Listen to the Waves by clicking the arrow on the audio player below:
Get More Waves
Slate Plus members get extended, ad-free versions of our podcasts—and much more. Sign up today.
Subscribe to the Waves
Copy this link and add it in your podcast app.
For detailed instructions, see our Slate Plus podcasts page.
Listen to the Waves via Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify, Stitcher, or Google Play.
On this week’s episode of the Waves, June, Veralyn, and Kristen are joined by Christina Cauterucci, who catches them up on key wins and losses in the midterms, how they could impact women, and what to watch for in the coming days. Then, ’tis the season for made-for-TV holiday movies. They’ve long been dismissed as saccharine and traditionalist—but are they actually more progressive than we give them credit for? (And are they really any more absurd than the average action flick?) Finally, far-right populist Jair Bolsonaro is notorious for his misogyny, homophobia, and racism. He’s also Brazil’s new president. The hosts look at the response among women and discuss what this will mean for the country and the rest of the world.
In Slate Plus, the hosts answer a question from a listener: Is it sexist for men to whistle in public?
Other items discussed on the show:
• “Heidi Heitkamp’s Kavanaugh Vote Didn’t Cost Her the Election. But It Makes Her Loss Even More Painful” by Christina Cauterucci in Slate
• “Brian Kemp’s Lead in Georgia Needs an Asterisk” by Carol Anderson in the Atlantic
• “Florida Just Granted 1.5 Million People the Right to Vote. That’s Huge” by Mark Joseph Stern in Slate
• “The Campaign to Preserve Massachusetts’ Trans Protections Was Successful Because It Centered Trans People” by Alex Barasch in Slate
• “Here’s What Happens When You Watch 7 Days of Made-For-TV Christmas Movies” by Claire Fallon and Priscilla Frank in the Huffington Post
• “ ‘The Holiday Calendar’ Star Kat Graham Doesn’t Like Rom-Coms *or* Christmas Movies—Here’s Why She Took a Chance on This One” by Taylor Ferber in Bustle
• “How Hallmark Took Over Your TV Every Christmas” by Todd VanDerWerff in Vox
• The Holiday Calendar
• The Mistle-Tones
• Christmas at Pemberley Manor
• “The Women-Led Opposition to Brazil’s Far-Right Leader” by Adriana Carranca in the Atlantic
• “Not Everything That Happens in the World Is About Trump” by Joshua Keating in Slate
• “ ‘Feminism Is Sexist’: The Women Backing Brazil’s Bolsonaro” by Katy Watson in BBC News
Recommendations:
• Veralyn: Imani Perry’s Looking for Lorraine: The Radiant and Radical Life of Lorraine Hansberry, May We Forever Stand: A History of the Black National Anthem, and Vexy Thing: On Gender and Liberation
• June: The final season of House of Cards
• Kristen: Life of the Party, starring Melissa McCarthy
This podcast was produced by Danielle Hewitt. Our production assistant is Alex Barasch.
The Waves plugs: Please remember to like our Facebook page. Send your emails to thewaves@slate.com. Tell us what we should cover in the next episode. And come to our live show in Miami on Nov. 17!
