This week, host June Thomas talks to journalist Maureen Ryan, author of the book Burn It Down: Power, Complicity, and a Call for Change in Hollywood. In recent years, Ryan has pivoted from TV criticism to writing stories focused on abuses of power in the TV industry. Her new book touches on troubling situations on shows like Lost, Saturday Night Live, The Goldbergs, Sleepy Hollow, and more.

In the interview, Ryan discusses her reporting process and what it's felt like to watch the creators of some of her favorite shows come under fire.

After the interview, Thomas and co-host Nate Chinen discuss why there might be some reason for hope in Hollywood after all. 

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Ryan talks about how her pivot to this kind of reporting has affected her career.

Send your questions about creativity and any other feedback to [email protected] or give us a call at (304) 933-9675.

Podcast production by Zak Rosen.

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Pedestrian deaths in America have been rising for the last decade, while dropping in Europe and Japan. What makes the U.S. so dangerous for pedestrians?

Guest: Jessie Singer, author of There Are No Accidents: The Deadly Rise of Injury and Disaster―Who Profits and Who Pays the Price. 

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When Gwen applied for unemployment during the early days of the pandemic, she never thought she’d still be waiting for her benefits years later. Despite hours on the phone, countless emails and even a court appearance, Gwen is haunted by her inability to get the money she was approved for. On this episode of How To!, co-host Amanda Ripley brings in Marina Nitze, author of Hack Your Bureaucracy. Not only does Marina help Gwen find shortcuts in her state’s unemployment system, but she has useful advice for untangling any bureaucratic nightmare. 

If you liked this episode, check out: How To Fight Outrageous Medical Bills.

Do you have a problem that’s keeping you up at night? Send us a note at [email protected] or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have you on the show. Subscribe for free on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Podcast production by Derek John, Rosemary Belson, Kevin Bendis, and Jabari Butler.

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The last few years have been overwhelming for Tracy. Her career was demanding and she experienced multiple deaths in her family. Recently, she changed jobs and is in a better place with her mental health, but something is still missing from her life. She’s just not sure what. On this episode of How To!, co-host Carvell Wallace brings on Samantha Clarke, happiness consultant, speaker, and author of Love it Or Leave It: How To Be Happy At Work. Samantha will help Tracy (and all of us) design a plan to find fulfillment. 

If you liked this episode, check out: “How To Style Your Home Like a Pro.”

Do you have a problem that’s keeping you up at night? Send us a note at [email protected] or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have you on the show. Subscribe for free on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Podcast production by Derek John, Rosemary Belson, Kevin Bendis, and Jabari Butler.

If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows—you’ll also be supporting the work we do here on How To!. Sign up now at slate.com/howtoplus to help support our work.

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Sleep is objectively worse when splitting a bed. Yet that’s the default for most couples. But that doesn’t mean sharing the covers is easy. Especially when one person is having trouble falling or staying asleep. On this episode of How To!, the second in a two-part series, co-host Carvell Wallace continues the conversation with Dr. Wendy Troxel, author of Sharing the Covers: Every Couple’s Guide to Better Sleep. Dr. Troxel explains how couples can experiment with sleeping arrangements in a way that makes everyone feel safe, and why sleeping apart might be the key to saving your relationship. 

If you liked this episode, check out: “How To Stop Snoring (and Breathe Easier).”

Do you have a problem that’s keeping you up at night? Send us a note at [email protected] or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have you on the show. Subscribe for free on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Podcast production by Derek John, Rosemary Belson, Kevin Bendis, and Jabari Butler.

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The 4th of July was the hottest day yet—not just of the summer but of recorded human history. Between waves of Canadian wildfire smoke, malaria reappearing in the United States, and deaths from heat, this might be the year that we’re forced to reckon with what life will be like on our newly hotter planet.

Guest: Jeff Goodell, contributing writer at Rolling Stone and the author of the upcoming book The Heat Will Kill You First: Life and Death on a Scorched Planet.

If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work.

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This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz are on vacation, but Emily taped an extra episode of Gabfest Reads for everyone. She sits down with author Monica Potts to talk about her new memoir The Forgotten Girls. They discuss growing up in rural Arkansas, Monica’s childhood best friend Darci, and more.

For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, Emily, and John chatter about what’s making them happy this summer, an article about how bad things really are, and more.

In the June edition of Gabfest Reads, Emily talks with Peter Singer @PeterSinger about his book, Animal Liberation Now: The Definitive Classic Renewed. 

Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected] or Tweet us @SlateGabfest. (Messages may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth

Research by Julie Huygen

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On this week’s episode of The Waves, we’re diving into fairy tales. Slate book critic Laura Miller talks with author Kelly Link about her collection of fairy tale inspired short stories, White Cat, Black Dog. They discuss how fairy tales have influenced Kelly’s work, the allure of the “searching for a beloved” story, finding a community of female writers. 

In Slate Plus: Cheyna Roth and Luke Winkie discuss episode three of Max’s And Just Like That…

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth with editorial oversight by Daisy Rosario and Alicia Montgomery.

Send your comments and recommendations on what to cover to [email protected].

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On this month’s episode of Future Tense Fiction, host Maddie Stone talks to Matt Bell about his short story “Empathy Hour.”

In the story’s climate-change-ravaged future, society’s wealthiest are whisked away to luxurious, self-contained cities. Once there, they entertain themselves with a carefully crafted reality show meant to assuage their guilt about the climate refugees they’ve left behind. But then, someone breaks into their airbrushed world, lifting the lid on what hides underneath it. 

After the story, Matt and Maddie discuss the promises and pitfalls of climate fiction–and why we want to feel empathy, but never too much. 

Guest: Matt Bell is the author of several books, including the novel Appleseed, a New York Times Notable Book of 2021. He is a professor of creative writing at Arizona State University. 

Story read by Josh Bloomberg

Podcast production by Tiara Darnell

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During this LGBTQ Pride month, many members of the community are reflecting on a year of unprecedented political and legal attacks. One of the biggest battlefields has been in public schools and libraries, where books featuring LGBTQ stories have been the targets of censors. On today’s episode of A Word, guest host journalist Aisha Mills is joined by George M. Johnson, author of one of the most banned books, All Boys Aren’t Blue. They talk about the intersection of race and gender identity, and how Johnson has fought back against critics who call the book dangerous and inappropriate for children.

Guest: George M. Johnson, author of All Boys Aren’t Blue

Podcast production by Kristie Taiwo-Makanjuola

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