The Gist

On The Gist, is it OK to ape a Russian accent when saying Russian names? And we revisit an interview with filmmaker Bryan Fogel, whose documentary, Icarus, recently won an Academy Award. In the Spiel, a short conversation with author Steven Pinker about the state of academia. Is it really doing that badly? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, if sitting down with North Korea wasn't a good idea for past U.S. presidents, how is it a good idea for our current one? In the interview, Slate's Fred Kaplan and former Ambassador to the U.N. Bill Richardson are both cautiously optimistic about upcoming negotiations between Trump and Kim Jong-un. In the Spiel, some miscellaneous (positive!) news. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, it's a Jon Favreau–flavored mash-up: Swing Wars. In the interview, the walls cave in, the props catch fire, the actors stammer and forget … and it's all part of the plan. Kevin McCollum, one of the producers of Broadway's longest-running play, tells Mike how The Play That Goes Wrong makes audiences laugh. In the Spiel: By breaking them, at least the Trump administration is making us bone up on obscure but important rules. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, who's left to work for Trump when even the nincompoops are quitting? In the interview, Richard Aborn has helped get gun control laws on the books. As president of the Citizens Crime Commission of New York City, he has the data on what works, what doesn't, and how New York City got so safe. In the Spiel, the average Joe has no idea how tariffs actually work. That makes it tough to reason with him. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, Lego business is hurting. In Steve James' latest documentary, the bank is the good guy. New York's district attorney brought charges against a Chinatown-based bank after the 2008 financial crisis, even though the bank had little to do with subprime mortgages. James is the director of the Oscar-nominated Abacus: Small Enough to Jail. In the Spiel, the unpersuasive handwringing over putting Sam Nunberg on live TV. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, if iHeart Media wants to do better, they really ought to change their name. Did you watch the Oscars? Did you think they were a little lame? Writer Catie Lazarus provides a safe space for your Academy Awards–related shade. Lazarus is host of the Employee of the Month Show. Come see it live on March 15 in New York with guests Hannibal Buress, Emily Mortimer, Alex Lacamoire, and the Resistance Revival Chorus. In the Spiel, don't let Ben Carson's $31,000 fiasco distract you from the ongoing travesty that is the White House. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Well, what do you know? In 2016, Trump tweeted that he wasn't trying to get a top security clearance for his son-in-law, Jared Kushner. A year later, he's finally right. On The Gist, what's so special about an octopus? Slate's Daniel Engber has a takedown of the many-armed beast of the deep: The research on cephalopod intelligence is flimsy, he says, and the octopus is hardly the first animal to have fascinated us with its methods of escape. In the Spiel, it's time to name another Lobstar. One more thing: Please fill out the Slate podcast survey at Slate.com/podcastsurvey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today on The Gist, a unified theory of Donald Trump. Plus, Trump dragged his fellow Republicans and made his Democrats grin like Cheshire cats at the televised meeting on gun control. What are the chances that the White House lets Trump's comments stand? Mike talks to Slate politics writer Jim Newell. In the Spiel, the president has a lot of retrograde ideas that suit him. Here's one that doesn't: steel tariffs. One more thing: Please fill out the Slate podcast survey at slate.com/podcastsurvey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Quick, who's the Federal Reserve chairman? If you can't remember, take heart: Our minds are filled to capacity with the flotsam and jetsam of the Trump White House. On The Gist, are you as virtuous as you think? Likely not. Christian Miller delved into social science research to find out if we tend to misjudge the strength of our own moral fiber. Miller's book is The Character Gap: How Good Are We? In the Spiel, NRA spokeswoman Dana Loesch has a hard time living up to her own media criticism. One more thing: Please fill out the Slate podcast survey at slate.com/podcastsurvey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hang onto your skirts: Clueless co-star Stacey Dash is running for Congress. On The Gist, returning champion Maria Konnikova is back to sum up the social science on poker tells: Are they BS? Konnikova writes for the New Yorker and is the author of The Confidence Game. In the Spiel, we should acknowledge our progress. Please fill out the Slate podcast survey at slate.com/podcastsurvey Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices