Author: Peach Fish Productions

On The Gist, we here at Slate take GDPR compliance very seriously … just not in this monologue.

Before SNL, David Wain says, the countercultural comedy torch belonged to National Lampoon. The laugh magazine was created by Harvard graduates and became a creative laboratory for movies like Animal House and Caddyshack. Chief among them was Doug Kenney, the subject of Netflix biopic A Futile and Stupid Gesture, which Wain directs.

In the Spiel, the nostalgia we feel around meals and dishes is overrated. It’s not about the food; it’s about the feels.

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On Thursday’s Gist, tips for avoiding fake news? Thanks but no thanks, Facebook.

There’s a new documentary out about the Steubenville, Ohio, rape case, and it got us thinking about the flaws in the public’s perception of that saga. Reporter Derek John explains how the dominant narrative of the case was warped by an amateur crime blogger and a protective football team, despite the efforts of local prosecutors. John and Anders Kelto reported the story for Gamebreaker[NP1], a podcast by Audible.

In the Spiel, the NFL’s fans are way more liberal than its team owners. So how’s the kneeling ban supposed to restore its ratings dip?

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On The Gist, the NFL can’t give a decent explanation for its kneeling ban.

Philip Roth’s novels about Jewish life earned him every accolade short of, famously, the Nobel Prize. Mark Oppenheimer, the host of the podcast on all things Jewish (Unorthodox), argues that Roth’s “radical candor” was sharply original before becoming a model to imitate. 

In the Spiel, there are a lot of “peripheral rogues” in Trump’s orbit (how about those “taxi king” headlines?), but their public reckonings don’t necessarily spell trouble for the president himself.

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On today’s Gist, whatever happens in the governor’s primary in Georgia Tuesday night, it will be a big step forward for women named Stacey.

Neuroscientist and education researcher Sara Brownell explains what she found studying how gender affects students’ perceptions of their own intelligence. Brownell is an assistant professor at Arizona State University.

In the Spiel, consider the “no shit” factor in Trumpian news cycles these days. 

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On The Gist, Hawaii’s “laze” is some seriously bad branding.

In the interview, our two-party system may seem inevitable, but political scientist Sam Rosenfeld digs into its engineered history, including the 1950 government report that pushed the country “Toward a More Responsible Two-Party System.” Before then, what you thought about health care, guns, or abortion had little to do with where your vote went. Rosenfeld is the author of The Polarizers: Postwar Architects of Our Partisan Era.

In the Spiel, the latest school shooter didn’t raise any red flags or wield an AR-15. But gun control is still what we need. 

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On The Gist, our attempt to track the new scoops that affected the Mueller investigation.

We’re not playing “Is That Bulls--t” on the show today, but if we were, comedy writer Nell Scovell would probably say, “Yes.” Yes, the dearth of women in late-night writers’ rooms is bulls--t. Yes, men’s explanations are bulls--t. And, yes, sometimes women themselves willingly succumb to the bulls--t because, as Scovell says, “Look, this s--t is deep.” Her new book is Just the Funny Parts. 

In the Spiel, denigrating the top 80 books sold on Amazon.  

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On today’s Gist, the Alex, Inc. drinking game you can play with the whole family.

Becky Hammon is an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs and is a leading candidate to become the first female head coach in the NBA. Hammon got passed over this week by the Milwaukee Bucks, but Ringer staff writer Shea Serrano and New Yorker contributor Louisa Thomas talk about why Hammon is still expected to break the NBA’s glass ceiling.

In the Spiel, today’s off-the-cuff remarks from the president. 

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On today’s Gist: laurel or yanny?

We have questions about the protests in Israel. Daniel Shapiro is here to answer them. Shapiro was the U.S. ambassador to Israel for most of the Obama administration. He is now a visiting fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies. 

In the Spiel, an irksome aspect to the coverage of the deaths in Gaza. 

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On today’s Gist, we’re tearing up the playbook. We’re playing the first episode of our new limited-run podcast, Upon Further Review, based on the book of the same name. In this episode, Slow Burn host Leon Neyfakh imagines how American history might have been different if Richard Nixon had been any good at playing football. For more fascinating sports what ifs, subscribe to Upon Further Review now.

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On today’s Gist, is Sen. John McCain really the greatest political leader of all time?

Have you heard of face gyms? Beauty gurus are rushing to recommend exercises for the forehead, chin, and cheeks to look younger and healthier. Our expert bullshitologist Maria Konnikova is here to scrutinize the case for facial toning. Konnikova is a contributor to the New Yorker and the author of The Confidence Game. 

In the Spiel, Salena Zito’s populist divining rod.

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