Decoder with Nilay Patel

Chuck Schumer, the senior U.S. Senator from New York, talks with Recode’s Kara Swisher and Democratic strategist Hilary Rosen about a range of tech-related issues, including immigration, net neutrality and Russian election meddling. He hopes to enlist tech companies like Netflix in the fight to bring net neutrality back after it was overturned by the FCC last year. Schumer also talks about his “sympathetic” attitude to the tech giants, saying the world would be a worse place overall if Amazon were not in it, even though “there’s lots of problems” with its impact on retail. Plus: Why the senior Democrat is optimistic about the midterm elections later this year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

12 Mars 201844min

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg talks with Recode’s Kara Swisher at the 2018 Lesbians Who Tech Summit in San Francisco, Calif. Sandberg talks about how Facebook is responding to reports of Russian election-meddling on its platform, why people are lashing out at tech companies this year, and how much responsibility Facebook has to help those people. She also discusses the good and the bad of the #MeToo movement, including the “unintended consequences,” such as men who are afraid to take meetings with their female colleagues, which endangers women’s ability to advance in the workplace. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

7 Mars 201834min

GLG President and CEO Alexander Saint-Amand talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about running a learning platform for investors and business professionals. Saint-Amand describes the company as "Uber meets Harvard" because it facilitates on-demand and one-on-one conversations between customers and experts from a wide range of subjects, including faculty of universities like Stanford, Harvard and Duke. He explains why other attempts to revolutionize learning online have fizzled out and how GLG is able to offer "millions of courses" without breaking the bank. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

5 Mars 201849min

Journalist Katie Couric and Recode’s Kara Swisher talk about their careers in journalism, as well as social media, job automation, tech addiction and the mass shooting in Parkland, Fla. Couric, who previously hosted the “Today Show” and “CBS Evening News,” opens up about why her tenure at Yahoo was short-lived, and her concerns about the ability of tech companies to advance high-quality journalism She also reflects on political polarization in America, the #MeToo movement that ousted her former “Today” colleague Matt Lauer, and her new show for NatGeo, “America Inside Out.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

28 Feb 20181h 17min

Entrepreneur and investor Mark Ein talks with Recode’s Kara Swisher about his recent purchase of the Washington City Paper, an alternative weekly newspaper in Washington, D.C. Ein says he’s been inspired by the revitalization of The Washington Post under Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, but a local paper like his has to think differently in some aspects. He also talks about his investment firm, VentureHouse, and why D.C. and other cities outside of Silicon Valley have struggled to create a breakout tech hit in the post-AOL era. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

26 Feb 201851min

Aspect Ventures co-founder Jennifer Fonstad talks with Recode’s Kara Swisher about how venture capital works in 2018, when Silicon Valley entrepreneurs have access to more money from more sources than ever before. But that that money is not spread out evenly, Fonstad says: There’s a lot of very early “seed” dough, and a lot available to help succeeding companies grow bigger, but not enough to help them cross the “chasm” in which so many startups fail. She also talks about her 17 years as an investor at Draper Fisher Jurvetson, why Aspect is betting on the “picks and shovels” of the blockchain instead of currency, and why she’s excited about data-driven advances in health care. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

21 Feb 201854min

Benchmark partner Sarah Tavel talks with Recode's Kara Swisher and Teddy Schleifer about her career in tech companies and venture capital. Her resume includes stints at Pinterest, Bessemer Venture Partners and Greylock Partners, but last year she became the first woman partner hired at Benchmark, where one of her focuses is cryptocurrencies. She explains why the field is interesting even though it has been flooded with scammy ICOs since late 2017. Tavel also talks about what she and other female VCs are doing to help women succeed in tech and how she views the influx of money into the ecosystem from SoftBank. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

19 Feb 20181h 11min

Lydia Polgreen, the editor in chief of HuffPost — the website formerly known as The Huffington Post — talks with Recode's Kara Swisher and Peter Kafka at the 2018 Code Media conference in Huntington Beach, Calif. Polgreen explains what she has been changing since taking over the top editor role in December 2016, how she's trying to reach a broader audience that includes Donald Trump supporters and why HuffPost is investing less in Facebook than it used to. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

17 Feb 201841min