The promise of an “internet for niche communities” and “the empowered independent creator” has been taking a beating as the web has become less open and increasingly dominated by a few platforms and players. But does it have to be that way? Guest: Jack Conte , CEO and cofounder of Patreon. 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 the ...
May 22, 2026•34 min
When Cameron Hamilton testified to Congress that he did not believe “it is in the best interest of the American people to eliminate the Federal Emergency Management Agency,” he was fired from his job as FEMA’s acting administrator. But now, a year later, Hamilton has been nominated to lead FEMA permanently. Does this mean the agency’s future is more secure? Guest: Micah Loewinger, co-host of WNYC’s On the Media whose latest series is called “ American Emergency: The Movement to Kill FEMA. ” Want...
May 21, 2026•25 min
The late-night show is a staple of network television—maybe even one that has held on past its era. Still, that doesn’t mean The Late Show with Stephen Colbert had to end like this. Guest: Adam Conover , comedian and host of the Factually! podcast. 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 clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at sl...
May 20, 2026•26 min
With his approval rating dropping to its lowest point yet this term, why are politicians still giving in to Donald Trump? As Senator Bill Cassidy found out, Trump still has enough juice to sink a Republican in a primary. Guest: Molly Jong Fast, host of the podcast Fast Politics . 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 clicking “Try Free” at the top of ...
May 19, 2026•24 min
On her way to a doctor’s appointment in January, a Minneapolis woman was surrounded by ICE agents who smashed her car’s window, cut her seat belt and dragged her out, while she tried to explain that she was disabled. Now, she’s planning to sue. Guest: Aliya Rahman, Minneapolis resident detained by ICE in January. 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 ...
May 18, 2026•27 min
Under fire for what critics say is inadequate protection of its young user base, Roblox nevertheless remains incredibly popular. Are the company’s new ballyhooed protections up for the task of keeping kids safe? Or is that asking the wrong question entirely? Guests: Cecilia D'Anastasio , video game reporter for Bloomberg. Mary Harris, host of the other What Next Stella Harris, daughter of Mary. Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next fa...
May 17, 2026•34 min
Once a rising star of the New Right via New Media, Ben Shapiro and his Daily Wire have spent the second Trump administration in precipitous decline. Is it simply a case of bad business decisions running into their beloved capitalistic scythe or did their audience outpace them on a race to…let’s say “the right”? Guest: Will Sommer, senior reporter at The Bulwark. This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock exclusive episode...
May 15, 2026•5 min
Between artificial intelligence, the Iran War, and the future of Taiwan, there’s a lot for the United States and China to hash out—not least of which being the pecking order. Guest: Josh Chin , senior global correspondent for the Wall Street Journal. 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 the top of our show page. Sign up now at sla...
May 15, 2026•22 min
As wealth disparity continues to grow, politicians in New York and California have suggested raising revenue through taxes that are aimed at their wealthiest residents. But the rich didn’t get that way by just letting themselves get taxed, now did they? Guest: Stephanie Ruhle , anchor of MS NOW’s The 11th Hour with Stephanie Ruhle . 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 o...
May 14, 2026•26 min
A redrawn Virginia electoral map looked like it could offset at least some red state gerrymandering—until the Virginia Supreme Court stepped in. But if Democrats—in the commonwealth or elsewhere—have a way to keep Republicans from redistricting themselves into permanent power, now’s the time. Guest: Jamelle Bouie , New York Times opinion columnist . 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. ...
May 13, 2026•25 min
The world is watching with a wary eye, as passengers leave the hantavirus-infected MV Hondius cruise ship and head to medical facilities or home. Is this the start of the next pandemic—or is our collective response still informed by the last one? Guest: Katherine J. Wu is a staff writer covering science at The Atlantic . 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 Podc...
May 12, 2026•24 min
How long can the MAGA faithful control the GOP? Will Trumpism last long after the big man is gone—or will it not even make it to the end of this term? Guest: Sarah Longwell, publisher of The Bulwark, author of “ How to Eat an Elephant: One Voter at a Time .” 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 clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up...
May 11, 2026•28 min
Everyone would probably hate A.I. less if we could just see some upside to it. But despite all the investment—into the companies, into infrastructure like data centers, so much into marketing—it’s widely known: artificial intelligence sucks. Guest: Nilay Patel, co-founder and editor in chief of The Verge. 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 “T...
May 10, 2026•32 min
The not-always-beloved-but-indisputably-useful Spirit Airlines has given up the ghost. What does this mean for the airline industry and your summer travel plans? Guest: Will Guisbond , senior reporter for The Air Current. 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 the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get ac...
May 08, 2026•21 min
Donald Trump is spending his second term trying to cement his legacy, but he still hasn’t zeroed in on what that should be: Is it his name on monuments? A ballroom decorated in his specific style? Owning Greenland or whatever? Credit where credit is due, though, he’s already made a mark on the political discourse that will have the staying power of a jagged scar. Guest: Michael Scherer, staff writer at The Atlantic. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the ...
May 07, 2026•28 min
Even with all that Democrats having going for them—mid-term elections typically favoring the out-of-power party, Trump’s sinking approval rates, even rising gas prices—it will be an uphill battle to wrest the Senate from GOP control. Guest: Jonathan Martin, POLITICO politics bureau chief and host of “ On the Road ” a podcast about the 2026 midterms. 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. ...
May 06, 2026•26 min
“Intersectionality” was one of those “DEI terms” that the Trump administration and Project 2025 were eager to do away with once they got back into power. But to understand what just happened to the Voting Rights Act, a little critical race theory would go a long way. Guest: Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw , civil rights advocate, co-founder and executive director of the African American Policy Forum (AAPF), law professor at UCLA and Columbia , and author of many books including Backtalker: An America...
May 05, 2026•29 min
Can a Republican Lieutenant Governor be reborn as a Democratic Governor? After failing to create a GOP 2.0, and being harried by Trump for admitting Biden won Georgia in 2020, Geoff Duncan has changed sides—and many of his old political positions. Guest: Geoff Duncan, former lieutenant governor of Georgia and a current Georgia gubernatorial candidate who switched parties from Republican to Democrat last year. Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole W...
May 04, 2026•28 min
In the early 2020s, Microsoft committed to buying 75 million tons of carbon removal—somewhere between 70 and 90 percent of the entire carbon removal market. But the company just announced it was putting that ambition on pause.. Guest: Robinson Meyer, founding executive editor of Heatmap News . 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 ...
May 03, 2026•23 min
One of independent journalism’s success stories and most charismatic advocates stops by to answer the question: “If journalism is so great, how did all of THIS happen?” Guest: Amy Goodman, executive producer and host of Democracy Now!. This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock exclusive episodes of What Next —you’ll also access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the...
May 01, 2026•8 min
This week marks the beginning of the jury trial between Elon Musk and Sam Altman. There are massive implications for the A.I. industry here, but at the end of the day, the question might just boil down to - who do people dislike more? Guest: Gerrit De Vynck, tech reporter at the Washington Post 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...
May 01, 2026•24 min
How Wednesday’s Supreme Court decision in Louisiana v. Callais ran contrary to the Voting Rights Act—both as written by Congress and as previously interpreted by the Supreme Court. Guest: Jay Willis , editor-in-chief of Balls and Strikes. 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 clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/wh...
Apr 30, 2026•25 min
Democrats are starting to let themselves feel a little optimistic about the fall midterms, which is just about time for the fight between the centrists and the slightly-left-of-centrist party wings to get ugly. But a candidate for U.S. Senate in Michigan is trying to sidestep another internecine fight by keeping his eye on the goal. Guest: Abdul El-Sayed , Michigan Senate candidate , physician, former director of the Wayne County Department of Health, Human, and Veterans Services. Want more What...
Apr 29, 2026•30 min
Presidential assassinations have been spawning conspiracy theories since Lincoln. But Saturday’s attempted assassination seems about as straightforward as these things can be—so why does it feel like everyone believes it was staged? Guest: Will Sommer, author of the False Flag newsletter for The Bulwark and “ Trust the Plan: The Rise of QAnon and the Conspiracy That Unhinged America .” Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and acro...
Apr 28, 2026•24 min
The biopic “Michael” solves the third-act problem of Michael Jackson’s life by simply ending before the 1993 lawsuit that alleged child sex abuse, and before his appearance and behavior took a drastic turn. It leaves the King of Pop someone you can love without qualification—but not someone you can understand. Guest: Aisha Harris , co-host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all ...
Apr 27, 2026•26 min
The era of ads following you around the internet via cookies might be coming to an end. What’s replacing it? Guest: Sara Fisher, Axios' media correspondent , and media analyst at CNN. 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 the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen. Podcast prod...
Apr 26, 2026•23 min
The Trump administration is, let’s say, experiencing a bit of turnover this spring. Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer is out and Kash Patel has reached the “embroiled in scandal and suing the press” zone. Guest: Jeet Heer , national affairs correspondent for The Nation. This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock exclusive episodes of What Next —you’ll also access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podca...
Apr 24, 2026•7 min
Is artificial intelligence a blessing to all humanity, or a demon sent to lead us astray from God’s path? MAGA is choosing between two extremes. Guest: Kiera Butler , national correspondent for Mother Jones. 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 the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever ...
Apr 24, 2026•26 min
Representatives Eric Swalwell, Tony Gonzales, and now Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick are out; Virginia is redistricting and Republicans are bracing for a tsunami of a blue wave in the fall midterms. What’s gotten into Congress all of a sudden? Guest: Jim Newell, Slate’s senior politics writer. 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 clicking “Try Free” at t...
Apr 23, 2026•29 min
The government is getting ready to pay $166 billion in tariff refunds to American businesses. But the consumers who had to foot the bill for the higher costs? No such luck. 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 your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at...
Apr 22, 2026•26 min
