Author: Slate Podcasts

Since its founding in the 1980s, the Federalist Society has been advancing right-wing judges through the American judicial system. One of their most ardent critics called up a member to talk about how.

Guest: Mark Joseph Stern, Slate senior writer.

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Argentina and Croatia face off in the World Cup semifinals today, and all eyes are on Lionel Messi. At 35, Messi is trying to put a cap on a legendary career and bring a World Cup championship to his home country. 

How did he get to the top of the soccer world? And what will be his legacy if Argentina loses?

Guest: Jasmine Garsd Garcia, host of NPR’s soccer podcast “The Last Cup.” 

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In an effort to address New York’s growing problem of unhoused people living on the streets, Mayor Eric Adams announced that the city would start involuntarily hospitalizing people. It’s a strategy the city tried back in the ‘80s as well. Why didn’t it work then?

Guest: Sam Tsemberis, founder and executive director of Pathways to Housing, and associate clinical professor of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences at UCLA.

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Self-driving cars and robotaxis are starting to appear on the streets of San Francisco. While we have a whole regulatory system in place for drivers, who’s making sure these new cars are safe?

Guest: David Zipper, Visiting Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School's Taubman Center for State and Local Government

Host: Lizzie O’Leary

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Artificial intelligence is growing in leaps and bounds, and everywhere from Big Tech companies like Google to small teams like OpenAI are developing more and more convincing chatbots. Is the world ready for convincing, talking computers? 

Guest: Alex Kantrowitz, host of the Big Technology podcast.

Host: Emily Peck

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Toomaj Salehi, an Iranian rapper known for criticizing the regime with his music, has been arrested by the Iranian government. His friends and family now worry he could face the death penalty. 

Guest: Nahayat Tizhoosh, Producer at the CBC.

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Three botched lethal injections in Alabama have once again highlighted the practical complexity and possible illegality of the death penalty. Even states that are adamantly in favor of capital punishment are being stalled on a purely pragmatic level. 

Guest: Elizabeth Bruenig, staff writer at The Atlantic

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Even after a campaign awash in scandals, gaffes, and the occasional speculation on werewolves vs. vampires, Herschel Walker still can’t be counted out in the run-off election to represent Georgia in the U.S. Senate. What can the parties take away from the last race of the 2022 midterms? 

Guest: Jim Newell, Senior Politics Writer for Slate.

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