Slate News

The hearings have started for the House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol. The televised hearings have already circled in on a major, and possibly criminal theme: Donald Trump would not accept that he lost the election and was willing to listen to any theory or allegation—no matter how little evidence there was to support it—that would let him stay in office. Why are former Trump officials finally willing speak out against the former president?Guest: Jeremy Stahl, Slate senior editor. 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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Soon after Ann Hill arrived at Yale Law School in 1968, she realized she was pregnant. Her options were limited: she could give birth—or get an illegal abortion. The decision she faced inspired her to take on Connecticut’s abortion ban. The legal battle that followed would set the stage for Roe v. Wade.Season 7 of Slow Burn is produced by Susan Matthews, Samira Tazari, Sophie Summergrad, and Sol Werthan.Derek John is Sr. Supervising Producer of Narrative Podcasts.Editorial direction by Josh Levin, Derek John, and Johanna Zorn. Merritt Jacob is our Technical Director.Our theme music is composed by Alexis Cuadrado. Artwork by Derreck Johnson based on a photo provided by Robert Wheeler.The season’s reporting was supported by a grant from the International Women’s Media Foundation’s Howard G. Buffett Fund for Women Journalists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

San Francisco is all but short-hand for “liberal American city,” but their progressive district attorney Chesa Boudin just got booted from office in a not-so-close recall. Elected as part of a wave of progressive prosecutors, why is Boudin now out, while his reformer-minded peers remain popular? And what does it mean for criminal justice reform in America? Guest: Jessica Brand,founder and co-director of the Wren Collective, a consulting service focused on transforming the criminal justice system.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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last month, Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was shot and killed while reporting on an Israeli military raid of a Palestinian refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. Multiple media investigations say the evidence suggests Abu Akleh was killed by targeted Israeli fire, not stray bullets from a chaotic skirmish. Meanwhile, the U.S. has called for an impartial investigation into Abu Akleh’s death, but has stopped short of leading such a probe. Guest: Dalia Hatuqa, a journalist specializing in Israeli/Palestinian affairs and regional Middle East issues.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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We all know the country is deeply fractured right now, and that’s especially true in our politics. There is vitriol, bitter partisanship and an expectation that in order to succeed you need to beat up on your opponent. So is it possible to fight for your beliefs, remain civil and still win elections? On this episode of How To!, we brought together two politicians from either side of the aisle who are living proof that we can practice politics with humanity. Utah Governor Spencer Cox and Vermont State Senator Becca Balint share how they resist negativity, meaningfully work with the other side, and stick to their values even when they are forced to stand up to their own party. If you liked this episode, check out “How To Get Things Done in a Divided Nation with Samantha Power”Do you have a problem that needs solving? Send us a note at howto@slate.com or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have you on the show.Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now at slate.com/howtoplus.Thanks Avast.com! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

To the people who deal with the reality of bullet wounds, the aftermath of shootings aren’t so abstract. If politicians and the public had to see what military weaponry actually does to the body, would that change the conversation around gun control?Guest: Dr. Amy Goldberg, interim dean of the Lewis Katz School of Medicine and surgeon-in-chief at the Temple University Health System.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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week’s episode of The Waves, Slate science editor and writer Shannon Palus is joined by freelance science journalist Eleanor Cummins to talk about plastics. Surgery that is. And all the physical and mental concerns that come with altering your body. They start out by talking about Eleanor’s recent piece on the health concerns of breast implants. Then they talk about VIP Syndrome, and how it’s coming for all of us. In Slate Plus, is breast reduction surgery feminist?Recommendations:Shannon: Perfect BarsEleanor: Cotopaxi gear. Podcast production by Cheyna Roth with editorial oversight by Shannon Palus and Alicia Montgomery.Send your comments and recommendations on what to cover to thewaves@slate.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jack and Barbara Willke got their start on the Catholic speaking circuit talking about the pleasure of sex within marriage. Their daughter would convince them to shift their focus to another hot-button issue. The Willkes’ Handbook on Abortion, and the photographs they distributed along with it, would help kickstart the right-to-life movement.To see the cover of the Handbook on Abortion, some of the photos the Willkes used, and the brochure “Life or Death,” go to slate.com/handbookSeason 7 of Slow Burn is produced by Susan Matthews, Samira Tazari, Sophie Summergrad, and Sol Werthan.Derek John is Sr. Supervising Producer of Narrative Podcasts.Editorial direction by Josh Levin, Derek John and Johanna Zorn. Merritt Jacob is our Technical Director.Our theme music is composed by Alexis Cuadrado. Artwork by Derreck Johnson based on a photo provided by Robert Wheeler.The season’s reporting was supported by a grant from the International Women’s Media Foundation’s Howard G. Buffett Fund for Women Journalists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The market for cryptocurrency crashed in May, losing billions of investor dollars. That’s a special concern for African Americans, who are twice as likely as white people to invest in crypto. On today’s episode of A Word, Jason Johnson is joined by economist Darrick Hamilton to discuss the unique appeal of cryptocurrency among Black Americans, and whether the potential rewards outweigh the risks.Guest: Darrick Hamilton, the founding director of the Institute for the Study of Race, Power and Political Economy at The New School.Podcast production by Jasmine Ellis and Eric AaronYou can skip all the ads in A Word by joining Slate Plus. Sign up now at slate.com/awordplus for just $1 for your first month. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The House hearings to examine the events of Jan. 6, 2021, begin this week and the party lines are drawn. Republicans are calling the hearings a distraction from issues that voters care about—inflation, rising prices of gas and food. Democrats are trying to remind voters which party tried to override American democracy. Will it be enough to stem the “red tide” projected for fall midterms?Guest: Jim Newell, senior politics writer at Slate.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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices