Slate Daily Feed

For decades, the press has enjoyed a wide latitude when writing about public figures. But the high legal standard for defamation may be coming in for some scrutiny in the libel suit of Sarah Palin versus the New York Times.  Guest: Slate contributor Seth Stevenson . Read his latest coverage of the trial of Sarah Palin v. New York Times .  If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slat...

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about the Rams’ Super Bowl win over the Bengals. They’re also joined by David Epstein to discuss the decision to allow Kamila Valieva to skate in the Olympics. Finally, they assess the mega-trade between the Nets and 76ers.   Super Bowl (3:36):  How Aaron Donald and Cooper Kupp led the Rams to victory.   Valieva (23:13):  Why is the 15-year-old com...

Old wounds are open again in Minneapolis. The city is struggling to investigate a police shooting from earlier this month, when officers carried out a “no-knock” search warrant and fatally shot a 22-year-old Black man in bed. The victim, Amir Locke, was not a suspect in the crime police were investigating. The shooting comes months after city voters rejected a plan to defund the police, and some c...

In just a few short years, the Chinese fast fashion company Shein upended the way countless young women shop online. It’s approach could soon shape the way everyone else shops, too.  Guest : Louise Matsakis , freelance technology reporter Host: Lizzie O’Leary Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

TikTok doesn’t know you better than you know yourself, even if you think it does. On the show today, Rachelle and Madison talk about two different ways the app leads people down dangerous paths. First, they discuss the recent uptick in posts and advertisements focused on diagnosing mental and physical health issues, and how it’s so easy to convince yourself that you’re suffering from whatever mala...

Dahlia Lithwick interviews Rep. Adam Schiff about his work on the Jan. 6 select committee and his fears for our democracy. Next, Dahlia is joined by pre-eminent election-law scholar Professor Franita Tolson, who clears up any confusion about what happened in the shadow-docket order concerning Merrill v Milligan , which appears to have kicked away the remaining protections of the Voting Rights Act’...

This week, Felix Salmon and Emily Peck are joined by Kevin Roose of  The New York Times  to talk about the crypto money launder scheme Heather Morgan and Ilya “Dutch” Lichtenstein are accused of taking part in; the possible usefulness of crypto; and what’s going on with  Forbes . In the Plus segment: The  Sotheby’s auction  of CryptoPunks.  Mentioned In the show:  “ How The Crypto Couple Went From...

Facebook’s first crack at the metaverse has a problem: kids. Underage users seem to be flooding Horizon Worlds, potentially putting themselves at risk.  Is Meta doomed to repeat Facebook’s mistakes? Guest : Will Oremus, technology news analysis writer for the Washington Post.  Host: Lizzie O’Leary Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Emily, John and David dig into SCOTUS's failure to enforce the Voting Rights Act, the GOP's embrace of January 6th rioters, and protests in Canada. Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: John Dickerson for The Atlantic: “The GOP Has No Standards Now” Adela Suliman for The Washington Post: “Marjorie Taylor Greene says Nancy Pelosi leads ‘gazpacho police,’ causing collective spit...

On this week’s episode: Jamilah, Zak, and Elizabeth dive into the complicated world of cotillions. A listener is wondering if she should enroll her biracial daughter if all of her friends are participating. Kristen Richardson, author of The Season: A Social History of the Debutante , joins to give some wonderful context and advice. They then tackle a question about sending a toddler to summer camp...

As the Winter Olympics unfold in Beijing, a darker reality remains: China’s abuses against the Uyghurs, an ethnic minority in the country’s Xinjiang region. While much of the world remains glued to the sports coverage, Uyghurs in the diaspora are calling on people to pay attention to China's treatment of their family members back home. Guest: Gulchehra Hoja, a Uyghur journalist with Radio Free Asi...

Elvis impersonator Brendan Paul marries as many as 75 people a day in the Las Vegas wedding chapel he owns. But while his portrayal of Elvis generally leans into kitsch, his view on The King's life goes deeper. "A lot people go, 'I bet you wish you were Elvis,'" he told me. "And I always go, 'Not really.'" This episode is a collaboration with Condé Nast Traveler and their new love and travel serie...

Shailene Woodley and Aaron Rodgers might not be the most expected pairing, until you look at their willingness to embrace conspiracy nonsense. On the show today, Rachelle and Madison and joined by Vulture’s Rachel Handler to discuss her recent piece, “ What Do Aaron Rodgers and Shailene Woodley ‘Agree to Disagree’ About? ” They talk about the history of weird beliefs these two celebrities have, ho...

This week, Culture Gabfest is coming to you live from The Strand Bookstore in NYC for a special event! In this live taping, Steve interviews Dana about her new book ( Camera Man: Buster Keaton, the Dawn of Cinema, and the Invention of the Twentieth Century ) and Isaac Butler about his new book ( The Method: How the Twentieth Century Learned to Act ). In Slate Plus, Dana and Isaac answer some quest...

The Ottawa truckers protest is neither exclusive to Ottawa nor strictly composed of truckers. And its supporters are hoping to head to a city near you.  Guest: Jesse Brown , editor-in-chief of Canadaland. 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 episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence—and...

With Roe v. Wade on the chopping block, abortion access is under fire in states around the country. At Planned Parenthood’s Knoxville location, the clinic faced that literally when an arson attack burned the building to the ground. How will providers rebuild when the things they stand for are so threatened? Guest: Tory Mills , director of community engagement for Planned Parenthood’s Knoxville Hea...

Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin are joined by the New York Times’ John Branch to discuss Chinese-American skier Eileen Gu. They also talk about Brian Flores’ lawsuit against the NFL and ponder the 76ers’ Ben Simmons problem and the Nets’ various conundrums.   Eileen Gu (6:02):  What to make of her decision to represent China at the Beijing Games.   Flores (23:40):  Can anything change...

Until last month, Brian Flores was the head coach of the Miami Dolphins, and one of only three Black head coaches among the NFL’s 32 teams. That number has since dropped to one.  On Tuesday, Flores announced he was suing the NFL, alleging that the league's hiring practices are racist. His suit comes almost 20 years after the creation of the Rooney Rule, which requires teams to interview ethnic-min...

Banks, healthcare providers, and retailers around the world still rely on COBOL, a programming language originally developed in the 1960s. By all accounts the code is powerful, practical, and very rarely problematic. But the small group of people who still know the language are aging out of the workforce.  What happens when there are no more COBOL coders left? Guest : Clive Thompson , journalist a...

Last month, a Tennessee school board voted to ban Art Spiegelman’s graphic novel about the Holocaust, Maus , from their eighth grade curriculum. This caused Maus to experience the "Streisand effect." On the show today, Rachelle and Madison explain the origins of the Streisand effect as an online phenomenon, how it helped Maus ’ recent sales skyrocket, and why this short-term publicity isn’t really...

This week, Felix Salmon and Emily Peck are joined by management consultant and sports fan Robin Timothy of to talk about Facebook’s sudden loss of users and revenue, why the Olympics are both problematic  and  boring, and the Brian Flores NFL lawsuit alleging racial discrimination in coach hiring.  In the Plus segment: A big gold cube. Mentioned In the show:  “ Brian Flores’ NFL Lawsuit: Can He Pr...

For Spotify, the last month has seen a cascade of controversies around its exclusive podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience. Is it time for the streaming service to rethink its role as a podcast publisher? And is it even possible to moderate podcast misinformation? Guest : Evelyn Douek , lecturer at Harvard Law School, and Affiliate at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society Host: Lizzie O’...

Emily, John and David discuss Donald Trump’s attempts to seize voting machines, the racist attacks on the yet-to-be-named SCOTUS nominee, and they are joined by Joseph Allen, director of the Healthy Buildings program at Harvard University's T. H. Chan School of Public Health, to discuss ways we might update U.S. COVID norms. Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: Joseph G. Allen...

On this week’s episode: Elizabeth, Zak, and Aymann aren’t shying away from the difficult conversations. First, they answer a listener question about how to handle death with a toddler. Should you take a toddler to their grandparent’s funeral? Should you explain death? Should you let them see you cry? Then, Zak is talking with comedian Chris Gethard about his new essay Dad on Pills , available on S...

A popular, outgoing liberal mayor in Silicon Valley is taking on gun rights groups with a splashy municipal ordinance fashioned to curb gun violence—and be the first of its kind. Gun rights groups are foretelling doom for the new law, and the NRA called it a “ridiculous publicity stunt.”  Does this city’s initiative have the hallmarks of a breakthrough on gun violence prevention? Will lawsuits tan...