benson. I’d be embarrassed to count up how many hours of my life I spent listening to true crime podcasts. Name one, and I’ve probably spent 10 hours of my life learning all about it.But if you pause and think about it, the idea of saying, “I love true crime,” is actually bizarre. The real world is heavy enough without going out of our way to seek out even more darkness just for the sake of entertainment. Just a scroll through TikTok and I will see stories of girls talking about how someone stalked them or questioning if a weird encounter they had was a sign of human trafficking. Flip on local news, and the top stories will be last night’s shooting. After listening to true crime podcasts and books almost daily during my early twenties, the concept of what I was really consuming dawned on me. How much is this affecting my health and how I see the world?Considering the TV true crime demographic is 80% female, I know I’m far from the only one facing this dilemma. Psychology Today cites women’s need for understanding the murderers’ motives as a means of making them less scary, as a reason for our morbid curiosity. Experts also say we want to be more aware and informed if we are ever to find ourselves in a similar situation. It makes sense. Often, the girls who get out of bizarre scenarios cite their true crime obsession as a lifesaving tool.The education component is indeed a useful tool for an otherwise senseless matter. I think some shows glamorize and monetize other people’s suffering for the sake of entertainment, while there are better options that seek to educate and inform rather than harp on every gory detail of a crime.My biggest concern with our undying love for dark subject matter is how it seems to desensitize humans to real-life suffering and evil. It reminds me of the way people attribute video games to desensitization. Whats worse about true crime is it’s true crime. Real people’s lives.Mix in our obsession with the internet’s need to comment on every single detail, and a crime will quickly turn into everyone’s next conspiracy theory on TikTok. Every viewer now needs to become the entertainer: sharing her insights into the possible perpetrators of the crime even when there is no evidence to suggest it.Take the Idaho murder case, four students slain in their off-campus house. The now infamous house was also home to two young women who survived the horrors. Within hours of the details reaching social media, the innocent roommates became prime suspects in the eyes of TikTok sleuths. No decorum or empathy displayed toward real survivors of a real horror. In reporting on real-life evil, we partake in downright evil gossip ourselves.The online activity around Charlie Kirk’s assassination follow eerily similar patterns as well. Just because the salacious content scratches the itch of a generation obsessed with true crime, that doesn’t make the content right, morally or factually.When I took a step back from the true crime gossip, a striking question filled the void. Isn’t there anything better you can fill your brain with? The answer, of course, was yes. You become what you consume. If I’m consuming darkness, how do I plan to shine the light?Now I ask myself, is this just gossip and gore? If so, I steer clear. And so far, the switch-up has done wonders for my health, the way I view the world, and the way I can still operate joyfully within it.***This article is part of Upstream, The Daily Wire’s new home for culture and lifestyle. Real human insight and human stories — from our featured writers to you.

The Savannah Bananas have exploded onto the scene with their eclectic and non stop entertainment style of baseball known as Banana Ball. You’ve probably seen them all over social media. After wanting to get to a Bananaball game for YEARS, I finally made it inside the most exciting, chaotic and captivating ball parks in the country by going behind the scenes. Come with me as we dive into the Banana Ball phenomenon.

One of the craziest plays in sports history happened last week. Robert Anthony Cruz caught a fly ball in the outfield mid-backflip. Yep, mid-backflip. Now, why would a baseball player be doing a backflip while a ball was flying toward him? Well, he plays Banana Ball.For those not immediately familiar with the term, Banana Ball is a new version of baseball created by the Savannah Bananas. The founder of the Bananas, Jesse Cole, owned a collegiate summer baseball team back in 2016. The team was struggling to get people into the seats of its small Savannah ballpark.Cole, a former college baseball player, decided that if he wanted people to come to the game, he had to make the in-person experience more compelling. So he started incorporating skits and additional games into the game itself. He encouraged players to attempt trick plays whenever possible. He had pitchers lead full-fledged dance routines from the mound.The ballpark in Savannah was no longer empty. There were no seats left to fill. Soon, the team had evolved so much that it needed to form an entirely new league around this style of baseball. And Banana Ball was born.Then the pandemic hit, and another challenge began. So the teams took their dances and skits online, posting them all over TikTok. And the team exploded again.Today, the league has multiple teams that play against the Bananas, including the Party Animals, the Firefighters, and the Texas Tailgaters. They play in some of the largest MLB and NFL stadiums in the country. And those games sell out, too. To get your hands on a ticket, the waitlist has grown to more than four million people. I would know. I joined it a few years ago.I’ve been following the team’s journey for several years, and a few months ago, I finally got to experience Banana Ball for myself — including getting a behind-the-scenes look at how the whole thing operates.And the entire operation is every bit as elaborate and well-oiled as I expected.Cole reminds me of the modern-day P.T. Barnum. He has created a circus-like sport that blends genuine baseball talent with nonstop entertainment. He’s turned his players into influencer-athletes and, perhaps most impressively, figured out the secret formula to going viral.But I went into this thinking the entire operation was ultimately about racking up views on social media. I realized I was wrong. The end goal isn’t internet fame. It’s getting those fans off their phones and into the stands. One billion fans, to be exact.To do that, Cole has built the entire game around a fan-first mentality. He has customized virtually every part of the experience around what he thinks people actually want from a night at the ballpark. It feels like the exact experience you would want as a kid going to your first big game.From the moment you walk in and get to meet your favorite players on the field, to the music, the pace of the game, the nonstop entertainment, and even the relatively affordable tickets, Cole has taken the elements he loves about baseball and transformed them into an entirely new kind of entertainment.Of course, not everyone loves it. Some fans of traditional MLB are skeptical of the whole thing. And fair enough. But Banana Ball is a very different kind of game. It’s built for an era where attention spans are shorter, and entertainment is competing with the entire internet for your attention. But I think Banana Ball belongs in a slightly different category than Major League Baseball. It’s closer to Cirque du Soleil or the Harlem Globetrotters — an entertainment experience built around an existing sport. And even though the rules and delivery are completely different, Banana Ball is doing something interesting: It’s giving an old game new attention from a younger generation.Kids are picking up baseball bats because they fell in love with Banana Ball. And when viral content actually translates into kids playing the sport in real life, that’s a win.Sometimes, I find myself feeling pretty jaded about internet virality. So much of what goes viral can feel disingenuous, irrelevant, or completely unworthy of the attention it receives. Refreshingly, Banana Ball feels different. The end goal isn’t the number on a phone screen. It’s the number of humans in the seats. Tens of thousands of people are sitting next to strangers, laughing, singing Coldplay, and experiencing something together.In a culture where so much of our entertainment is consumed alone, through a screen, we need more of those moments, the kind that get people out of their houses and into the same place, cheering for something together. So when the Bananas come back to my city, you’ll know where to find me.***This article is part of Upstream, The Daily Wire’s new home for culture and lifestyle. Real human insight and human stories — from our featured writers to you.

McKenna West was hired as a surrogate to carry a couple’s baby into the world. Halfway through the pregnancy, the couple decided they wanted McKenna to abort their baby boy. She refused. A fight ensued. The story felt too dystopian to be true, but it is. I decided to deep dive to learn the full story in today’s episode.

Many of you have heard the story of McKenna West. She is the surrogate mother who recently fought against the biological parents of the baby she was carrying in order to save his life. After discovering a heart condition at her 20-week ultrasound, the biological parents demanded an abortion. West refused. A literal fight for the baby’s life ensued. By the grace of God, West was successful. The baby she fought to carry to term has since been born alive and is receiving the care he needs.There is one detail to this story, though, that didn’t make the headlines. It’s a seemingly small detail, but it stopped me in my tracks. And it’s quite likely one of the biggest reasons why baby Gabriel is here today: the quiet but profound actions of West’s brother.In an interview with Live Action, West shared that after learning of the parents’ request to terminate the pregnancy, she felt overwhelmed. She knew she had signed a contract that included a termination clause. She was also a single mother in a difficult financial situation. She believed she had no choice but to follow the wishes of the baby’s biological parents.That is, until she received a call from her brother. He knew she had been struggling with the decision to abort. He knew she did not believe it was right. And he didn’t believe it was right either. Without any biological connection to the baby in his sister’s womb, he offered to adopt the child. If that gave her a way out, he was willing to step up and raise a stranger’s baby as his own.It was at that point in her retelling of the story that I got chills. He set one of the most beautiful and sacrificial examples of what it means to be truly pro-life. It was not just a slogan on social media or a “babies’ lives matter” sign at a march. Her brother embodied the cause by living it out.He knew baby Gabriel’s life had value, and he was willing to do whatever he could to protect it. And in that circumstance, he found something he could physically do to save the baby’s life.As of now, baby Gabriel is in the custody of his biological parents, not West’s family. But that offer from her brother gave West the courage and confidence to keep fighting and to find a way to save the baby.The actions of West’s brother should be a lesson for all of us. If we believe in a mission or a cause that is bigger than ourselves, sometimes living that mission means taking action that costs us something. Sometimes it means getting involved in someone else’s crisis and being willing to carry a burden that is not ours.His selflessness helped save a life, and it convicted me. What am I doing locally for moms who find themselves unexpectedly expecting? What am I doing for the woman who is scared after receiving a fetal diagnosis in an already fragile moment of her life? There are pregnancy centers in cities across the country that need help. They need volunteers. They need donations. They need people willing to show up and serve. They operate in a mission field that never stops, much like the role of parenthood itself.We can learn a lesson from the actions of West’s brother and become the hands and feet of this mission. There is perhaps no stronger way to encourage the pro-life movement than to actively support not only the cause, but also the mother carrying the burden. Be the village these mothers need. Be willing to live out the pro-life message when the moment arrives.***This article is part of Upstream, The Daily Wire’s new home for culture and lifestyle. Real human insight and human stories — from our featured writers to you.

Lindsay Clancy murdered her three precious children before jumping out of a bedroom window. Her husband found the horrific scene. She claims she was suffering from Postpartum psychosis, but does not dispute the fact that her children died at her own hands. While Lindsay doesn’t dispute that, the internet does. A TikTok mob is swirling around this heinous crime and the support for the murderer is astounding. Let’s unpack this phenomenon, and why it’s so dangerous when justice lies in the balance.

My generation is obsessed with lattes. It’s a cultural phenomenon I find myself apart of so I thought it would be fun and try to understand why the "fun drink" business is booming.

Every generation has had its vice. Boomers had cigarettes. Gen X had Diet Coke. Millennials and Gen Z? We have lattes.Somewhere along the way, coffee became a personality trait. It used to be free at restaurants. Now we happily spend $8 for lattes while simultaneously complaining about the cost of living and food.If coffee were just coffee, this phenomenon wouldn’t quite make sense. But coffee stopped being just coffee a long time ago. A simple cup of espresso and milk has become a cultural institution. So what does that say about our culture at large?In 2025, the U.S. had 45,000 coffee shops, with the number of shops increasing by roughly 6% over the previous year. The coffee industry is up $10 billion from pre-pandemic levels. In Nashville alone, there are nearly 400 spots to grab a fun drink.Why this coffee explosion? Well, on the surface, the simple answer is the sugar or the caffeine combo. It’s highly addictive as we all know, and feel, if we don’t have our morning coffee. But needing a coffee has already been a norm since, well, the 15th century Yemen Muslims.But back then, coffee was a nighttime drink. They used it to stay awake during long nighttime prayers, rather than as a morning necessity. During the 16th and 17th centuries, it spread throughout the Ottoman Empire as coffeehouses began to appear. It slowly turned into a daytime activity.By the 17th century, when coffee reached Europe, it started replacing existing breakfast beverages of beer, ale, and wine. Thankfully, Europeans upgraded from a people fueled on booze to one fueled on caffeine.Some historians argue that the rise of coffee houses across Europe contributed to the Enlightenment period. Writers, scientists, and politicians could gather to discuss ideas over coffee rather than alcohol. It’s a good thing that the brilliant minds of the day were not muddling their thoughts with liquor.But it wasn’t until the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century that the idea of morning coffee came into play. Suddenly, millions of workers now needed to wake up at the same time every day. By the 20th century, advertising secured the idea that no breakfast was complete without a cup of coffee. Today, the classic Folgers theme song is ingrained in our minds. The 21st century has taken the popularity of the drink and run with it. Not a coffee person? No problem. There are a million other “fun drinks” to get addicted to instead. Caffeine is only one factor. Some of my favorite drinks have little to none in them. Nor do I feel the effects. It’s purely for the fun of it. The coffee run itself has become a lifestyle. As one example, New York magazine reported earlier this year on how “a caffeine-laced strawberry-açai drink became the allowance-draining status symbol of New York’s teen elite.”There are three waves of the modern-day coffee movement. The first wave resulted in coffee becoming a convenient household staple. The second wave found places such as Starbucks and Dunkin’ popularizing coffee drinks and café culture, as well as social media demanding consumers post their daily latte art. Coffee went from being something you consumed to something you displayed. The latte evolved into a status symbol or personality trait. With wave three of the coffee movement, coffee has become an artisanal product. Although the price for admission keeps getting higher, many are treating the product with much more value. Someone with espresso knowledge is the new sommelier. In some respects, the fast food classics are now looked down upon as consumers favor more specialized coffee shops. With the local shops that prize themselves on sourcing the beans, the right machine, the right tools, it’s become an art form.It’s this generation’s form of an adult “treat.” It’s inexpensive enough that it doesn’t feel irresponsible but indulgent enough to feel like a reward. But coffee isn’t necessarily what people are paying for at a shop; it serves as an admission fee for a seat inside.As the world grows more virtual, the traditional hangout spaces seem to be dwindling away. The sociologist Ray Oldenburg coined the term “third place” in his 1989 book “The Great Good Place.” He argued we spend our lives in three places: home, work (or school), and, third, somewhere we gather simply because we want to.Historically, those were places such as the mall, church, community center, local diner, or park. You didn’t need to spend much or any money to attend. Their role in society was more interactive and community-focused. For many people, coffee shops serve as the third space we all still need and crave. Whether it’s to meet a friend or go on a first date, the abundance of coffee shops answers the question of what to do or where to go. Of course, spending too much time at a coffee shop can get pricey. But I don’t think young adults are deciding between lattes or paying a mortgage. Instead, we’re deciding between a cup at the office or an excuse for fresh air, change of scenery, and some human interaction to break up our days.We half joke that our generation can’t afford homes, but somehow we’ve managed to rent the same coffee shop table every morning for $8 a day. And while the cost of our willingness to pay is certainly a conversation, I find myself to be less interested in the price of lattes and more interested in what we are willing to pay for the simple experience of community.I started this deep dive set on criticizing my generation for our crazed consumption of costly coffee, but throughout my research — some of which was conducted in these very coffee shops — I realized our coffee run habits may be a sign of what we really crave: craftsmanship, local business, human connection, intentionality, and the simple act of slowing down.***This article is part of Upstream, The Daily Wire’s new home for culture and lifestyle. Real human insight and human stories — from our featured writers to you.

Trends on social media reward mothers who post disparagingly about their families under the guise of being "real" and "relatable." Or worse, they post videos of themselves making their kids cry just to be funny and get views. It’s a bizarre trend that needs to stop.