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Vince McMahon is walking away from professional wrestling, again. The WWE looks to continue without the man that built it into an institution—and shrouded it in scandal. Guest: Dave Scherer, founder of the pro-wrestling news site, PWinsider.com.If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One of Donald Trump’s codefendants in the Georgia election subversion and racketeering case has filed a motion to dismiss his case due to an improper relationship between Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and a prosecutor she has hired to work on the case. How can Willis address the allegations and what does it mean for the case? Guest: Ankush Khardori, attorney and former federal prosecutor in the U.S. Justice Department.If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work.Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Madeline Ducharme, Anna Phillips, Paige Osburn, and Rob Gunther with help from Kathryn Fink. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the execution of Kenneth Smith, Alabama became the first state to carry out the death penalty with nitrogen gas. According to Smith’s spiritual advisor, who witnessed the execution, this is not a “humane” future for capital punishment Guest: Rev. Jeff Hood, pastor, theologian and activist living and working in Little Rock, Arkansas, and the Convener of Clergy United Against the Death PenaltyIf you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work.Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Madeline Ducharme, Anna Phillips, Paige Osburn, and Rob Gunther with help from Kathryn Fink. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In an off-week bonus episode of Money Talks, Felix Salmon, Emily Peck, and Elizabeth Spiers chat with Yale finance professor James Choi, who has cross-referenced the advice of more than 50 pop finance books with actual economic theory. How much should you save in your 20s and 30s? Should you put your money in a savings account or the stock market? Is it bad to change your retirement plan? James Choi spills the finance tea!If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and an additional segment of our show every week. You’ll also be supporting the work we do here on Slate Money. Sign up now at slate.com/moneyplus to help support our work.Podcast production by Jared Downing and Cheyna Roth. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Support for a “two-state solution” has been declining among both Israelis and Palestinians for years. If it’s time to give up on that plan, what’s the alternative? Guest: Dov Waxman, professor of political science and the director of the UCLA Y&S Nazarian Center for Israel Studies.If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Are we still paying off our pandemic-induced “immunity debt,” or is there another reason that it feels like we’re all sniffling and coughing and just feeling sick?Guest: Keren Landman, senior health reporter at VoxIf you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next TBD. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Despite Donald Trump’s efforts, there will be a significant cost for his continued defamation of E. Jean Carroll (And it’s $83.3 million!!). For much of the proceedings he sat behind Carroll muttering under his breath and posting three-dozen times on Truth Social in one night about the unfairness of the judge and the court. But zoom out, and Trump’s actions at the trial and toward women generally have far bigger implications than the size of the check he’ll have to write. This week, Vanity Fair’s Molly Jong-Fast joins Dahlia Lithwick to explain how Trump has fanned the flames of GOP misogyny playing out in every aspect of our politics, from the GOP primary to the leadership in the House of Representatives to women who have been raped in states with no access to abortion. And she asks what it ultimately says about our justice system that 80-year-old E. Jean Carroll is the one prepared to take the stand against the man who assaulted her.In this week’s Amicus Plus segment, Slate’s Mark Joseph Stern discusses the Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision that kinda sorta resolved the battle between federal immigration authorities and Texas Governor Greg Abbott, and the horrifying turn the conservative turn has taken on capital punishment this week.Sign up for Slate Plus now to listen and support our show.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Felix Salmon, Emily Peck, and Elizabeth Spiers discuss record-breaking rents that see most renters forking over more than 30% of their dough. Also: Infant apparel brand Kyte Baby’s maternity leave scandal, and why Josh wine is such a hit. In a British Slate Plus segment: An American professor says to put salt in our tea; Felix cries foul and explains how to make a proper English cuppa.If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and an additional segment of our show every week. You’ll also be supporting the work we do here on Slate Money. Sign up now at slate.com/moneyplus to help support our work.Podcast production by Jared Downing and Cheyna Roth. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the days leading up to the New Hampshire primary, voters received a robocall purportedly from Joe Biden. Authorities have now determined the call was likely A.I.-generated. In the era of A.I., how can voters tell what’s real and what’s not? And will the general election be thrown into chaos by artificial intelligence-created disinformation? Guest: Makena Kelly, senior writer at Wired covering politics and technologyIf you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next TBD. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work.Podcast production by Evan Campbell, Paige Osburn and Anna Phillips. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the Trump v. Biden presidential rematch, the end of the “vibecession,” and the political fights over immigration.  Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:Michael Scherer and Toluse Olorunnipa for The Washington Post: Trump, Biden pivot quickly to a 2024 campaign that many voters dreadLauren Irwin for The Hill: Trump says Tim Scott ‘must really hate’ HaleyAllison Pecorin and Caleigh Bartash for ABC News: Trump picks up endorsements from holdouts after New Hampshire winJohn E. Moser for Teaching American History: “Fireside Chat” on “Purging” the Democratic PartyBen Casselman for The New York Times: U.S. Economy Grew at 3.3% Rate in Latest Quarter and German Lopez: The End of Economic Pessimism?Jeff Stein for The Washington Post: As doomsday predictions dissipate, Biden aides savor booming economy and Trump promises to stop inflation. But would his plans actually help?Kyla Scanlon for Kyla’s Newsletter: The Vibecession: The Self-Fulfilling ProphecyBen Harris and Aaron Sojourner for The Brookings Institution: Why are Americans so displeased with the economy?David Montgomery for YouGov: How’s the economy doing? For many Americans, the answer is how their party’s doingPunchbowl News AM: McConnell bows to Trump on borderKaroun Demirjian for The New York Times: With Border Deal Near, Parole and Money Take Center Stage in Senate TalksMaria Sacchetti for The Washington Post: Explaining immigration parole, one sticking point in Ukraine aid-border dealRafael Bernal and Al Weaver for The Hill: Parole: What to know about the GOP’s latest border sticking point David J. Bier for the Cato Institute: New Data Show Migrants Were More Likely to Be Released by Trump Than BidenColleen Long for AP: Title 42 has ended. Here’s what it did, and how US immigration policy is changingHere are this week’s chatters: Emily: Yair Rosenberg for The Atlantic: What Did Top Israeli War Officials Really Say About Gaza? and Comics Kingdom: Sally ForthJohn: Tori Apodaca for CBS Sacramento: California writes cursive back into elementary school curriculum and Carmen Mayer, Stefanie Wallner, Nora Budde-Spengler, Sabrina Braunert, Petra A. Arndt, and Markus Kiefer in Frontiers in Psychology: Literacy Training of Kindergarten Children With Pencil, Keyboard or Tablet Stylus: The Influence of the Writing Tool on Reading and Writing Performance at the Letter and Word Level David: Erik Wemple for The Washington Post: At Gallery Place, it’s Ted Leonsis vs. one very loud street music actListener chatter from Annie O’Connor in St. Paul, Minnesota: LockPickingLawyer on YouTube For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily discuss Ezra Klein’s piece in The New York Times: I Am Going to Miss Pitchfork, but That’s Only Half the Problem. See Judy Woodruff, Sarah Clune Hartman, and Frank Carlson for PBS: The connections between decline of local news and growing political division; Steven Waldman for The Atlantic: The Local-News Crisis Is Weirdly Easy to Solve; and Penelope Muse Abernathy for the Hussman School of Journalism and Media, University of North Carolina: The Expanding News Desert: Finding Solutions. See also Press Forward; Sara Fischer and Cuneyt Dil for Axios: Scoop: D.C. lawmakers to introduce new bill funding local news via vouchers; and the Law & Justice Journalism Project. In the latest Gabfest Reads, John talks with Brad Stulberg about his book, Master of Change: How to Excel When Everything Is Changing – Including You. Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Cheyna Roth Research by Julie Huygen Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.