251
What Next: The Renewable Energy Shell Game
The cheap, easy, and likely counterproductive path to “going green” that the federal government is hooked on.
21 min
252
What Next TBD; Who’s Afraid of A.I.? | 2023 In ...
Real harm from A.I. doesn’t have to look like Skynet—it’s already happening.
30 min
253
The Waves: The Year in Celebrity Memoirs
From Prince Harry to Britney Spears, we look back at the biggest bombshells that hit the shelves this year
44 min
254
Slate Money: America’s Boring Superweapon
Mundane bank protocols keep the world economy under the US thumb.
49 min
255
Political Gabfest: Live From New York! It’s Con...
Emily and David finish 2023 pondering conundrums with Wesley Morris from The New York Times.
58 min
256
Amicus: The Very Worst of SCOTUS 2023
Dahlia Lithwick and Mark Stern join forces for their second annual barrel-scraping rundown of the Supreme Court’s worst moments of the past year.
53 min
257
What Next TBD: America’s Killer Car Problem | 2...
U.S. infrastructure doesn't prioritize the lives of pedestrians. Why?
33 min
258
What Next: Does Steven Spielberg Have an Oscars...
It’s hard to call the most commercially-successful director of all time “underappreciated” but Spielberg’s relationship with the Academy hasn’t been particularly rosy.
26 min
259
What Next: Congress Wants to Know: Do Aliens Ex...
Three officials say UFOs aren’t just real; in the military, they’re an open secret.
27 min
260
What Next: Wait, China’s Taking Our Pandas Back...
A story of soft (and cuddly) power.
28 min
261
What Next: The Plot Against Pope Francis | 2023...
The 86-year-old knows there are people in the Vatican working to undo everything he’s done once he’s dead—but he has succession ideas of his own.
26 min
262
The Waves: What is a Feminist, Really?
For The Wave’s final episode, we consider throwing out the word “feminism” altogether.
36 min
263
What Next TBD: Stephen King Is Just as Confused...
A meltdown over its subscription service reveals Twitter’s wheels coming off.
31 min
264
A Word: A Black Power Radical’s Rise and Fall
Did a civil rights rebel become a murderer, or a scapegoat?
24 min
265
Slate Money: Our Surprisingly Great Year
Slate Money talks a strong year for the economy, the Warner Bros.-Paramount merger, and why more pedestrians are dying on the road.
45 min
266
Political Gabfest: Trump versus Colorado
The Colorado Supreme Court blocks Donald Trump from the state primary ballot; Texas plans to block immigrants by arresting them; and Amanda Ripley has a plan for surviving 2024.
61 min
267
Amicus: The Many Trials of Donald J. Trump
Donald Trump needs the courts to work for him in 2024. Will they?
42 min
268
What Next TBD: Can Hybrid Cars Save Us?
Are hybrids a bridge to fully electric vehicles, or a dead end?
24 min
269
What Next: Marvel’s Disastrous Year
The commercially-declining MCU ends 2023 with its rising star found guilty of reckless assault and harassment.
20 min
270
What Next: When a Miscarriage Becomes a Crime
How an anti-abortion legal strategy turned a miscarriage into “abuse of a corpse.”
20 min
271
What Next: Oh the Humanities!
It’s been three months since West Virginia University cut more than two dozen programs. We go inside an academic culling.
23 min
272
Slate Money Goes to the Movies: This Is Spinal Tap
Slate Money turns it to 11 with music industry veteran Paula Scher
36 min
273
What Next: Where Do Returned Gifts Go?
Sending something back has never been more convenient. But easy returns have hidden costs.
20 min
274
The Waves: In Defense of Lean In Feminism
Sheryl Sandberg didn’t get feminism right ten years ago. That doesn’t mean she was wholly wrong.
27 min
275
What Next TBD: The Case Against CLEAR
What place does a private company have in a mandatory government service?
22 min