Political Gabfest

4.4 (8.2K)
POLITICS
UPDATED WEEKLY

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Voted “Favorite Political Podcast” by Apple Podcasts listeners. Stephen Colbert says "Everybody should listen to the Slate Political Gabfest." The Gabfest, featuring Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz, is the kind of informal and irreverent discussion Washington journalists have after hours over drinks. Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.

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In 1992, hundreds of armed federal agents surrounded a family of white separatists in a ramshackle mountaintop cabin. Eleven days later, three people were dead—and the story of Ruby Ridge was just beginning. Journalist Ruth Graham explores a tragedy that’s become a foundational myth for the modern right, and finds some frightening lessons about power and paranoia. Get full access to Standoff: What Happened at Ruby Ridge with Slate Plus. Join to unlock the full season—plus ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Standoff show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or visit slate.com/standoffplus for access wherever you listen.

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TRUE CRIME
Slow Burn illuminates America’s most consequential moments, making sense of the past to better understand the present. Through archival tape and first-person interviews, the series uncovers the surprising events and little-known characters lurking within the biggest stories of our time. Want more Slow Burn? Join Slate Plus to unlock full, ad-free access to Slow Burn and your other favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Slow Burn show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/slowburnplus to get access wherever you listen. Season 10: The Rise of Fox News How a cable news channel became a cultural and political force—and how a whole bunch of people rose up to try and stop it. Season 9: Gays Against Briggs A nationwide moral panic, a California legislator who rode the anti-gay wave, and the LGBTQ+ people who stepped up and came out to try and stop him. Season 8: Becoming Justice Thomas Where Clarence Thomas came from, how he rose to power, and how he’s brought the rest of us along with him, whether we like it or not. Winner of the Podcast of the Year at the 2024 Ambies Awards. Season 7: Roe v. Wade The women who fought for legal abortion, the activists who pushed back, and the justices who thought they could solve the issue for good. Winner of Apple Podcasts Show of the Year in 2022. Season 6: The L.A. Riots How decades of police brutality, a broken justice system, and a video tape set off six days of unrest in Los Angeles. Season 5: The Road to the Iraq War Eighteen months after 9/11, the United States invaded a country that had nothing to do with the attacks. Who’s to blame? And was there any way to stop it? Season 4: David Duke America’s most famous white supremacist came within a runoff of controlling Louisiana. How did David Duke rise to power? And what did it take to stop him? Season 3: Biggie and Tupac How is it that two of the most famous performers in the world were murdered within a year of each other—and their killings were never solved? Season 2: The Clinton Impeachment A reexamination of the scandals that nearly destroyed the 42nd president and forever changed the life of a former White House intern. Season 1: Watergate What did it feel like to live through the scandal that brought down President Nixon?

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A show about the law and the nine Supreme Court justices who interpret it for the rest of America. Want more Amicus? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes with exclusive legal analysis. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Amicus show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/amicusplus to get access wherever you listen.

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NEWS COMMENTARY
The problem with the news right now? It’s everywhere. And each day, it can feel like we’re all just mindlessly scrolling. It’s why we created What Next. This short daily show is here to help you make sense of things. When the news feels overwhelming, we’re here to help you answer: What next? Look for new episodes every weekday morning. Get more of What Next with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of What Next and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or visit slate.com/whatnextplus for access wherever you listen.

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DAILY NEWS
Anna Sale explores the big questions and hard choices that are often left out of polite conversation. Get more Death, Sex & Money with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of DSM and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Death, Sex & Money show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/dsmplus to get access wherever you listen.

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RELATIONSHIPS
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DOCUMENTARY

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David Plotz

Host
Emily Bazelon

Host
John Dickerson

Host
Susan Glasser

Guest
Mike Pesca

Guest
Jason Furman

Guest
Susan Dominus

Guest
Maggie Smith

Guest

4.4

out of 5

8,154 Ratings

Always insightful

Jun 20

Mot Effeeko

I usually replay John’s analysis here and on CBS Daily News Plus. So succinct and insightful.
Aren’t journalists supposed to be ethical?

Jul 1

Rober66

Editors allowed Ruth’s fear of Mamdani’s position on Israel/Palestine to go unchecked with NO reporting of how well he naviagatd the media circus around traveling to Israel and his repeated support for combatting antisemitism in MYC. How can you take her next segment seriously when she is so impenetrable on this political issue? Emily, why didn’t you say something?
Absolutely embarrassing episode this week

Jul 1

ahsheeeeit

Do you *feel* like your meeting this moment? You’re not at all
Out of Touch Liberal Centrists

Jun 24

InternationalPolJunkie

If you want to pretend it’s 2010, this is the podcast for you. If you want observation without critical analysis and outside perspectives, I recommend the Rhodes Center Podcast, Trending Globally, or American Prestige, but not this. If you want to keep tabs on what elite circles in the Democratic apparatus are thinking, this is a great show, and why I follow it. If you want moral clarity and guidance, you will not find it here. If you think nominating Clinton in 2016 was a good idea, this is 100% the podcast for you. If you think Israel isn’t a settler colonial project, this is also the podcast for you. If you think American history is the story of powerful White men and Black, Indigenous, Immigrant, and female characters were objects rather than subjects of history, if you don’t understand what I mean by that, this is the podcast for you.

Voted “Favorite Political Podcast” by Apple Podcasts listeners. Stephen Colbert says "Everybody should listen to the Slate Political Gabfest." The Gabfest, featuring Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz, is the kind of informal and irreverent discussion Washington journalists have after hours over drinks. Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.