Slate Debates
A feed from the Slate podcast network featuring episodes with enlightening conversations, opposing views, and plenty of healthy disputes. You'll get a curated selection of episodes from programs like What Next, The Waves, and the Political Gabfest, with deep discussions that go beyond point-counterpoint and shed light on the issues that matter most.
326
LinguaFile VII | Cockamamie
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss a mystery word or phrase with lexicographer Ben Zimmer.
31 min
327
Exposure to Vape Culture
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo are joined by Peter Sokolowski of Merriam-Webster, Katherine Martin of Oxford University Press, Jane Solomon of Dictionary.com, and Erin McKean of Wordnik.com to discuss their respective Words of the Year.
48 min
328
LinguaFile VI | Grog
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss a mystery word or phrase with lexicographer Ben Zimmer.
25 min
329
What Does It Mean to Sound Gay?
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo talk to speech scientist Benjamin Munson about the "gay voice."
36 min
330
LinguaFile V | Get One's Goat
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss a mystery word or phrase with lexicographer Ben Zimmer.
33 min
331
Number Theory
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo ask the question: How did we go from "four and twenty" to "twenty four"?
27 min
332
LinguaFile IV | Snark
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss a mystery word or phrase with lexicographer Ben Zimmer.
41 min
333
Man on the Street
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo talk to Jonathon Green, author of The Vulgar Tongue and Green's Dictionary of Slang, a 6,000-page, three-volume reference more than 20 years in the making.
38 min
334
LinguaFile III | Orange
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss a mystery word or phrase with lexicographer Ben Zimmer.
28 min
335
Demonstratively Speaking
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss Sarah Palin's use of demonstrative pronouns.
30 min
336
LinguaFile II | Lagniappe
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss a mystery word or phrase with lexicographer Ben Zimmer.
23 min
337
The Manic Pixie and the Magical Negro
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo talk to arts critic Nathan Rabin and journalist Christopher John Farley about the phrases they coined to identify two of Hollywood's most pernicious tropes.
30 min
338
LinguaFile I | Discombobulate
Mike Vuolo and Bob Garfield discuss a mystery word or phrase with Vocabulary.com executive producer Ben Zimmer.
18 min
339
Lexicon Valley No. 38: Fisherman's Whorf
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo talk to Columbia University professor John McWhorter about his new book, The Language Hoax.
34 min
340
Lexicon Valley No. 37: Legislating Language
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss four legal cases in which the dictionary played a crucial part.
31 min
341
Lexicon Valley No. 36: The Dude Abides
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss the early history of the word "dude."
35 min
342
Lexicon Valley No. 35: Learning to Say No
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss the many meanings of a child's "no."
25 min
343
Lexicon Valley No. 34: Ask Not Who Wrote "Ask Not"
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss JFK's Inaugural Address with Richard Tofel, author of Sounding the Trumpet.
29 min
344
Lexicon Valley No. 33: The End of Ambiguity
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo talk to linguist Arika Okrent about the most logical language ever invented.
24 min
345
Lexicon Valley: Special Announcement
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo announce the return of Lexicon Valley. Yay!
0 min
346
Lexicon Valley No. 32: The Burden of Being Right
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss the irresistible pull of language pedantry.
34 min
347
Lexicon Valley No. 31: Name That Tone
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss the relationship between tonal languages and musical acuity.
27 min
348
Lexicon Valley No. 30: Eject at High Altitude
Mike Vuolo talks with an anthropological linguist about the influence geography might have on speech.
19 min
349
Lexicon Valley #29: 30 Million By Four
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss the importance of talking to your child.
28 min
350
Lexicon Valley #28: A Brief History of Swearing
Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo discuss curse words old and new with author Melissa Mohr.
24 min