Slate Daily Feed

According to the recently released results of the National Assessment of Educational Progress, American students across the country are scoring lower on math and reading. But before we panic, it’s important to put those results in context, and consider what evaluations can actually tell us. Guest: Jack Schneider , associate professor of education at the University of Massachusetts Lowell and co-ho...

David Plotz, Emily Bazelon, and John Dickerson talk to civil rights journalist and WHYY radio host Cherri Gregg about the Pennsylvania midterm campaigns. Tweet us your questions and chatters @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Cheyna Roth. Research by Bridgette Dunlap Hosted on Acast. See aca...

There are some 400 million surveillance cameras installed in China, one for every three to four civilians. Built with the help of American tech companies, the surveillance state was pitched to the public as a way to make society safer and more efficient. But after severe lockdowns during COVID, the public has been objecting out of the eye of the camera lens. Protests are being written on bathroom...

This week, Felix Salmon , Emily Peck , and Elizabeth Spiers are joined by Bloomberg Opinion columnist Matt Levine to talk about his Bloomberg Businessweek article The Crypto Story . They also discuss Elon Musk finally closing his Twitter deal and restructuring at Credit Suisse.   In the Plus segment: more crypto!   Podcast production by Anna Phillips. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for mor...

We all spend so much of our lives online these days, and so we figured we’d start interviewing people about theirs. On today’s show, Rachelle is joined by health and wellness journalist Julia Craven to talk about Julia’s past online, how she would curate her feeds if she could only follow three people, and the best and worst wellness trends she’s currently seeing. And, of course, we continue to wo...

In the ’70s, funk was pop—the cutting edge of Black music and the way listeners got their groove on, before disco and hip-hop. After James Brown taught a generation a new way to hear rhythm, and George Clinton tore the roof off with his P-Funk axis, nothing would be the same. Rising alongside blaxploitation at the movies, funk took many forms: Curtis Mayfield’s superfly storytelling. War’s low-rid...

Twitter has been a lot of things—where you posted your lunch, where you met your people, where you were subjected to a harassment campaign. Now, as Elon Musk prepares to take the reins, where is it headed? Guest: Will Oremus , technology reporter for the Washington Post . Host: Lizzie O’Leary If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like ze...

This week, David Plotz, Emily Bazelon, and John Dickerson discuss the final midterm sprint; the latest British Prime Minister; and Trump’s legal troubles.  Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: Adrian Wooldridge for Bloomberg: “ Rishi Sunak Is a New and Old-Fashioned Tory ” Barton Gellman for The Atlantic: “ The Impeachment of Joe Biden ” The Trump Tapes: Bob Woodward's Twenty...

On this episode: Zak and Jamilah are joined by Fiona Kong, creator of Home Sweet Homes: A Journal & Planner for Co-parents & Child . They answer a question from a mom who is beginning the process of separating from her husband. She wants to know how she can make the transition to living between houses as easy as possible for her son.  Then on Slate Plus, they discuss the adorable Halloween...

An investigation into child welfare agencies around the country uncovered that the vast majority of searches of home environments happen without anything like a warrant, increasing the stress for parents as well as the children whose welfare is supposed to be being protected.  Guest: Eli Hager , ProPublica reporter covering issues affecting children and teens in the Southwest. If you enjoy this sh...

There were 1.8 million weddings in 1942, the most that had ever been recorded in a single year in American history. But how many of them would last? 98-year-old Millie Summergrad tells the story of one that did: her own. And a pair of brothers explain what it was like to grow up inside the busiest chapel in Yuma, Arizona—the wedding capital of the United States. One Year is produced by Evan Chung,...

Sandra Cisneros has picked “some real doozies” as lovers. But at 67, she says she’d rather write a new book of poetry than waste her time with men who aren’t on her level. Did you know we have a weekly email newsletter for the Death, Sex & Money community? Every Wednesday we send out podcast listening recommendations, fascinating letters from our inbox, and updates from the show. Sign up at de...

One TikTok famous emu was allegedly struggling with avian flu last week, but the story is a bit more complicated when it comes to public health. On today’s episode, Rachelle is joined again by Daisy Rosario to talk about Emmanuel the emu, the racist past of his owner Taylor Blake, and the confusing and risky tale she spun online about her bird’s illness. This podcast is produced by Daniel Schroede...

This week, the panel begins by discussing the new Martin McDonagh dramedy,  The Banshees of Inisherin . Then, they look at composer Michael Giacchino's foray into directing with  Werewolf by Night  on Disney+. Finally, they reflect on the generational divide over emoji use. In Slate Plus,   the panel talks about Anna May Wong, the first Chinese American film star in Hollywood, being the new face o...

The truth is, no one ever had a workable plan for Brexit. And as Liz Truss becomes the fourth Prime Minister to resign since the referendum and Rishi Sunak steps in as tribute, it’s an important lesson for voters on any side of the Atlantic: You can’t stake your party—or your country’s future—on a lie.  Guest: Felix Salmon , host of Slate Money , chief financial correspondent at Axios .   If you e...

Reporters have questioned whether Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman, who had a stroke in May, is competent to serve in the U.S. Senate. The attention on his apparent aphasia – or ability to process conversation and speak clearly – reveals the biases that keep many disabled people from disclosing their conditions or even running for office in the first place. Guest: Sara Luterman , ca...

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin are joined by the Ringer’s Ben Lindbergh to talk about the Astros-Phillies World Series. They also discuss the decline of Russell Wilson, and possibly Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers. And they assess whether Adam Silver’s NBA promotion and relegation talk is for real.   World Series (5:35):  How are the Astros so consistently good in the randomness of the p...

On this episode: Zak and Jamilah are joined by stand-up comedian Ophira Eisenberg to talk about her new show, Parenting Is a Joke . They also discuss the evolution of comedy about parenting, if it’s appropriate to use your kids as source material, and which comedians are at the mountain top of this type of comedy.  Recommendations:  Jamilah recommends Reboot on Hulu.  Ophira recommends Paddington...

Ron DeSantis broke with tradition when he rejected the Florida legislature’s redistricting map and presented his own. But by splitting a majority Black district in northern Florida into four other districts, he may have violated both Florida and federal laws against gerrymandering. Guest: Joshua Kaplan , reporter at ProPublica .  If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. S...

Alzheimer’s treatment hasn’t changed much in the past two decades, and the way researchers have been thinking about and approaching the disease may be to blame.  Guest: Damian Garde , reporter for Stat covering the biotech industry . Host: Lizzie O’Leary If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus epis...

This week, Felix Salmon , Emily Peck , and Elizabeth Spiers are joined by design critic  Alexandra Lange to talk about her book Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall on the evolution of shopping malls in America. In the Plus segment: How online shopping has affected malls.   Podcast production by Jessamine Molli. Thanks  Avast.com ! Learn more about Avast One at  Avast.com If you...

A lot has been happening around Twitch, a platform that really seems to live in its own world on the internet. On today’s show, Rachelle is joined by Gita Jackson who explains exactly why Twitch can feel so insular even though the audience is enormous. They also talk about the poorly planned TwitchCon, and the horrible things that have led streamer Amouranth to take a break from the site. This pod...

David Plotz talks with with author  Tom Perrotta  about why Tracy Flick doesn’t have the life she dreamed of in his new novel,  Tracy Flick Can’t Win . A sequel to Perrotta’s 1998 novel  Election ,  Tracy Flick Can’t Win  meets up with Tracy Flick decades later where she’s a single mother and assistant principal of a New Jersey high school.  Tweet us your questions  @SlateGabfest  or email us at ...

Dahlia Lithwick is joined by Judge Michael Luttig for the definitive conversation on a giant elections case now on the calendar at the Supreme Court. Moore v Harper is a North Carolina redistricting case that is also a vehicle for the Independent State Legislature Theory - a so-called doctrine that could radically re-order democracy in America. Judge Luttig - a stalwart of conservative legal circl...

One company’s software is helping set prices for apartments across the country. But when does an algorithm telling landlords how much to charge—by drawing on property data—cross the line from “handy tool” to “illegal price-fixing”?  Guest: Heather Vogell , reporter with ProPublica Host: Lizzie O'Leary If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefit...