Slate News

Emily Bazelon talks with author and Yale professor Judith Resnik about her new book,  Impermissible Punishments: How Prison Became a Problem for Democracy . They discuss the history of the prison system’s use of punishments like whipping, how the practice came to an end, and more.   Tweet us your questions  @SlateGabfest  or email us at  gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless...

This week: The Fed announced an expected rate cut with an unexpected dissent.      Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck are joined by Axios’ Neil Irwin who breaks down why the Fed meeting was so unusual – thanks to the very recent Trump appointee Stephen Miran– and what it means for the future of the central bank. Then, AMEX announced an increase that brings their Platinum fee to $895....

TikTok—which was supposed to be banned again on Wednesday but, again, isn’t—may be legal once more. The Trump administration says it’s meeting with Xi Jinping Friday to finalize the agreement, which may involve—get this—a wealthy Trump-supporting tech mogul.  Guest: Nitish Pahwa , staff writer for business and tech at Slate. This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slat...

As the Charlie Kirk murder demonstrated, law enforcement, the government, and media all need more internet fluency. But their reactions in the wake of the murder don’t seem to be moving towards a better understanding.  Guest:   Ryan Broderick , reporter on online culture, author of the newsletter Garbage Day . Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whol...

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the government’s intimidation tactics aimed at chilling free speech after Charlie Kirk’s assassination, why Trump seems intent to provoke armed conflict with Venezuela, and how the president and his Republican allies are upending DC self-governance with guest Michael Schaffer ( City Cast DC , Politico ). For this week’s Slate Plus b...

Donald Trump has been calling for the Fed to cut rates to bolster the economy, and yesterday, they announced they would. The bad news is that’s because the economy is going to need a lot more bolstering. Guest:  Justin Wolfers , economist and professor at the University of Michigan Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all...

What happens to an organization when it purges much of its leadership and ranks irrespective of ability, and hires for sycophantic loyalty instead? The FBI is finding out.  Guests:   Michael Feinberg , former assistant special agent in charge at the FBI’s field office in Norfolk, VA, now a fellow at Lawfare . Quinta Jurecic , staff writer at The Atlantic. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Pl...

Conservatives have decried higher education as a center of liberal indoctrination for decades, and under the second Trump administration, colleges and universities are watching their federal funding be withheld or frozen, their presidents step down, and professors lose their jobs. What can be done to wrest back academic freedom and independence from a vindictive administration? Guest:  Sarah Brown...

In this Money Talks: Elizabeth Spiers is joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Gary Rivlin to discuss his book AI Valley , a deep dive into the Silicon Valley companies that are competing to create the best–and most profitable–AI model. Gary has been covering the tech world for decades and has seen the major players in this arms race evolve over that time. He discusses the perspectives of th...

Hasan Piker was scheduled to debate Charlie Kirk at Dartmouth College later this month, a left-vs-right, Vidal-vs-Buckley for the streaming age. In the wake of Kirk’s shocking death, Piker wants to continue to be clear about who Kirk was, what he stood for, and the reactionary political project he was working to advance. Guest: Hasan Piker, Twitch streamer and left-wing political commentator.  Wan...

After their daughter committed suicide, they found her ChatGPT log—and where artificial intelligence helped her write her suicide note. Guest:  Laura Reiley, writer for the Cornell Chronicle.  Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at th...

In this week’s episode of Amicus, we delve into the recent Supreme Court shadow docket order in Noem v. Vasquez-Perdomo, which in essence legalized racial profiling by roving ICE patrols, and in practice may have ushered in America’s “show your papers” era for Americans with brown skin, who speak Spanish, and/or go to Home Depot in work clothes. Join Dahlia Lithwick and Ahilan Arulanantham, a long...

This week: ICE raided a Hyundai plant in Georgia. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck discuss the somewhat hamfisted raid that detained hundreds of South Korean workers–disrupting both Hyundai’s operations and the local economy–and the potential fallout if foreign companies see this as a reason to avoid investing in the US. Then, Oracle’s stock surged this week thanks to its AI deals,...

On Friday, authorities announced they had a suspect – and they sure seemed confident they “got him” (to quote Utah Governor Spencer Cox). Mary and Slatester Luke Winkie discuss the press conference – and what happens now. Guest: Luke Winkie , Slate staff writer. This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock exclusive episodes...

Graphic, violent videos like the shooting of right-wing pundit Charlie Kirk circulate across social media moments after they happen, finding an audience even among people who have made no effort to seek them out. Guest: Craig Silverman, journalist and cofounder of Indicator .  Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your fa...

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the assassination of Charlie Kirk amid an extremely troubling climate of political violence in America, another Supreme Court order with no majority explanation allowing racial profiling by ICE in LA, and a score-settling excerpt from Kamala Harris’s upcoming memoir 107 Days. For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, an...

How a Supreme Court decision from the shadow docket opens the door to racial profiling, creates a nightmare for millions of Latino Americans, and drains dwindling legitimacy from the court itself. Guest: Mark Joseph Stern , senior writer covering courts and the law for Slate, and the co-host of Amicus. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next...

Last week, Donald Trump announced the military had blown up what he said was a drug-smuggling boat. This week, we still don’t know why he believes the boat was full of smugglers. But even if they were trafficking drugs, can the president  legally blow up 11 people in international waters?  Guests: Shane Harris , staff writer covering national security and intelligence for The Atlantic .  Ana Vanes...

With Republicans holding both houses of Congress and the White House, Democrats don’t have a lot of ways to stall Donald Trump’s agenda—except for refusing to further fund the government and triggering a shutdown. They already passed on the opportunity once, but is the situation now so desperate that the opposition party needs to do something—anything? Guest: Rep. Jamie Raskin , U.S. representativ...

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s tenure as HHS Secretary has meant turmoil for the CDC: thousands of employees have either been let go, or are unclear on their employment status; leadership has been stepping down; and there was a shooting at their Atlanta building in August. The result is RFK being yelled at in the Senate, thousands of CDC employees calling for his resignation, and a country less prepared...

An Inflation Reduction Act subsidy for electric vehicles is being shut down by the Trump administration at the end of September, and automakers are preparing for sales of EVs to slow. Can this nascent industry survive?  Guest: Ryan Felton , reporter covering the automotive industry for the Wall Street Journal Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole...

There is a “stuckness” to American political life right now, which has become a seemingly inexorable centrifuge of polarization, victimization and power grabbing. The constitution is brandished as sword and shield, and also as though it is the word of God. Americans, it seems, have lost the ability to think creatively and expansively about the constitution, and our ability to amend it. On this wee...

This week: Tesla offered Elon Musk an incentive package worth a trillion dollars.   Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck discuss Tesla's motivation and why Musk, already the richest man in the world, would be tempted by the outrageous number. Then, the big antitrust case against Google went out with a whimper, with the Judge ruling that they are a monopoly but they don’t need to break...

We’ve been told that artificial intelligence can write, code, generate images—it can do everything…except feasibly turn a profit. But investing in A.I. has nevertheless become a pillar of the U.S. economy. Where is this leading us? Guest: Ed Zitron, author of the newsletter Where’s Your Ed At and host of the podcast Better Offline . Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-fre...

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss what the spate of legal defeats for the Trump administration portends as cases wind toward the Supreme Court, the real world effects of RFK Jr. gutting the CDC with guest Dr. Josh Sharfstein , and whether Democrats should compel government shutdown or avoid it now that Congress is back. For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emil...