The Illusion of ‘America’s Next Top Model’

In this Money Talks: Journalist Bridget Armstrong joins Emily Peck to discuss this moment of reckoning for the iconic reality show America’s Next Top Model and what she learned in reporting for her podcast Curse of: America’s Next Top Model . They explore how Top Model ’s central promise — a fast track to a career in the fashion industry — was ultimately an illusion used to make great television at the expense of the contestants. Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can

You can listen to The Illusion of ‘America’s Next Top Model’ online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

The Illusion of ‘America’s Next Top Model’ is an episode from Slate Money by Slate Podcasts.

This episode is 43:36 long.

This episode was published on Mar 31, 2026.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from Slate Money when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.