ICYMI

The Broadway musical Hamilton did not originally contain much of a Christian message, but then the Door McAllen Church in McAllen, Texas got a hold of it. On today’s episode, Rachelle is joined again by Daisy Rosario to talk about the latest TikTok sensation known as “Scamilton,” an unauthorized production of Hamilton staged by the Door McAllen Church and livestreamed on Youtube in early August. T...

Instagram has seen a recent influx of college “virginity club” accounts featuring sharp, funny memes about remaining chaste. On today’s episode, Madison and Rachelle put these accounts under the microscope. Is anything about these accounts real, or are they just a grift for merchandise and music promotion? After some internet sleuthing, they track down the creator of the most popular account, for...

On today’s show,  Madison  and  Rachelle  have a short discussion of the  recent beekeeper drama  on TikTok. Then, they’re joined by  Bobby Finger  and  Lindsey Weber , hosts of the  Who Weekly?  podcast, to discuss Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez getting back together. They talk about what it was like when the pair first got together in the early 2000s, and why it feels so exciting to see these tw...

While authorities searched for missing 22-year-old Gabby Petito, she was everywhere to be found on TikTok, Reddit, and Instagram. Content creators, some well-intentioned and others simply chasing clout and clicks, turned the story of Gabby’s apparent death into the latest in true crime drama. On today’s show, Madison and Rachelle talk about the murkiness of the true crime internet and the ethics o...

The realm of fan fiction is a wild, magical place to be, especially if that fan fiction is set at Hogwarts. On today’s episode, Rachelle and Madison talk about All the Young Dudes , an extensive Harry Potter fan fiction that has inspired a fandom all its own, and just how that fandom came to be. But first, they chat about National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) and spend time listening to the fir...

Last week, Maya Cade, the creator and curator of the Black Film Archive tweeted about how Tumblr, specifically screengrabs and gifsets, has changed the way we watch movies. On today’s show, Daisy Rosario is back with Rachelle and they decided to give Maya a call. They ended up talking about the communal nature of encountering film through social media screenshots, how Maya was inspired to create t...

Three lifestyle trends with surprisingly retrograde ideas have been popping up on TikTok. On today’s show, Nadira Goffe is back with Rachelle to discuss what’s going on. They talk about the problems with the “clean girl” aesthetic , people who shouldn’t be trying to imitate the Kennedys and the like, and why being a housewife isn’t the “soft life” TikTokkers might want you to believe it is. This p...

Exclusively Black spaces online have faded away as platforms with wider audiences have taken over, but what, if anything, has been lost with those spaces? On today’s show, Rachelle is joined again by Nadira Goffe to discuss their own experiences growing up online as Black women, and they speak with Dr. Meredith D. Clark , a professor at Northeastern University who studies Black online spaces, abou...

Everybody loves indulging in thirst online. On today’s episode, Rachelle is joined by Slate’s Nadira Goffe to discuss exactly what makes internet thirst so much fun. They talk about the qualities of a good internet boyfriend, when thirsting can go wrong, and how much these thirst objects really owe us. This podcast is produced by Daniel Schroeder, Rachelle Hampton, and Daisy Rosario. Need to set u...

On today’s episode, Rachelle is joined by Daisy Rosario to open up the mailbag for another session of Read Receipts. They get into drama surrounding Nicki Minaj’s alleged former assistant airing the rapper’s alleged dirty laundry, Diane Warren stirring up trouble with Beyoncé, satisfying restocking videos, and an explanation of Ana Mardoll. This podcast is produced by Daniel Schroeder, Rachelle Ha...

Marcel the Shell With Shoes On was a viral sensation when he first popped up on the internet in 2010, and now he’s back in a major motion picture. On today’s episode, Rachelle is joined by Daisy Rosario to discuss Will Smith’s sneaky news dump, do some High Speed Downloads on the Pink Sauce, and the Little Miss meme, and get into why Netflix is suing the Unofficial Bridgerton Musical . Then, Rache...

Everybody loves to gossip, especially when it comes to celebrities. On the show today, Rachelle is joined by Normal Gossip host Kelsey McKinney to talk about the state of internet gossip. They discuss the early days of online gossip from Gawker, Perez Hilton, and Reality Steve, how social media changed the gossip landscape, and why those changes have made it so we all have the chance to be the sub...

On today’s show: more scams! Rachelle is joined by Daily Beast entertainment editor and former Slatester Allegra Frank; the two discuss the launch and social media rollout of the new multi-level marketing company Elomir. Later in the episode they examine how, despite the abundance of information on MLMs predatory nature, they still manage to pull people in. This podcast is produced by Daniel Schro...

It’s been a great run, but Madison is leaving ICYMI for new ventures. On today’s show, Rachelle interviews Madison about her time working on ICYMI, her own internet habits, and her first online scams. Plus, they’ve got a round of High Speed Downloads, perhaps the greatest one ever recorded, so get ready to be shocked and astonished in the best way. This podcast is produced by Daniel Schroeder, Rac...

On today’s show, Madison and Rachelle open up the mailbag to answer some more listener questions. They’ve got people wondering about a giant frog army on TikTok, Christy Carlson Romano doing sponcon cameos, dubious hygienic practices, and more. This podcast is produced by Daniel Schroeder, Rachelle Hampton, Madison Malone Kircher, and Daisy Rosario. Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you subs...

Recently, it seems like our phones won’t stop buzzing with texts and phone calls about our expired car warranties or supposed IRS delinquency. On today’s show, Rachelle and Madison discuss their own recent brushes with scams, a recent piece in the Washington Post about how scams take more than an economic toll on us, and why none of us should feel bad if we get taken in by them. This podcast is pr...

This past week Doja Cat started fighting with Stranger Things star Noah Schnapp, and Cardi B beefed with the gossip blog the Shade Room. On today’s show, Madison and Rachelle break down what’s really going on in these two fights, and how the Shade Room became a toxic behemoth of internet gossip. Plus, they talk about Beanie Feldstein bowing out of Funny Girl on Broadway, and what it means now that...

Last weekend, Minions: The Rise of Gru premiered and a bunch of teens showed up to see it dressed up in suits, launching the #Gentleminions trend across TikTok. On the show today, Madison and Rachelle talk about why teens are putting on suits to go to the movies, and how the minions became such a dominant cultural and capitalistic force. Then, they’re joined by Vox’s Rebecca Jennings to discuss he...

The Instagram account No White Saviors presented itself as an organization that exposed missionaries, aide workers, and influencers who were actively harming the communities they were in, but the story is much darker and more confusing than that. On today’s show, Rachelle and Madison are joined once again by journalist Jessica Lucas to talk about her latest piece for Input magazine on the dubious...

In the past month, customers of the meal delivery service Daily Harvest have been suffering from gastrointestinal distress after eating the company’s French Lentil + Leek Crumbles, and some have even required surgery. The company is currently investigating the cause of these medical issues but has yet to find anything conclusive. On today’s show, Rachelle and Madison speak to Luke Pearson , an inf...

On this week’s episode, Rachelle and Madison decided that, because of the recent Supreme Court news, it was time to take respite in some good online fun. They talk about the Olsen twins making pizza, Adam Lambert’s stellar vocals, plastic bags, musicals, and plenty more. Make sure to check out our Twitter for a thread with all the things mentioned in today’s episode. This podcast is produced by Da...

Log onto any social app and you’ll quickly find content that’s been ported over from another platform. On the show today, Rachelle and Madison talk about the homogenization of internet humor and how every platform is trying to copy its competition. Then they discuss the return of anonymous online spaces with the new app NGL, an app that allows people to solicit anonymous comments and questions fro...

Lesbians on dating and hookup apps aren’t looking for men, but that’s what platforms like Bumble and Tinder are serving them. On today’s show, Madison and Rachelle speak to some queer women who’ve had this problem and what sorts of issues it creates. Then they discuss the women-focused apps that’ve tried to fill that space, and why it’s so difficult to find safe queer dates online. This podcast is...

Earlier this month, the American Girl Doll Instagram account announced the return of the classic Molly doll, and because it was announced during Pride month everybody started wondering, “Is Molly gay?” On today’s show, Rachelle and Madison discuss the recent gay panic of the conservative American Doll Instagram community, the online life of American Girl memes, and their own histories with these b...

Throughout the 2010s, the One Direction fandom was inescapable online. On today’s show, Atlantic writer Kaitlyn Tiffany is here to discuss her new book all about that subject, Everything I Need I Get From You: How Fangirls Created the Internet as We Know It . Rachelle and Madison talk to Kaitlyn about why she chose One Direction, how fan theories get out of hand, and why neither she nor Rachelle w...