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Culture GabfestSlate's critics debate the week in culture, from highbrow to pop. Author: Slate Podcasts
New York Times critic Dwight Garner says The Slate Culture Gabfest is one of the highlights of my week. The award-winning Culturefest features critics Stephen Metcalf, Dana Stevens, and Julia Turner debating the week in culture, from highbrow to pop. For more of Slates culture podcasts, check out the Slate Culture feed. Want more Culture Gabfest? Subscribe to Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, youll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe now on Apple Podcasts by clicking Try Free at the top of the Culture Gabfest show page. Or, visit slate.com/cultureplus to get access wherever you listen. Language: en Genres: Arts, Entertainment News, News Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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Somehow, Miranda Priestly Returned Edition
Wednesday, 6 May, 2026
This week, Julia Turner and Dana Stevens are joined by Slate’s own Rebecca Onion to discuss The Devil Wears Prada 2, BEEF season 2, and the NYT’s best living songwriters package with Slate’s music critic Carl Wilson. Twenty years on, we return to the world of The Devil Wears Prada. In the sequel, Andy, Anne Hathaway’s character, must save Runway Magazine from the forces of capital, who are selling the Vogue-analogue for parts, as Meryl Streep’s Miranda Priestly struggles to hang on to her own power. The movie has a lot to say about the state of journalism and media with plot lines seemingly ripped from the gossip pages, but does it all come together in the edit? We discuss. Then, the second season of A24’s anthology series BEEF stars Oscar Isaac and Carey Mulligan as a volatile millennial couple who enter into a feud with a younger couple, played by Cailee Spaeny and Charles Melton. Set at a rich Californian golf resort and its environs, the show satirizes class and generational resentments as the characters scramble to claim the scraps of their betters at the expense of everyone else. The characters are mostly unlikeable, and the premise might be a little less original than the first season, but given BEEF’s stacked cast and pedigree, does the show sizzle? Finally we’re joined by Carl Wilson, Slate’s music critic and author of the newsletter “Crritic!” to discuss the New York Times package: The 30 Greatest Living Songwriters. Carl submitted a ballot for the list, and the polished version isn’t too far from his submission. He gets into his picks and discusses what the list is saying about the field of songwriting and the idea of a songwriter as it’s been expanded to include non-traditional instrumentation and digital composition. But like all lists it has sparked debate about the inclusions (Carole King, Stevie Wonder) the exclusions (Randy Newman, Liz Phair, David Byrne) and whether Taylor Swift’s inclusion was solely to get an interview. Together with Carl, we try and make sense of the list and talk about our favorites. As promised, here is Carl’s full ballot (The asterisks indicate people who Carl voted for but who have since died):Willie NelsonSmokey Robinson Bobby Braddock *Brian WilsonBob DylanCarole KingRandy NewmanDolly PartonStevie Wonder*Sly StoneThe Flatlanders (Butch Hancock/Jimmie Dale Gilmore/*Joe Ely)Tom Waits & Kathleen BrennanNile RodgersDavid ByrneMark EitzelChuck D & the Bomb SquadJimmy Jam & Terry LewisStephin MerrittLiz PhairJohn Darnielle (The Mountain Goats)Missy Elliott & TimbalandThe Love Junkies (Hillary Lindsey/Lori McKenna/Liz Rose)Outkast (Big Boi/Andre 3000)Josh Osborne/Brandy Clark/Shane McAnallyPhoebe BridgersEndorsements: Julia: The SNL sketch featuring Teana Taylor, Grandpa At The Wedding.Rebecca: The new Lord Of The Flies adaptation on Netflix. Dana: The article in Vogue: Meryl Streep and Anna Wintour on Power, Fashion, and Acting the Part by Chloe Malle.Email us your thoughts at culturefest@slate.com. Podcast production by Benjamin Frisch. Production assistance by Daniel Hirsch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
