The problem with the news right now? It’s everywhere. And each day, it can feel like we’re all just mindlessly scrolling. It’s why we created What Next. This short daily show is here to help you make sense of things. When the news feels overwhelming, we’re here to help you answer: What next? Look for new episodes every weekday morning. Get more of What Next with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of What Next and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or visit slate.com/whatnextplus for access wherever you listen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Latest episodes
Showing 20 · updated from the feed
The Cheap Money Era Isn't Coming Back
In the face of a tariff shock, an energy shock and a fiscal shock, the Fed is opting to raise interest rates. Donald Trump may not like it, but he has only himself to bla
Sep 30 25 min
A Hit of Democratic Hopium
The party that holds the White House always braces for backlash in the midterm elections. But with Donald Trump’s approval rating hitting historic lows and voters furious
Sep 29 33 min
The Knockdown Dragout Fight for Max Miller's House Seat
Former labor organizer and iron worker Brian Poindexter embodies the emerging blue-collar, practical-minded Democrat type in the upcoming midterms. While he leads his rac
Sep 28 26 min
Is the A.I. Race Real?
Artificial intelligence is pitched as a potential economic powerhouse—and also a potential bringer of the apocalypse. Can two economic and military rivals cooperate enoug
Sep 25 27 min
Off the Record: Draining the Press Pool
Donald Trump announced that he was banning CNN, Politico and MS NOW at kind of a weird time—it’s not like he thought they were doing a great job last year or in his first
Sep 24 7 min
Is a Tejano Star's Next Stop Congress?
Donald Trump’s in-roads with Latino voters was one of the surprises of his 2024 victory, carrying places like southern Texas’s 15th district by 18 points. But singer-turn
Sep 24 37 min
The Fascist Threat Brewing in…Kansas?
Trans rights have become something that’s argued about in the abstract—are Democrats too far out on a limb defending them? Did they cost the Democrats 2024? Should they b
Sep 23 29 min
The Data Center Will Not Hold
Donald Trump owes his political career to saying what no other politician would. But now that he’s standing alone in full-throated support of data centers and artificial
Sep 22 31 min
Why is Everyone Fighting Over... Macklemore?
What it means that Macklemore decided he’d rather keep speaking out for Palestine than continue opening for Ed Sheeran.
Guest: Soraya Nadia McDonald, cultural critic and
Sep 21 30 min
Off-the-Record: Weddings by Kremlev
Don Trump Jr.’s wedding had everything: a private island, fireworks, a Funfetti cake airlifted in from Florida—everything but the groom’s dad. But that’s the advantage of
Sep 18 3 min
But HOW Might A.I. Kill Us All?
Why did the “Hugging Face Incident” scare A.I. researchers so much? And if they are so confident artificial intelligence needs to be slowed down, why aren’t they slowing
Sep 18 30 min
Who's Interfering in the Election Now
Those concerned that the Trump administration will interfere with the upcoming midterm elections can breathe a little easier this week, as the Supreme Court threw out the
Sep 17 36 min
JD Vance Enters the Mommy Wars
Childcare is expensive and who wouldn’t want to spend more time with their kids? Giving parents money to stay home, on its face, would seem to make sense. But a proposal
Sep 16 26 min
Is Trump Losing His Touch?
The GOP just held a midterm convention that was centered around the one thing their base seems to really like: Donald Trump.
The only problem is that pretty much everyo
Sep 15 30 min
How Ivanka Trump Sparked a Revolution in Albania
There are thousands of people protesting the Trump family every day—but they aren’t Americans, and they aren’t protesting Donald.
Guest: Imogen West-Knights, Slate contr
Sep 14 33 min
A.I-pocalypse Now?
After OpenAI agents hacked a rival company this summer, the word from Silicon Valley was “That’s it! They’re almost ready to kill us all!” But…are they? Really?
Guest: P
Sep 11 27 min
The 9/11 Panopticon
America didn’t start down the path to a president who is unaccountable to even the Constitution under Trump. He’s the culmination of a change that dates back to September
Sep 10 32 min
Did ICE Drive Him to His Death?
Thousands of immigrants who were in America legally were suddenly rendered unemployable and subject to deportation after the Supreme Court ruled that the Department of Ho
Sep 9 30 min
Dems Can Beat MAGA. Here’s How.
The stage is set for the president’s party to take a real shellacking in this year’s midterm elections—that is, if the Democrats can put together a compelling pitch. What
Sep 8 35 min
Question Everything: The Sunscreen Paradox
While the What Next team enjoys the holiday, hear this episode from our friends at Question Everything. Mary will be back in the feed with a new episode of What Next tomo
Sep 7 20 min
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Where What Next | Daily News and Analysis ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Sep 30, 2026).
A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.
Liz Oyer made the Trump slush fund & related immunity so much easier to understand than any other podcast or article I have read. Instead of repeating some of the same language she broke it down, & plainly said what the corruption is. Thank u!! So grateful for folks like Oyer! Please continue to speak out!!!
k!k!m@su · May 2026
Finally an episode (Roblox) where I genuinely saw real push back by the reporter/interviewer against the hypocritical stances of their guests. I hope to see more of this going forward bc I think this is a great way to get individuals to not only explore their own belief systems but to be more willingly to hear and accept others.
E. Nicks · Mar 2026
Covers current topics like The Daily, but digs much deeper for sources with a smart and empathic host/interviewer. If only I could get my NPR station to air this instead!!
Mikael_Ka · Nov 2024
I dont always love the topics that are chosen, but no matter what the topic is, you can be sure to gain a solid, basic, understanding of whatever is being discussed. Also, Mary Harris is perfect and I love listening to her voice. I’d pay her to tell me any bad news. One of my favorite podcasts and I listen to every show, sometimes multiple times.
jaycubyay · Oct 2024
The episode for the week of May 27th, which came out two days after Israel launched a missile attack that burned more than 30 displaced people living in tents alive in Rafah, features an interview with a young, sympathetic IDF reservist who casually drops lines like “They [Palestinians] started this, so why should I care?” She gets no *meaningful* pushback from Mary Harris, the host (someone who knows perfectly well what the Nakba is and when it happened).
You could do this interview if you were critical, called out the Hasbara, and also chose to platform Palestinian victims of genocide. But Mary Harris did none of that, which suggests to me she feels a connection to one side and not the other. I don’t want to keep listening to a podcast that supports settler colonialism and genocide.
Amadeo Bordiga · May 2024
I always looked forward to listening to this show, but was completely turned off by the Fani Willis episode. The dismissive way the host and guest discussed her experiences with racism left a bad taste in my mouth. As a Black woman, it’s always disappointing to hear those that are not act like it’s not a serious issue, and didn’t remotely come into play in this particular case. Usually Mary doesn’t seem to take a side, but this time was different. Won’t be listening as much as I used to.
Stinamarie84 · Feb 2024
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Here you find the Apple Podcasts chart positions of What Next | Daily News and Analysis, its latest episodes to listen to directly, and reviews from listeners. Rankings are updated daily for the United States.
