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According to the recently released results of the National Assessment of Educational Progress, American students across the country are scoring lower on math and reading. But before we panic, it’s important to put those results in context, and consider what evaluations can actually tell us. Guest: Jack Schneider, associate professor of education at the University of Massachusetts Lowell and co-host of the education policy podcast “Have You Heard.” 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

David Plotz, Emily Bazelon, and John Dickerson talk to civil rights journalist and WHYY radio host Cherri Gregg about the Pennsylvania midterm campaigns. Tweet us your questions and chatters @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected]. (Messages may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Cheyna Roth. Research by Bridgette Dunlap Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There are some 400 million surveillance cameras installed in China, one for every three to four civilians. Built with the help of American tech companies, the surveillance state was pitched to the public as a way to make society safer and more efficient. But after severe lockdowns during COVID, the public has been objecting out of the eye of the camera lens. Protests are being written on bathroom walls. Guest: Josh Chin, deputy bureau chief, China, for the Wall Street Journal Host: Lizzie O’Leary Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, host Karen Han talks to musician Cameron Lew, who writes music under the name Ginger Root. In the interview, Cameron breaks down his songwriting process and discusses the elusiveness of inspiration and creative flow. He also talks about his EP Nisemono, which contains a completely fictional premise about a Japanese pop idol.  After the interview, Karen and co-host Isaac Butler discuss how hard it is to schedule creative work. They also talk about the different ways that they measure success.  In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Cameron explains how he used to balance a day job with his music work.  Send your questions about creativity and any other feedback to [email protected] 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 an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows—you’ll also be supporting the work we do here on Working. Sign up now at slate.com/

This week, Felix Salmon, Emily Peck, and Elizabeth Spiers are joined by Bloomberg Opinion columnist Matt Levine to talk about his Bloomberg Businessweek article The Crypto Story. They also discuss Elon Musk finally closing his Twitter deal and restructuring at Credit Suisse.   In the Plus segment: more crypto!   Podcast production by Anna Phillips. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We all spend so much of our lives online these days, and so we figured we’d start interviewing people about theirs. On today’s show, Rachelle is joined by health and wellness journalist Julia Craven to talk about Julia’s past online, how she would curate her feeds if she could only follow three people, and the best and worst wellness trends she’s currently seeing. And, of course, we continue to wonder, was Jesus hot? This podcast was produced by Daniel Schroeder, Rachelle Hampton, and Daisy Rosario. Subscribe to Slate Plus at http://slate.com/icymiplus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the ’70s, funk was pop—the cutting edge of Black music and the way listeners got their groove on, before disco and hip-hop. After James Brown taught a generation a new way to hear rhythm, and George Clinton tore the roof off with his P-Funk axis, nothing would be the same. Rising alongside blaxploitation at the movies, funk took many forms: Curtis Mayfield’s superfly storytelling. War’s low-riding grooves. Kool & the Gang’s jungle boogie. Earth, Wind and Fire’s jazzy crescendos. But when funk began fusing with rock and disco took over the charts, would these acts have to give up the funk? Join Chris Molanphy as he traces the history of funk’s first big decade. You’ll ride the mighty, mighty love rollercoaster and get down just for the funk of it. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Twitter has been a lot of things—where you posted your lunch, where you met your people, where you were subjected to a harassment campaign. Now, as Elon Musk prepares to take the reins, where is it headed? Guest: Will Oremus, technology reporter for the Washington Post. Host: Lizzie O’Leary 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next TBD. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Slate's Sam Adams and Rebecca Onion spoil the season finale of HBO’s House of the Dragon, the prequel to Game of Thrones.  Note: As the title indicates, this podcast contains spoilers galore. Email us at [email protected]. Podcast production by Kristie Taiwo-Makanjuola Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For every civil rights martyr like Emmett Till, there were many other Black Americans who were brutalized or killed by racist violence in the early 20th century and remain largely unknown. On today’s episode of A Word, Jason Johnson is joined by Professor Margaret Burnham, author of By Hands Now Known: Jim Crow’s Legal Executioners. This new book unravels many of the lesser known stories of racist violence, the perpetrators, victims, and survivors. It’s also offering descendants of victims a platform, and an opportunity to fill in the blanks of their family history. Guest: Professor Margaret Burnham, author of By Hands Now Known: Jim Crow’s Legal Executioners Podcast production by Kristie Taiwo-Makanjuola 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

This week, David Plotz, Emily Bazelon, and John Dickerson discuss the final midterm sprint; the latest British Prime Minister; and Trump’s legal troubles.  Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: Adrian Wooldridge for Bloomberg: “Rishi Sunak Is a New and Old-Fashioned Tory” Barton Gellman for The Atlantic: “The Impeachment of Joe Biden” The Trump Tapes: Bob Woodward's Twenty Interviews with President Donald Trump Nathaniel Rakich for FiveThirtyEight: “The Most Important Elections Of 2022 Could Be In State Legislatures” Brittany Bernstein for The National Review: “Why Some Trump-Country Pennsylvanians Still Aren't Sold on Dr. Oz” Anna Bower for Lawfare: “Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Georgia Special Purpose Grand Juries But Were Afraid to Ask” Emily Bazelon for The New York Times: “I Write About the Law. But Could I Really Help Free a Prisoner?” The Prison Letters Project Here are this week’s chatters: John: States United Democracy Center; Third Way Paul Revere Project Emily: Cha

On this episode: Zak and Jamilah are joined by Fiona Kong, creator of Home Sweet Homes: A Journal & Planner for Co-parents & Child. They answer a question from a mom who is beginning the process of separating from her husband. She wants to know how she can make the transition to living between houses as easy as possible for her son.  Then on Slate Plus, they discuss the adorable Halloween costumes their kids picked for this year.  If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows—you’ll also be supporting the work we do here on Mom and Dad are Fighting. Sign up now at slate.com/momanddadplus to help support our work. Join us on Facebook and email us at [email protected] to ask us new questions, tell us what you thought of today’s show, and give us ideas about what we should talk about in future episodes.  Podcast produced by Kristie Taiwo-Makanjuola and Rosemary Belson. Learn more about y

On this week’s episode of The Waves, Slate senior editor Rebecca Onion is joined by Jess Zimmerman, who writes about witches, feminism, and all the scary ladies. They sit down to unpack their feelings about Disney’s Hocus Pocus films - both past and present and how the witch discussion has changed in the thirty years between movies.  In Slate Plus, is Taylor Swift’s Anti Hero music video feminist? Recommendations: Rebecca: The audiobook of The Mercies by Kiran Milwood Hargrave and read by Jessie Buckley. Jess: The new book Toil and Trouble by Lisa Kroger and Melanie Anderson.   Podcast production by Cheyna Roth with editorial oversight by Shannon Palus, Daisy Rosario and Alicia Montgomery. Send your comments and recommendations on what to cover to [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An investigation into child welfare agencies around the country uncovered that the vast majority of searches of home environments happen without anything like a warrant, increasing the stress for parents as well as the children whose welfare is supposed to be being protected.  Guest: Eli Hager, ProPublica reporter covering issues affecting children and teens in the Southwest. 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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There were 1.8 million weddings in 1942, the most that had ever been recorded in a single year in American history. But how many of them would last? 98-year-old Millie Summergrad tells the story of one that did: her own. And a pair of brothers explain what it was like to grow up inside the busiest chapel in Yuma, Arizona—the wedding capital of the United States. One Year is produced by Evan Chung, Sophie Summergrad, Sam Kim, and Josh Levin. Derek John is senior supervising producer of narrative podcasts and Merritt Jacob is senior technical director. Slate Plus members get to hear more about the making of One Year. Get access to extra episodes, listen to the show without any ads, and support One Year by signing up for Slate Plus for just $15 for your first three months. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One TikTok famous emu was allegedly struggling with avian flu last week, but the story is a bit more complicated when it comes to public health. On today’s episode, Rachelle is joined again by Daisy Rosario to talk about Emmanuel the emu, the racist past of his owner Taylor Blake, and the confusing and risky tale she spun online about her bird’s illness. This podcast is produced by Daniel Schroeder, Rachelle Hampton, and Daisy Rosario. Subscribe to Slate Plus at http://slate.com/icymiplus Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, the panel begins by discussing the new Martin McDonagh dramedy, The Banshees of Inisherin. Then, they look at composer Michael Giacchino's foray into directing with Werewolf by Night on Disney+. Finally, they reflect on the generational divide over emoji use. In Slate Plus, the panel talks about Anna May Wong, the first Chinese American film star in Hollywood, being the new face on a US coin. Email us at [email protected]. Endorsements Dana: Happened upon this endorsement because kept me up late watching. If you are a cult horror fan you are probably already familiar with Carnival of Souls. If you aren’t familiar, it has this feeling of creepy rightness that makes it worth watching. It’s all vibes. Julia: A new work by a little singer-songwriter you may have missed…Taylor Swift’s new release, Midnights is out now. It’s sort of halfway between pop-Taylor and folk-Taylor. Check out the song Anti-Hero. Steve: Everybody knows The Zombies, but you may have missed lead singer Colin Blunstone’s master

The truth is, no one ever had a workable plan for Brexit. And as Liz Truss becomes the fourth Prime Minister to resign since the referendum and Rishi Sunak steps in as tribute, it’s an important lesson for voters on any side of the Atlantic: You can’t stake your party—or your country’s future—on a lie.  Guest: Felix Salmon, host of Slate Money, chief financial correspondent at Axios.   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 Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Danny Lavery welcomes Margo Donohue, author of Filmed in Brooklyn, and co-host of the podcasts, Book Vs. Movie, Dorking Out, and What a Creep. Lavery and Donohue tackle two letters. First, someone who can no longer support her sister through her years long, turbulent breakup from her ex. Another letter writer has a feeling that their boyfriend might be trans, and is wondering how to bring it up. Plus, Donohue takes us on a deep dive through her new book, Filmed In Brooklyn, which is the result of over two years of writing, researching, and photographing over 250 films that take place and/or shot in Brooklyn.  If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get an ad-free experience across the network and exclusive content on many shows—you’ll also be supporting the work we do here on Big Mood, Little Mood. Sign up now at Slate.com/MoodPlus to help support our work Need advice? Send Danny a question here. Email: [email protected] Production by Phil Surkis Learn more about you

Jenn and Todd Brandel have a close, loving relationship with their father, Bruce. But one thing makes their blood boil: his political chain emails. The messages are often forwarded commentary written in a provocative tone, and are an unwelcome reminder of just how far apart the family is politically. On this episode of How To!, we’re joined by Mónica Guzmán, senior fellow for public practice at Braver Angels and author of I Never Thought Of It That Way: How To Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times. In the first of a special two-part episode on talking politics with our parents, Mónica teaches Jenn and Todd how to aim for understanding with their dad, not agreement. Next week, Jenn, Todd, and their dad Bruce will put these tips into practice—on mic—around the kitchen table, as Mónica provides post-game analysis. We’ll dive into what worked, what got a little messy, and how to keep making progress. If you liked this episode, check out: “How To Embrace Your Anti-Vax Family This Holi