This Week in Impeachment: A Senate Trial in Limbo
President Donald Trump was impeached in the House of Representatives just over two weeks ago. There’s just one hitch: The articles of impeachment that were passed haven’t made it to the Senate … yet. It’s part of a tactical hold by the Democrats seeking to ensure that the majority-Republican Senate holds a fair trial. What does that mean? And is Majority Leader Mitch McConnell ready to do that? Guest: Jim Newell, senior politics writer for Slate. Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
4 Jan 202021min
WN TBD: Do Algorithms Make Sentencing Fairer?
Around the country, states are employing algorithms to help reduce prison populations and predict recidivism. This week, we hear from a Wisconsin judge with serious reservations about the algorithm used in his state. Also: a deep dive into Virginia's risk-assessment algorithm and the surprising results of its implementation. Guests: Nicholas McNamara, judge on the circuit court of Dane County, Wisconsin. Jennifer Doleac, associate professor of economics at Texas A&M and director of the Justice Tech Lab. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
3 Jan 202019min
Billionaires’ Favorite Tax Reform
When President Trump passed his tax overhaul in 2017, Democrats and Republicans were excited about the prospect of one specific provision. ‘Opportunity zones’ were meant to spur investment in low-income communities. Two years later, it’s unclear if that has actually happened. Billionaires, on the other hand, are benefitting from the program left and right. Guest: Justin Elliott, reporter at ProPublica. Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Podcast production by Mary Wilson, Jayson De Leon, Danielle Hewitt, and Mara Silvers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2 Jan 202025min
Three Stories We Can't Stop Thinking About
As 2019 comes to a close, What Next is checking back in on three stories we did this year. From a power struggle in Venezuela to a border wall dispute in Arizona and back to Washington for an impeachment update. Here’s what happened…next! Guests: Ana Vanessa Herrero, reporter for the New York Times, Mayor of Nogales Arturo Garino, and Noah Feldman Harvard Law School professor and host of Deep Background, available on Luminary. Podcast production by Mary Wilson, Jayson De Leon, Danielle Hewitt, and Mara Silvers. Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
30 Dec 201925min
WN TBD: A Landmark Privacy Law Takes Effect. Now What?
On January 1st, a new law will grant Californians the right to see, delete, and stop the sale of personal information collected by tech companies. But the impact of the bill may reach far beyond California. How does this landmark law affect the rest of the country? And will it set the stage for national privacy legislation? Guest: Hayley Tsukayama, Legislative Activist at the Electronic Frontier Foundation Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
27 Dec 201918min
WN TBD | Ring: Your Doorbell Is Watching
Back in 2013, an entrepreneur named Jamie Siminoff appeared on Shark Tank. He was seeking an investment in a new product he was calling Doorbot, a smart doorbell that would make answering the door more convenient and users’ lives “more connected.” Six years later, Doorbot is now Ring, an Amazon-owned home-security system that partners with more than 600 police departments around the country. How did Doorbot become Ring? And what are the consequences of placing surveillance cameras on front doors around the country? Guest: Caroline Haskins, technology reporter at Buzzfeed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
20 Dec 201919min
A Year of “Remain in Mexico”
The “Remain in Mexico” policy was sold as a humane way to throttle the flow of migrant families seeking asylum in the U.S. But the immigration courts remain overwhelmed, and migrants who do make the trip to the southern border have been left to wait for months -- sometimes upwards of a year -- in squalid, makeshift refugee camps in Mexico. Guest: Adolfo Flores, immigration reporter for BuzzFeed. Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
19 Dec 201922min
Are Active Shooter Drills Traumatizing Kids?
Preparing for an active shooter is becoming a disturbingly normal part of the school experience. And while companies are developing new methods for how to keep students and teachers safe, it’s unclear if they’re becoming more effective. Guest: Tali Woodward, deputy editor at The Trace. Podcast production by Mary Wilson, Jayson De Leon, Danielle Hewitt and Mara Silvers. Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
18 Dec 201922min
