The Gist

Last August, Larry Wilmore’s talk show was canceled. The Nightly Show focused on issues like equality, activism, and how racism subtly wormed its way into American life. In hindsight, it feels ahead of its time. Wilmore is out with a new podcast, Black on the Air.  In the Spiel: Sometimes democracy sucks.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Wednesday on The Gist, John Pfaff refuted the conventional wisdom about mass incarceration. Thursday, Pfaff explains some of the obstacles to reform. Pfaff’s book is Locked In: The True Causes of Mass Incarceration—and How to Achieve Real Reform.  In the Spiel, a loyally honest review of James Comey’s testimony.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John Pfaff is on a mission to topple the well-worn myths of the U.S. prison population boom. He says the data tells us to focus on the district attorneys, not the Department of Justice. Pfaff teaches at Fordham University School of Law and is the author of Locked In: The True Causes of Mass Incarceration and How to Achieve Real Reform. This is Part I of our interview with Pfaff -- listen tomorrow for Part II. In the Spiel, how are YOU celebrating Infrastructure Week? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There’s almond milk, coconut milk, hemp milk, soy milk, hazelnut milk, oat milk, and milk made from anything that grows, pretty much. But is any of it actually milk? And is it actually healthier than dairy? Our debunker-in-chief, Maria Konnikova, investigates the lofty claims of nondairy milks. Konnikova is a contributor to the New Yorker, and the author of The Confidence Game. Her new podcast is called the Grift.  In today’s Spiel, the White House’s long con on infrastructure.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

People tell Google things they wouldn’t say to anyone else. That’s the big insight that motivated the research of Seth Stephens-Davidowitz. His book, Everybody Lies, is about the stories and secrets he uncovered by digging into internet search data. In the Spiel, the best jokes that Mike made on vacation.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 2008, Al Franken was elected to the United States Senate. Since then, he’s become a well-respected member of the upper chamber. But he hasn’t lost his keen eye for satire. After the Supreme Court’s decision on same-sex marriage, “I wanted to release a thing saying, ‘Mr. Franken is very happy, but he thinks Justice Scalia’s dissent was very gay,’ ” he tells guest host Zoe Chace. “My team told me I couldn’t do that.” Franken is the author of a new book, Al Franken: Giant of the Senate. Today’s Spiel, an ode to the underappreciated, soon-to-be-extinct White House press briefing. 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 April, Donald Trump authorized rocket strikes on a military target in Syria. Most Democrats agreed with it. But when Trump makes a decision, does that make it inherently wrong? New Republic editor and Twitter star Jeet Heer offers a critique of the first few months of Democratic resistance. He wrote about it in the magazine last month.    Today’s Spiel comes from the archives: For President Trump, you’re nobody until you’re somebody. And then, you’re not just anybody—you’re everybody. 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

Reading, Pennsylvania is the poorest city of its size in the United States. It’s also where Lynn Nottage did most of her research for the Pulitzer-winning Broadway show, Sweat. Nottage talks with guest host Aisha Harris about the different kinds of working class in America, and how to maintain empathy when talking with people quite different from yourself.  In the Spiel, why calling something a “woman problem” misses the point. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When can we expect the first tell-all book by a former Trump administration official? David Rosenthal explains the physics of personal memoirs and dishes about what he’s heard around the industry rumor mill. Rosenthal runs the Blue Rider Press imprint at the Penguin Group.  In the Spiel, guest host Leon Neyfakh explains how the president nearly ruined an otherwise perfect holiday weekend.  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

Richard Nixon once warned of an America cut in two, a colony of poor, disenfranchised people within a nation of wealth. His law-and-order policies went a long way to making that a reality. In his new book, A Colony in a Nation, Chris Hayes looks at how fear has led to some destructive policies in America’s cities.    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

Ben Wittes has a term for the nonsense justifications he observes coming from the Trump administration. He calls it ENSH: errant national security horseshit. On Thursday’s show, Wittes shovels up some of the larger ENSH dumps of the past two weeks. Wittes is editor in chief of Lawfare.  In the Spiel, naming a long overdue Lobstar. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Donald Trump looks a lot more comfortable traveling abroad than he ever has in the White House. Josh King says there’s a good explanation for this. “Two Air Force Ones, a beast limousine, all the trappings of the United States government … it’s hard to screw that up,” says King, an expert in presidential stagecraft. He previously worked as an advance man in the Clinton White House.  In the Spiel, the incredibly undeserved comeback of Billy Bush.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For Tom Ricks, the whiplash-inducing news of the past two weeks has been especially surreal. Ricks explains why he was stunned to see the National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster defend President Trump. Ricks is out with a new book about two of his heroes, Churchill and Orwell. Ricks writes the Best Defense blog for Foreign Policy magazine.  In the Spiel, Mike breaks down former CIA Director John Brennan’s exchange with Rep. Trey Gowdy.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jon Glaser makes his triumphant return to The Gist to talk about season two of the Adult Swim series Neon Joe, Werewolf Hunter. Glaser has been a part of some of the most acclaimed shows on TV. He’s written for Inside Amy Schumer and Late Night With Conan O’Brien. He played Laird in Girls and Councilman Jamm in Parks and Recreation. But he’s feeling torn about making jokes for a living now, with the country seeming more screwed up than usual.  In the Spiel, will the U.S.–Saudi Arabia weapons deal mean hundreds of thousands of jobs for Americans?  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For college athletes, performance bonuses outweigh academic bonuses 15 to 1. That’s not acceptable, says Arne Duncan. Duncan served as Barack Obama’s education secretary. Now, he’s on the Knight Commission, which is trying to lead reforms in college sports. In the Spiel, the strange evolution of Rod Rosenstein. 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

Thursday morning, Roger Ailes died. The Fox News impresario changed the conversation in America and created a base of support for the current pPresident, Donald Trump.  Isaac Chotiner has reported extensively on Fox News for Slate. His new interview podcast is called I Have to Ask. Plus, Mike hits the bar with Peter Fornatale to drink discuss the crown jewel of cocktails. Fornatale is author of Brooklyn Spirits and host of the DRF Players’ Podcast. In the Spiel, Mike reflects on how to win listeners and influence presidents.  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

What’s the matter with Alabama? (You could ask the same thing of tens of other states with sleazy political histories, but we’re going in alphabetical order.) Today, Alabama reporter John Archibald delves into the concentric scandals rocking the Montgomery establishment. Archibald writes for the Alabama Media Group.  In the Spiel, why you shouldn’t root for impeachment.  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

One piece of interview advice from Chuck Klosterman: You can’t make a celebrity interview feel like a real conversation. “They know it’s not real. They wouldn’t be here, and I wouldn’t be asking these questions, if it wasn’t for the tape recorder,” says Klosterman. His new book, X, includes profiles and essays on some of the biggest names in pop culture from Klosterman’s storied career, including Kobe Bryant and Taylor Swift. In the Spiel, breaking down the disparate, strange, nonsensical explanations for Donald Trump’s Russia leaks. 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

Lists of inaccurate statements by Donald Trump are good and satisfying and a little funny. But they aren’t what we need. We need reporting on the issues behind the lies, says Brooke Gladstone. She’s co-host of On The Media and author of a new book, The Trouble with Reality, which looks at the malfunctioning of American democracy. In the Spiel, why voter ID laws are such a unique American con. 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

A century ago, bilingual children were seen as disadvantaged—a kid speaking English and Spanish was liable to become confused and might not learn properly. Now? Bilinguals are seen as better than the rest of us. They get dementia later. They have bigger brains and are better at focusing on tasks. So what’s the truth? Our resident social science sleuth Maria Konnikova investigates. She’s a New Yorker contributor and author of The Confidence Game. Her new podcast is The Grift.  In the Spiel, the news buried this week by the firing of James Comey.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices