Slate Culture Feed

Joel Anderson and Josh Levin are joined by Shutdown Fullcast’s Spencer Hall to discuss the start of the NBA playoffs and the spate of injuries befalling NBA stars. They also discuss Phil Mickelson’s PGA Championship triumph and Tim Tebow’s possible NFL return. NBA (2:46):  How LeBron looks, and how injuries have changed pro basketball’s postseason outlook. Golf (18:30):  How the 50-year-old Mickel...

On today’s episode,  Rachelle  and  Madison chronicle the long, complicated life of Shrek online. They argue that the film, which premiered in 2001, was primed to become an internet meme before Shrek fans even got their hands on it. And then they explain all the different iterations, some funny and some downright creepy, of Shrek content that have kept the green ogre alive on the web for 20 years....

For a musical project that’s synonymous with deceit, Milli Vanilli sold an awful lot of records. They also have quite a legacy: a blend of pop, dance and rap that now seems commonplace but was still relatively novel in 1989. If you’ve danced to Europop that fronts like hip-hop, you’re living in a world Milli Vanilli helped create.   In this episode of Hit Parade, Chris Molanphy breaks down the his...

Former pro rock climber Mason Earle's career ended in 2018, when he was diagnosed with the chronic illness ME/CFS. He now spends most of his time in bed, and in a series of three phone calls, he reflects on his career and adjusting to life with a disability. Are you new to our show? Welcome! Make sure you subscribe in your podcast player, and check out our  Starter Kit . It's filled with our favor...

For the past week, while the violence between Israel and Palestine has escalated, a separate battle has accelerated on social media, one fought with rocket emojis and celebrities like Israeli actress Gal Gadot and Palestinian-American model Bella Hadid getting involved. If you don’t post, are you tacitly anti-Palestine? Anti-semitic? If you do post and you fumble some of your history, are you noth...

This week Steve, Dana, and Julia discuss Netflix’s animated film The Mitchells vs. the Machines . Next, the panel dives into the cultural resonances of Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck aka “Bennifer.” Finally, the group is joined by Isaac Butler, co-host of Slate’s Working podcast , to talk about the latest Zoom version of Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot . In Slate Plus, Isaac Butler joins the ho...

Joel Anderson and Josh Levin are joined by the New Yorker’s Vinson Cunningham to discuss the rise of the New York Knicks and the start of the NBA playoffs. The Athletic’s Chantel Jennings also joins to talk about the start of the WNBA season. Finally, Joe Drape of the New York Times assesses the case against racehorse trainer Bob Baffert. NBA (3:42):  Does the Knicks’ return to non-terribleness ma...

On today’s episode, Rachelle and Madison discuss the latest news about Chrissy Teigen and Courtney Stodden. Earlier this week, Stodden, who rose to fame as a teenager in the early 2010s after marrying middle-aged character actor Doug Hutchison, came forward saying that they had been harassed on Twitter by Teigen, who sent tweets wishing for their death. Teigen has since apologized, but this news h...

A self-described "fiery ball of ambition," Avery Trufelman of The Cut podcast wonders how she'll know whether or not she wants to have a kid. Are you new to our show? Welcome! Make sure you subscribe in your podcast player, and check out our  Starter Kit . It's filled with our favorite episodes and with information about how to join our community.  Follow us on  Instagram ,  Twitter  and  Facebook...

This week Steve, Dana, and Julia discuss Tina Fey’s new Peacock sitcom Girls5Eva. Then the panel dives into vaccine personalities—how did Pfizer really become the “ status vax ”? Finally, the group discusses Netflix film The Disciple with LA Times film critic Justin Chang. In Slate Plus, the panel talks about their relationship with cars, courtesy of a listener question. Email us your questions at...

Rachelle  and  Madison  discuss Elon Musk’s episode of  Saturday Night Live . Specifically they break down the ”Gen Z Hospital” sketch , where everybody seems to be speaking in internet slang, and the backlash to it. Rachelle explains how all the language used isn’t just from the internet or from Zoomers but from African-American Vernacular English (AAVE). This isn’t a new thing, of course—white A...

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about the upcoming NBA play-in tournament. They also discuss the latest brouhaha over violence in the National Hockey League and they assess NFL wide receiver DK Metcalf’s performance against pro sprinters.   NBA (2:49):  Why LeBron James hates the play-in games and most everyone else loves them.   NHL (21:21):  Does hockey have a cultural problem...

On today’s episode,  Rachelle and Madison discuss Facebook upholding their ban of Donald Trump from their platform—sort of. Then they interview someone about their own experience getting banned: legal journalist Rachel Stone, who was banned from Twitter after she jokingly threatened the man who cautions you to take a break from scrolling through TikTok. Finally, the debut of our new segment Galaxy...

I talk with my friend and colleague Noel King about getting comfortable with uncomfortable conversations in my personal life, and why she thinks my brain is a "little bit different." Are you new to our show? Welcome! Make sure you subscribe in your podcast player, and check out our Starter Kit . It's filled with our favorite episodes and with information about how to join our community.  Hear more...

On today’s episode,  Madison  and  Rachelle  answer a couple of listener questions in a new segment we’re calling Read Receipts. First, they explore the origins of the “this shit bussin’—sheesh” meme that’s all over TikTok and why teens are getting their parents to do it. Then Rachelle digs into the drama currently embroiling the fan-fiction website Archive of Our Own, explaining whether the nonpr...

This week Steve, Dana, and Julia discuss the Netflix film  Stowaway  with Slate book and culture columnist Laura Miller. Then the panel dives into the French dramedy  Call My Agent!  with New Yorker staff writer Lauren Collins. Finally, the group discusses the  social realities  and  challenges  of  the CDC’s new guidelines on masking outdoors . In Slate Plus, the hosts discuss the ending to Stowa...

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin welcome a trio of guests. Master Tesfatsion of Bleacher Report discusses the NFL draft. Ben Lindbergh of the Ringer explains why moving back the pitcher’s mound could boost Major League Baseball’s anemic offenses. And Rebecca Schuman talks about the leotard, the unitard, and the sexualization of female gymnasts.   NFL draft (3:06):  Five quarterbacks go...

On today’s episode,  Rachelle  and  Madison  explain the controversy surrounding an NFT of Chadwick Boseman’s head that was connected to, but not sanctioned by, the Oscars. Then they run through a series of High-Speed Downloads covering why Ryan Gosling trended last weekend,  Mark Zuckerberg’s sunscreen photo , a flash of  TikTok drama  involving  Doja Cat , and the celebration of  Ed Balls Day ....

In Part 2 of this episode of Hit Parade, Chris Molanphy continues his analysis of Taylor: the country years, dissecting how she gradually, step by step, became the new queen of pop one irresistible song at a time. She went from interviewing bigger stars on MTV’s red carpet one year, to being the talk of the Video Music Awards the next—even before Kanye took that microphone away from her. He told T...

Making a guest mad about money. Getting called out. Digging into my own beliefs about monogamy. These are the hardest conversations I've had here on the show, as a podcast host, parent and partner.  Hear more of the interviews we excerpted in today's episode:  My Awkward Money Talk With Sallie Krawcheck Why She Steals: Your Reactions The Sex Worker Next Door Chaz Ebert On Life Without Roger A Son...

This week Steve, Dana, and Julia discuss the Oscars in a pandemic year. Then the panel dives into the Bob Odenkirk action flick  Nobody . Finally, the group discusses the allegations of workplace harassment against the producer Scott Rudin, as first reported by  The Hollywood Reporter . In Slate Plus, the panel talks about  the fallout surrounding sexual assault allegations against Blake Bailey ,...

Madison  and  Rachelle  pour one out for Yahoo Answers. To remember the site’s important place in internet history, they’re joined by J.T. Sexkik, the creator of the infamous video “ How Is Prangent Formed .” They talk to him about his earliest memories of the question-and-answer forum, its wildest moments, and what the internet is losing with its demise. Plus, we exorcise our IKEA shopping demons...

Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by Tariq Panja of the New York Times to discuss European soccer’s Super League fiasco. Stefan, Josh, and Joel Anderson then talk about Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry’s absurd month. Plus, an interview with researcher Joanna Harper about transgender athletes in girls’ and women’s sports.   Super League (2:11):  Why did it implode? What comes next?  ...

On this episode,  Madison  and  Rachelle  discuss how the phrase “body positivity” has lost all meaning. They talk about how the body-positivity movement started as a way to advocate for fat acceptance, including with respect to such tangible issues as healthcare and employment, but how the phrase has been co-opted into memeable soundbites on TikTok and Instagram that serve no real purpose beyond...

A few years ago, I asked you to share your near-death experiences. You told us about car accidents...plane crashes...illness...suicide. And, you told us what happened after, when you didn't die. Today: your stories about life after near death.  You can hear more of my conversation with Elizabeth Caplice, who died in July 2016, here .  We're still collecting your stories about the hardest conversat...