Slate Culture Feed27 Aug 2025

Culture Gabfest - Denzel and Spike Remix a Classic Edition

On this week’s show, Dana, Julia, and Steve are joined by special fourth guest host: Wesley Morris of the New York Times. The foursome wield their sharpest critical tools for a discussion of the horror hit Weapons. Whether the twisty thrill ride hits its intended target— and what exactly is said target— is up for debate.

Next, they take up the latest Spike Lee joint Highest 2 Lowest which reunites the legendary director with Denzel Washington and riffs on an Akira Kurosawa classic. Finally, they examine the “Performative Male” trend popping up in TikTok, style sections, and costume contests around the globe. Is it an embodiment of real gendered anxiety or internet nonsense?

In an exclusive Slate Plus bonus episode, the panel gets into all the shocks and surprises of Weapons’s finale in a spoiler-filled conversation.

Email us your thoughts at culturefest@slate.com.

Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch. Production assistance by Daniel Hirsch.

Endorsements

Steve: Music by the jazz pianist Bobo Stenson, specifically his album Serenity.

Julia: Wesley Morris’s stellar new culture podcast Cannonball, specifically the episode with Taffy Brodesser-Akner about And Just Like That.

Wesley: Watching the great New York sporting event the US Open. If you can’t make it to Flushing Meadows, you can watch on ESPN or stream on Fubo, and shop the enviable merch at the US Open Store.

Dana: Akira Kurosawa’s High and Low.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(3024)

Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia - Don’t Fear the Repeat Edition

We’re all familiar with the concept of a one-hit wonder, but what about artists who hit it big a second time—and never again? This week on Hit Parade, Chris Molanphy lays out the ground rules for one ...

27 Jun 52min

ICYMI - Your Favorite World Cup Moment Might Be Fake

On today’s episode, host Kate Lindsay is joined by Will Oremus, tech writer at The Atlantic and author of “The Feel-Good Story of the World Cup Is Too Good to Be True.” While our social media feeds ha...

27 Jun 31min

Culture Gabfest - Toy Story 5 Crushes It at the Box Office Edition

The Gabfest’s end is nigh but we’ve still got a few bits of culture to gab upon. This week, Steve and Dana are joined by longtime Gabfest star pinch hitter Dan Kois. First up for consideration: Pixar’...

24 Jun 1h 20min

ICYMI - My Decade-Long Payment App Feud

On today’s episode, in collaboration with No Such Thing, host Kate Lindsay is joined by Manny Fidel, Noah Friedman, and Devan Joseph to talk about payment apps, and how they’ve changed the way we thin...

24 Jun 45min

Death, Sex & Money - Was Dad Being a Creep? And Other Childhood Memories to Decipher

Growing up, whenever Anna Konkle's parents fought–which was frequently–she usually sided with her dad. As she got older, she started to see those memories differently. Was her dad actually the bad guy...

23 Jun 52min

ICYMI - Your Group Chats Are Now Blackmail

On today’s episode, host Kate Lindsay is joined by Bridget Read, a features writer at New York Magazine whose recent piece “What If It All Came Out?” reports on the hackers who are weaponizing our ext...

20 Jun 41min

Culture Gabfest - One Last Strut Edition

Steve, Dana, and Julia gather once more—for almost the last time—to unpack the week’s culture. This week, conversation has to include the cultural, cinematic juggernaut Steven Spielberg and his new fi...

17 Jun 1h 27min

Decoder Ring - The Tootsie Shot (Encore)

You know the Tootsie Shot. It’s that image that pops up all the time in movies set in a dense city: a really busy midtown street, everyone going somewhere—and smack in the middle of it all is the prot...

17 Jun 35min