Slate News

In the early days of the pandemic, countries around the world invested heavily in new technologies that would help track the movement of the virus. Now, six months later, contact tracing apps are all but an afterthought in the fight to contain COVID-19. What happened? The U.K. provides some answers. The country put its faith in technology to contain the virus, and paid the price.

Guest:

Gus Hosein, executive director at Privacy International

Host

Celeste Headlee

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the early days of the pandemic, countries around the world invested heavily in new technologies that would help track the movement of the virus. Now, six months later, contact tracing apps are all but an afterthought in the fight to contain COVID-19. What happened? The U.K. provides some answers. The country put its faith in technology to contain the virus, and paid the price.

Guest:

Gus Hosein, executive director at Privacy International

Host

Celeste Headlee

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Virginia Heffernan talks to Ben Rhodes, former Deputy National Security Advisor under President Barack Obama and host of the new podcast Missing America, about Trump on foreign policy over the last four years, the U.S. fixation on Iran, Vladimir Putin, and what’s next.

This episode comes with a bonus segment at the end for Slate Plus members. Sign up now to listen, get every Trumpcast episode in full, and support the show. 

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Emily, John and David discuss the Democrats’ virtual convention, the U.S. Postal Service, and the bipartisan Senate report exposing more Trump ties to Russia.

Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:

PowerToThePolls.org

Vote-absentee.com

Election Protection Hotline

Here are this week’s cocktail chatters:

John: Keith Johnston for Independent Voter News: “The 18th-Century Reason Biden's VP Pick Should Be a Night Owl”

Emily: Claire Cain Miller for the New York Times: “‘I’m Only One Human Being’: Parents Brace for a Go-It-Alone School Year”

David: Shtisel 

Listener Rich Bravo: “Hieronymus Bosch Butt Music” 

Slate Plus members get a bonus segment on the Gabfest each week, and access to special bonus episodes throughout the year. Sign up now to listen and support our show. For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment Emily, David, and John talk about the first concerts they attended.

You can tweet suggestions, links, and questions to @SlateGabfest. Tweet us your cocktail chatter using #cocktailchatter. (Messages may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

 The email address for the Political Gabfest is [email protected]. (Email may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Jocelyn Frank.

Research and show notes by Bridgette Dunlap.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

New York Attorney General Letitia James surprised many when she announced plans to dissolve the National Rifle Association. James accused the gun lobby, which is headquartered in New York, of mismanaging their finances – claiming top executives “looted” NRA assets. With the organization’s finances in trouble, and the State AG investigating them for financial misconduct, could this be the end of the National Rifle Association?

Guest: Tim Mak, investigative reporter at NPR.

Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last week in Georgia’s 14th congressional district runoff, a Republican candidate who believes in the dangerous and baseless QAnon conspiracy theory came out on top. Marjorie Taylor Greene is now a shoo-in to win a seat in Congress. How did her candidacy get this far? And what does it mean for the Republican party?

Guest: Greg Bluestein, political reporter at the Atlanta Journal Constitution

Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Having the Democratic National Convention in Wisconsin was supposed to be a way for the Democrats to atone for 2016. Hillary Clinton was the first presidential candidate from either party to not campaign in the state since Richard Nixon in 1972.

Wisconsin flipped from blue to red in the last presidential election as rural voters voiced their disaffection with the Democratic Party and supported Donald Trump for president. Now, four years later, the Democrats are hoping they can use Trump’s record in office to win them back.

Guest: Dan Kaufman is Contributing Writer at The New Yorker and author of The Fall of Wisconsin

Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now.

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One day last month, Samuel Chu woke up to the news that the Chinese government wanted him in jail. Chu doesn’t think he’s in danger -- he’s a U.S. citizen, living in Los Angeles. So how did he wind up on the wrong side of Chinese authorities? Simple: He’s lobbying Congress to support democracy in Hong Kong. 

Guest: Samuel Chu, founder of the Hong Kong Democracy Council. 

Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now.

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In July, Slate published "The Class of RBG,” a print piece and two podcast episodes about the nine other women in Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Harvard Law School class. June Thomas talked to Dahlia Lithwick and Molly Olmstead about the making of the package on the July 26 episode of Working, Slate’s podcast about the creative process. We thought Amicus listeners would enjoy a slightly extended version of that interview.

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Felix Salmon, Emily Peck and Anna Szymanski are joined by Edmund Lee of the New York Times to discuss Fortnite versus Apple, the reliability of statistics, and the life of Sumner Redstone. 

And in the Plus segment: Stock splits. 

Email: [email protected]

Podcast production by Jessamine Molli.

Twitter: @felixsalmon, @Three_Guineas, @EmilyRPeck

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.