Slate News

The government runs out of money next Tuesday. Trump’s threatened “mass firings” if it shuts down. Earlier this year, Democrats played ball. But now, one Democratic Senator explains why he’s approaching things differently. Guest: Chris Van Hollen , Democratic Senator from Maryland. This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock...

Why would Donald Trump rush to announce that Tylenol is a potential cause of autism, a claim unsupported by the research? Guest: Dan Diamond , White House reporter for the Washington Post. Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the to...

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss how Trump is using the powerful machine of government prosecution to reverse-engineer crimes supposedly committed by enemies, his diatribe against Tylenol at the disastrous press conference on autism, and the echoes of past Red Scares in today’s free speech climate with historian Beverly Gage , author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning G...

The First Amendment prohibits Congress from making laws that abridge freedom of speech or of the press, but in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s murder, it’s clear that it doesn’t take a law to attack those rights. Guest:  Karen Attiah , former columnist for the Washington Post and former editor of the Post’s Global Opinions section. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listenin...

Over three different trips during the war, this doctor saw the chaos of blast injuries in northern Gaza give way to gunshot wounds suffered at aid-distribution sites in the south.  Guest:  Dr. Mohammed "Adeel" Khaleel , minimally invasive and complex spinal surgeon with Texas Metroplex Institute for Sports Medicine & Orthopedic Surgery. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad...

American agriculture relies on foreign workers, and they rely on the H-2A visa program to work legally in the United States. Despite a growing number of people applying for visa spots, the Trump administration has proposed cutting the division of the Department of Labor that enforces H-2A rules, leaving workers to choose between being vulnerable to ICE or to exploitation.  Guest: Max Blau , ProPub...

Media giants like Paramount and Disney have been swift to capitulate to the Trump administration and the tenacious head of the FCC, Brendan Carr. Why new ownership from the likes of the Ellisons is likely to make things worse. Guest: Nitish Pahwa , staff writer for business and tech at Slate. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and...

If you’re hunting for a job, the odds are increasingly likely you’ll have an interview with an artificial intelligence “recruiter.” And why not? It’s also increasingly likely you’ll be working with A.I. anyway.  Guest: Danielle Abril , technology-in-the-workplace reporter for the Washington Post. Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next fa...

Dahlia Lithwick talks to First Amendment law professor Mary Anne Franks to explore the inversion of free speech in America this past week, and to trace the ways our assumptions about the First Amendment helped to tip us into this upside-down. Dr. Franks, author of Fearless Speech: Breaking Free from the First Amendment , explains the contradictions inherent in free-speech absolutism, the role of g...

Emily Bazelon talks with author and Yale professor Judith Resnik about her new book,  Impermissible Punishments: How Prison Became a Problem for Democracy . They discuss the history of the prison system’s use of punishments like whipping, how the practice came to an end, and more.   Tweet us your questions  @SlateGabfest  or email us at  gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless...

This week: The Fed announced an expected rate cut with an unexpected dissent.      Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck are joined by Axios’ Neil Irwin who breaks down why the Fed meeting was so unusual – thanks to the very recent Trump appointee Stephen Miran– and what it means for the future of the central bank. Then, AMEX announced an increase that brings their Platinum fee to $895....

TikTok—which was supposed to be banned again on Wednesday but, again, isn’t—may be legal once more. The Trump administration says it’s meeting with Xi Jinping Friday to finalize the agreement, which may involve—get this—a wealthy Trump-supporting tech mogul.  Guest: Nitish Pahwa , staff writer for business and tech at Slate. This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slat...

As the Charlie Kirk murder demonstrated, law enforcement, the government, and media all need more internet fluency. But their reactions in the wake of the murder don’t seem to be moving towards a better understanding.  Guest:   Ryan Broderick , reporter on online culture, author of the newsletter Garbage Day . Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whol...

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the government’s intimidation tactics aimed at chilling free speech after Charlie Kirk’s assassination, why Trump seems intent to provoke armed conflict with Venezuela, and how the president and his Republican allies are upending DC self-governance with guest Michael Schaffer ( City Cast DC , Politico ). For this week’s Slate Plus b...

Donald Trump has been calling for the Fed to cut rates to bolster the economy, and yesterday, they announced they would. The bad news is that’s because the economy is going to need a lot more bolstering. Guest:  Justin Wolfers , economist and professor at the University of Michigan Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all...

What happens to an organization when it purges much of its leadership and ranks irrespective of ability, and hires for sycophantic loyalty instead? The FBI is finding out.  Guests:   Michael Feinberg , former assistant special agent in charge at the FBI’s field office in Norfolk, VA, now a fellow at Lawfare . Quinta Jurecic , staff writer at The Atlantic. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Pl...

Conservatives have decried higher education as a center of liberal indoctrination for decades, and under the second Trump administration, colleges and universities are watching their federal funding be withheld or frozen, their presidents step down, and professors lose their jobs. What can be done to wrest back academic freedom and independence from a vindictive administration? Guest:  Sarah Brown...

In this Money Talks: Elizabeth Spiers is joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Gary Rivlin to discuss his book AI Valley , a deep dive into the Silicon Valley companies that are competing to create the best–and most profitable–AI model. Gary has been covering the tech world for decades and has seen the major players in this arms race evolve over that time. He discusses the perspectives of th...

Hasan Piker was scheduled to debate Charlie Kirk at Dartmouth College later this month, a left-vs-right, Vidal-vs-Buckley for the streaming age. In the wake of Kirk’s shocking death, Piker wants to continue to be clear about who Kirk was, what he stood for, and the reactionary political project he was working to advance. Guest: Hasan Piker, Twitch streamer and left-wing political commentator.  Wan...

After their daughter committed suicide, they found her ChatGPT log—and where artificial intelligence helped her write her suicide note. Guest:  Laura Reiley, writer for the Cornell Chronicle.  Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at th...

In this week’s episode of Amicus, we delve into the recent Supreme Court shadow docket order in Noem v. Vasquez-Perdomo, which in essence legalized racial profiling by roving ICE patrols, and in practice may have ushered in America’s “show your papers” era for Americans with brown skin, who speak Spanish, and/or go to Home Depot in work clothes. Join Dahlia Lithwick and Ahilan Arulanantham, a long...

This week: ICE raided a Hyundai plant in Georgia. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck discuss the somewhat hamfisted raid that detained hundreds of South Korean workers–disrupting both Hyundai’s operations and the local economy–and the potential fallout if foreign companies see this as a reason to avoid investing in the US. Then, Oracle’s stock surged this week thanks to its AI deals,...

On Friday, authorities announced they had a suspect – and they sure seemed confident they “got him” (to quote Utah Governor Spencer Cox). Mary and Slatester Luke Winkie discuss the press conference – and what happens now. Guest: Luke Winkie , Slate staff writer. This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock exclusive episodes...

Graphic, violent videos like the shooting of right-wing pundit Charlie Kirk circulate across social media moments after they happen, finding an audience even among people who have made no effort to seek them out. Guest: Craig Silverman, journalist and cofounder of Indicator .  Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your fa...

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the assassination of Charlie Kirk amid an extremely troubling climate of political violence in America, another Supreme Court order with no majority explanation allowing racial profiling by ICE in LA, and a score-settling excerpt from Kamala Harris’s upcoming memoir 107 Days. For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, an...