Culture Gabfest

Custer's Revenge is widely considered one of the worst video games ever made. Originally released as part of a series of Swedish Erotica-branded adult games for the Atari 2600, Custer's Revenge involves moving a pixelated General Custer across the screen to rape an Indigenous woman tied to a post. It's unfathomably racist, sexist, and un-fun to play. Today on Decoder Ring we tell the story of how Custer's Revenge came to be, the people who protested it, and the even stranger story of how the whole thing became a considered trolling operation. This is the final episode of our current season, but we'll be back in 2022. If you love the show and want to support us, consider joining Slate Plus. With Slate Plus you can get ad free podcasts, bonus episodes, and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Christina and Bryan discuss the finer points of new queer Christmas movies—like, how realistic is Netflix’s Single All The Way?—and why that harness joke in Lifetime’s Under The Christmas Tree was so jarring. We’re also joined by some special guests who share Prides and Provocations from the past year and explore Premonitions for 2022. We close the year with bell hooks and trans triumphs in the Gay Agenda. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Neopets, a kid-friendly site from the early 2000s that let users raise digital pets and play games with them, has fallen far from its peak popularity. The nostalgic luster of it also seems to be fading, following the site’s recent failed attempt at Neopet NFTs—not to mention its years-old, mostly broken user interface. On today’s show, Madison and Allegra look back at the happier times of Neopia past, discussing their early experiences on the site and exactly how it’s grown, or not, with the times. Then they interview concept artist Claire Hummel about her teenage years interning at the site, the creative freedom the staff used to have, and why nobody could ever get enough Neopoints to buy all those cool items. Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Derek John. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, the panel discusses Aaron Sorkin’s Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz biopic, Being the Ricardos. Next, the panel is joined by contributing writer for the New York Times, Jody Rosen, to make sense of Bruce Springsteen’s latest deal and the confusing world of music rights today. Finally, the panel is joined by Slate’s book critic Laura Miller to discuss her list of the best books (and audiobooks!) of 2021. In Slate Plus, the panel continues the discussion of music rights and how Taylor Swift changed the game with her re-recordings.  Email us at culturefest@slate.com. Endorsements Dana: A video of a series of pianist Bill Evans’s live performances over 11 years titled, Bill Evans Live ‘64 ‘75. Julia: The 2004 film Cellular which stars Chris Evans, Kim Bassinger, Jason Statham, William H. Macy, Jessica Biel, and more. Steve: A follow-up to the 8 hours of Get Back, one of the greatest works of cultural criticism: Revolution in the Head: The Beatles’ Records and the Sixties by Ian MacDonald. Also: Sufjan Steve

This week, host June Thomas talks to Debra Schmidt Bach, a curator of the New-York Historical Society’s new exhibition, " ‘Turn Every Page’: Inside the Robert A. Caro Archive.” They discuss the art of selecting objects that visitors will respond to; how objects like notebooks and a typewriter showcase Caro’s idiosyncratic writing process; and the particular challenges of maintaining an exhibition that features lots of pieces of paper, a material that needs to rest so that it can be preserved. After the interview, June and co-host Karen Han discuss what kind of museum visitors they are, the art of winnowing, and how they find projects that will sustain their interest. In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Schmidt Bach reveals her strategy for overcoming “curator’s block” and shares what she learned from working on the Caro exhibition. Send your questions about creativity and any other feedback to working@slate.com or give us a call at (304) 933-9675.   Podcast production by Kevin Bendis and Cameron Drews. Le

This past week, Nancy Reagan trended for her alleged oral talents, and an orange cat named Jorts kept locking himself in a closet. On today’s episode, High Speed Downloads are back. Rachelle and Madison each deliver some rapid-fire information about Nancy Reagan’s blow job skills and why everyone is obsessed with Jorts the cat—and the woman who keeps slathering him in margarine. Then they speak to Kate Lindsay of the Embedded newsletter about how she got started with that project and her advice for healthy online living. Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Derek John. Support ICYMI and listen to the show with zero ads. Sign up to become a Slate Plus member for just $1 for your first month. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bing. Nat. Dean. John and Paul. Darlene. Mariah. Ariana. Musicians so famous, with so many classic hits, you don’t even need their last names. Now here are a few more, with fewer hits: Vince Guaraldi. José Feliciano. Donny Hathaway. The Waitresses. What do all of these acts have in common? Years from now, each of them may be known primarily for a single holiday chestnut. In fact, in the streaming era, some of them already are consumed largely in December. In this holiday episode of Hit Parade, Chris Molanphy dives deep into radio, streaming and Billboard chart data to compare these acts’ long hitmaking histories to the majority-merry ways they are consumed today. And none has been more condensed by Christmas than another artist who was once famous enough to go by her first name: Brenda. A ’60s chart dominator and double–Hall of Famer, Brenda Lee is now mostly known for that tune about Christmas tree rockin’. How did the legendary “Little Miss Dynamite” become Santa’s little helper? And will she ever pass Mar

It’s already a devastating situation when a loved one goes missing. And if you’re Black, you’ll likely have fewer resources and help to find your family member. On today’s episode of A Word, Jason Johnson is joined by Derrica Wilson. She’s the co-founder and CEO of the Black and Missing Foundation, the group that inspired the HBO documentary Black and Missing. They talk about the disparities in the way the media and police treat missing people of color, how that impacts the chances that people are found, and what the Black and Missing Foundation is doing to change the dynamics. Guest: Derrica Wilson, Co-Founder, and CEO of the Black and Missing Foundation, Inc.  Podcast production by Jasmine Ellis You can skip all the ads in A Word by joining Slate Plus. Sign up now at slate.com/awordplus for just $1 for your first month. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today’s episode, Rachelle and Madison are excited to share an episode from One Year: 1995, a Slate podcast focused on telling a series of stories from 1995, ones which we may have forgotten or that merit reexamination. In “The Spot,” producer Evan Chung tells the story of what can be best described as the first internet soap opera. “The Spot” follows a small group of creators who, through a series of interconnected blog posts, inspired one of the earliest instances of online fandom. It’s a story about online creativity, parasocial relationships, and how not everything on the internet lasts forever—the exact sort of story that we’d feature on ICYMI if we’d been making this podcast in 1995. Find One Year: 1995 wherever you get you podcasts. Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Derek John. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dana Stevens and Stephen Metcalf are joined by Isaac Butler to discuss Steven Spielberg’s new adaptation of West Side Story. Then Slate staff writer Heather Schwedel stops by to talk about And Just Like That, the “next chapter” in the lives of the characters from Sex and the City. And finally, they debate Vulture’s list of the “101 Best New York Movies Set in the Greatest City in the World” and add their own. Dana’s list: After Hours The Cameraman The Crowd Do the Right Thing Hester Street Metropolitan The Naked City Rosemary's Baby Shadows The Taking of Pelham 1,2,3 Steve’s list: The Apartment Annie Hall Desperately Seeking Susan Dog Day Afternoon Do the Right Thing King of Comedy Saturday Night Fever Sweet Smell of Success Wild Style In the Slate Plus segment, Steve and Dana answer a question from listener Colin, via his friend Ezra: Which city block would you take to a desert island, and why? Endorsements: Dana: Two books about New York City and the movies: Fun City Cinema, by Jason Bailey, and Celluloid S

Today on Decoder Ring: Three stories about fame, and one about monkeys. Are primates susceptible to celebrity endorsements? What does fame do to the mind of a famous person? Who were the famous tattooed ladies of the 1880s? And what's it like to be in a rising rock band, only to see everything fall apart over a beer commercial? If you love the show and want to support us, consider joining Slate Plus. With Slate Plus you can get ad free podcasts, bonus episodes, and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Slate Money is obsessed with Succession, HBO's wonderful drama about the lives of the superrich Roy family. So, every Monday, we'll be discussing the previous night's episode with spoiler-filled glee. For Episode 8, Felix Salmon and Emily Peck are joined bySlate’s Lizzie O’Leary to talk about the Jeremy Strong New Yorker profile, the botched coup, and Tom’s big move. Podcast production by Cheyna Roth.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, host Isaac Butler talks to Ai-Ling Lee, a movie sound editor whose long résumé includes the critically acclaimed films First Man, La La Land, and Jojo Rabbit. In the interview, Lee explains what a sound editor does and how it’s different from the work of a sound mixer. Then she delves into the many creative decisions that go into crafting an immersive soundscape for movies.  After the interview, Isaac and co-host Karen Han discuss Lee’s early career strategy of cold-calling people in the movie business. In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Lee explains how technological advancements have changed the way she works.   Send your questions about creativity and any other feedback to working@slate.com or give us a call at (304) 933-9675. Podcast production by Cameron Drews. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Big Mood, Little Mood—and you’ll be supporting the work

The ICYMI mailbag has started to get full so it’s time for another round of Read Receipts. On today’s episode, Rachelle and Madison answer some listener questions about why people are emptying out tubes of toothpaste on TikTok, whether there’s any similarity between Taylor Swift’s clue dropping and QAnon, and why there are so many possum memes on Instagram. Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Derek John. Support ICYMI and listen to the show with zero ads. Sign up to become a Slate Plus member for just $1 for your first month. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the Spoiler Specials podcast, Slate critics discuss movies, the occasional TV show, and, once in a blue moon, another podcast, in full spoiler-filled detail. This week, Slate movie critic Dana Stevens is joined by Slate features editor Jeffrey Bloomer to spoil the latest Jane Campion movie, Power of the Dog. When domineering rancher Phil (Benedict Cumberbatch) meets his brother’s new wife Rose (Kirsten Dunst) and her son Peter (Kodi Smit-McPhee), he takes an instant dislike to them. Phil tirelessly mocks his new family members until Peter makes an unexpected discovery.   Note: As the title indicates, this podcast contains spoilers galore. To listen to Spoiler Specials and other Slate podcasts with zero ads, read unlimited articles on Slate.com, and support Slate's journalism, sign up for Slate Plus now. Email us at spoilers@slate.com. Podcast production by Cleo Levin. Hosts Dana Stevens is Slate’s movie critic. You can read her review here.  Jeffrey Bloomer is Slate’s features editor. Learn more abo

How do you make a struggling public school --with outdated textbooks, a shady principal, and broken everything-- funny? Ask comedian Quinta Brunson, star and creator of the new ABC show Abbott Elementary. Brunson joins Jason Johnson on today’s episode of A Word to discuss the sitcom, her work on HBO’s A Black Lady Sketch Show, and her unconventional path to comedy stardom.   Guest: Quinta Brunson, writer, producer, comedian, and actress. She’s the author of the memoir “She Memes Well.” Brunson’s new show Abbott Elementary on ABC is out now. Podcast production by Jasmine Ellis You can skip all the ads in A Word by joining Slate Plus. Sign up now at slate.com/awordplus for just $1 for your first month. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today’s episode, Madison and Rachelle examine two strange new phenomena taking over TikTok. First, Madison explains why Chanel’s advent calendars have become the subject of an internet furor. Then, Rachelle explores Hinge’s new voice notes feature, discusses the voice notes that have gone viral on other platforms, and explains why this not have been the dating app’s brightest idea. Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Derek John. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Julia is back! First, the panel discusses Jane Campion’s big comeback, The Power of the Dog. Next, the panel wades through Peter Jackson’s eight hour-long Beatles docuseries Get Back. Finally, the panel discusses the rise of the gift guide and gift giving. In Slate Plus, Steve and Dana catch up with Julia and chat about how relationships with culture consumption can change.  Email us at culturefest@slate.com. Endorsements Dana: The last movie Dana reviewed for Slate, Steven Spielberg’s and Tony Kushner’s remake (or re-invention) of West Side Story. It’s only in theaters currently, but (if you feel comfortable making the trip) it’s a great theatrical experience. Julia: Isabel Wilkerson’s historical study The Warmth of Other Suns. Winner of the 2011 National Book Critics Circle Award, it’s one of the most incredibly well-crafted narratives of the Great Migration. Steve: Among the pieces of culture Steve’s recently consumed, the one that meant the most after viewing the Beatles docuseries is a song: T

Note: This episode is about offensive material, and so contains explicit and offensive language. Truly Tasteless Jokes were a series of joke books that dominated the bestsellers list during the 1980s. An equal opportunity joke book: Truly Tasteless Jokes were collections of jokes ranging from Helen Keller, to dead babies, to sexist and racist jokes that from the vantage of 2021, seem entirely abject. For readers in the 1980’s though, these books were ubiquitous. On this episode we dig into the history of these books and their author Ashton Applewhite. It’s a story that involves the tangled history of 1960’s free speech politics, conservative backlash, and the strange moment in the 1980’s when left and right wing speech politics converged to help make these books mainstream.  If you love the show and want to support us, consider joining Slate Plus. With Slate Plus you can get ad free podcasts, bonus episodes, and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Slate Money is obsessed with Succession, HBO's wonderful drama about the lives of the superrich Roy family. So, every Monday, we'll be discussing the previous night's episode with spoiler-filled glee. For Episode 8, Felix Salmon and Emily Peck are joined by Rachel Syme of The New Yorker to talk about the terrible parents of Succession, the fabulous – and not quite working – fashion choices, and Roman’s…ahem…picture.  Podcast production by Cheyna Roth.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices