The Gist

Latest Episodes:

Are Any Covid-19 Podcasts Worth It? May 08, 2020

Show notes

In the Gist, Steve Mnuchin wasn't mad at Axl Rose.

In the interview, Mike calls up Robert Smith, host of NPR's Planet Money, to talk about the influx of coronavirus podcasts. There are a lot in production right now. Mike and Robert discuss some of the best (and worst) covering the pandemic.

In the spiel, the subtext of what Kayleigh McEnany says speaks loudly.

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Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

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Sweden's Global Failure May 08, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, Tara Reade and Megyn Kelly on Instagram.

In the second half of our interview with Dr. Nina Fefferman from the University of Tennessee, she and Mike discuss the types of analysis used in predictive modeling, why it's an essential part of the crisis response, and what the future holds as the models continue to change.

In the spiel, Sweden's loose measures yielded grim results, and that should be a warning.

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Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

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Forecasting Federal Inaction May 07, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, the new White House Press Secretary reiterates that the media sometimes gets it wrong.

In the first half of this two-part interview, Mike talks with Dr. Nina Fefferman from the University of Tennessee Knoxville about predictive modeling and the Covid-19 crisis. Today, they focus on the difficulty of making projections when the government is actively disregarding expert guidance, and Dr. Fefferman's ideas about food distribution adaptations for restaurants during this time.

In the spiel, a canadian kerfuffle but with license plates.

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Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

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Tara Reade and the Difficulty of Belief May 06, 2020

Show notes

In the Gist, the Texas Governor admits what everyone knows to be true.

In the interview, Mike talks with Tomas Pueyo about his now famous Medium piece in which he coins the Hammer and The Dance theory: a choreographed end to quarantine.

In the spiel, Tara Reade and belief.

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Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now.

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Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Do Morals Matter? May 05, 2020

Show notes

In the Gist, we get no further with Biden.

In the interview, Mike discusses moral judgments and how they relate to both domestic and foreign policy with none other than Joseph Nye, one of the most influential political scientists of our time, and one who co-founded the theory of neoliberalism. Nye's book, Do Moral's Matter? Presidents and Foreign Policy from FDR to Trump is the topic of their conversation.

In the spiel, the Mississippi mindset.

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Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now.

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Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Georgia Is a Laboratory May 01, 2020

Show notes

In the Gist, Georgia is opening back up.

In the interview, Mike talks with Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and bestselling author Jon Meacham about his new podcast with Cadence13 - Hope, Through History – a documentary series on confronting and triumphing over crises in America.

In the spiel, the end of irony?

Email us at thegist@slate.com

Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now.

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Useful Interviews from Gist's Past Apr 30, 2020

Show notes

Slate is dark, and its staff are taking a much needed and deserved breath. And with that, Team Gist has gone dark for a day, too, so we bring you two old interviews from the fall of 2014.

First, an interview with biologist and mathematical modeler Nina Fefferman, who at the time this was recorded was based at Rutgers University and working on predicting the spread of Ebola. Now she's at the University of Tennessee and modeling Covid-19.

The second interview is about the power of analogies with author John Pollack who chats with Mike about his book Shortcut: How Analogies Reveal Connections, Spark Innovation, and Sell Our Greatest Ideas.

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Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now.

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Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Passing Class Under Quarantine Apr 30, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, grades at New York City schools.

In the interview, Nate Duncan and Ben Taylor of the Covid Daily News podcast talk to Mike about how two basketball analysts started covering the latest developments in this crisis, and the parallels to be drawn between basketball and Covid-19 data. Nate Duncan is the host of the Dunc'd On Basketball NBA podcast, and Ben Taylor is the host of Thinking Basketball.

In the spiel, NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio is frequently giving offense.

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Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

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Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Pandemic That Never Happened Apr 29, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, consolidation.

In the interview, Mike talks with Matthew Dickinson, author and professor of political science at Middlebury College, about the 1976 Gerald Ford controversy regarding the threat of a global pandemic with swine flu, as well as Richard Neustadt and Harvey Fineberg's examination of the political failures around an approaching pandemic that never actually materialized.

In the spiel, the democratic nominating process didn't work so well.

Email us at thegist@slate.com

Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now.

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Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Embrace the Outdoors Apr 28, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, the award Trump deserves.

In the interview, Slate's Henry Grabar is here to discuss Covid-19 and spending time outdoors. He and Mike talk about contact tracing, normalizing mask culture, and why we should all be going back outside.

In the spiel, advertisers soothe in these uncertain times.

Email us at thegist@slate.com

Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.