About this podcast
Get the Culture Gabfest and all of Slate's culture coverage here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
The newest 50 of 3,000 episodes
- ICYMI - Who’s Afraid Of The Big Bad Twitch Streamer? · 34 minOn one of the biggest political nights of the year, audiences weren’t turning into traditional networks for their news. Instead, they were on YouTube and Twitch, where streamers…
- ICYMI - So Is The Internet About To Explode Or What? · 34 minA major vulnerability is threatening the entire internet as we know it. Should we let it? As talk of an internet apocalypse looms, some users can’t help but feel it’s high time…
- Decoder Ring - Presenting: The Sporkful | Does The World Need A Better Tomato? · 38 min · Episode 140In New Jersey, the tomato is king. Almost a century ago, a scientist at Rutgers University developed a variety that became the tomato that lined grocery store shelves for…
- Death, Sex & Money - Kidnapping Survivor Elizabeth Smart is Doing True Crime Differently · 52 min · Episode 609In 2002, when Elizabeth Smart was taken from her bed by a stranger, the media covered it day and night. When Elizabeth returned home nine months later, she slowly began to learn…
- ICYMI - The Boomers Turned “Screenagers” · 33 minConversations about screen addition are almost always about kids. Entire governments have mobilized in pursuit of offsetting the negative effects of being too plugged in, but…
- Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia - Going to Graceland Edition · 51 minFour decades ago, Paul Simon broke out of a middle-age slump with a collaborative project few saw coming. Join Chris Molanphy as he explores the musical brilliance, polarizing…
- Decoder Ring - The Spooky Saga of the Icelandic Dracula · 51 min · Episode 139Since Bram Stoker’s Dracula was first published in 1897 it has inspired hundreds, if not thousands, of other fictional vampires. But none are quite as strange as that found in…
- ICYMI - An Internet Boyfriend Just Made The Movie Of The Year · 38 minYou may have thought we knew everything there was to know about Elizabeth Holmes. The Theranos founder who was found guilty of defrauding investors sparked books, documentaries…
- Death, Sex & Money - Side Effects May Include Headaches, Sleep Eating, Buying Power Tools · 53 min · Episode 608For this episode, we asked for your stories about medication side effects. You told us about the weird, from sleep-eating to compulsive spending. You told us about making…
- ICYMI - The “Tradwife” To Girlboss Pipeline · 38 minThe “tradwives” are retreating. Nara Smith went on Call Her Daddy to renounce any association with the term, and has been in the middle of a full-on rebrand as the promotes her…
- Decoder Ring - Clown Panic (Encore) · 36 min · Episode 138Clowns have existed in various forms for thousands of years. From the big top to Bozo’s TV show, they used to be beloved figures of amusement and delight. What changed and made…
- ICYMI - The Toxic FB Groups For Estranged Parents · 34 minThe latest internet “trend,” apparently, is adult children cutting off their parents. And while there are plenty of spaces on the internet where both children and parents can…
- Death, Sex & Money - Comedian Murray Hill on the Teachers Who Freed Him From an Unsafe Home · 58 min · Episode 607Now famous as a New York City nightlife fixture and for his role on Somebody Somewhere, comedian Murray Hill used to keep his personal history private. In fact, the persona of…
- ICYMI - The Labubufication of AI Agents · 33 minThe new AI agents from Meta and OpenAI have one thing in common: they look like children’s cartoons. At the same time these companies are warning that AI will kill us all…
- Decoder Ring - Gandhi Never Said “Be the Change” · 1 h 0 min · Episode 137Few inspirational phrases are quoted more often than Mahatma Gandhi’s “Be the change you want to see in the world.” It shows up on t-shirts, bumper stickers, even tattooed on…
- ICYMI - How The Pussyhat Unraveled · 40 minTen years ago, the world was gearing up to welcome the first female president. Instead, Donald Trump’s surprise victory went on to alter America’s entire political landscape…
- Death, Sex & Money - Remembering John Prine on His 80th, With His Wife Fiona · 38 min · Episode 605To mark John Prine’s 80’s birthday, Anna catches up with his wife Fiona. Then we revisit Anna’s 2018 conversation with John, where he discussed his bestselling album Tree of…
- ICYMI - Jane Doe Deserves Better From The Internet · 46 minAs soon as Jane Doe filed her civil suit against Cornell University, the internet was up in arms. Everyone from Florence Pugh to Love Island contestants took to social media to…
- Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia - Near-Miss Hits: ‘80s Edition · 44 minThe 1980s yielded a bumper crop of near-miss hits—songs that stalled out at No. 2, No. 11, or No. 41 during their original Billboard runs but were vindicated in the streaming…
- Decoder Ring - Preview: Decoder Rings Back | The Second Spice · 8 minOne of the many perks of subscribing to Decoder Ring Plus is access to every episode of Decoder Rings Back, our member-exclusive series where host Willa Paskin calls up a…
- ICYMI - The Conspiracy Theory Your Parents Are Falling For · 37 minWhat if I told you there was a machine that, using powerful energy and frequencies, could cure everything from common colds to cancers to missing limbs? Well, I’d be lying. And…
- Death, Sex & Money - Ada Limón Lives in 'Vertical Time' in Her Childhood Home · 58 min · Episode 603After three years as Poet Laureate, Ada Limón craved a smaller, more private life. Then she saw a sign: her childhood home was for sale. In this episode, Anna and Ada talk about…
- ICYMI - WTF Is Happening On Threads? · 51 minThere are some controversies that can only happen on Threads. Discussions about mermaid trauma, for instance, or Pepsi having to apologize for their post about Wild Cherry. The…
- ICYMI - The Revenge Of The Comment Section · 36 minComment sections are dying. At least, when it comes to digital media. Platforms like Twitter have become the new place for discourse, and apps like TikTok are changing what the…
- Death, Sex & Money - Stavros Halkias Worries Fame Might Kill Him · 51 min · Episode 602This year, Stavros Halkias released a stand-up special, appeared in the Anthony Bourdain biopic Tony, and continued his run on the hit Netflix show Tires. Despite the high…
- ICYMI - No Phones? No Problem · 38 minDumbphones are a popular recommendation for people looking to reduce their screen time, but it’s not as simple as it looks. When writer Stephanie Murray made the switch, while…
- Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia - Choosin’ Dolly Edition · 49 minIn the 1970s, Dolly Parton parlayed her Nashville success into megawatt pop-culture icon status—yet many of her familiar hits of the era barely scratched the Top 40. Parton…
- ICYMI - The “Sickfluencer” Witch Hunt · 36 minLike clockwork, another article has created a moral panic about so-called “sickfluencers,” or people—usually women—who share online about their illnesses and disabilities…
- Decoder Ring - Bridget in the Buff · 1 h 3 min · Episode 136In the early 1970s, a jigsaw puzzle of a cheerful, young, naked, fat woman known only as “Bridget in the Buff” arrived in stores all over America. It was just the first of…
- Death, Sex & Money - My Homeschool Curriculum Was My Mother’s Unhappiness · 55 min · Episode 600Stefan’s mother said he was too smart for public school and took him out of 4th grade. But instead of studying, Stefan’s homeschool curriculum was organized around keeping his…
- ICYMI - Don't Worry, There’s No “AI Apocalypse” · 42 minA former Anthropic employee claimed AI would lead to the end of humanity, and soon. In the weeks since, the “whistleblower” has done a full press tour, with even Anthropic and…
- ICYMI - Forbidden Alphas & Cursed Billionaires: The Rise Of Microdramas · 34 minPregnant werewolves and surprise quadruplets are just two of the tropes you might find while watching what might be the next evolution of TV: vertical microdramas. Told in 90…
- Death, Sex & Money - How I “Failed” at OnlyFans · 1 h 0 min · Episode 599Anna Blake started an OnlyFans account, not as a pleasure project, but to achieve some financial stability. When she found out she hated the work and made little money, her…
- ICYMI - Who TF Are These Women? · 46 min“Curtain for Zoosha! K-smog and Batboy caught flipping a grunt.” If that’s also what every headline sounds like to you, then you’re in the right place. Alex Earle and Stella…
- ICYMI - Parenting Apps, Subreddits, & Group Chats—Oh My! · 38 minHow many apps does it take to raise a child in 2026? Not only are parents navigating countless WhatsApp groups and summer camp platforms, there’s also a whole world of Reels…
- Decoder Ring - What Even Is a “Podcast” Anymore? · 59 min · Episode 135Podcasts are everywhere. They’re more popular and influential than they’ve ever been. But at the same time, what makes a podcast a “podcast” has never been more confusing. Until…
- Death, Sex & Money - 'Pay-What-You-Want' Defies Logic, Confuses Economists, and Can Really Work · 55 min · Episode 597The pay-what-you-want business model is mostly found in museums and churches, but this week we’ll hear from entrepreneurs and artists who are implementing it in unlikely places…
- ICYMI - Yes, Having a Boyfriend Is Embarrassing · 46 minMany women are hiding their boyfriends online, or losing followers if they hard-launch. Some go as far as to say having a boyfriend “feels republican.” Is this heterofatalism…
- Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia - Decoder Ring: Why Do Actors Act Like They Can Sing? · 58 minWhen an actor opens their mouth to sing in a movie, chances are high that the voice you hear will be their own. Even in music biopics, movie stars without much singing experience…
- ICYMI - The Hypocrisy of Plagiarism & AI Accusations · 39 minThe rise of AI has led to a rise of distrust, but the “tools” used to identify AI and plagiarism are perpetuating preexisting biases. Jason Arday, the former Cambridge professor…
- Death, Sex & Money - Behind Closed Tabs: Your Porn Stories · 30 min · Episode 596Porn. It’s something that people use in their most intimate, private moments. It’s a way to acknowledge desire — without any of the attachments of intimacy. For some of you…
- ICYMI - Will Social Media Ever Be Fun Again? · 36 minDo you remember the last time you had fun online? In recent years, it’s felt like social media has become overridden with hot takes, discourse, and something called “bean soup…
- Decoder Ring - McGruff Takes a Bite Out of Crime, Part 2 (Encore) · 43 minMcGruff the Crime Dog arrived on the scene at the dawn of the 1980s, just as a firehose of anti-drug PSAs was inundating the youth of America. These messages didn’t always work…
- ICYMI - It’s Time To Talk About Lindsay Clancy · 47 minTrue crime has always been entertainment, but social media has turned tragedies like the Lindsay Clancy trial into monocultural moments. It’s not enough to read the news, many…
- Death, Sex & Money - 'Humane Eldercare Has Become a Luxury Item’ · 45 min · Episode 594Nursing home care in the U.S. can run families $10,000 a month, a cost Medicare won’t pay for. When Anna de la Cruz's parents both developed dementia around the same time, her…
- ICYMI - Leave The WNBA Alone, Trolls! · 36 minThe WNBA has finally taken center stage, but the fandom is going through it. New eyes on the sport have brought new scrutiny, which has resulted in racist and transphobic…
- Culture Gabfest - Announcing: Julia's New Show! · 24 minL.A. World is a new weekly podcast from L.A. Material, the local news outlet that Julia Turner helped launch earlier this year. The show helps you understand what's happening in…
- Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia - The Harrisong Edition · 38 minIn the 1960s, the Beatles were defined by the success of the Lennon-McCartney songwriting partnership. But in the digital era, we discovered that the Fab Four’s most popular song…
- ICYMI - Get In Loser, We’re Friction-Maxxing · 51 minTechnology keeps trying to “fix” every small inconvenience in our lives, which has rendered us completely unable to endure basic hurdles such as sitting in silence, navigating…
- Death, Sex & Money - Passive Aggressive vs. ‘Massive Aggressive’ With Novelist Elizabeth Strout · 47 min · Episode 593The bestselling novelist behind works like Amy and Isabelle and Olive Kitteridge discusses her excitement about turning 70, her reserved New England upbringing, and how death…
