The first fifty minutes felt…strange. Calm. Like a real debate. Then Chris Wallace asked if Trump would recognize the election as legitimate. Mike Pesca was in the spin room after the third and final presidential showdown.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, Green Party candidate Jill Stein lays out her foreign policy. She debates Mike Pesca about Hillary Clinton, Yemen, and America’s use of force. Stein believes the United States is closer to nuclear war than ever, including the Cold War. She explains how de-escalating nuclear tensions with Russia should take priority, and how neither of the major party candidates is up to the job. This year marks Stein’s second run for the presidency.   Today’s sponsors: The Gist is brought to you by Winc, formerly known as Club W. With Winc, you get top quality wine delivered right to your door. For $20 off your first order, go to trywinc.com/gist. And by Basecamp, a cloud-based system with tools to help you get work done in a sane, organized way. Try it for free today at basecamp.com/gist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, Jonathan Prince has helped candidates such as Bill Clinton and John Edwards prep for high-stakes debates. Now, he’s got some advice for Hillary Clinton as she faces round No. 3 with the most unpredictable candidate of the modern era. Prince has worked for the Clinton and Obama administrations, but now he’s the head of communications for Spotify. For the Spiel, how do you rig the most well-observed election on Earth? The answer is: You don’t. Today’s sponsors: Squarespace. Start your free trial today at Squarespace.com and enter offer code gist to get 10 percent off your first purchase. And by Betterment, the largest automated investing service. Get up to six months of investing FREE when you go to Betterment.com/gist.  Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, rhetoric scholar Jennifer Mercieca says that when you dig into his speeches, Donald Trump’s kind of an evil genius when it comes to rhetoric. Whether it’s his use of paralipsis (“I’m not saying, but I’m saying”) or reification (treating people like objects), Trump is an expert at using rhetoric to get under people’s skin. Mercieca is authoring a book on political rhetoric in the 2016 campaign, set to come out later this year. For the Spiel, an update on Trump’s collapse with female voters.  Today’s sponsors: Squarespace. Start your free trial today at Squarespace.com and enter offer code gist to get 10 percent off your first purchase. And by Periscope data, the ultimate tool for fast and flexible data visualization. Get a free trial today by going to periscopedata.com/gist. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 2014, Amber Ruffin became the first black woman to write for a late-night network comedy when she joined NBC’s Late Night with Seth Meyers. On The Gist, Ruffin explains the banality of being a trailblazer: “We’re just dicking around in a different room.”  For the Spiel, the dogged defenders of Donald Trump.  Panoply survey  We want you to tell us about the podcasts you enjoy and how often you listen to them. So we created a survey that takes just a couple of minutes to complete. If you fill it out, you’ll help Panoply make great podcasts about the things you love—and things you didn’t even know you loved. To fill out the survey, just go to megaphone.fm/survey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, Jennifer Lawless details the reasons more women don’t run for elected office in the United States. Her research documents a decline in media bias against women running for House seats. Despite that, Congress is still overwhelmingly male. Lawless authored a book with Danny Hayes called Women on the Run: Gender, Media, and Political Campaigns in a Polarized Era.  For the Spiel, Bob Dylan didn’t need a Nobel Prize to confirm his status as a great writer. Panoply Survey:  We want you to tell us about the podcasts you enjoy and how often you listen to them. So we created a survey that takes just a couple of minutes to complete. If you fill it out, you’ll help Panoply to make great podcasts about the things you love. And things you didn’t even know you loved.  To fill out the survey, just go to www.megaphone.fm/survey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

If you had to engineer the perfect wait time for a meal, how would you do it? On The Gist, Dan Pashman explains the art of anticipation as applied to food. Pashman is the host of WNYC’s The Sporkful. Check out his show’s new series on food, race, and culture: “Who Is This Restaurant For?” In the Spiel, what should we call Trump’s former defectors? Undefectors? Reflectors? Panoply Survey:  We want you to tell us about the podcasts you enjoy and how often you listen to them. So we created a survey that takes just a couple of minutes to complete. If you fill it out, you’ll help Panoply to make great podcasts about the things you love. And things you didn’t even know you loved. To fill out the survey, just go to www.megaphone.fm/survey  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The implosion of Donald Trump's campaign shows a party that’s divided on everything from criminal justice reform to immigration. On The Gist, National Review executive editor and Slate columnist Reihan Salam considers the future of the GOP and conservative thinking.  For the Spiel, why did the Republican Party fall for a demagogue? Is it because conservatives still kowtow to right-wing media outlets that embrace conspiracy theories, lies, and propaganda? Panoply Survey:  We want you to tell us about the podcasts you enjoy and how often you listen to them. So we created a survey that takes just a couple of minutes to complete. If you fill it out, you’ll help Panoply to make great podcasts about the things you love. And things you didn’t even know you loved. To fill out the survey, just go to www.megaphone.fm/survey  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We have seen the limits of debate prep.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Just one question on the leaked “Access Hollywood” tape of Donald Trump with Billy Bush: Are we watching a Greek tragedy or a Saturday morning cartoon? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Phoebe Robinson recounts the tributes and trolling her book has prompted with its title, You Can’t Touch My Hair: And Other Things I Still Have to Explain. On The Gist, Robinson wonders whether dreadlocks have really entered the mainstream (and are they ever acceptable on white guys?), and gives Mike a lesson in cultural sensitivity. Robinson is the goofball complement to her co-host Jessica Williams’ deadpan delivery on the 2 Dope Queens podcast. She is also the host of the interview podcast, Sooo Many White Guys.  For the Spiel, the West Virginia governor race pits a wealthy Democrat against both coal and Cole. Today’s sponsor:  Money Mind, a new podcast from Prudential. Learn how to financially plan for every stage of life. Download and subscribe to Money Mind wherever you find your podcasts, and learn more at Slate.com/MoneyMind.  Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at Slate.com/gistplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, we look at the proliferation of fact-checking in the 2016 campaign. One empirical analysis found that Donald Trump is telling a falsehood every five minutes during his speeches. But why isn’t the aggressive fact-checking of the Republican making a difference? We called up Brendan Nyhan, a professor in the department of government at Dartmouth College and the former editor of Spinsanity, a nonpartisan watchdog site focused on political messaging.    In The Spiel, the faltering cease-fire in Syria.   Panoply survey We want you to tell us about the podcasts you enjoy and how often you listen to them. So we created a survey that takes just a couple of minutes to complete. If you fill it out, you’ll help Panoply to make great podcasts about the things you love—and things you didn’t even know you loved  To fill out the survey, just go to megaphone.fm/survey. Today’s sponsors: Casper. Get an obsessively engineered mattress at a shockingly fair price. Go to Casper.com/gist and use promo code gist to get 50 dollars toward any mattress purchase. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more.  Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, dig into body mass index with our resident bulls--t debunker Maria Konnikova. Does a healthy BMI actually mean anything? The question came up after Donald Trump’s recent appearance on The Dr. Oz Show, in which his weight and height were revealed—if his numbers are to be believed, his BMI is 30.3, which qualifies as obese. But does BMI actually tell us anything meaningful about health? Or is it an arcane measurement that needs to be phased out? Also, more on Tuesday’s testy vice presidential debate. Panoply survey We want you to tell us about the podcasts you enjoy and how often you listen to them. So we created a survey that takes just a couple of minutes to complete. If you fill it out, you’ll help Panoply to make great podcasts about the things you love—and things you didn’t even know you loved. To fill out the survey, just go to megaphone.fm/survey. Today’s sponsors: Get quality shaving products delivered right to your door with Harry’s. Sign up for a shave plan at Harrys.com and use promo code gist at checkout to claim your Free Trial Set and post-shave balm. iBooks is the place to find the books that people are talking about right now, including Born to Run, Bruce Springsteen’s memoir. It's a mix of beautiful nostalgia and straight talk about family, fame, and music. Get it on apple.co/brucespringsteen, where you’ll find all his music too. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mike weighs in on the one and only debate between Mike Pence and Tim Kaine.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In The Gist, Arun Venugopal looks at a place that could stand in for America as a whole during this election: Long Island, New York, home to high levels of taxation, opioid addiction, and support for Donald Trump. Venugopal walks us through some of the stories that help explain the psychology of this year’s campaign. For the Spiel, Mike takes a look at the closest Senate races.  Panoply survey We want you to tell us about the podcasts you enjoy and how often you listen to them. So we created a survey that takes just a couple of minutes to complete. If you fill it out, you’ll help Panoply to make great podcasts about the things you love—and things you didn’t even know you loved. To fill out the survey, just go to megaphone.fm/survey. Today’s sponsors: Indochino, the company that’s reinventing men’s fashion. Go to Indochino.com to get any premium suit for just $389, plus free shipping, when you use promo code gist at checkout. Rocket Mortgage from Quicken Loans. Rocket Mortgage brings the mortgage process into the 21st-century with an easy online process. Check out Rocket Mortgage today at QuickenLoans.com/gist.  Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In The Gist, what can we really find out from the Donald Trump tax leak? As Philip Hackney argues, not a lot. Hackney is a professor of tax law at Louisiana State University and formerly worked as counsel at the Internal Revenue Service. He says that Trump’s returns don’t indicate any wrongdoing per se. But there’s lots of ways he might have used the tax system to his advantage to save money. For the Spiel, even more on Trump, taxes, and hypocrisy. Panoply survey: We want you to tell us about the podcasts you enjoy and how often you listen to them. So we created a survey that takes just a couple of minutes to complete. If you fill it out, you’ll help Panoply to make great podcasts about the things you love—and things you didn’t even know you loved. To fill out the survey, just go to megaphone.fm/survey. Today’s sponsors: Indochino, the company that’s reinventing men’s fashion. Go to Indochino.com to get any premium suit for just $389, plus free shipping, when you use promo code gist at checkout. Rocket Mortgage from Quicken Loans. Rocket Mortgage brings the mortgage process into the 21st-century with an easy online process. Check out Rocket Mortgage today at QuickenLoans.com/gist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, Simon Doonan ponders the rise and fall of pretentiousness in the past 20 years. Doonan writes for Slate and is creative ambassador for Barneys New York.    For the Spiel, it’s the Lobstar of the Antentwig.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Malcolm Gladwell’s career has been all about ideas—but what he really specializes in is their packaging and delivery. On The Gist, Gladwell tells the story behind his earliest obsessions and explains what he’s learned trafficking in unconventional theories. He is working on the second season of his hit Panoply podcast, Revisionist History. For the Spiel, a contrarian take on Donald Trump’s comments about former Miss Universe Alicia Machado.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Storyteller Matthew Dicks has one rule for getting better at telling stories: At the end of every day, scribble down the moment that makes the most promising tale. Today on The Gist, we hear from a listener who followed that advice.  For the Spiel, a bungled marriage proposal at the New York Yankees game.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In The Gist, PBS NewsHour correspondent Lisa Desjardins surveys the presidential campaigns’ get-out-the-vote efforts: “The first caveat is a lot of the rules don’t apply to this campaign.”  In the Spiel, are presidential debates like the NFL Scouting Combine? They’re not enough to show if a player will be good on the field, but they're enough to show a player has no business being there in the first place? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hillary shimmied, Donald interrupted and Lester Holt tried to keep it all together. The Gist team was at Hofstra University for the first presidential debate, and spoke to everyone from campaign managers to senators to a ribald former general.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Gist is awaiting the first presidential debate and preparing a rapid response for early Tuesday morning. In the meantime, we hear from Jeremy Epstein: Four years ago, he was a 20-year-old Hofstra University student facing uncertain job prospects. But after he asked Barack Obama and Mitt Romney about the economy during the first debate, he became briefly famous. He was even impersonated by Fred Armisen on Saturday Night Live. Now, Epstein walks us through what it’s like to ask a question on the debate stage, and if he thinks Lester Holt should pull a Candy Crowley.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The world is not flat, Google hasn’t yet mapped everything, and there are yet places in the world that don’t take your AmEx card. Atlas Obscura: An Explorer’s Guide to the World’s Hidden Wonders is the immense catalog of the world’s curiosities, from the rainbow river of South America to the medical device museum in Minnesota. On The Gist, editors Dylan Thuras and Ella Morton of Atlas Obscura explain their taxonomy of awe-inspiring sights. In the Spiel, the return of the Trump Anxiety Hotline. Today’s sponsors: The Girl on the Train, in theaters Oct. 7. Upstanders, a new podcast from Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz and Rajiv Chandrasekaran. Hear stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things to create positive change in their communities. Listen and subscribe to Upstanders on iTunes starting Sept. 7.   Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Do you have great aspirations of being the best president the United States has ever known? On The Gist, journalist Robert Strauss says you’d be better off trying to learn from the mistakes of America’s duds. That’s why Strauss wrote Worst. President. Ever. about James Buchanan, who has the distinct dishonor of setting the national stage for the Civil War. In the Spiel, Mike takes on the myth of the “perfect voter.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For their second movie, Matt Johnson and Matthew Miller gave themselves a challenge: Make a period mockumentary about the faking of the moon landing, on a total shoestring budget. Johnson says the finished product, Operation Avalanche, wouldn’t have been possible without the (unwitting) support of NASA, who let the filmmakers shoot inside the unaltered mission control from 1969. The film opens across North America this month. On the Spiel, Mike tries to get through to those millennials kicking the tires on Gary Johnson and Jill Stein. Today’s sponsors: The Gist is brought to you by The Girl on the Train, in theaters October 7th. And by ABC’s new series, Designated Survivor. Kiefer Sutherland stars as a Cabinet member who is thrust into the presidency after a devastating attack on the government. Designated Survivor premieres Wednesday night at 10 p.m. ET/9 p.m. CT on ABC. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Maureen Dowd has covered every president since the early ’90s. The second President Bush even gave her a nickname: “The Cobra.” In her new book, Dowd examines what it takes to lead the country and what the press is missing about the current Republican nominee. On the Spiel, Mike laments a bygone age of TV advertising.  Today’s sponsors: The Gist is brought to you by Betterment, the largest automated investing service. Get up to six months of investing FREE when you go to Betterment.com/gist. And by ABC’s new series Designated Survivor. Kiefer Sutherland stars as a Cabinet member who is thrust into the presidency after a devastating attack on the government. Designated Survivor premieres Wednesday, Sept. 21 on ABC. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 2012, Republicans won a solid majority in the House of Representatives, but only 48 percent of the vote. How did it happen? The Hill’s national correspondent, Reid Wilson, talks about the unusual forces influencing down-ballot races this year. There’s more money from outside forces, like the Koch brothers, but also hyperlocal issues that get lost in coverage of the presidential race.  On the Spiel, Mike considers an appropriate response to the bombings in Manhattan and New Jersey.  Today’s sponsors:  Rocket Mortgage from Quicken Loans. Rocket Mortgage brings the mortgage process into the 21st century with an easy online process. Check out Rocket Mortgage today at QuickenLoans.com/gist. ABC’s new series Designated Survivor. Kiefer Sutherland stars as a Cabinet member who is thrust into the presidency after a devastating attack on the government. Designated Survivor premieres on ABC Wednesday, Sept. 21. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at Slate.com/gistplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The political upheaval of 1968 was ferocious, but the Billboard charts still reflected a calm, placid sensibility. Our guest Chris Molanphy looks at the year in radio hits, from Herb Alpert’s debut as a singer to the novelty tracks competing for air time with the Beatles and Simon and Garfunkel. Molanphy writes Slate’s Why Is This Song No. 1? column.   For the Spiel, a debate with Politico Magazine writer Bill Scher: Was Hillary Clinton taking a risk with her “deplorables” comment? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, FiveThirtyEight senior political writer and analyst Harry Enten says an averaging of the polls still shows Hillary Clinton has a hefty lead over Donald Trump. Enten also explains the difference between election forecasting and weather forecasting. For the Spiel, seeing the world through Trump-shaded glasses.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Does being left-handed make you a threat to civilized society? On The Gist, Maria Konnikova tells the story of the mustachioed Italian criminologist who gave southpaws a bad reputation. But what does handedness really tell us about the brain? Konnikova writes for the New Yorker and is the author of The Confidence Game. This week, Mike challenged his audience to find someone in the country who is torn between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. Well, the search is over: We talk to a listener who likes ’em both.  For the Spiel, does Donald Trump believe children are our future? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Robby Mook has a tricky job. As Hillary Clinton’s campaign manager, he has to find a way to pin down Donald Trump, whose gaffes are constantly overtaking each other. Mook talks to Mike Pesca about the challenge of crafting a single message to combat Trump and recent events on the campaign trail, including Hillary Clinton’s pneumonia diagnosis.  Plus, director Ryan Suffern on his recent ESPN documentary “What the Hell Happened to Jai Alai?” which looks at the swift rise and fall of the sport in America. How come jai alai was never seen as a competitor to football, hockey, and baseball?  For the Spiel, going to school on college rankings.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Clinton Foundation is a superstar in the world of philanthropy—is it OK that it leverages power and celebrity to achieve its mission? On The Gist, two experts disagree.  Kenneth Stern, former CEO of NPR, sheds no tears for the Clinton Foundation. He thinks vanity-giving helps inferior charities persist. Stern is the author of With Charity for All: Why Charities Are Failing and a Better Way to Give. His company has done work for the Clinton Foundation.  Stacy Palmer, editor of the Chronicle of Philanthropy, says the Clinton Foundation uses its political heft for good. She adds that the most ambitious charities in the U.S. were started by titans of industry seeking to improve their reputations.   For the Spiel, a few choice words about Rudy Giuliani.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tony Kornheiser is joining the pod people. On The Gist, the man behind the Tony Kornheiser Show explains his dive into podcasting: “I watched newspapers die under me.... I began to get the sense that radio was going to die under me too. And so I jumped.” Kornheiser also hosts ESPN’s Pardon The Interruption alongside Michael Wilbon. For the Spiel, pencils down: It’s time for the Lobstar of the Antentwig. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Drew Magary is down to hang. His past story assignments for GQ include a day with Duck Dynasty and a trip with the Kid Rock cruise. But Magary, author of the “Why Your Team Sucks” series­­ on Deadspin, is not one to equivocate. On The Gist, he shares his secret to immersive reporting and explains why he’s OK with grown men who wear sports jerseys. His latest book is The Hike: A Novel.  For the Spiel, Donald Trump’s generalizing about generals. Today’s sponsors: Blue Apron. Blue Apron’s meal kits are delivered right to your door and make cooking at home easy. Get your first three meals free by going to BlueApron.com/gist. Indochino, creators of one-of-a-kind men’s suits that are customized just for you. Get any premium suit for just $399—plus free shipping—by going to Indochino.com and using the promo code GIST at checkout.  Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

College campuses have become hostile territory for some comedians. A wrong-headed joke can provoke everything from walkouts to protests to death threats. But how should students push back against material they find offensive? Director Ted Balaker and comedian Karith Foster discuss their new film Can We Take a Joke? and the tricky line between free speech and needless offense.  For the Spiel, Mike takes on the dueling accusations of pay-for-play. Rendering judgement on the optics of the appearance of the whiff of the feeling of potential impropriety.    This Gist is supported by Rocket Mortgage from Quicken Loans. Rocket Mortgage brings the mortgage process into the twenty-first century with an easy online process. Check out Rocket Mortgage today at QuickenLoans.com/gist. And by Club W. Get top quality wine delivered right to your door. For 20 dollars off your first order, go to ClubW.com/gist. Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at Slate.com/gistplus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kori Schake, a former adviser to President George W. Bush, blanches at the idea of a Donald Trump presidency. But she still has reservations about Hillary Clinton. On The Gist, Schake says Clinton’s poor follow-through at the Department of State gives her something in common with the Bush administration. Schake is a research fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution and regular guest on Foreign Policy’s The Editor’s Roundtable podcast. She edited the recently published Warriors & Citizens: American Views of Our Military with Jim Mattis.  For the Spiel, Mike examines the enduring appeal of unsophisticated ’80s video games—even Mr. Do.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times: Our guest Chris Molanphy says 1991 was a tale of multiple cities, as radio stations began to tailor their playlists to narrower audiences. The result? Little crossover among the Billboard pop, rock, and rap songs charts, and a very eclectic Hot 100 chart. Molanphy writes Slate’s “Why Is This Song No. 1?” column.  For the Spiel, Mike cleans out the fridge before vacation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Most of us would be lost without GPS. So why do we think it’s hilarious when people drive into the ocean or walk to the Arctic Circle because phone maps told them to? In Pinpoint, author Greg Milner looks at our uneasy relationship with the technology and the ways GPS has reorganized our culture and our brains.  On The Spiel, Mike looks at Donald Trump’s latest failed endeavor: public opinion polling.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Director Joshua Marston has done his share of shape-shifting. He’s spent time as a teacher abroad. He’s learned Albanian and made some stories for NPR. And he’s directed critically acclaimed movies like Maria Full of Grace. His newest, Complete Unknown, stars Rachel Weisz as a serial imposter who gets stuck at a dinner party with someone from her past.  On The Spiel, the Clinton Foundation pay-for-play mega-scoop that never was. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why so many music phenoms from Iceland? On The Gist, Kaleo frontman JJ Julius Son says he comes from a “fearless” people. About that: Kaleo recently recorded in a volcano. Their latest album is called A/B.  Plus, Slate’s very own Mallory Ortberg, writer of the Dear Prudence column, tells us how to be an entertaining advice-giver. Ortberg is the author of Texts From Jane Eyre: And Other Conversations With Your Favorite Literary Characters. In the Spiel, Russia’s Paralympics propaganda. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What made the movies of the 1980s so special, especially as compared to movies being made now? On The Gist, the Guardian’s Hadley Freeman explains. She’s the author of Life Moves Pretty Fast: The Lessons We Learned From Eighties Movies (and Why We Don’t Learn Them From Movies Anymore). For the Spiel, Mike revisits the items that have escaped his searching, skeptical gaze.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, the hosts of the podcast that has made the best use yet of the jazz drummer’s brush technique: Politically Re-Active with W. Kamau Bell and Hari Kondabolu. The show picks up where the comedians left off when they stopped working in the same TV writers room. Bell hosts CNN’s United Shades of America, and returning guest Kondabolu is on tour with a new comedy album, Mainstream American Comic.  For the Spiel, grilling Jill Stein.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Are the nation’s most dangerous warheads secure if a rag-tag troika of peaceniks can break through the storage facility’s back door? On The Gist, Washington Post reporterDan Zak considers the good and not-so-good arguments for nuclear weapons. His book is Almighty: Courage, Resistance, and Existential Peril in the Nuclear Age.  For the Spiel, Jill Stein’s unforgivable comments on debt forgiveness. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, Megan Abbott discusses her latest book, You Will Know Me, a psychological thriller set in the high-pressure world of elite women’s gymnastics. In the Spiel, a send-off for John McLaughlin.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Things are bleak in Brazil. Prices are high, governments are broke, and gangs are tightening their control over the country’s slums. But on The Gist, Slate contributing editor Franklin Foer has hope for a national renewal. The reason? A prominent federal judge is dead set on rooting out political corruption, though it may rival soccer as the national pastime.  For the Spiel, hands across the ages.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Gist has been bedeviled by one question: Do the clothes really make the man? On today’s show, regular guest Maria Konnikova joins us to investigate the link between clothing and performance. Konnikova writes for the New Yorker and is the author of The Confidence Game. For the Spiel, Trump, truth, and fact-checking.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On every great improv team there’s an undertow of angst. Who will get snatched up by a TV show? Who will toil in relative obscurity? Who will quit after the big break doesn’t come? On Ep. 560, comedian Mike Birbiglia and This American Life creator Ira Glass talk about their film Don’t Think Twice, an ode to improvisational comedy and recalibrating what it means to be a success. Find it in a theater near you.  For the Spiel, our Lobstar of the Antentwig.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On The Gist, Republican “merchant of mud” Mike Murphy ponders Donald Trump’s effect on down-ballot GOP candidates. Murphy is known for putting the “!” in “Jeb!” as an adviser to Jeb Bush’s presidential campaign. His podcast is called Radio Free GOP. For the Spiel, Mike tries to get to the bottom of an Olympian canard about the happiness of bronze medalists.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices