Slate Culture Slate Podcasts

On this week’s show, Dan Kois (writer at Slate and author of Hampton Heights: One Harrowing Night in the Most Haunted Neighborhood in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) fills in for Dana Stevens. The hosts begin by exploring the latest addition to the Star Wars canon, The Acolyte, created by Leslye Headland (Russian Doll). Amandla Sternberg and Lee Jung-jae lead the who-dunnit mystery, and while there is a lot to admire about the show’s visuals and depiction of the Master Jedi, The Acolyte often sags under the baggage of the vast Star Wars mythology and suffers from fundamental pacing problems. Then, the three tackle Godzilla Minus One, a genius and emotionally rich parable about wounded masculinity and the national trauma felt in a post-WWII Japan. The kaiju film, released at the end of last year, won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects in 2023, and immediately shot to No. 1 on Netflix when it hit the streaming service last week. Finally, the panel is joined by Dan Charnas (author of Dilla Time and The Big Payback) to discuss Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” and his very sharply framed piece for Slate, “The Musical History Lesson Buried Beneath the Song of the Summer.” 

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, the panel tackles: children’s birthday parties. To plan, or not to plan, that is the question! 

Email us at culturefest@slate.com. 

We’re taking Summer Strut submissions! Send your strutty-est songs to culturefest@slate.com. 

Endorsements:

Dan: The quick-witted, joke-packed pleasures of Girls5eva season 3. 

Julia: (1) Ambition Monster: A Memoir by Jennifer Romolini; (2) Dan Charna’s playlist, “The Genre With No Name.” 

Stephen: (1) Who wrote this song?; (2) Abdullah Ibrahim’s "Solotude."

Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Production assistance by Kat Hong. 

Hosts:
Dan Kois, Julia Turner, Stephen Metcalf
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On today’s episode, Rachelle is joined by ICYMI fave and Slate staff writer Nadira Goffe. The two sit down to discuss one of Netflix’s newest docu-series Dancing for the Devil: the 7M TikTok Cult which explores the alleged misconduct of Robert Shinn through the church and management company that he founded. Since the docu-series premiered on May 29, it’s consistently been one of the top 10 most watched TV series on Netflix.
This podcast is produced by Se’era Spragley Ricks, Daisy Rosario, Candice Lim and Rachelle Hampton.
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Jules and Bryan talk to former Outward Producer June Thomas about her new book A Place Of Our Own: Six Spaces that Shaped Queer Women’s Culture. They take us from the commune to the feminist bookstore and discuss the world-building drive of the queer community.
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Ever since it showed up on the Body Mass Index, the label “obese” has been used to judge and often shame people with larger bodies.
Medical providers, family and friends, even strangers make assumptions about fat people’s health solely based on their size.
At the same time, excess quantities of fat can lead to poor health outcomes such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes.
Over the decades, medical associations have evolved their understanding of obesity. The American Medical Association, the National Institutes of Health, and the American Obesity Society all classify obesity as a disease requiring medical treatment. 
How does that change the way medical providers care for their obese and overweight patients? And does that mean people with fatter bodies can now face less discrimination?
As a part of a series of ongoing conversations on Well, Now on weight and health, we discuss the current medical definition of obesity and how to treat it with Dr. Angela Fitch, former Associate Director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Weight Center.
If you liked this episode, check out: The Isolation of a Life-Threatening Diagnosis
Well, Now is hosted by registered dietitian nutritionist Maya Feller and Dr. Kavita Patel.
Editing and podcast production by Vic Whitley-Berry with oversight from Alicia Montgomery.
Send your comments and recommendations on what to cover to wellnow@slate.com
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In the early days of the anti-Briggs campaign, a Richard Pryor comedy set turned into a public fiasco and laid bare longstanding divisions in the gay community. With the movement low on cash and running out of time, thousands of gay Californians decided their only option was to tell the world who they really were. 

(If you—or anyone you know—are in crisis, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, anytime: Dial 988 or visit 988lifeline.org.)

Subscribe to Slate Plus to immediately unlock all episodes of Slow Burn: Gays Against Briggs. Your subscription also gets you ad-free access to all your favorite Slate podcasts, plus other member exclusive content. Join now on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Subscribe” at the top of our show page. Or, visit slate.com/slowburnplus to get access wherever you listen.

Season 9 of Slow Burn was written and produced by Christina Cauterucci. Slow Burn is produced by Kelly Jones, Joel Meyer, and Sophie Summergrad. 

Josh Levin is the editorial director of Slow Burn.

Derek John is Slate’s executive producer of narrative podcasts.

Susan Matthews is Slate’s executive editor.

Merritt Jacob is our senior technical director. 

We had engineering help from Patrick Fort and Madeline Ducharme.

Our theme music is composed by Alexis Cuadrado. Artwork by Ivylise Simones, based on an image of Silvana Nova and a poster designed by Larry Hermsen and the Too Much Graphics Collective. 
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On today’s episode of Hear Me Out: base instincts.

Democratic strategists are reportedly freaking out about Joe Biden. Despite his opponent’s felony convictions, Biden remains unpopular and isn’t polling well in swing states. Young voters are mad about his handling of the war in Gaza; many Americans remain convinced that the economy is bad and the president is to blame for it.

So if strategists’ worst fears come to pass… how much of this wound is self-inflicted?

Hayes Brown of MSNBC joins Hear Me Out to argue that Biden is falling into a classic triangulation trap… and that it probably won’t be worth it.

If you have thoughts you want to share, or an idea for a topic we should tackle, you can email the show: hearmeout@slate.com

Podcast production by Maura Currie.

Want more Hear Me Out? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Or, visit slate.com/hearmeoutplus to get access wherever you listen.
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