Slate Culture Feed

At the movies, A Complete Unknown depicts Bob Dylan as a 1960s “it” boy—played by a 2020s “it” boy, Timothée Chalamet. But the film ends in 1965. What happened in the six decades after that? Dylan not only kept recording. He actually started topping the charts—in the 1970s, the era of Led Zeppelin, not Pete Seeger. And several of his chart-topping albums came decades later, in the 21st century. Bo...

When we got multiple listener emails asking about the swing revival of the late 1990s, host Willa Paskin’s first, knee jerk reaction was just: no. She lived through it, and remembers it as being so incredibly corny and uncool. Insofar as the swing revival persists in the cultural memory, it’s usually as a punchline or as head-scratcher, a particularly odd-seeming fad.  But then we started talking...

On this week’s show, Dan Kois sits in for Dana Stevens. First, the hosts discuss One of Them Days , a new buddy comedy starring Keke Palmer and SZA that’s quickly becoming a critical darling — and a box office success. Then, they dive into Asura , Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Netflix show that’s about the dynamics between three sisters and is “totally uninterested in the rhythms of a TV s...

Kate Lindsay and Candice Lim discuss how so many of their favorite social media platforms have gone openly pro-Trump since the election, and how they feel about it. With more social media platforms cozying up to this administration, is it time to boycott the big ones? Are apps like Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok actually essential to our daily lives? And without them, where do we go? This podcast...

Comedian Gary Gulman is used to dealing with bullies. He grew up with older brothers, who he describes as "aggressive" and “unenlightened,” and he’s witnessed plenty of unkind behavior from his peers in the New York City comedy scene. This is all despite being, in his words, “very, very sensitive.”  This week, Gary talks about managing that sensitivity, standing up for his principles, and becoming...

Hosts Alex Kirshner , Lindsay Gibbs , and Ben Lindbergh discuss the Bills' astonishing proclivity to lose to the Chiefs, plus how the Eagles steamrolled the Commanders. The panel also chats about Madison Keys’ shocking victory at the Australian Open. Finally, they get into the Philadelphia 76ers’ disastrous season, and Alex has an Afterball about Arkadag F.C., and the (disputable) win streak of th...

Candice Lim and Kate Lindsay make sense of TikTok’s surprise return, and what’s going on with the influencers who said goodbye to the app by sharing controversial secrets, only for it to come back the next day. Then, the pair debunk some of the social media conspiracy theories that have proliferated since the presidential inauguration.  This podcast is produced by Alexandra Botti, Daisy Rosario, C...

On this week’s show, the hosts dive into A Complete Unknown , director James Mangold’s surprisingly charming Bob Dylan biopic that’s all about fame and what it looks like to be adjacent to it. Then, the three explore Dick Wolf’s latest project: On Call , a half-hour cop procedural set in Long Beach, California that’s streaming on Prime Video. Finally, the trio remembers David Lynch, the iconic, si...

Candice Lim and Kate Lindsay are joined by ICYMI producer (and resident linguist) Alexandra Botti, who shares her experience attending the American Dialect Society’s words-of-the-year vote. Then, Candice and Kate break down 2024’s winners (the WOTYs), and predict what internet words we’ll be seeing in 2025. This podcast is produced by Alexandra Botti, Daisy Rosario, Candice Lim, and Kate Lindsay. ...

Hosts Alex Kirshner , Ben Lindbergh , and Lindsay Gibbs examine college football’s first twelve-team playoff and how Ohio State won it all. The panel then talks about the NFL playoffs with Jayden Daniels’ continued rise and Lamar Jackson’s sad defeat. They also chat about Roki Sasaki’s decision to join the Dodgers, plus an Afterball from Ben on goalie goals! On the bonus episode available exclusiv...

Babygirl , the new erotic thriller starring Nicole Kidman, features an age-gap romance and a power imbalance. But according to the filmmaker Halina Reijn, it’s more about “what part of us is civilized…and what part of us is still driven by primal forces.” It’s also extremely entertaining, sexy, and dryly hilarious.  This week, Halina Reijn talks about why she wrote the movie, her decision to move...

Candice Lim and Kate Lindsay are joined by Slate business and tech writer Nitish Pahwa to recap what the (possibly) last days of legal TikTok have been like. From influencers posting desperate pleas to follow them on Instagram to Americans invading a Chinese-language app called RedNote , it’s safe to say we’re not handling it well. Candice, Kate, and Nitish discuss what they’ll miss from the app a...

At the movies, A Complete Unknown depicts Bob Dylan as a 1960s “it” boy—played by a 2020s “it” boy, Timothée Chalamet. But the film ends in 1965. What happened in the six decades after that? Dylan not only kept recording. He actually started topping the charts—in the 1970s, the era of Led Zeppelin, not Pete Seeger. And several of his chart-topping albums came decades later, in the 21st century. Bo...

On this week’s show, Slate staff writer Nadira Goffe sits in for Stephen. First, the panel explores Babygirl and its kinks. The latest feature from Dutch writer-director Halina Reijn stars Nicole Kidman and Harris Dickinson, and is fascinated by sex (mostly, as a concept.) Then, the three puzzle over Nickel Boys and the film’s audacious use of first-person point-of-view in filmmaker RaMell Ross’ a...

The storage container is a stealthy star of the modern home. It’s something we use to organize more of our stuff than ever before, and also something other people use to organize their stuff for our viewing pleasure. Its role as a source of soothing, satisfying, potentially viral clicks is new, but storage container innovations are not – something we had occasion to remember when Tupperware, the c...

On today’s episode, Candice Lim is joined for the first time by ICYMI’s new co-host. Tune in to hear about their relationship to MuggleNet, Shrimp Jesus, and their most deeply held, but least provable internet conspiracy theory. This podcast is produced by Alexandra Botti, Daisy Rosario, and Candice Lim. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When Delores moved to New York City from Jamaica nearly thirty years ago she didn’t know anyone. But soon she found a community of other nannies and learned how to navigate job interviews and “fussy” parents who don’t like nannies to tell their children no.  In this week’s episode on paid caretaking, we explore the class and power dynamics inherent in care work. Plus, we hear from Faye*, a woman l...

From the Steelers' predictable collapse to the Commanders’ doink-fueled victory in Tampa, hosts Alex Kirshner , Ben Lindbergh , and Lindsay Gibbs get into the NFL’s Wild Card weekend. They also talk about college football and the looming Ohio State-Notre Dame championship. Plus the arrival of the all-new, indoor, digital Tomorrow’s Golf League.  On the bonus episode available exclusively for Slate...

Candice Lim is joined by Slate culture writer Scaachi Koul, the host of Scamfluencers and the author of the upcoming book Sucker Punch (coming out this March). Today, they’re diving into Scaachi’s internet diaries to hear about her most-referenced meme, the internet rule she thinks everyone should follow, and whether there’s hope for the next generation online. But first, they’re discussing Trisha...

Candice Lim is joined by Slate business and tech writer Nitish Pahwa and internet culture writer Steffi Cao to debate, defend, and decide how they’re going to face the internet this year. Each brought a personal query they’re on the fence about, and the remaining panelists will argue both sides before coming to a verdict. For example, should we join Bluesky? How can we resist the urge to fact-chec...

On this week’s show, it’s an all-movie week! Isaac Butler — author of The Method: How the Twentieth Century Learned to Act and host of the new Criterion Channel series, The Craft of Acting — sits in for Stephen Metcalf. First, the panel explores The Brutalist , director Brady Corbet’s two-part epic following the life of László Tóth (Adrien Brody), a Hungarian-born Jewish architect who survives the...

Whether it's a nanny taking us to school or a home health aide helping us age in place, most of us will rely on paid caregivers at some point in our lives. For the next two episodes, we'll talk to professional caregivers about the emotional and economic reality of the intimate work they do. In episode one, we hear from two eldercare workers: Rahn*, whose relationships with patients have helped hea...

Hosts Alex Kirshner , Ben Lindbergh , and Lindsay Gibbs talk about Premier League Soccer and how sputtering performances could leave Manchester City and Manchester United out of Champions League contention. The hosts also get into the college football playoffs and the coming NFL postseason. For Afterballs: Ben recounts a history of alternative settings for specialty ‘classic’ sports games. On the...

Candice Lim is joined by media scholars Dr. Jess Maddox and Dr. Jess Rauchberg to discuss the subreddit r/NYCInfluencerSnark : In the early 2020s, influencer snark pages began as a way to contain a growing, unregulated economy where sponcon and diet teas began to thrive. With more money flowing into influencer marketing, a backlash started to emerge on Reddit as followers became anti-fans, then ha...

To kick off the New Year, we're sharing a podcast that we think Hit Parade listeners are going to love:  Broken Record . Check out this episode with singer/songwriter Norah Jones, co-hosted by Blue Note Records President Don Was. Norah has been with Blue Note Records since releasing her juggernaut 2002 debut album,  Come Away With Me.  In this conversation, Norah details her musical upbringing and...