Slate History

About Slate History

A feed with the best history coverage from Slate’s wide range of podcasts. From narrative shows like Slow Burn, One Year, and Decoder Ring, to timely analysis from ICYMI and What Next, you’ll get the fascinating stories and vital context you need to understand where we came from and where we're going. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

Publisher

Slate Podcasts

Category

history · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

1 Feb 2020

Latest episode

13 May 2026

Latest episodes

133 of 276 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   13 May 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Announcing Slow Burn: Becoming Justice Gorsuch

   Host Susan Matthews interviews legal experts about Neil Gorsuch's journey from conservative upbringing to his pivotal role as a Supreme Court justice.

2. 

   26 Dec 2025TRANSCRIPT

   Hit Parade | The Bridge: Slate’s Music Club 2025

   The Slate Music Club returns, in this special year-end edition of Hit Parade’s The Bridge! Host Chris Molanphy joins New York Times pop music critic Lindsay Zoladz, and Julianne Escobedo Shepherd of Hearing Things in a critics’ roundtable led by Slate’s own Carl Wilson. They discuss their favorite albums and singles, as well as the trends that shaped music in 2025. Among this year’s big musical questions: Have we reached peak Bad Bunny yet? Did those animated Demon Hunters reinvent K-pop? Are Geese the saviors of rock, or just muppets with guitars? Is hip-hop ready to move on from Kendrick and Drake? Plus: Rosalia, Water for Your Eyes, Gaga, Wednesday—and of course, Taylor Swift. Note: Slate Plus members can hear this special episode in full. Ad-supported listeners will hear the first half. Want to hear the whole discussion? Sign up for Slate Plus! Unlock monthly early-access episodes, bonus episodes of “The Bridge,” and ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Visit slate.com/hitparadeplus to get access wherever you listen. Podcast production by Kevin Bendis. Don’t miss the rest of this year’s Slate Music Club episode! Become a Slate Plus member! Join for monthly early-access episodes, bonus episodes of "The Bridge," and ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe directly from the Hit Parade show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/hitparadeplus to get access wherever you listen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

3. 

   26 Dec 2025TRANSCRIPT

   Hit Parade | Hooked to the Silver Screen Edition Part 2

   If you need confirmation of Hollywood’s vast influence on mass culture, look no further than the pop charts. From the 1937 classic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs through this year’s KPop Demon Hunters, soundtracks have launched hits, defined genres—and sometimes even eclipsed the films that inspired them in the first place. Rock classics, funk jams, rap bangers, even Christmas standards: all became hits because we heard them first at the cinema. Join Chris Molanphy as he unspools nearly a century of hit movie music, from Simon & Garfunkel’s groundbreaking ode to “Mrs. Robinson,” to the, ahem, titanic tin whistle of “My Heart Will Go On.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Inside a recent episode

Announcing Slow Burn: Becoming Justice Gorsuch

Published 13 May 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] The law says that workers are protected if they refuse to operate vehicles because they fear for their safety. But Gorsuch said Alphonse Madden hadn't refused to operate his vehicle. He had in fact operated it, driving it to the gas station where he warmed up. So the protections didn't apply to him. If this sounds pedantic to the point of absurdity to you, well, you're not alone. On a very practical level, what else was Alphonse Madden supposed to do? So there are reasons Neil Gorsuch ruled this way. We'll get into those reasons a little later on. For now, I think his reasoning in this case reveals the true interior of our justice in question. […]

Who has been a guest on Slate History

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Jamelle Bouie
• Kate Lindsay
• Candice Lim
• David Greenberg
• Ray Shalhoub

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

3.8 / 5

435 ratings

Spotify

3.6 / 5

32 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 65 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

91

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

97

Contact Slate History

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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