Good morning,

The New York Times asked a question that never should’ve made it past an editor: Did women ruin the workplace? The headline did what it was designed to do—ignite outrage and shift blame. Once again, women were expected to take the hit and stay quiet.

As Editor-in-Chief of PROVOKED—and as a woman who spent two decades in the trenches of Fortune 500 corridors—I’ve lived this reality. I’ve watched talent suffocate under “empowerment” and promises that go nowhere. Women didn’t break the workplace. We keep it running.

Say it out loud: We. Are. Not. The. Problem.

This edition is about honesty, grit, and refusing to ask permission. Inside: How women over 50 are redefining intimacy and agency, surviving loss, and demonstrating what real power looks like. The workplace didn’t fall apart because we showed up—it fell apart because we stopped carrying it for free.

Start with my feature below.

LIVING OUT LOUD

Did Women Ruin the Workplace? No. The Boys’ Club Did.

BY SUSAN DABBAR

The latest outrage from The New York Times shows exactly what happens when legacy power feels threatened. Really? Women are the problem? Please. We’re not the ones torching trust. Here's our take—this isn’t even a debate. But we are demanding an honest reckoning and done pretending we're grateful just to be here. We’re saying out loud what needs to be fixed. Enough scapegoating. Enough misogyny. Enough relic thinking. We’re done asking permission.

DEAR READER

Welcome to Dear Reader—These stories come straight from our readers: smart, funny, fearless, and unfiltered.

Going Slow Is the New Sexy

BY KELLY K. JAMES

⚠️ NSFW-ish warning: This one’s about foreplay, real bodies, and sex after 50. Maybe don’t open around teenagers, coworkers, or men who panic easily.

Going slow is the new sexy. In a culture obsessed with instant gratification, this Dear Reader explores the myths about midlife sex: when dating stops racing to the finish line and starts savoring the build. From STD panels to lube, ED surprises, and unapologetic bodies, this is intimacy with substance—hot, honest, and deeply worth the wait.

CULTURE

Flash: The Story Form that Doesn’t Waste Time—and Neither Do We

BY BETH KANTER

Flash is the literary form built for women who don’t have time to waste. Across the country, women over 50 are turning to flash—stories told with precision and honesty in under 1,000 words. Stories they’ve held onto for decades. No rambling. No hesitation. But truth, distilled by choosing every word with intention. Flash isn’t small; it’s concentrated power. If you’ve got something real to say, this is the form that refuses silence. Say it—boldly, briefly, now.

TAKE NOTE

🎨 Leonard Lauder—Estée Lauder’s heir and one of the world’s most influential art collectors—just shattered records at Sotheby’s. His Gustav Klimt Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer sold for $236.4 million, now the most expensive Modern artwork ever sold at auction and the priciest piece in Sotheby’s history. The sale signals renewed optimism in the art world, where collectors are betting on beauty and culture as an antidote to chaos.

🕵️‍♀️ Emma Thompson, 63, is at her sharpest in Down Cemetery Road, Apple TV+’s new thriller that’s drawing raves for its mix of wit, dark intrigue, and female complexity. Adapted from Mick Herron’s novel (yes, the mind behind Slow Horses), the series follows Ruth Wilson as Sarah Trafford, an art historian, and Thompson, a private investigator. With political conspiracies and smart dialogue, it’s the rare crime drama where women over 50 take center stage, stealing every scene.

🧬 A groundbreaking new CRISPR treatment has just delivered stunning results, slashing cholesterol and triglycerides in patients and opening the door to life-changing therapies. Behind this medical revolution stand two women: Emmanuelle Charpentier, 57, and Jennifer Doudna, 61, the Nobel-winning scientists who discovered CRISPR-Cas9. Their work has changed what’s possible for millions. Once again: Women scientists rewrite the code of life.

HUMOR

Cinderella’s Got an OnlyFans—and the Other Princesses Aren’t Far Behind

BY ABBY HEUGEL

Fairytales lied. Real second acts aren’t tiaras and glass slippers. They’re hot flashes, health plans, OnlyFans side hustles, and trying to sleep through the night without getting up to pee four times. This is the Disney princess universe rewritten for grown-up women who know happily-ever-after is just intermission. These princesses aren’t waiting to be rescued. They’re monetizing chaos and smashing the patriarchy—one Manolo Blahnik at a time.

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MONEY

When the Four D’s Hit: Surviving the Financial Freefall After 50

BY MELANIE LOCKERT

Death, divorce, diagnosis, disability: Your financial life can explode overnight. Retirement fantasies evaporate, savings disappear, and stability becomes survival. This isn’t about lattes or budgeting apps. It’s about crawling out of bed when your world detonates and rebuilding from the wreckage with rage and paperwork you never wanted to learn how to file. Because after 50, resilience is a damn lifeline.

READER SPOTLIGHT

✒️ Here's what one reader had to say this week:

"This really hit home. I’ve retired from work, not from style. I’m tired of choosing between Blanche Devereaux and Coachella Chic. Where’s the fashion for the in-between?" — Margaret on Fashion Celebrates All Diversity Except Age—and That Blind Spot Is Costly

Want to be featured next? Drop a comment on your favorite piece—we read them all.

OUR SHORT LIST

🦃 Plan ahead and save yourself the 11th-hour supermarket sprint. This is the list of the most-forgotten Turkey Day grocery items, according to DoorDash.

🥧 Stop doomscrolling pie recipes. Bookmark the best Thanksgiving dishes all in one place so you can close the 47 open tabs and actually enjoy cooking.

🍗 Chefs are officially bored with basic turkey and stuffing. Here are their inspired upgrades.

🎨 The Met is launching “Costume Art,” pairing 200 paintings with 200 outfits ahead of the Met Gala, where subtlety goes to die under 30 pounds of sequins.

💡 “Aha” moments aren’t luck. They’re your brain rewiring itself in real time—and that’s why they stay with you and improve your memory.

🛡️ Think you’d spot a scam from a mile away? Download this printable red-flag checklist to help you and your loved ones avoid the tricks big and small.