What Next | Daily News and Analysis
The problem with the news right now? It’s everywhere. And each day, it can feel like we’re all just mindlessly scrolling. It’s why we created What Next. This short daily show is here to help you make sense of things. When the news feels overwhelming, we’re here to help you answer: What next? Look for new episodes every weekday morning.
Episodes
May 12, 2024 • 28 mins
The ability to choose the sex of your child through IVF is banned in most of the world. In America, however, parents can—and do—for a price.
Guest: Emi Nietfeld, writer and software engineer, author of “The Parents Who Want Daughters—and Daughters Only” for Slate.
Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Appl...
Mark as Played
May 10, 2024 • 21 mins
You might not know Brad Parscale by name, but you know his work: he was the digital campaign operative behind Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential victory. This election cycle, he’s back—and advising conservatives on how to utilize A.I. in their campaigns.
Guest: Garance Burke, global investigative journalist for the Associated Press.
Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next...
Mark as Played
May 9, 2024 • 27 mins
Spare a thought for the judge in Donald Trump’s hush-money trial. Justice Juan Merchan has gone from holding the former president in contempt of court… to telling Trump’s defense they probably should have objected more during Stormy Daniels’ testimony.
Guest: Jeremy Stahl, Slate’s jurisprudence editor.
Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favor...
Mark as Played
May 8, 2024 • 29 mins
Crossing the Darién Gap, a 66-mile stretch of jungle in Panama, was hard enough before right-wing influencers began showing up with cameras, trying to bait would-be migrants into providing pro-Trump soundbites.
Guest: Ken Bensinger, New York Times political reporter covering right-wing media and national campaigns.
Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across a...
Mark as Played
May 7, 2024 • 31 mins
In a last minute twist, Hamas has agreed to a ceasefire with Israel. But targeted airstrikes are already underway in Rafah. With its infrastructure in shambles, Gaza is facing famine – and worse. What’s next for Gaza’s people?
Guest: Gregg Carlstrom, Middle East correspondent for the Economist.
Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slat...
Mark as Played
May 6, 2024 • 26 mins
Marjorie Taylor Greene is calling for Mike Johnson’s job—again. But unlike Kevin McCarthy before him, Johnson has support from a surprising place.
Guest: Jim Newell, Slate’s senior politics writer.
Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. S...
Mark as Played
May 5, 2024 • 23 mins
The California Journalism Preservation Act would make companies like Google and Meta pay publishers for the news content appearing in their feeds and search results—and force news organizations to spend that money on their journalists. How have similar laws worked in Canada and Australia? And could it solve journalism’s on-going revenue problem?
Guest: Matt Pearce, former LA Times journalist, the president of Media Guild of the We...
Mark as Played
May 3, 2024 • 25 mins
Bird flu isn’t new, you may even remember past outbreaks. But showing up in milk?
Is America ready if it leaps to spreading among humans?
Guest: Katelyn Jetelina, epidemiologist, senior advisor to the CDC
Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show ...
Mark as Played
May 2, 2024 • 28 mins
Professor Joe Howley has been working with student protesters for almost a year. When they occupied his building, he got texts from the kids—and nothing from the administration. Now that Columbia’s called the cops, and nearly 100 demonstrators have been arrested, what does that mean for the future of the institution—and for free speech on campus nationwide?
Guest: Joe Howley, associate professor in the Columbia University Classics...
Mark as Played
May 1, 2024 • 24 mins
It’s not that we aren’t making progress slowing our carbon and greenhouse gas emissions; it’s just that we still may not be doing enough—fast enough—to avert catastrophe.
Guest: Umair Irfan, correspondent at Vox writing about climate change, Covid-19, and energy policy.
Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe tod...
Mark as Played
April 30, 2024 • 27 mins
In the ‘90s, Pat Buchanan was a fringe figure among Republicans whose positions on immigration and demographic change in the United States were considered too extreme for the party. Now, his ideas are what passes for Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign platform.
Guest: Ari Berman, Mother Jones’ national voting rights correspondent and author of “Minority Rule.”
Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to ...
Mark as Played
April 29, 2024 • 32 mins
As some members of Congress call for crackdowns, how do college administrators ensure the safety of their entire student body – while also respecting its right to free speech?
Guest: Peter Beinart, Editor-at-Large at Jewish Currents and the author of “The Beinart Notebook” on Substack.
Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcast...
Mark as Played
April 28, 2024 • 27 mins
There are regulations regarding how farm animals are transported, how they’re auctioned, how they’re slaughtered—but when they’re living on the farm? That’s where things get cloudy.
Guest: Annie Lowrey, journalist writing on politics and economic policy for The Atlantic.
Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today...
Mark as Played
April 26, 2024 • 22 mins
The TikTok ban that has been floating around Washington since the last administration has been signed into law. What does that mean for users, creators and the court battles ahead?
Guest:
Louise Matsakis, reporter covering tech and China.
Dillon White, TikToker under the handle @dadchats
Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts...
Mark as Played
April 25, 2024 • 27 mins
Who is Todd Blanche, Donald Trump’s attorney in the hush-money trial, and how did he end up representing the former president?
Guest: Andrew Rice, features writer for New York Magazine. He’s also the author of The Year That Broke America.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mark as Played
April 24, 2024 • 30 mins
Protests at Columbia University have become a talking point across national media, but does the situation on campus actually resemble the one in the press?
Guest: Aymann Ismail, Slate staff writer.
Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page....
Mark as Played
April 23, 2024 • 23 mins
The constitutional right to protest is right there in the First Amendment. So when the Fifth Circuit Court threatened this right across three states, why didn’t the Supreme Court take up the case?
Guest: Ian Milhiser, senior correspondent for Vox.
Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by ...
Mark as Played
April 22, 2024 • 28 mins
With all eyes on the WNBA as Caitlin Clark was drafted, many were surprised at the star player’s new salary, and how it paled in comparison to that of an NBA rookie. What would it take to address this disparity?
Guest: Lindsay Gibbs, author and founder of Power Plays, “a no-BS newsletter about women’s sports” and co-host of the Burn It All Down podcast.
Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to ...
Mark as Played
April 21, 2024 • 23 mins
From the Wayback Machine to the mass-digitization of the history of Aruba, the Internet Archive is a non-profit doing valuable work. But some of its other projects—a pandemic-era lending library and the ongoing digitalization of 78 rpm records—have led to lawsuits now threatening the future of this repository of the past.
Guest: Kate Knibbs, senior writer at Wired.
Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-fr...
Mark as Played
April 19, 2024 • 23 mins
Tesla’s market cap has dropped. The company had its biggest round of layoffs ever. The Cybertruck doesn’t seem to be taking off. And Elon’s posting through it. Is Tesla in serious trouble?
Guest: Dana Hull, Bloomberg reporter and contributor to the podcast Elon, Inc.
Want more What Next TBD? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on...
Mark as Played
Popular Podcasts
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations.
Anna Sale explores the big questions and hard choices that are often left out of polite conversation.
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people.
A straightforward look at the day's top news in 20 minutes. Powered by ABC News. Hosted by Brad Mielke.