Slate Conversations

On this episode: Zak and Jamilah go over their week in triumphs, fails, solo parenting, and solo travel. Then we talk youth sports before hearing an interview between Elizabeth and Kirsten Jones, nationally recognized performance coach, former athlete, and author of Raising Empowered Athletes.

Then, on Slate Plus: what if friendship, not marriage, was the center of our adult social lives?

Join us on Facebook and email us at [email protected] to ask us new questions, tell us what you thought of today’s show, and give us ideas about what we should talk about in future episodes. You can also call our phone line: (646) 357-9318. 

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 Mom and Dad are Fighting. Sign up now at slate.com/momanddadplus to help support our work.

Podcast produced by Rosemary Belson and Maura Currie.

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On this week’s episode of The Waves, former Buzzfeed reporter and current Scamfluencers host, Scaachi Koul is taking over hosting The Waves for the next few weeks. This week she’s digging deep into the life of First Lady hopeful, Casey DeSantis. Scaachi is joined by Washington Post reporter, Ruby Cramer. Ruby wrote a masterpiece on Casey DeSantis, “Tracing the power of Casey DeSantis.” They get into why Casey DeSantis scares Scaachi, how to properly make fun of Ron’s wife, and why the Ron and Casey two-some is so exclusive.     

In Slate Plus: continuing our And Just Like That…recap with episode 9.

If you liked this episode, check out: Your Period Deserves Respect 

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

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

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/thewavesplus to help support our work.

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On today’s episode of Hear Me Out… almost affirmative. 

We don’t yet know what the Supreme Court’s ruling on affirmative action is going to do, tangibly, to college admissions — or how long those impacts will last. But, based on past experiments, we have a decent idea. And many advocates say the implications here are urgent and dire.

But affirmative action might not have been the great equalizing force that a lot of people believe it was. 

Bertrand Cooper, freelance journalist and policy researcher, joins us to elaborate on his belief that poor Black kids were failed by affirmative action. 

If you have thoughts you want to share, or an idea for a topic we should tackle, you can email the show: [email protected]

Podcast production by Maura Currie

You can skip all the ads in Hear Me Out by joining Slate Plus. Sign up now at slate.com/hearmeoutplus for just $15 a month for your first three months.

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As the massive Caldor fire blazed towards South Lake Tahoe in 2021, Joyce knew she had to get out. “The sky was red. It was like hell on earth,” she remembers. Her family got to safety and her house was miraculously spared. But, even now, it can be jarring to remember the fire. Climate-related extreme weather events are on the rise and another disaster is seemingly right around the corner. Especially with freakish flash floods, a scorching heatwave and wildfire smoke blanketing much of the country. On this episode of How To!, guest-host Cheyna Roth brings on Dr. Britt Wray, author of Generation Dread: Finding Purpose In an Age of Climate Crisis. Dr. Wray explains why we need to treat climate anxiety differently and how we can create resilience both internally and within our communities as we face climate change, together. 

Resources Mentioned: 

Climate Psychology Alliance

Climate Psychiatry Alliance

Good Grief Network

Climate Awakening

Gen Dread Substack

If you liked this episode, check out: How To Save the Planet (And Still Use a Plastic Straw)

Do you have a question we can help you solve? 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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This week, host June Thomas talks to writer Madeleine George, who recently adapted the classic Alison Bechdel comic Dykes to Watch Out For into an audio drama that stars Jane Lynch, Carrie Brownstein, Roberta Colindrez, and Roxane Gay. In the interview, Madeleine discusses the challenges of turning a piece of visual art into an audio-only narrative. She also talks about the 1980’s setting of the story and the continued relevance of the characters’ personal and political lives. 

After the interview, June and co-host Isaac Butler explain how to set rules for your creative projects. 

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Madeleine talks about her work on the Hulu series Only Murders in the Building. 

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

Podcast production by Cameron Drews.

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 Working. Sign up now at slate.com/workingplus to help support our work.

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In this episode, Jasmine Guillory (a New York Times bestselling author) joins Prudie (Jenée Desmond-Harris) to answer letters from readers who are obsessing about what happens when an affair partner becomes a coworker, girls’ trip drama, and friends with benefits who also have benefits with other friends. 

If you want more Dear Prudence, join Slate Plus, Slate’s membership program. Jenée answers an extra question every week, just for members. 

Go to Slate.com/prudieplus to sign up. It’s just $15 for your first three months. 

Podcast production by Se’era Spragley Ricks and Daisy Rosario, with help from Maura Currie.

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On this week’s episode of The Waves, we’re talking the Hollywood strikes. Slate senior supervising producer Daisy Rosario is joined by longtime journalist and author of Burn It Down, Maureen Ryan to unpack the systematic oppression that has taken place behind the scenes of your favorite movies and television shows for decades. They dig into the structures in place to keep women and marginalized voices from getting to the top of the ladder, and how none of these stories are examples of one bad apple. They also explore how the ongoing writers and actors strikes are an inevitable result of years of injustice - and what they need to bargain for to make true change in Hollywood.

In Slate Plus: A recap of episode 8 of Max’s And Just Like That…

If you liked this episode, check out: How to Survive in Hollywood 

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth with editorial oversight by Daisy Rosario and Alicia Montgomery. Additional help from Paige Osburn.

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

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/thewavesplus to help support our work.

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On today’s episode of Hear Me Out… let’s get it on. 

Whether you watch porn or not — admit it, or not — adult entertainment shapes the way we think about sex, gender, and power. 

Our guest today argues that porn is an industry, but it’s also a genre, and it’s much closer to fantasy than it is to reality. But if we abandoned porn and replaced it with watching real people have real sex, we might not just shake off taboos; we might also become better lovers, and better people, too. 

Cindy Gallop, CEO of MakeLoveNotPorn, joins us.

If you have thoughts you want to share, or an idea for a topic we should tackle, you can email the show: [email protected]

Podcast production by Maura Currie

You can skip all the ads in Hear Me Out by joining Slate Plus. Sign up now at slate.com/hearmeoutplus for just $15 a month for your first three months.

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When Gwendolyn found out her friend was diagnosed with cancer, she knew she wanted to help. She just didn’t know how. Her friend lives hundreds of miles away. How can she help in a way that’s more meaningful than sending a meal and a few encouraging texts? On this episode of How To!, guest-host Courtney Martin brings on Mia Birdsong, author of the book How We Show Up. Mia went through her own cancer journey and figured out structures of support that not only helped her but made supporting easier for her friends. 

If you liked this episode, check out: How To Solve Your Own Medical Mystery

Do you have a question we can help you solve? 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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This week, host Isaac Butler talks to actor Arian Moayed, who played Stewy on the hit HBO series Succession and more recently played Torvald Helmer in a production of A Doll’s House on Broadway. In the interview, Arian talks about his early career in theater and the valuable acting techniques that he learned in college. He also discusses his experiences playing unlikeable characters, his pivot from stage to screen, and the overwhelming amount of feedback that actors receive. 

[NOTE: This interview was recorded before the SAG-AFTRA Union began its strike.] 

After the interview, Isaac and co-host June Thomas discuss the benefits and downsides of high-intensity creative work.

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Arian explains how he got the hang of Succession’s unique tone. 

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

Podcast production by Cameron Drews.

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 Working. Sign up now at slate.com/workingplus to help support our work.

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