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In March, when schools across the country shut down, few people could have guessed that students wouldn’t return until the fall. Schools weren’t equipped to deploy remote-learning curricula, technology was in short supply, and most parents weren’t free to guide their children through lessons during the day. Three months later, little has changed. And all that time out of the classroom has taken a...

In March, when schools across the country shut down, few people could have guessed that students wouldn’t return until the fall. Schools weren’t equipped to deploy remote-learning curricula, technology was in short supply, and most parents weren’t free to guide their children through lessons during the day. Three months later, little has changed. And all that time out of the classroom has taken a...

Companies from Nike to the New York Times have announced that Juneteenth will be a paid day off this year. What does wider observance of the holiday say about the progress we’re making as a country?  Guest: Adam Serwer, staff writer for The Atlantic Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Police reform is not a new cause in New York. The same proposals have been discussed for years. But when people took to the streets in late May, they handed politicians a mandate. This is the story of how the protesters got their first big win.  Guest: Zellnor Myrie , New York state senator serving in Brooklyn.  Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Hosted o...

On Monday, the conservative Supreme Court extended civil rights protections to transgender and gay Americans. The ruling is not controversial -- supermajorities of polled citizens say discrimination against LGBTQ people should be illegal. But Monday’s decision comes ahead of a flurry of rulings on other closely-watched cases involving the president’s financial records, the DACA program, abortion r...

In the past couple of weeks, multiple high ranking military members, active and retired, have spoken out against the Trump administration's use of force in Lafayette Square. Usually, military officers prefer to stay silent on political matters. Does this mark a sea change in the way the military deals with President Trump? Guest: Fred Kaplan, Slate’s War Stories Correspondent and the author of The...

This week, three of the leading developers of facial-recognition technology announced they would stop, or at least pause, selling this technology to police. The decision stems from evidence of racial bias inherent in these tools. For the researchers who first uncovered the deep-seated issues with these tools, it’s a watershed moment. Will facial-recognition technology continue to grow unchecked? O...

This week, three of the leading developers of facial-recognition technology announced they would stop, or at least pause, selling this technology to police. The decision stems from evidence of racial bias inherent in these tools. For the researchers who first uncovered the deep-seated issues with these tools, it’s a watershed moment. Will facial-recognition technology continue to grow unchecked? O...

To hear the president tell it, you would think that antifa activists are blanketing the country -- bringing their campaign of vandalism and looting and lawlessness to your town. These fears are sown and circulated through digital whisper networks that can be hard for outsiders to penetrate. But the online rumors are having real-life consequences.  Guest: Brandy Zadrozny , NBC News correspondent. R...

This week, nine members of the Minneapolis City Council announced their intention to dissolve the Minneapolis Police Department. And while this moment may belong to the protesters of Minneapolis, it has just as much to do with the conduct of the city’s police, and how they’ve met even small reforms with utter contempt.  Guest: Steve Fletcher , a member of the Minneapolis City Council.  Slate Plus...

Looking at the images that have come out over the last few weeks: images of police violence and protest, it’s impossible not to think how similar they are to pictures we saw just a few years back in Ferguson, Missouri. Michael Brown's death at the hands of a police officer sparked protests across the country and cemented the Black Lives Matter movement into the American consciousness. Today on the...

It is entirely possible to support the protests while feeling intense anxiety that they will result in additional cases of COVID-19.  Guest: Dr. Howard Markel , professor at the University of Michigan School of Public Health, and author of When Germs Travel , among other books.  Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for...

In the midst of the pandemic, protests and police lockdowns, restaurants are turning increasingly to delivery apps like DoorDash and Grubhub to stay afloat. But with shady tactics, soaring fees, and deep-seated flaws with the business model of the entire industry, delivery startups may do more harm than good. Guest: Ranjan Roy , CEO at the Edge Group and writer of Margins newsletter Slate Plus mem...

In the midst of the pandemic, protests and police lockdowns, restaurants are turning increasingly to delivery apps like DoorDash and Grubhub to stay afloat. But with shady tactics, soaring fees, and deep-seated flaws with the business model of the entire industry, delivery startups may do more harm than good. Guest: Ranjan Roy , CEO at the Edge Group and writer of Margins newsletter Slate Plus mem...

Larry Kramer always made sure you heard him loud and clear. He was a playwright, a novelist, but he was perhaps best known for his work as an AIDS activist. In the 1980s and 1990s, Kramer sought to wake up the world to the plague that was killing millions of people through provocative demonstrations, fiery essays, and righteous anger. A world class troublemaker, Kramer died last week leaving a bod...

The images are familiar now. The police in their face shields, armed with batons and cans of pepper spray. The protestors, sporting bruises, pouring milk on each others’ faces. What’s happening right now might make you feel uncomfortable and angry. Kellie Carter-Jackson says: that’s the point. Today on the show, why a nice, peaceful protest may not accomplish the structural change America needs. G...

Supreme Court decision days are when Dalia Larios is most nervous. Now a doctor in residency at a hospital in Boston, she spends her time largely thinking about her work, reading the endless amounts of research being published about COVID-19 and studying how her hospital is responding to the pandemic. But it’s those decision days where she finds herself checking her phone a bit more, adding more t...

The Minneapolis police lost the faith of their community long before the death of George Floyd. How did things get so bad?  Guest: Jon Collins , reporter for Minnesota Public Radio and host of 74 Seconds .  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On Tuesday, after years of inaction, Twitter fact checked President Trump’s tweets for the first time. Six words were added below the original text, directing readers to outside articles refuting his claims. Two days later, the president signed an executive order that aims to change the nature of online speech, and the platforms that host it. Guest: Casey Newton , Silicon Valley editor at the Verg...

On Tuesday, after years of inaction, Twitter fact checked President Trump’s tweets for the first time. Six words were added below the original text, directing readers to outside articles refuting his claims. Two days later, the president signed an executive order that aims to change the nature of online speech, and the platforms that host it. Guest: Casey Newton , Silicon Valley editor at the Verg...

On Wednesday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that Hong Kong was no longer considered autonomous from China by the US government. Tensions were already high between the two global superpowers but with this new escalation, where do they go from here?  Guest: Joshua Keating , staff writer at Slate Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Hosted on Acast....

At 14.7%, US unemployment is at its highest rate since the Great Depression. In the coming months, Washington has a narrow window to avert an even bigger economic disaster. Guest: Jordan Weissmann , Slate’s senior business and economics correspondent. Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

No one was ready for this coronavirus. But what’s happening on native lands is the result of generations of neglect.  Guest: Wahleah Johns, co-founder of Native Renewables . Read more from Wahleah here . Read about the history of underfunded health care in native communities here .  Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy...

As the coronavirus shut down manufacturing across California in March and April, Elon Musk only wanted one thing: to start making cars again. So when local government officials in Alameda County got in his way, Musk took the fight public, and won. Guest : Kara Swisher , co-host of the Pivot podcast . Host Lizzie O’Leary Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the coronavirus shut down manufacturing across California in March and April, Elon Musk only wanted one thing: to start making cars again. So when local government officials in Alameda County got in his way, Musk took the fight public, and won. Guest : Kara Swisher , co-host of the Pivot podcast . Host Lizzie O’Leary Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.