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Amicus | Dear Justice Kavanaugh, “I’m American, Bro” Sep 13, 2025

Show notes

In this week’s episode of Amicus, we delve into the recent Supreme Court shadow docket order in Noem v. Vasquez-Perdomo, which in essence legalized racial profiling by roving ICE patrols, and in practice may have ushered in America’s “show your papers” era for Americans with brown skin, who speak Spanish, and/or go to Home Depot in work clothes. Join Dahlia Lithwick and Ahilan Arulanantham, a longstanding human rights lawyer and law professor, as they unpack what this unargued, unreasoned, unsigned and (in Kavanaugh’s case) uncited decision means for both immigrants and U.S. citizens, for 4th amendment doctrine, and for the lower courts expected to parse SCOTUS’ tea leaves. Want more Amicus? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes with exclusive legal analysis. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Amicus show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/amicusplus to get access wherever you listen.

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What Next: TBD | You Can't Escape the Charlie Kirk Video Sep 12, 2025

Show notes

Graphic, violent videos like the shooting of right-wing pundit Charlie Kirk circulate across social media moments after they happen, finding an audience even among people who have made no effort to seek them out.

Guest: Craig Silverman, journalist and cofounder of Indicator.

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.

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Political Gabfest | Assassination of Charlie Kirk Sep 11, 2025

Show notes

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the assassination of Charlie Kirk amid an extremely troubling climate of political violence in America, another Supreme Court order with no majority explanation allowing racial profiling by ICE in LA, and a score-settling excerpt from Kamala Harris’s upcoming memoir 107 Days.

For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, and David discuss the astonishing new details revealed by the release of a book of letters collected for Epstein’s 50th birthday from his friends, including Donald Trump.

In the latest Gabfest Reads, Emily talks with Jonathan Mahler about his new book, The Gods of New York. They discuss the unraveling of Mayor Ed Koch’s New York City; how the city’s current mayoral race is mirroring the past; and more.

Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth

Research by Emily Ditto

You can find the full Political Gabfest show pages here.

Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.

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What Next | How the Supreme Court Legalized Racial Profiling Sep 11, 2025

Show notes

How a Supreme Court decision from the shadow docket opens the door to racial profiling, creates a nightmare for millions of Latino Americans, and drains dwindling legitimacy from the court itself.

Guest: Mark Joseph Stern, senior writer covering courts and the law for Slate, and the co-host of Amicus.

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 you listen.

Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, and Rob Gunther.

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Care & Feeding | How to Talk Divorce With Kids Sep 11, 2025

Show notes

tell kids about divorce. Zak, Elizabeth, and Lucy share advice on language that reassures, pitfalls to avoid, and ways to keep the focus on love and stability. Plus, triumphs and fails: Friday night plans go awry, shoe shopping mishaps, and a school drop-off turns into a win.

Puppy Dogs and Ice Cream Books

Join us on Facebook and email us at careandfeedingpod@slate.com to ask questions, share feedback, and suggest future topics. You can also call our phone line: (646) 357-9318.If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus.

Slate Plus members get an extra weekly grab-bag of content on the Plus Playground, an ad-free experience across the network, and support the work we do here on Care and Feeding. Sign up now at slate.com/careplus — or try it out on Apple Podcasts.

Listen to Opportunity Gap wherever you get your podcasts: ⁠⁠https://lnk.to/opportunitygapPS!careandfeeding⁠

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What Next | Trump Blew Up 11 People. Is That Legal? Sep 10, 2025

Show notes

Last week, Donald Trump announced the military had blown up what he said was a drug-smuggling boat. This week, we still don’t know why he believes the boat was full of smugglers.

But even if they were trafficking drugs, can the president legally blow up 11 people in international waters?

Guests: Shane Harris, staff writer covering national security and intelligence for The Atlantic.

Ana Vanessa Herrero, journalist based in Caracas, Venezuela and reporting on South America for the Washington Post.

Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, and Rob Gunther.

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ICYMI | Does SNL Need Internet Comedians? Sep 10, 2025

Show notes

Kate Lindsay and Candice Lim dive into the online conversations surrounding recent Saturday Night Live cast announcements. With departing fan favorites (such as Heidi Gardner) come the arrival of new talent, and for the past few years, SNL has been sourcing their talent from your For You Page. From TikTok-prominent comedian Veronika Slowikowska to Dropout regular Jeremy Culhane, what does it mean when internet comedians step into Studio 8H? Do they need SNL, or does SNL need them more?

Get more of ICYMI with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of ICYMI and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the ICYMI show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/icymiplus for access wherever you listen.

This podcast is produced by Vic Whitley-Berry, Daisy Rosario, Candice Lim, and Kate Lindsay.

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Decoder Ring | Jane Fonda’s Workout, Part 2: Hanoi Jane’s VHS Revolution (Encore) Sep 10, 2025

Show notes

In part two of our special two-part episode, we return to the 1982 VHS tape that created the at-home video industry: Jane Fonda’s Workout. On this episode, originally released in 2020, we deconstruct the tape itself, how it was made, and why anyone thought it was a good idea in the first place. Then we’ll explore how it was possible for an extremely polarizing political activist, despised by some for her activism during the Vietnam War, to become America’s premier exercise guru. It’s a story that involves one enterprising home video visionary, dozens of ridiculous celebrity workout tapes, Tricky Dick Nixon, and one very full life.

Some of the voices you’ll hear on this episode include Jane Fonda; Court Shannon, former Karl Video employee; and Mary Hershberger, author of Jane Fonda’s War.

This episode was written by Willa Paskin. It was edited and produced by Benjamin Frisch. We had research assistance from Cleo Levin. Decoder Ring is produced by Katie Shepherd, Max Freedman, and Evan Chung, our supervising producer. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director.

If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at DecoderRing@slate.com, or leave a message on the Decoder Ring hotline at 347-460-7281. We love to hear any and all of your ideas for the show.

Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/decoderplus for access wherever you listen.

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Culture Gabfest: Is the Office Spinoff Good Cringe or Bad Cringe Edition Sep 10, 2025

Show notes

On this week’s show, Steve, Dana, and Julia crack open the latest edition of The Paper, a new mockumentary set in the The Office universe. They debate whether the tried and true sitcom formula still delivers and assess its portrayal of local journalism.

Next, they share their feelings about two couples who are terrible at sharing theirs in Splitsville, the marriage farce created and starring Kyle Marvin and Michael Angelo Covino with Dakota Johnson and Adria Arjona. Finally, the heterofatalist discourse continues in their conversation with Slate music critic Carl Wilson about Man’s Best Friend, the latest release from the spritely, cheeky, and controversy-stirring Sabrina Carpenter.

In an exclusive Slate Plus bonus episode, the panel takes up the business of cultural criticism in a discussion inspired by the recent New York Magazine piece “Do Media Organizations Even Want Cultural Criticism.”

Email us your thoughts at culturefest@slate.com.

Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch. Production assistance by Daniel Hirsch.

Endorsements:

Julia: The very Julia Turner-coded board games Hues and Cues.

Carl: The documentary Sunday Best about Ed Sullivan by the late music journalist Sacha Jenkins and CMAT’s new album Euro-Country and the video playlist that goes with it.

Steve: The book Computer Power and Human Reason by Joseph Weizenbaum.

Dana: Astor Piazolla's "Otoño Porteño," played by the Neave Trio.

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What Next | The Democrats Have Leverage. Will They Use It? Sep 09, 2025

Show notes

With Republicans holding both houses of Congress and the White House, Democrats don’t have a lot of ways to stall Donald Trump’s agenda—except for refusing to further fund the government and triggering a shutdown. They already passed on the opportunity once, but is the situation now so desperate that the opposition party needs to do something—anything?

Guest: Rep. Jamie Raskin, U.S. representative for Maryland's 8th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives

Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, and Rob Gunther.

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