Slate News

This week: Biden’s comin’ for your iPhone! Or at least, his administration wants to make it less restrictive to third-party developers. Felix Salmon , Emily Peck , and Elizabeth Spiers discuss the new Apple DOJ lawsuit, how Reddit can leverage its massive IPO, and new rules for real estate brokers that could change the home-buying experience. In the Plus segment: Unilever is dropping Ben & Jer...

Despite the blackouts, moderator revolts, and long string of controversies, Reddit remains an active, healthy website. As the site goes public this week, can it remain that way? Guest: Priya Anand, Bloomberg News tech reporter. 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 Po...

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the Supreme Court’s busy week on government speech and immigration authority; Donald Trump’s bond issue and words problem; and COVID learning loss. Join us for  Political Gabfest Live  in Washington, D.C. on March 27! Tickets are on sale now; get ‘em before they’re gone.    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: A...

Experts say domestic violence tends to start or intensify during pregnancy. But since the overturn of Roe v. Wade , terminating a pregnancy—or even advising or helping someone to terminate a pregnancy—has been criminalized in several states which can leave survivors of domestic violence unable to separate from an abusive partner.   Guest: Julianne McShane , writer at Mother Jones covering the inte...

When even Israel’s American allies like Biden and Chuck Schumer seem to be growing impatient waiting for a ceasefire in Gaza, what is standing in the way? Guest: Fred Kaplan, Slate writer and author of  The Bomb: Presidents, Generals, and the Secret History of Nuclear War . Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your fa...

It’s hard to imagine anyone changing their opinion on Trump based on a new running mate. But there’s more at stake with this pick than just the 2024 election. Guest: Benjy Sarlin , Washington Bureau Chief at Semafor Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by...

For this edition of Money Talks, Felix Salmon chats with Jay Newman , the former hedge fund manager who helped Elliot Management recover $2.4 billion from Argentina after that country defaulted on its loans. Jay shares his philosophy on sovereign debt and recounts a 16-year battle full of judicial intrigue. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get a...

With gangs controlling much of the capital and the prime minister out of office, what is Haiti’s path to stability? What role should the international community play?   Guest: Harold Isaac , independent journalist in Haiti. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Pod...

Private equity firms have been buying up doctors’ offices and hospitals around the country. But if profits are the primary goal, what happens to the cost and quality of healthcare for patients? Guest: Gretchen Morgenson , senior financial reporter for the NBC News Investigative Unit and co-author of “These Are the Plunderers: How Private Equity Runs—and Wrecks—America”  Want more What Next TBD? Su...

While all eyes and brains are on what SCOTUS thinks about making Trump emperor-king, a lesser known case will be heard Monday that could have a huge impact on how social media can (or cannot) keep election workers safe this year. Murthy v. Missouri arrives at the high court as the result a lawsuit filed by the attorneys general of Missouri and Louisiana, along with a group of social media users—in...

Emily Bazelon talks with  author Tana French  about her new book,  The Hunter . They discuss the different perspectives French uses throughout her books, how French happened into writing mysteries, writing as an outsider to Ireland, and more. Tweet us your questions  @SlateGabfest  or email us at  gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcas...

This week: Americans don’t care as much about work. They have better things to do.  Felix Salmon , Emily Peck , and Elizabeth Spiers discuss the prospect of a four-day workweek and what it could mean for the economy. Also: How Liquid Death made water rad as hell, and the uncertain fate of TikTok in America. In the Plus segment: Tanning is back! Producer Cheyna Roth joins the hosts to discuss the r...

TikTok’s connection to the Chinese government has been a Washington talking point since the Trump administration, but earlier this month lawmakers in the House introduced a bill requiring the app’s parent company to either divest the company into American hands—or be banned. Guest: Emily Baker-White, technology reporter and senior writer at Forbes. Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus...

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address and Special Counsel Robert Hur’s congressional testimony; crime and punishment with the  Wren Collective’s Jessica Brand ; and Congress’s move to ban the Chinese government from TikTok. Join us for  Political Gabfest Live  in Washington, D.C. on March 27! Tickets are on sale now. Plan...

How Mexico’s $10 billion lawsuit against American gun manufacturers and distributors could pave the way for new gun control tactics in the U.S. and abroad.   Guest: Champe Barton , reporter for The Trace .  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 Amicus—and you’...

Kate Middleton’s on-going absence has the internet tied in knots, and the heavily edited photo that the royal family released—and then rescinded—only made things worse. What do we know about the Princess of Wales’s whereabouts?  Guest: Imogen West-Knights , contributing writer for Slate based in London. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next...

Extra charges and fees for everything from booking a hotel to buying concert tickets have become an insidious part of daily life. President Biden is hoping that by outlawing so-called “junk fees,” he can win some goodwill with voters before the election. Will it work? Guest: David Dayen, Executive Editor of The American Prospect, author of Monopolized: Life in the Age of Corporate Power . If you e...

In a special episode of Money Talks, Emily Peck chats with writer/director Chloe Domont , whose feminist thriller Fair Play explores what happens when an ambitious woman outshines her well-meaning but insecure partner. It was inspired by Chloe’s experience surpassing the men in her own life. (But there is a happy ending!) If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plu...

On Super Tuesday, Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson secured the Republican nomination for governor in North Carolina. His history of anti-semitic, misogynistic, and outright absurd comments wasn’t a problem for MAGA supporters in the state—and it certainly wasn’t a problem for the national Grand Old Party either. Guest: Jeffrey Billman , politics and law reporter at The Assembly . Want more What N...

As the debate around child safety online rages on, an investigation by The New York Times found a seedy world of pedophiles interacting with child influencer accounts, often run by their parents, on Instagram.  Guest: Jennifer Valentino-DeVries, investigative reporter at the New York Times.  Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family...

It’s not just the justices on the Supreme Court who can’t seem to agree with each other anymore. As we slide into Trump v. Biden 2 (The Second One), it seems like voters can’t seem to come to a consensus on just about anything either, including the facts they are arguing over. Author and superstar litigator Barbara McQuade argues in her new book Attack From Within: How Disinformation is Sabotaging...

The New York Times declared that physical wallets are on the outs. But is digital enough? Felix Salmon Emily Peck and Elizabeth Spiers discuss! Also: Steve Mnuchin’s heroic $1 billion bailout of New York Community Bank, and new rules requiring public companies to report their carbon emissions. In the Plus segment, a leaked Department of Labor email to a mysterious group of “super users” may reveal...

Thousands of songs have disappeared from TikTok in recent months as music giant Universal Music Group, or UMG, has pulled its catalog from the app. UMG claims that TikTok is a music platform, and that TikTok needs to pay more to license its music. TikTok claims they're a marketing platform that helps labels promote their artists. But while the two sides argue over contract negotiations for licensi...

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the Biden v. Trump polls and Super Tuesday, the Supreme Court’s decision to leave Donald Trump on the ballot, and whether  The Golden Age of American Jews Is Ending  with The Atlantic’s Franklin Foer. Join us for  Political Gabfest Live  in Washington, D.C. on March 27! Tickets are on sale now. Planning to attend? Submit a Listener...

With Biden trailing Trump in the polls and thousands of Democrats casting votes for “uncommitted” in the primaries, can the president make his case for a second term to frustrated progressives at the State of the Union?  Guest: Pramila Jayapal , U.S. representative from Washington's 7th congressional district and the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. Want more What Next? Subscribe to...