The Gist

On The Gist, about those outlandish celebrity baby names. When the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision made unlimited campaign contributions legal, one state put up a fight. In Dark Money, documentary filmmaker Kim Reed and journalist John Adams exposed the influence of anonymous campaign contributions on Montana's state government even before the Supreme Court rubber-stamped the problem. In the Spiel, would the high road be so easy to take if Papa John's pizza were delicious? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, Girl Scouts are earning cybersecurity merit badges. Sinclair Broadcast Group is trying to acquire Tribune Media so it can extend its television reach, but Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai is throwing up roadblocks, which is odd because Sinclair is so pro-Trump. NPR's David Folkenflik joins us to explain exactly what's going on and why Pai is hindering the company he previously seemed to help. In the Spiel, Vladimir Putin's denials that he has Donald Trump in his pocket. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, the crocodile massacre in Indonesia that got no attention. Work-life balance gets a lot of lip service, but we rarely pull it off. Brigid Schulte, host of the Better Life Lab podcast, is looking for solutions in a world of late-night work emails, shaky job security, and Workaholics Anonymous meetings. Better Life Lab is a partnership of Slate and New America. In the Spiel, president Trump's mea culpa was delivered with all the skill of a fourth-grader. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, Trump's press conference with Putin and the red herrings involved. Silicon Valley is steeped in self-made mythology, with stories about giants like Mark Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs, and Marissa Mayer. But how did Silicon Valley really come into being? Adam Fisher, whose new book is Valley of Genius: The Uncensored History of Silicon Valley, joins us to discuss where it all started—and the valley's potential future. In the Spiel, how journalists should respond to criticisms of the media and how they should hold talk show guests accountable. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, it turns out your ethnicity is really easy to guess. AnneMarie Sgarlata got rid of her TV months ago, but she still heard about President Trump's pardon of Dwight and Steven Hammond this week—and she wasn't happy. Sgarlata was among the lawyers who originally prosecuted the Hammonds for burning federal land and putting the lives of firefighters, hunters, and a teenage boy at risk. In the Spiel, what America's political parties can learn from cereal brand mascots. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, the biases of Peter Strzok and the need to connect accusations with actual evidence. President Trump's first appointment to the Supreme Court, Neil Gorsuch, benefited from anonymous donations worth millions. To Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, this "dark money" has created a frightening loop: Deemed lawful by the Supreme Court in 2010, it gives special interests a lock not just on elected officials, but on the courts themselves. In the Spiel, Trump might not know the difference between Wisconsin and Minnesota. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, "Brett" has got to be the lamest name among Supreme Court justices (or nominees). "If Jim Brown's the past, Michael Bennett's the future." So says sports writer Dave Zirin, who recently published both a biography of Brown and co-authored Bennett's memoir. Why the contrast between these two football players? Michael Bennett is a deliberate progressive, while Jim Brown's work to save young men from gang life is marred by a history of domestic abuse. Zirin's books are Jim Brown: Last Man Standing and Things That Make White People Uncomfortable. In the Spiel, Rep. Jim Jordan picked the wrong hill to die on. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, Trump isn't strategic or defiant, he's just rapacious. When discussing #MeToo, the focus is often on the power that men exerted when sexually harassing women, but are their sexual motivations getting left out of the conversation? Emily Yoffe wrote about this in her new piece "Understanding Harvey," for the Highline, and joins us to discuss. In the Spiel, Hollywood has taught us that cars explode, but in reality they hardly ever do. Shouldn't movies teach us more practical lessons about how to handle crises? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, comparing Trump's antics to a reality show is no longer a scarlet letter. Yes, there are storytelling competitions, and Matthew Dicks wins a lot of them. His secret? Keep it visual, and forget about the tangents. Dicks' new book is Storyworthy: Engage, Teach, Persuade, and Change Your Life through the Power of Storytelling. In the Spiel, "people trapped in holes" is a tale as old as time. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, the shamelessness of the Wall Street Journal editorial board on Scott Pruitt leaving the Environmental Protection Agency. Advertisements are a pain, interrupting our television programs and distracting us while we play games on our phones. They're a necessity though, funding all the entertainment we consume. Ken Auletta joins us to discuss the current state of advertising and its uncertain, data-driven future. Auletta's new book is Frenemies: The Epic Disruption of the Ad Business (and Everything Else). In the Spiel, can we please just have targeted ads already? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, Scott Pruitt is out as the head of the Environmental Protection Agency because it turns out someone really can be too corrupt for Trump. Let us next turn to the Supreme Court—not in America, but Poland, where the rightwing government is forcing nearly 40 percent of judges into retirement. Eurasia Group president Ian Bremmer says the country's latest swerve toward authoritarianism proves that democracy can erode just about anywhere. In the Spiel, Michael Moore claims to know where the Democratic Party has gone wrong and what it needs to do to change direction, but how reliable is he? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, let's watch the latest viral video from the conservative right. A certain group of Sherlock fans were convinced that John Watson and Sherlock would fall in love. When they didn't, those fans turned on the showrunners. But what responsibility do creators have to their fans? Should they take suggestions? Slate TV critic Willa Paskin dove into the question—and the Sherlock fanbase—on the second episode of Decoder Ring. In the Spiel, the Supreme Court confirmation process is broken. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, Mitch McConnell's values have changed—again! Lounging around in the heat of a sauna might feel nice, but is it good for you, too? Maria Konnikova has gone through the studies (most of them from Finland, where you can't throw a hot rock without hitting a sauna) and is here to boil them down for us. Konnikova writes for the New Yorker and is the author of The Confidence Game. In the Spiel, let's not get carried away. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez got fewer votes than some school district board members. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, President Trump's demonization of journalists is awful, but it's not the first thing to blame for the Capital Gazette shooting. The Atlantic recently ran a lengthy article about kids who consider the process of gender transition. Many critics took issue with the author's approach, accusing him of bias and an obsession with trans children. But were his efforts really in bad faith? Alex Barasch wrote a response to the piece for Slate and joins us to add to the debate. In the Spiel, FBI agents Lisa Page and Peter Strzok were sloppy, but their take on Trump was right on the money. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, the return of In Search Of hosted by Zachary Quinto, which used to be hosted by Leonard Nimoy, made us notice all the times actors have filled the shoes of others through multiple different reboots. The FIFA World Cup is great, but only the ConIFA World Football Cup has competitors from Székely Land, Abkhazia, and the County of Nice. Slate's Josh Keating wrote the book on Invisible Countries, those tiny nation-states with little recognition but great stories to tell. In the Spiel, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez defeated Joe Crowley in the recent Democratic primary race for Congress. Many commentators have called her authentic, but does that word have any actual meaning? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's primary victory was thanks to low voter turnout. She still deserves it! Lawfare's executive editor Susan Hennessey says Trump's SCOTUS-approved travel ban is more dangerous in how it changes norms than how it changes facts on the ground. Also: Reality Winner's guilty plea is a no-brainer. In the Spiel, Justice Kennedy's upcoming retirement is the perfect occasion to talk about … Justice Clarence Thomas. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, what a Trump tweet can teach us about wine. The latest school shootings have galvanized an already politically minded generation. Harvard's John Della Volpe studies the voting habits of millennials, and how they could swing election results in 2018 and beyond. In the Spiel, the Supreme Court's support for Trump's travel ban is what happens when our checks and balances fail. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, why is the Democratic National Committee being held responsible for Hollywood and the media? Calvin Buari dealt crack in the Bronx, but that doesn't make him a killer. Buari was convicted of a double murder in 1995 and started a campaign to prove his innocence from behind bars. A big part of that was making phone calls to journalist Steve Fishman, who turned his years of reporting into the binge-worthy Panoply podcast Empire on Blood, and joined us on the Gist. In the Spiel, Mike tackles the decline of civility, whether democrats should jeer at Trump's staff in public, or if we've just found a new stasis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, Rep. Jim Jordan's underwhelming attention to detail. Franchesca Ramsey burst onto the YouTube scene with her viral video, "Shit White Girls Say… to Black Girls." Ramsey's latest video project, MTV News' Decoded, is similar: fun, earnest, and educational. Ramsey's book is Well, That Escalated Quickly: Memoirs and Mistakes of an Accidental Activist. In the Spiel, about Melania's jacket. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On The Gist, those beacons of honesty—retiring Republican members of the Congress. Cremation has the carbon footprint of a 1,000-mile road trip, your average bee has nearly 1 million brain cells, and only 3 to 4 percent of gossip is actually "malicious." Those are all statistics relayed in Walt Hickey's Numlock News, the daily newsletter he started after four years at FiveThirtyEight. In the Spiel, graduation songs over the years. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.