<description>&lt;p&gt;On today’s episode, host Kate Lindsay is joined by Mia Sato, reporter at The Verge and author of the recent piece, “&lt;a href="https://www.theverge.com/news/869824/right-wing-influencers-nick-shirley-slopaganda" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;The rise of the slopagandist&lt;/a&gt;.” Creators like &lt;a href="https://www.youtube.com/@NickShirley" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;Nick Shirley&lt;/a&gt; are claiming to be journalists, making unfounded accusations against immigrants that directly result in ICE raids, including the unrest in Minneapolis that resulted in the death of two civilians. The content is lazy and designed to generate outrage, but is only becoming more influential as traditional journalism continues to decline.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;This podcast is produced by Daisy Rosario, Vic Whitley-Berry, and Kate Lindsay.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

A handful of “slopagandists” are creating lazy, biased content—and the government is listening.

On today’s episode, host Kate Lindsay is joined by Mia Sato, reporter at The Verge and author of the recent piece, “<a href="https://www.theverge.com/news/869824/right-wing-influencers-nick-shirley-slopaganda" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The rise of the slopagandist</a>.” Creators like <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@NickShirley" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Nick Shirley</a> are claiming to be journalists, making unfounded accusations against immigrants that directly result in ICE raids, including the unrest in Minneapolis that resulted in the death of two civilians. The content is lazy and designed to generate outrage, but is only becoming more influential as traditional journalism continues to decline.&nbsp; This podcast is produced by Daisy Rosario, Vic Whitley-Berry, and Kate Lindsay.<hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

ICYMI - This Country Runs On Slop

<description>&lt;p&gt;This week, Steve, Dana and guest host Sam Adams talk anti-authoritarian art in its many forms. First, they take up &lt;em&gt;It Was Just an Accident&lt;/em&gt;, the Cannes Palme d’Or-winning film by Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi. Inspired in part by Panahi’s own experience being imprisoned for critiquing the Iranian government, his new film—made in secret from the regime— holds back little in its sharp political critique, rage, and… a surprising amount of comedy.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;Not surprising in its amount of comedy— but maybe in its frequently anti-authoritarian politics—is &lt;em&gt;Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man! &lt;/em&gt;The documentary series about the showbiz legend, produced by Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio, is a loving portrait of the long, unmatched, and revolutionary in its own way, career of Brooks.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;Inspired by the recent release “Streets of Minneapolis” by Bruce Springsteen, the panel dedicates its final segment to the state of protest music in 2026. Joined by music critic Carl Wilson, of the Slate and &lt;a href="https://carlwilson.substack.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Crritic!&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;, they discuss the long tradition and still potent power of singer/songwriters with acoustic guitars—and the many political artists who defy that stereotype. To hear some of the music they talked about, plus several more current protest songs, check out our &lt;a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5V8kwtWnpC4ZEAO5VFthrb?si=0707777c55424ce6" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;2026 Protest Playlist&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;In our bonus episode for Plus subscribers, the gang eulogizes the divine comic genius of Catherine O’Hara.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

On this week’s show, the panel takes up Jafar Panahi’s film It Was Just an Accident, the documentary series Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!, and the state of protest music in 2026.

This week, Steve, Dana and guest host Sam Adams talk anti-authoritarian art in its many forms. First, they take up It Was Just an Accident, the Cannes Palme d’Or-winning film by Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi. Inspired in part by Panahi’s own experience being imprisoned for critiquing the Iranian government, his new film—made in secret from the regime— holds back little in its sharp political critique, rage, and… a surprising amount of comedy. Not surprising in its amount of comedy— but maybe in its frequently anti-authoritarian politics—is Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man! The documentary series about the showbiz legend, produced by Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio, is a loving portrait of the long, unmatched, and revolutionary in its own way, career of Brooks. Inspired by the recent release “Streets of Minneapolis” by Bruce Springsteen, the panel dedicates its final segment to the state of protest music in 2026. Joined by music critic Carl Wilson, of the Slate and <a href="https://carlwilson.substack.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Crritic!</a>, they discuss the long tradition and still potent power of singer/songwriters with acoustic guitars—and the many political artists who defy that stereotype. To hear some of the music they talked about, plus several more current protest songs, check out our <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5V8kwtWnpC4ZEAO5VFthrb?si=0707777c55424ce6" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">2026 Protest Playlist</a>. In our bonus episode for Plus subscribers, the gang eulogizes the divine comic genius of Catherine O’Hara.<hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Culture Gabfest - The Boss Responds to Minneapolis Edition

<description>&lt;p&gt;On today’s episode, host Kate Lindsay is joined by Alex Kirshner, Slate contributing writer and host of &lt;a href="https://slate.com/podcasts/hang-up-and-listen" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Hang Up And Listen&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;. Back in September, Alex &lt;a href="https://slate.com/technology/2025/09/brick-app-review-digital-detox-instagram-tiktok.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;wrote about Brick&lt;/a&gt;, the plastic gadget he says “broke his phone addiction.” It seems like now more than ever, people want off their phones, and are trying everything from Brick to dumb phones to make it happen. They’re also, ironically, posting all about it, which begs the question: Do we &lt;em&gt;really&lt;/em&gt; want to get offline, or do we just want people to think we do?&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;This podcast is produced by Daisy Rosario, Vic Whitley-Berry, and Kate Lindsay.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

People can’t stop posting about tools like Brick.

On today’s episode, host Kate Lindsay is joined by Alex Kirshner, Slate contributing writer and host of <a href="https://slate.com/podcasts/hang-up-and-listen" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Hang Up And Listen</a>. Back in September, Alex <a href="https://slate.com/technology/2025/09/brick-app-review-digital-detox-instagram-tiktok.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">wrote about Brick</a>, the plastic gadget he says “broke his phone addiction.” It seems like now more than ever, people want off their phones, and are trying everything from Brick to dumb phones to make it happen. They’re also, ironically, posting all about it, which begs the question: Do we really want to get offline, or do we just want people to think we do?&nbsp; This podcast is produced by Daisy Rosario, Vic Whitley-Berry, and Kate Lindsay.<hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

ICYMI - Is Digital Detoxing Being "Performatively Offline"?

<description>&lt;p&gt;Growing up, George Saunders was the eldest boy with younger sisters, in a family full of women who gave him praise and special treatment. That created the confidence that fueled his ambition to become a great writer.&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this lively interview, George talks about why that dream took decades to realize and what was essential to making it happen – including a karmic, three-week romance, a pivotal trip to the Afghanistan border during the Soviet war, and witnessing a “colossal fuck up” working in the oil fields of Indonesia.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;George’s newest novel, “&lt;a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/564991/vigil-by-george-saunders/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;Vigil&lt;/a&gt;,” is out now and his substack is called &lt;a href="https://georgesaunders.substack.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;Story Club&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Podcast production by Andrew Dunn.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Death, Sex &amp;amp; Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, &lt;a href="http://slate.com/dsmplus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;Slate Plus&lt;/a&gt;! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at &lt;a href="http://slate.com/dsmplus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;slate.com/dsmplus&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;And if you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Find us and follow us on &lt;a href="https://www.instagram.com/deathsexmoney/?hl=en" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;Instagram&lt;/a&gt; and you can find Anna’s newsletter at annasale.substack.com. Our new email address, where you can reach us with voice memos, pep talks, questions, critiques, is deathsexmoney@slate.com. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Celebrated author George Saunders on the karmic relationship that was essential to his writing success.

Growing up, George Saunders was the eldest boy with younger sisters, in a family full of women who gave him praise and special treatment. That created the confidence that fueled his ambition to become a great writer.&nbsp;In this lively interview, George talks about why that dream took decades to realize and what was essential to making it happen – including a karmic, three-week romance, a pivotal trip to the Afghanistan border during the Soviet war, and witnessing a “colossal fuck up” working in the oil fields of Indonesia.&nbsp;&nbsp;George’s newest novel, “<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/564991/vigil-by-george-saunders/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Vigil</a>,” is out now and his substack is called <a href="https://georgesaunders.substack.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Story Club</a>.Podcast production by Andrew Dunn.Death, Sex &amp; Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, <a href="http://slate.com/dsmplus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Slate Plus</a>! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at <a href="http://slate.com/dsmplus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/dsmplus</a>.And if you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Find us and follow us on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/deathsexmoney/?hl=en" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Instagram</a> and you can find Anna’s newsletter at annasale.substack.com. Our new email address, where you can reach us with voice memos, pep talks, questions, critiques, is deathsexmoney@slate.com. <hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Death, Sex & Money - The Women Who Made George Saunders A Wife Guy

<description>&lt;p&gt;Hosts &lt;a href="https://www.splitzoneduo.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;Alex Kirshner&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;a href="https://lindsaygibbs.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;Lindsay Gibbs&lt;/a&gt;, and &lt;a href="https://www.theringer.com/authors/ben-lindbergh" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;Ben Lindbergh&lt;/a&gt; kick things off by picking their favorite (and the most horrifying) events to watch at the upcoming Winter Olympics.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;Then the panel digs into Bill Belichick’s bizarre Hall of Fame snub. They finish with a conversation with the Athletic’s &lt;a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/author/matthew-fairburn/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;Matthew Fairburn&lt;/a&gt; about the Buffalo Sabres, the NHL’s most playoff-averse team that might actually make the postseason this year.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Ben delivers an Afterball on Jordan Smith, the amateur tennis player who stunned the field at the Australian Open’s 1 Point Slam and walked away with one million dollars.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;On the bonus episode, available exclusively for Slate Plus members, the panel discusses Novak Djokovic's Grand Slam dreams being dashed once again.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Olympics Preview (4:38): &lt;/strong&gt;Get ready for ‘Skimo’ fever&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Bill Belichick (27:19)&lt;/strong&gt;: The Spygate punishment&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Buffalo Sabres (41:05):&lt;/strong&gt;&amp;nbsp; Can the city shake its playoff malaise?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;(Note: time codes are only accurate for Slate Plus members, who listen ad-free.)&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;Get more Hang Up and Listen with Slate Plus! Join for weekly bonus episodes of Hang Up and Listen and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Hang Up and Listen show page on &lt;a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hang-up-and-listen/id327595087" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;Apple Podcasts&lt;/a&gt; or &lt;a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/65uyYjdz34l1411uDzmKlA" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;Spotify&lt;/a&gt;, or visit &lt;a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;amp;utm_content=Hang_Up&amp;amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;slate.com/hangupplus&lt;/a&gt; for access wherever you listen.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;You can email us at &lt;a href="mailto:hangup@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"&gt;hangup@slate.com&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;Podcast production and editing by Kevin Bendis, with production assistance from Patrick Fort.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;hr&gt;&lt;p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'&gt; Hosted on Acast. See &lt;a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'&gt;acast.com/privacy&lt;/a&gt; for more information.&lt;/p&gt;</description>

We give a very subjective preview of the Milano Cortina games and what we’re most excited for.

Hosts <a href="https://www.splitzoneduo.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Alex Kirshner</a>, <a href="https://lindsaygibbs.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lindsay Gibbs</a>, and <a href="https://www.theringer.com/authors/ben-lindbergh" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ben Lindbergh</a> kick things off by picking their favorite (and the most horrifying) events to watch at the upcoming Winter Olympics. Then the panel digs into Bill Belichick’s bizarre Hall of Fame snub. They finish with a conversation with the Athletic’s <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/author/matthew-fairburn/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Matthew Fairburn</a> about the Buffalo Sabres, the NHL’s most playoff-averse team that might actually make the postseason this year.Ben delivers an Afterball on Jordan Smith, the amateur tennis player who stunned the field at the Australian Open’s 1 Point Slam and walked away with one million dollars.On the bonus episode, available exclusively for Slate Plus members, the panel discusses Novak Djokovic's Grand Slam dreams being dashed once again. Olympics Preview (4:38): Get ready for ‘Skimo’ feverBill Belichick (27:19): The Spygate punishmentBuffalo Sabres (41:05):&nbsp; Can the city shake its playoff malaise? (Note: time codes are only accurate for Slate Plus members, who listen ad-free.) Get more Hang Up and Listen with Slate Plus! Join for weekly bonus episodes of Hang Up and Listen and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Hang Up and Listen show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hang-up-and-listen/id327595087" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/65uyYjdz34l1411uDzmKlA" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>, or visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Hang_Up&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/hangupplus</a> for access wherever you listen. You can email us at <a href="mailto:hangup@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">hangup@slate.com</a>. Podcast production and editing by Kevin Bendis, with production assistance from Patrick Fort. <hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Hang Up and Listen - Winter Olympics Show-and-Tell

Get the Culture Gabfest and all of Slate's culture coverage here.<hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Slate Culture Feed

Details

Recent Episodes