The Gist

On The Gist, a top Armenian comic joins us to discuss if Azubaijan is even a country. Then, Mike asks Maria Konnikova of the New Yorker about the health benefits of hypnosis for a game we call "Is That Bulls--t?" She's the author of The Confidence Game: Why We Fall for It ... Every Time. For the Spiel, can we talk about chalk at Emory

University? Today's sponsors: Squarespace.com. Get a free trial and 10 percent off your first purchase when you visit Squarespace.com and enter offer code GIST. Betterment, the largest automated investing service—managing billions of dollars for people just like you. Get up to six months of investing free when you go to Betterment.com/gist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up

for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, we explore an abuse of power taking place on social media. Journalist Jon Ronson shares why

he was compelled to tell the stories behind the public shaming of Jonah Lehrer and Justine Sacco. He's the author of So You've Been Publicly Shamed, now out in paperback. For the Spiel, meet Wisconsin's Jimmy Boy. Today's sponsor: Squarespace.com. Get a free trial and 10 percent off your first purchase when you visit Squarespace.com and enter offer code GIST. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial

today at slate.com/gistplus

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, actress Erinn Hayes joins us to share her experiences performing as Dr. Lola Spratt on Childrens Hospital from Adult Swim. The show will be ending this year after seven seasons. For the Spiel, Zoe Chace

from This American Life takes over. She's been speaking with Republican stalwarts about how Alexander Hamilton

inspired them to vote for … Hillary? Today's sponsors: Slack, bring all of your communication at work into one place. Create a new team right now at Slack.com/gist, and you'll get $100 in credit for when you decide to upgrade to a paid plan. Goldman Sachs. Information about developments currently shaping markets, industries, and the global economy, on the firm's podcast, Exchanges at Goldman Sachs, available on iTunes. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, Manisha Sinha joins us to discuss the long roots of the abolitionist movement in American history.

She's the author of The Slave's Cause: A History of Abolition. For the Spiel, there's no backsies or whoopsies for presidents. Today's sponsor: Betterment, the largest automated investing service—managing billions of dollars for people just like you. Get up to six months of investing free when you go to Betterment.com/gist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, Mike asks Maria Konnikova of the New Yorker to explain the link between seasonal affective disorder and winter blues. Is it a real condition, or an overly convenient acronym? For the Spiel, why arguing about

instant replays is a beloved American pastime. Today's sponsors: Monster. Find employees who work as hard as you at Monster.com/hiring. Monster. Find Better. Betterment, the largest automated investing service—managing billions of dollars for people just like you. Get up to six months of investing free when you go to Betterment.com/gist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up

for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, we ask Los Angeles Times reporter Joel Rubin what the San Bernardino investigators are hoping to learn from the decrypted iPhone. For the Spiel, hijacker hijinks! Today's sponsors: Slack. Slack brings all of your communication at work into one place. Create a new team right now at Slack.com/gist and you'll get 100 dollars in credit for when you decide to upgrade to a paid plan. Texture, the mobile app that lets you tap directly into the world's most popular magazines using

your phone or tablet. Dive deeper into Vogue, People, Esquire, Time—with interactive content for a richer reading experience. Try Texture for free at Texture.com/gist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a

free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, the Guardian's Julian Borger joins us to discuss the International Criminal Court trial of one of the Bosnian War's main malefactors, Radovan Karadzic. Julian is the author of The Butcher's Trail: How the Search for Balkan War Criminals Became the World's Most Successful Manhunt. For the Spiel, Democracy is a pretty good system, except for all the dummies. Today's sponsors: Squarespace.com. Get a free trial and 10 percent off your first purchase when you visit Squarespace.com and enter offer code GIST. Betterment, the largest automated investing service—managing billions of dollars for people just like you. Get up to six months of investing free when you go to Betterment.com/gist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, we travel back

to the year 14-year-olds shouted their favorite hits from Times Square to

Carson Daly. Music writer Chris Molanphy shares Billboard

hits from 1999 that shaped the future of today's pop charts. Chris writes Slate's Why Is That Song No. 1 column. Mike will be back with a traditional Spiel on

Monday. Listen back to the 1999 hits

mentioned in today's show in this Spotify playlist.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, a classic episode from August 2014. When Amy Solomon was growing up in Chicago, she was obsessed with Gilda Radner. She wanted to be a comedian but worried she didn't have enough problems to talk about. For her Princeton senior thesis, Solomon explored the link between confessional comedy and mental health. In this special segment, Mike also speaks with comedians Sara Benincasa, Chris Gethard, and Gary Gulman about where they find balance. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, Guardian US editor Lee Glendinning joins us to share findings from their award-winning data initiative the Counted. For the Spiel, Mike offers a textural analysis of the president's visit to Cuba. Today's sponsors: Goldman Sachs. Information about developments currently shaping markets, industries, and the global economy, on the firm's podcast, Exchanges at Goldman Sachs, available on iTunes. Betterment, the largest automated investing service—managing billions of dollars for people just like you. Get up to six months of investing free when you go to Betterment.com/gist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.