Petersen joined Buzzfeed in 2014 and is based in Missoula, Montana. She is the author of “Scandals of Classic Hollywood: Sex, Deviance, and Drama from the Golden Age of American Cinema” and “Too Fat, Too Slutty, Too Loud.” Her latest book on millennial burnout will be published in 2020. Previously, Petersen worked as an assistant professor at Whitman College and as a columnist at The Hairpin.