Emily Bazelon talks with author Beverly Gage about her new book, G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century, a detailed account of the life of the first FBI Director, J. Edgar Hoover. They discuss Hoover’s hostile relationship with Martin Luther King Jr., why he should have quit at the end of the 1950s, and how Hoover’s childhood shaped his reign [MOU1] as director. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected]. (Messages could be quoted by name unless...
Nov 19, 2022•37 min
On this week’s episode of The Waves, Slate senior producer Cheyna Roth is joined by author Gabrielle Blair. Blair’s new book Ejaculate Responsibly presents the radical idea that men should take control of the fertility conversation by better managing their sperm. After all, they're fertile 24-hours a day compared to women’s 24-hours a month. Cheyna and Gabrielle also talk about the problem with not prioritizing women’s pain, Gabrielle’s history as a “Design Mom” and how even Mormons seem to agre...
Nov 17, 2022•34 min
On today’s episode Rachelle interviews Vice senior editor Samantha Cole about her forthcoming book How Sex Changed the Internet. The two talk about the role of sex in internet technology like videoconferencing, affiliate links and online credit card transactions. Cole also explains how lifecaster Jennifer Ringley is a predecessor to modern vloggers and livestreamers. This podcast is produced by Kevin Bendis, Daniel Schroeder, Daisy Rosario and Rachelle Hampton. Learn more about your ad choices. ...
Nov 12, 2022•47 min
On this week’s episode of The Waves, Slate senior supervising producer of audio, Daisy Rosario is joined by actress and director Lake Bell to talk about voices. Bell’s new audio book Inside Voice is all about her obsession with how people sound. They dig into why we should take better care of our voices, how trauma impacts our ability to speak, why candidate voices impact their electability, and more. In Slate Plus, Lake and Daisy talk about the problem with the sexy baby voice. Podcast producti...
Nov 10, 2022•29 min
On this episode: Part one of ‘Friendship Week!’ Zak talks with Dr. Marisa Franco on her book Platonic: How the Science Of Attachment Can Help You Make—and Keep—Friends. She explains why we’re in a friendship crisis and what we can do about it. They also talk about sharing shame and the importance of durable friendships. Recommendations: Elizabeth recommends going to a great bookstore. Zak recommends Petite Maman by Celine Sciamma Jamilah recommends Girls5eva If you enjoy this show, please consid...
Nov 07, 2022•33 min
This week, host Isaac Butler talks to poet J. Hope Stein, whose latest collection Little Astronaut traces Stein’s journey from pregnancy to motherhood. In the interview, Stein discusses all the creative components that go into her work, from structural elements like line-breaks and word-choice to the decision to share deeply personal details in her poetry. After the interview, Isaac and co-host Karen Han discuss the benefits of reading their work out loud. They also talk about the important crea...
Nov 06, 2022•50 min
There are some 400 million surveillance cameras installed in China, one for every three to four civilians. Built with the help of American tech companies, the surveillance state was pitched to the public as a way to make society safer and more efficient. But after severe lockdowns during COVID, the public has been objecting out of the eye of the camera lens. Protests are being written on bathroom walls. Guest: Josh Chin, deputy bureau chief, China, for the Wall Street Journal Host: Lizzie O’Lear...
Oct 30, 2022•42 min
For every civil rights martyr like Emmett Till, there were many other Black Americans who were brutalized or killed by racist violence in the early 20th century and remain largely unknown. On today’s episode of A Word, Jason Johnson is joined by Professor Margaret Burnham, author of By Hands Now Known: Jim Crow’s Legal Executioners. This new book unravels many of the lesser known stories of racist violence, the perpetrators, victims, and survivors. It’s also offering descendants of victims a pla...
Oct 28, 2022•26 min
Jenn and Todd Brandel have a close, loving relationship with their father, Bruce. But one thing makes their blood boil: his political chain emails. The messages are often forwarded commentary written in a provocative tone, and are an unwelcome reminder of just how far apart the family is politically. On this episode of How To!, we’re joined by Mónica Guzmán, senior fellow for public practice at Braver Angels and author of I Never Thought Of It That Way: How To Have Fearlessly Curious Conversatio...
Oct 25, 2022•43 min
This week, Felix Salmon, Emily Peck, and Elizabeth Spiers are joined by design critic Alexandra Lange to talk about her book Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall on the evolution of shopping malls in America. In the Plus segment: How online shopping has affected malls. Podcast production by Jessamine Molli. Thanks Avast.com! Learn more about Avast One at Avast.com If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on...
Oct 22, 2022•53 min
David Plotz talks with with author Tom Perrotta about why Tracy Flick doesn’t have the life she dreamed of in his new novel, Tracy Flick Can’t Win. A sequel to Perrotta’s 1998 novel Election, Tracy Flick Can’t Win meets up with Tracy Flick decades later where she’s a single mother and assistant principal of a New Jersey high school. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected]. (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production...
Oct 22, 2022•31 min
On this week’s episode of The Waves, Slate senior supervising producer of audio Daisy Rosario is joined by author Elissa Bassist to talk about women’s voices. They discuss Elissa’s new book, Hysterical and unpack why we cringe when we hear vocal fry, and ask why we don’t have similar words to describe male vocal ticks. Later in the show, they dig into how the fear of scrutiny women have over their voices silences them in ways you haven’t imagined. In Slate Plus, Elissa talks about her involvemen...
Oct 20, 2022•30 min
Becca is 6-feet tall, bold and strong-willed. She’s also easily startled and paralyzed by fear — even a children’s haunted house can reduce her to tears. In this episode of How To!, we bring in sociologist Margee Kerr, author of Scream: Chilling Adventures in the Science of Fear, to give us the lowdown on surviving scary situations. Can making fear more fun help Becca overcome her startle reflex in time for Halloween? Do you have a problem that needs solving? Have you found the advice on our pod...
Oct 18, 2022•34 min
From Ferguson to Minneapolis, protests against racist policing have been catalyzed by videos of the brutality being spread on social media. On today’s A Word, Jason Johnson sits down with Dr. Ruha Benjamin to talk about her book, Viral Justice: How We Grow the World We Want, and where social sciences and technology intersect. Guest: Ruha Benjamin You can skip all the ads in A Word by joining Slate Plus. Sign up now at slate.com/awordplus for just $1 for your first month. Learn more about your ad...
Oct 14, 2022•30 min
On this week’s episode of The Waves, Slate homepage editor Sol Werthan sits down with trans rights activist and author, Paisley Currah. They discuss Paisley’s new book, Sex Is As Sex Does and discuss why “male” and “female” are used as a legal and social classifier. And why, even for cis people who identify with the gender binary, that might not be the right way to go. In Slate Plus, Sol and Paisley talk about the politicization of trans kids. Podcast production by Cheyna Roth with editorial ove...
Oct 13, 2022•35 min
After three decades of marriage, Bernadette wasn’t exactly blindsided when Rodney asked for a divorce. Things had been rocky for awhile, but she always assumed they’d live the rest of their lives “unhappily ever after.” Now Bernadette is facing an uncertain future, wondering how she’s going to navigate her new life socially, emotionally, and financially. On this episode of How To!, we bring on Dr. Elizabeth Cohen, author of Light on the Other Side Of Divorce: Discovering the New You, and host of...
Oct 04, 2022•40 min
On this episode: Carrie James and Emily Weinstein, principal investigators at Harvard’s Project Zero, join to discuss their book, Behind Their Screens: What Teens Are Facing (and Adults Are Missing). They’ve been researching teens and screens for over a decade and not only did they collect insights from 3,500 teens, they worked “side-by-side with teens every step of the way.” They learned that teens still want adults’ help with navigating tech and social media—they just need the conversations an...
Oct 03, 2022•35 min
This week, host June Thomas talks to Annie Duke, an author and former professional poker player whose latest book is Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away. In the interview, Annie explains why she’s trying to rehabilitate the word “quit.” She also uses examples to illustrate why quitting is sometimes the best option and why people often stick to projects and jobs that aren’t working. After the interview, June and co-host Isaac Butler discuss their own experiences with quitting and saying ...
Oct 02, 2022•57 min
Longtermism, the idea that positively influencing the future is a key moral priority of our time, is hot in Silicon Valley. But does it miss the bigger picture? Guests: William MacAskill, Robert Wright Host: Lizzie O'Leary Thanks Avast.com! Learn more about Avast One at Avast.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Oct 02, 2022•58 min
When Dana and Luke first started dating at the office they kept their relationship a secret. Most of their colleagues didn’t know they were a couple until they got engaged. They didn’t want any undue pressure or outside judgment. That’s because Dana is a proud Black, Ghanaian woman from central Florida and Luke is a white man from Kansas. Dana’s wondering how she can preserve her identity while they absorb each others’ family traditions. On this episode of How To!, guest host Hélène Biandudi Hof...
Sep 27, 2022•37 min
On this episode: Elizabeth and Jamilah are joined by KC Davis. KC is author of the book How To Keep House While Drowning, host of the podcast Struggle Care, and is well known for her TikTok content. KC shares how to divorce yourself from any shame and pressure you feel about the state of your house. She breaks down the differences between tidy, organized, and clean. Finally, she explains how to make chores not just equal but equitable. Recommendations: Jamilah recommends The Woman King KC recomm...
Sep 26, 2022•30 min
Dahlia Lithwick’s new book Lady Justice: Women, the Law and the Battle to Save America, tells the story of the women lawyers who stood up to Trump and stood up for those unseen and unrepresented by a brutal presidency, and the stories of the women who will fight on in the wake of life-altering decisions from a radicalized Supreme Court. Lady Justice is also available as an audiobook, and Amicus listeners can get a 25% discount by entering the code “AMICUS” at checkout. https://books.supportingca...
Sep 26, 2022•11 min
Dahlia Lithwick is joined by Mark Joseph Stern for a romp through the jurisprudential headlines. It’s been a week. Highlights include: Donald Trump’s legal woes in the Mar-a-Lago classified documents investigation, and at the hands of New York Attorney General Letitia James’ civil suit. Then, we’re live at Politics and Prose in Washington DC, with a conversation between Dahlia Lithwick and Professor Michele Goodwin about women, the law and the rule of law. They discuss Dahlia’s new book Lady Jus...
Sep 24, 2022•1 hr 1 min
College application season is approaching fast—too fast—for 16-yr old Maya and her mother, Melissa. The problem? Maya has no idea where to go or what to study. It doesn’t help that there are thousands of schools to choose from, and little transparency about their true cost. On this episode of How To!, we bring on Ron Lieber, New York Times money columnist and author of The Price You Pay for College. He shows Maya how to narrow down the list of potential colleges by asking insightful questions of...
Sep 20, 2022•38 min
John Dickerson talks with author Ada Calhoun about her new memoir, Also a Poet: Frank O’Hara, My Father, and Me. What started as Calhoun’s attempt to finish the biography of Frank O’Hara that her father started, turned into a gripping story of Calhoun’s relationship with her father. Calhoun and Dickerson talk about not pulling punches when it comes to how nice family members are, why you can’t pre-plan a happy ending, and what her father thought of the book. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest...
Sep 18, 2022•35 min
Dahlia Lithwick is joined by Roberta Kaplan, who along with co-counsel Karen Dunn brought a successful civil suit against twenty-four neo-Nazi and white supremacist leaders responsible for organizing the racial- and religious-based violence in Charlottesville in August 2017. They discuss how the KKK Act of 1871 applied to discord channels and now January 6th defendants. And they explore the complicated relationship women find themselves in with the law in this moment, as defenders of rights but ...
Sep 17, 2022•46 min
When Trish first started working in corporate recruiting, she had wonderful co-workers, a supportive manager, opportunities for growth—it was “bliss.” But the bliss evaporated in 2020 when she got laid off during the pandemic. She’s since found a different job in the same field, but also decided to try her hand at teaching pilates part-time. Now, after burning the candle at both ends, Trish is burned out and unsure of the best path forward. On this episode of How To!, we bring on Nathan and Susa...
Sep 13, 2022•39 min
This week, host June Thomas talks to reporter Casey Parks, whose new memoir Diary of a Misfit was more than a decade in the making. In the interview, Casey explains how the book started as a documentary project that focused on a person from her hometown. Then she discusses the gradual evolution of the project and her decision to make it more personal. After the interview, June and co-host Karen Han talk about Casey’s “need” to write the book and whether they’ve ever felt that same pull. In the e...
Sep 11, 2022•51 min
An inside look at the rise of YouTube into a social media behemoth. Guests: Mark Bergen and Claire Stapleton Host: Lizzie O'Leary Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sep 11, 2022•35 min
On this week’s episode of The Waves, erotic thrillers are making a comeback and The Waves is ready to dig into it. Freelance podcaster and writer, Nichole Perkins is joined by Slate features editor Jeffrey Bloomer to talk about why they love these movies, while also acknowledging the many flaws they contain. Then, Nichole and Jeffrey talk about what they want to see change and evolve as we enter into a new era of erotic thrillers. In Slate Plus, is taking your partner’s last name feminist? Podca...
Sep 08, 2022•37 min
