Terryn is packing up and moving to the D for a new gig! To help get her ready, we convened some folks who have Big Thoughts about the state of the Motor City. Angela Flournoy, the author of the critically acclaimed new novel, "The Turner House," set her book there, the city where her father grew up. And Siwatu Moore, a writer in Brooklyn, is a Detroit native. Will Detroit have to morph into something unrecognizable in order to survive? And does Detroit have more cat daddies per capita than any city in the world?

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Gene and Terryn discuss Gene's recent reporting for NPR on those Southerners, black and white, for whom the Confederate flag is a genuine signifier of identity. Terryn breaks down what well-meaning Northerners don't get about the South; she also references Walker, Texas Ranger at least once.

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The novelist and screenwriter Attica Locke joins Gene and Terryn to explain why she left Hollywood to write novels — her third, "Pleasantville," is out now — and how she got bit by the showbiz bug again to become a writer and producer for Fox's mega-hit "Empire." Drip drippety drop.

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Jamil Smith, senior editor at the New Republic, joins Gene, Terryn and Jamelle to discuss That Michael Eric Dyson Article About Cornel West. As the article's editor (!), he dishes some inside dirt on the politics behind the politics, on wrangling Dyson down to 10,000 words, and on taking over at a publication best known for its defenses of racism.

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Joel Anderson (BuzzFeed) and Jenée Desmond-Harris (Vox) join Gene and Terryn to discuss their recent reporting on Dr. Ben Carson, professional inspirational figure-turned-Republican presidential hopeful. Related reads:"How Ben Carson went from black hero to Tea Party darling without changing one bit," by Jenée Desmond-Harris (http://www.vox.com/2015/2/20/8069151/ben-carson-dr)"Could Running For President Destroy Ben Carson’s Legacy?," by Joel Andersonhttp://www.buzzfeed.com/joelanderson/ben-carson-politics-legacy

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On the last day of Black History Month™, we talk to Tracy Clayton (aka Brokey McPoverty), a staff writer at BuzzFeed and the creator of all those viral, satirical Little Known Black History Facts. She joins Jamelle, Terryn and G.D. to talk about #LKBHF the reaction to it, and the touchiness around Black History Month writ large.

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It’s everyone’s least-favorite Hallmark holiday, so Terryn and Gene called up some folks who tweeted us their worst date stories. (Big thanks to Genie, Tamara, Ko and Tracy for baring their souls.)

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NPR's Bilal Qureshi and the writer Joshunda Sanders join G.D. to chop it up about "Selma," the much-discussed historical drama by the director Ava Duvernay. (Alas, we recorded this a week before the Academy Award nominations were announced, so we don't get into the film's perceived Oscar snubbing here.) Also, Bilal stumps hard for "Beyond The Lights," a movie that like "Selma," boasted a black woman at the helm. "Lights" tanked at the box office despite strong reviews, and Bilal said that it's in part because no one knew how to market it.

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Michael Sam made history this year when he became the first openly gay player drafted into the NFL — or any of America's major pro sports, for that matter. In the sports media, his estrangement from his family was characterized as simple homophobia. But when Joel went down to Texas to track down the Sam family for BuzzFeed, he found out that the picture was much more complicated.

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Joel, Jamelle and Gene were all in Ferguson covering the aftermath of the Michael Brown shooting for their respective jobs. In this episode, they compare notes on what they saw and heard and what, if anything, happens next.

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