Slate Daily Feed

After a tepid embrace of Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter and a back-and-forth over Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road,” country music fans are all in on Shaboozey’s “A Bar Song (Tipsy).” How has this hip-hop-inflected country hit perched atop the charts for a record-tying 19 weeks?  Guest: Chris Molanphy , chart analyst, pop critic, host of the Hit Parade podcast , and author of Slate's “ Why Is This Song No. 1?...

Hosts Alex Kirshner , Ben Lindbergh , and Lindsay Gibbs talk about Bill Belichick and how one of the winningest NFL coaches of all time transitions to college football as UNC’s head coach. The panel also discusses the NBA Cup and the recent Bills-Lions slugfest. Finally Ben delivers an Afterball on Catfish Hunter and the history of deferred salary payments across sports. On the bonus episode avail...

On this episode: Zak, Elizabeth and Jamilah help a parent who’s thinking ahead to when her baby is a little bigger… and wondering how to build a close relationship with a kid who has a life of their own. How do you raise someone who wants to come to you for advice?   We’ll also check in on where the hosts are this week – and then, if you’re coming to hang out on the Slate Plus Playground, we’re co...

The highest grossing documentary in 2024 was “Am I Racist?” from The Daily Wire’s Matt Walsh, and it’s not the only avowedly right-wing movie that’s enjoyed success at the box office this year. Is Hollywood going the way of the White House? Guest: Barry Hertz, Deputy Arts Editor and Film Editor for The Globe and Mail Want more What Next? Join Slate Plus to unlock full, ad-free access to What Next...

Our lives, and our communication in particular, are increasingly conducted over the internet. This means we are increasingly able to be hacked and monitored, by governments, by the police, and more and more by anyone who can get their hands on the available software. Guest: Ronan Farrow, investigative reporter and producer of the Max documentary “Surveilled.” If you enjoy this show, please conside...

Candice Lim is joined by Slate writers Luke Winkie and Nitish Pahwa to cover the biggest internet stories ICYMI missed this year: from the investigation that may affect your For You Page, to a certain Silicon Valley founder’s unexpected fashion choices . Plus, the panel reveals their internet regrets for 2024. This podcast is produced by Alexandra Botti, Daisy Rosario and Candice Lim with producti...

Last week, we examined the deeply worrying prospect of Kash Patel, FBI director. This week, that possibility became even more worrisome with respect to the future of the FBI, all sparked by current director Christopher Wray’s announcement of his intention to step down. To kick off this week’s show, Dahlia Lithwick is joined by Slate senior writer Mark Joseph Stern, who explains why Wray’s decision...

This week: Crypto companies are being debanked but they’re not the only ones. Felix Salmon , Emily Peck , and Elizabeth Spiers break down the conspiracy theory that debanking is a government attack on crypto. Then, Netflix has pared down their extreme leave policy. What does that signal about the direction of the company? And Spotify is finally making a profit and is acting like it.   In the Slate...

That damned jingle! In that infernal commercial trying to sell you cars, sneakers, soda, gum! Can’t get it out of your head? Well, what if we made it longer, had a famous singer perform it, and put it on the radio? How would you like it then? A surprising number of hits across chart history got their start in advertisements: the Carpenters song that was originally a promo for a California bank. Th...

Elon Musk has been down in Florida with Donald Trump, inviting his fellow rich Silicon Valley friends to stop by and weigh in on the next administration. How could policy and personnel be shaped by this input from successful (if totally inexperienced in government) individuals? Guest: Teddy Schleifer, covering politics for the New York Times. Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to acc...

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the fall of the al-Assad dictatorship in Syria with  Steven A. Cook  of the Council on Foreign Relations; the killing of a health insurance CEO and the acquittal for the death of a troubled man; and the future of American birthright citizenship. For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, Emily, John, and David discuss President Joe B...

On this episode: Elizabeth, Jamilah and Zak help a member of the Slate Parenting Facebook group whose whole household is struggling with a little one’s sleepless nights. We’ll talk about how to help a kid settle, and stay settled… and why it might not be smart to watch the clock. After that, of course, we’ll circle up to share some Triumphs and Fails.  Join us on Facebook and email us at careandfe...

The hunt for the new chair of the Democratic National Committee is on and the winning candidate will be the one that party officials believe can guide Democrats back to the White House. So who’s throwing their hat into the ring? Guest: Gabriel Debenedetti is a national correspondent at New York Magazine and the author of The Long Alliance: The Imperfect Union of Joe Biden and Barack Obama . Want m...

While the Slow Burn team is hard at work on our next season, we are excited to share the first episode of the second season from our friends at SNAFU with Ed Helms: MEDBURG. In March 1971, Washington Post reporter Betty Medsger receives a mysterious envelope full of classified documents. Soon, what's inside will change the way America sees the FBI. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more i...

This week, Christina Cauterucci explores the intimate connections between queer identity and the natural world with Bryn Mawr professor Kate Thomas. In this episode, we journey through the lives of Florence Blood and Princess Ghika, two enigmatic lesbians who found self-expression, love, and freedom renovating their Italian Renaissance estate at the turn of the 20th century- creating an enchanting...

On this week’s show, the hosts chew over Nightbitch , Marielle Heller’s ( Queen’s Gambit, Can You Ever Forgive Me, The Diary of a Teenage Girl, MacGruber ), fourth feature film. Amy Adam stars as “Mother,” a former artist who has given up her creative pursuits to care for her infant son full-time — a transition so taxing, that she begins dissociating and transforming into a dog at night. And while...

Daniel Penny’s trial over the death of Jordan Neely hinged on the question of how and when a “reasonable person” would feel threatened. Does the jury’s non-guilty verdict deliver a clear answer?  Guest: Katie Way , writer-editor at Hell Gate. Want more What Next? Join Slate Plus to unlock full, ad-free access to What Next and all your other favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from...

Candice Lim is joined by Waste or Taste host Jill Mapes to recap TikTok's year of music and give an unranked list of their favorite songs and sounds. They’re breaking down what makes a good TikTok sound, which mainstream artists won the platform this year, and asking: who is ian ? This podcast is produced by Alexandra Botti, Daisy Rosario, and Candice Lim. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy fo...

In this Money Talks: The collapse of Synapse and resulting fallout highlights how regulators are failing fintech users. Felix Salmon is joined by CNBC’s Hugh Son who has been closely following the situation . They unpack the chain of events that led to thousands of users losing access to their funds, the complexities of FDIC insurance, and how regulators allowed this massive scandal. Want to hear...

On election night, while many voters across the country were focused on who would win the presidency, a growing number of Americans were watching the returns with another question in mind: will I win or lose money? That’s because, just weeks before November 5th, a judge ruled that for the first time in almost a century Americans could bet large amounts of money on the outcome of political races. ...

Last week’s killing of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO prompted an outpouring of glee online. A look into UnitedHealthcare’s business practices—and the American healthcare system as a whole—can help explain why. Guest: Dan Diamond , national health reporter for The Washington Post. Want more What Next? Join Slate Plus to unlock full, ad-free access to What Next and all your other favorite Slate podcasts. Y...

Hosts Alex Kirshner , Ben Lindbergh , and Lindsay Gibbs discuss Juan Soto’s earth-shatteringly large contract with the New York Mets. They also talk about Lewis Hamilton’s last ride for Mercedes before he moves to team Ferrari, and Igor Shesterkin’s unprecedented new deal with the New York Rangers. For Afterballs, Alex breaks down some of the controversy within college football’s first 12-team pla...

On this episode: a member of the Slate Parenting community is wondering about how to handle tattletales. On the one hand: secrets can be bad. But on the other hand… are authority figures always there to help? We’ll also check in on where the hosts are this week – and then, if you’re coming to hang out on the Slate Plus Playground, we’re talking through the US government’s list of dangerous toys. I...

After more than a decade of civil war, Syrian rebels have toppled President Bashar al-Assad’s regime in just about a week. How was the dictator finally deposed, and what comes next for the war-torn country?  Guest: Josh Keating , senior correspondent at Vox covering foreign policy. Want more What Next? Join Slate Plus to unlock full, ad-free access to What Next and all your other favorite Slate po...

Spotify is shaping listening habits, so much so that musicians are shaping themselves for Spotify. It makes your musical world a little more prescribed, a little smaller.  If it feels like everything’s getting a little stale, how do we get out? Guest: Tiffany Ng, culture and tech writer. Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and...