“Tapping In” Wins New York Times Student Podcast Contest

Tapping In, produced by REBOOT, was recognized as one of the top 10 podcasts in the nation as part of the New York Times Student Podcast Competition. Kent Place students Tara Khurana ’25 and Ayushi Wadhwa ’27 produced “Innocence Interrupted: How Sephora Kids Are Redefining the Beauty Market,” which explored the increase of youth interest in cosmetics and skincare.

Tara and Ayushi were tasked with producing a five-minute episode for the competition. 

They interviewed Marie Hays, Primary School psychologist, and Joan Wilson, Middle School social worker, to learn about how young people are thinking about beauty standards and their identities, and how students are being influenced by what they see on social media platforms. 

The episode then expanded to Tara and Ayushi’s ethical considerations on the matter: when the interest in cosmetics goes from playful to problematic. They considered the duty of adults, social media influencers, and beauty companies to protect children from the toxic standards of what constitutes beauty that begin on social media and have long-term impacts on their mental and physical health. 

“I’m so very proud of Tara and Ayushi’s efforts,” said Anna Conti, Associate Director of the Ethics Institute, who oversees the podcast. “They came up with the idea, led the interviews, and went through rigorous rounds of edits to tell a clean, tight, compelling story with huge ethical implications. It’s an honor to be recognized nationally for their work.”