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For pregnant women in the U.S., there are plenty of reasons to mistrust the medical establishment. Mortality rates are high compared to other western countries, and one-third of women in the U.S. give birth by C-section. It’s no wonder that many women turn to the internet for alternatives.

This week, the story of one woman who was drawn into a network of private Facebook groups dedicated to the idea of ‘freebirth,’ or unassisted birth. And what happens when the misinformation shared in these private groups has real-life consequences.

Guest: Brandy Zadrozny, reporter for NBC News. You can read her reporting on ‘freebirth’ here.

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

Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence. Sign up now to listen and support our work.

For pregnant women in the U.S., there are plenty of reasons to mistrust the medical establishment. Mortality rates are high compared to other western countries, and one-third of women in the U.S. give birth by C-section. It’s no wonder that many women turn to the internet for alternatives.

This week, the story of one woman who was drawn into a network of private Facebook groups dedicated to the idea of ‘freebirth,’ or unassisted birth. And what happens when the misinformation shared in these private groups has real-life consequences.

Guest: Brandy Zadrozny, reporter for NBC News. You can read her reporting on ‘freebirth’ here.

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

Virginia Heffernan welcomes back author and leading cult expert, Steven Hassan, to talk about his latest book, The Cult of Trump, and about his own experience being lured into and then recovering from a cult. 

Only Slate Plus members get to listen to every Trumpcast episode in full. Sign up now to get access to every Trumpcast episode and support the show.

Follow @realTrumpcast on Twitter.

Podcast production by Phil Surkis and Melissa Kaplan.

Engineering help from Merritt Jacob.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Emily, John and David discuss Super Tuesday, COVID-19's spread and the Supreme Court's hearing of a crucial abortion case.

For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, Emily, David, and John discuss pandemics in fiction.

Slate Plus members get a bonus segment on the Gabfest every week, and access to special bonus episodes throughout the year. Sign up now to listen and support the show.

You can tweet suggestions, links, and questions to @SlateGabfest. Tweet us your cocktail chatter using #cocktailchatter or post it to our Facebook page. (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.

Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence. Sign up now to listen and support our work.

Super Tuesday gave Joe Biden a blowout, in part because of a surge from black voters. While white voters tended to split their votes more evenly between Biden and Bernie Sanders, black voters overwhelmingly chose the former Vice President. So, what does Biden’s base see in him as a candidate? And what would they expect from him as president? 

Guest: Errin Haines, editor-at-large for The 19th, a news outlet launching this summer.

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

The coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, started in China as a bat virus that eventually made contact with humans. Researchers say this leap between species was highly predictable – so why were communities and governments caught flat-footed? And what does the virus’s transmission from animals to humans say about how we interact with the greater ecosystem?

Guest: Peter Daszak, president of EcoHealth Alliance.

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

Virginia Heffernan talks to Dr. Greg Dworkin, a Daily Kos contributing editor and the Chief of Pediatric Pulmonology and Medical Director of the Pediatric Inpatient Unit at Danbury Hospital in Danbury, CT. They discuss pandemic preparedness, where to find facts, and how the eerily similar the Coronavirus and the Democratic primary election are reported. 

Only Slate Plus members get to listen to every Trumpcast episode in full. Sign up now to get access to every Trumpcast episode and support the show.

Follow @realTrumpcast on Twitter

Podcast production by Phil Surkis and Melissa Kaplan.

Engineering help from Merritt Jacob.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Democratic primary field has been dramatically re-shuffled since Saturday. After Joe Biden swept up votes and delegates in South Carolina, moderate candidates dropped out to strengthen his challenge against front-runner Bernie Sanders. So, with over a thousand delegates on the table across a slew of states, are Democrats inevitably headed for a contested convention? 

Guest: Jim Newell, Slate’s senior politics reporter

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

Lower courts have consistently ruled against the Trump administration’s hardline immigration policies. But at the Supreme Court, the conservative majority almost always reverses lower court opinions, even in the most shocking cases. Last week, justices ruled that a Customs and Border Protection agent cannot be sued for shooting and killing a Mexican teenager in 2010, presenting the grim prospect that federal agents are free to act with impunity. 

Guest: Mark Joseph Stern covers the courts and the law for Slate.

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

David Plotz and John Dickerson discuss Biden's win in South Carolina and what it could mean for Super Tuesday and the Democratic Primary overall.

Become a Slate Plus today to hear this bonus episode in full www.slate.com/gabfestplus

You can tweet suggestions, links, and questions to @SlateGabfest. Tweet us your cocktail chatter using #cocktailchatter or post it to our Facebook page. (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.