While other talk show hosts in the US are confronting the nation's political issues,The Tonight Show’s Jimmy Fallon is avoiding touchy subject matter. But politically disenfranchised Americans are counting on pop culture to represent their views, and it's costing apolitical entertainers their audiences.

After Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein’s history of alleged sexual misconduct was bared to the world, social feeds were flooded with a singular expression: #MeToo. The hashtag went viral, inspiring over half a million tweets in just 24 hours, but can people really find solace in an online trend?

#DeleteUber marked a turning point in online activism, with social media users banding together to take the moral high ground against Uber's badly-timed promotion. But did people ditch the app because they genuinely disagreed with the brand’s actions, or so they could post about it on Instagram?

The emergence of female-focused dating, transportation and security apps is indicative of the fact that women’s freedom of movement in everyday life is often curtailed by the threat of violence. Yet as these services often don’t increase access to public spaces, what can be done differently?