Is RNC chairperson Ronna McDaniel to blame for Republicans’ poor fundraising and recent underperformance in elections? Guest: Shelby Talcott, reporter covering Trump and national Republicans for 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 clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever y...
Feb 26, 2024•25 min
Fertility doctors and their patients trying to conceive via in vitro fertilization (IVF) were stopped in their tracks this week, as the Alabama Supreme Court declared that embryos have the same rights as people. The decision has left doctors wondering if they can be sued for carrying out standard IVF procedures, and experts worry the ruling could have ramifications for IVF around the country. Guest: Dr. Elizabeth Constance, reproductive endocrinology and infertility specialist in Omaha, Nebraska...
Feb 25, 2024•28 min
Studies have found that, in tiny increments, America’s East Coast is sinking into the ground thanks to climate change. Can a new approach to urban planning mitigate the effect? Guest: Matt Simon, senior staff writer at Wired. You can read Matt’s reporting here. 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here o...
Feb 23, 2024•20 min
Iowa’s Caitlin Clark has scored more points than any other NCAA women’s basketball player in history, but her impact extends even further than her substantial range on the court. Guest: Hayley McGoldrick, associate editor at Sportsnet. 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/whatn...
Feb 22, 2024•21 min
Shotspotter lost a huge contract and some face when Chicago opted out of its partnership with the gunfire-identification tech company. Why can’t new policing tech seem to break the old patterns and problems? Guest: Jim Daley, investigations editor at South Side Weekly 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 pag...
Feb 21, 2024•24 min
The migrant crisis has come to Denver. With no federal help on the way and temperatures dropping well below freezing, a local church tries to pick up the slack. Guest: Keith Reeser, pastor at Denver Friends Church in Colorado. 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.c...
Feb 20, 2024•26 min
Alexei Navalny died last week at age 47 in the prison where he was serving a 19-year sentence for extremism. With just one month left before a presidential election in which Putin is nearly guaranteed to win, the pro-democracy opposition movement in Russia is more beleaguered than ever. Guest: Joshua Yaffa, contributing writer at The New Yorker and the author of Between Two Fires: Truth, Ambition, and Compromise in Putin’s Russia. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus...
Feb 19, 2024•24 min
Apple Vision Pro goggles might be a crime against fashion but with the amount of data they can collect—both on the world around the user and on the users themselves—they have the potential to invade privacy right down to where you’re looking and for how long. Guest: Geoffrey Fowler, Washington Post tech columnist 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 Dear Pr...
Feb 18, 2024•29 min
The war in Ukraine reordered the priorities of the country’s growing tech sector, and has become a place for foreign companies to test out new tools with less regulation or scrutiny. Guests: Vera Bergengruen, senior correspondent at Time 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next TBD. Sign up...
Feb 16, 2024•28 min
Israeli Defense Forces have extended their campaign to Rafah, the southern-most city in Gaza, and where many Gazans have been gathering to escape the war. Guest: Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib, Middle East political analyst, founder and executive director of Project Unified Assistance 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the wor...
Feb 15, 2024•25 min
How did America end up back in a Gilded Age of incredible wealth disparity, and how did a new generation of oligarchs bend society to their vision? Guest: Tim Murphy, senior reporter for Mother Jones. 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help su...
Feb 14, 2024•27 min
The special election for George Santos’s vacated U.S. House seat has attracted tons of spending and a lot of attention—all to hold the position for less than a year. Who’s running, and what can this vote tell us about what to expect in November? Guest: Mark Chiusano, writer, journalist, and author of The Fabulist: The Lying, Hustling, Grifting, Stealing, and Very American Legend of George Santos. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits l...
Feb 13, 2024•28 min
The special prosecutor’s report into Biden’s classified documents case is out… and it says Joe Biden’s memory is too bad for a jury to convict him. Is the report a politically motivated hit job, or an honest assessment of one of the two very old men running for president? Guest: Ben Mathis-Lilley, Slate senior writer. 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 De...
Feb 12, 2024•27 min
For a while, it seemed like the only place to meet potential partners was through an app—Tinder, Hinge, Bumble, etc. But as the apps are trying to monetize their matchmaking—and some users now with a whole decade of striking out under their belts—old-fashioned meet-cutes-in-bars or, say, debutante balls look more and more appealing. Guests: Katherine Lindsay, culture writer and cofounder of Embedded Rachael Stein, dating-app spelunker If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate ...
Feb 11, 2024•26 min
The NFL's concussion settlement was meant to provide financial support and medical help for players who developed traumatic brain injuries from the sport. So why are so many players denied the help they need? Guest: Will Hobson, sports reporter for the Washington Post. 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we d...
Feb 09, 2024•30 min
The Supreme Court now has to decide if the 14th amendment’s provision to keep insurrectionists off the ballot applies to Donald Trump. Guest: Jamelle Bouie, New York Times opinion columnist. 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our ...
Feb 08, 2024•23 min
Yesterday, a jury found Jennifer Crumbley guilty of involuntary manslaughter for the mass-shooting carried out by her son Ethan at his high school in Oxford, Michigan. How will this conviction change the way school shootings are prosecuted? Can future violence be prevented by holding the parents accountable? Guest: Quinn Klinefelter, host and Senior News Editor for 101.9 WDET in Detroit. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ...
Feb 07, 2024•24 min
Pediatrician Dr. Seema Jilani’s work has taken her from Sudan to Afghanistan. Last month, she was in Gaza for two weeks, where she worked tending to the wounded in the besieged Al-Aqsa Hospital. Guest: Dr. Seema Jilani, senior technical adviser at the International Rescue Committee 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting ...
Feb 06, 2024•28 min
Donald Trump was, if nothing else, a boon for the news business. But this election cycle, even the “Trump bump” isn’t slowing the shrinking of the audience. Guest: Max Tani, media reporter at Semafor. 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help su...
Feb 05, 2024•26 min
The number of TV streaming services is going up—and so is the cost and so are the number of ads. Cordcutters are finding themselves back to cable prices and inconveniences. And these changes don’t just impact the TV viewing experience - they impact the types of shows that get made in the first place. Guest: Alex Cranz, managing editor at the Verge. 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...
Feb 04, 2024•31 min
For all the promise of the technology, one use-case for artificial intelligence reared its ugly head last week: non-consensual pornographic images. As millions of users saw abusive A.I. generated images of Taylor Swift proliferate across X, the pitfalls of this technology became clear. Guest: Emanuel Maiberg, journalist and co-founder of 404 Media 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 ...
Feb 02, 2024•27 min
Vince McMahon is walking away from professional wrestling, again. The WWE looks to continue without the man that built it into an institution—and shrouded it in scandal. Guest: Dave Scherer, founder of the pro-wrestling news site, PWinsider.com. 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sig...
Feb 01, 2024•28 min
One of Donald Trump’s codefendants in the Georgia election subversion and racketeering case has filed a motion to dismiss his case due to an improper relationship between Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and a prosecutor she has hired to work on the case. How can Willis address the allegations and what does it mean for the case? Guest: Ankush Khardori, attorney and former federal prosecutor in the U.S. Justice Department. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Pl...
Jan 31, 2024•24 min
With the execution of Kenneth Smith, Alabama became the first state to carry out the death penalty with nitrogen gas. According to Smith’s spiritual advisor, who witnessed the execution, this is not a “humane” future for capital punishment Guest: Rev. Jeff Hood, pastor, theologian and activist living and working in Little Rock, Arkansas, and the Convener of Clergy United Against the Death Penalty If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits l...
Jan 30, 2024•28 min
Support for a “two-state solution” has been declining among both Israelis and Palestinians for years. If it’s time to give up on that plan, what’s the alternative? Guest: Dov Waxman, professor of political science and the director of the UCLA Y&S Nazarian Center for Israel Studies. 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be support...
Jan 29, 2024•30 min
Are we still paying off our pandemic-induced “immunity debt,” or is there another reason that it feels like we’re all sniffling and coughing and just feeling sick? Guest: Keren Landman, senior health reporter at Vox 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next TBD. Sign up now at slate.com/what...
Jan 28, 2024•23 min
In the days leading up to the New Hampshire primary, voters received a robocall purportedly from Joe Biden. Authorities have now determined the call was likely A.I.-generated. In the era of A.I., how can voters tell what’s real and what’s not? And will the general election be thrown into chaos by artificial intelligence-created disinformation? Guest: Makena Kelly, senior writer at Wired covering politics and technology If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus...
Jan 26, 2024•26 min
Since the overturn of Roe v. Wade, Democrats have found wins after standing up for abortion. But can they ride this issue to a second Biden term, when the administration isn’t offering a clear plan for reproductive rights—and Joe Biden has a history of ambivalence about the issue? Guest: Grace Panetta, political reporter at The 19th News. 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 ...
Jan 25, 2024•28 min
How has Donald Trump managed to turn multiple indictments into a nigh unassailable lead in the Republican primary—and what looks like a dead heat for the general election? Guest: Isaac Arnsdorf, national political reporter for The Washington Post covering former-president Trump. 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the...
Jan 24, 2024•24 min
Ships are avoiding the Suez Canal at great expense; Iran has launched attacks in Iraq and Pakistan; Israel is exchanging fire with Hezbollah as well as Hamas—has the regional conflict that leaders were worried about already begun? Guest: Josh Keating, senior correspondent at Vox covering foreign policy and world news with a focus on the future of international conflict. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate p...
Jan 23, 2024•26 min
