Decoder Ring
Episodes
The Great Parmesan Cheese Debate
12 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Parmesan is a food—but it’s not just a food. Italy’s beloved cheese is often paired with a deep craving for tradition and identity. But its hist...
Summer 2023 Teaser
05 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Join Decoder Ring as we unlock a whole new season of cultural mysteries. First, we’ll sniff around Italy’s best-loved cheese to test an incredible...
Summer 2023 Teaser
05 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Join Decoder Ring as we unlock a whole new season of cultural mysteries. First, we’ll sniff around Italy’s best-loved cheese to test an incredible...
Who Owns the Tooth Fairy?
10 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We pride ourselves on being grounded, rational beings, but flitting amongst us is a mystery: the Tooth Fairy. This flying piece of folklore is alive a...
Why You Can’t Find a Damn Parking Spot
03 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Parking is one of the great paradoxes of American life. On the one hand, we have paved an ungodly amount of land to park our cars. On the other, it se...
The Artist Who Was Both Loved and Disdained
26 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We bring you a special episode from Sidedoor, a podcast about the treasures that fill the vaults of the Smithsonian. This story is inspired by “Big ...
The Curious Case of Columbo's Message to Romania Part 2
19 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Last week, we put on the proverbial raincoat and made like Columbo to investigate Peter Falk’s claim that he recorded a special Cold War message tel...
The Curious Case of Columbo's Message to Romania Part 1
12 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Not too long ago an old clip surfaced of Peter Falk on David Letterman, in which he told an intriguing tale about recording a special Cold War message...
Spring 2023 Teaser
05 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Decoder Ring is back with a new season of cultural mysteries to crack. We'll kick things off with a proper Cold War caper....did Peter Falk, star of t...
Spring 2023 Teaser
05 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Decoder Ring is back with a new season of cultural mysteries to crack. We'll kick things off with a proper Cold War caper....did Peter Falk, star of t...
Slate Plus Exclusive: The Making of This Season
09 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Host Willa Paskin and producer Katie Shepherd discuss how this season of Decoder Ring came together. Slate Plus members have access to this whole int...
Slate Plus Exclusive: The Making of This Season
09 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Host Willa Paskin and producer Katie Shepherd discuss how this season of Decoder Ring came together.Slate Plus members have access to this whole inter...
The Mailbag Episode
27 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We’re really lucky to get a lot of listener emails, suggesting topics for the show. In this episode, we’re going to dig into a handful of the most...
Encore: ‘You’ve Got Mail’ Got It Wrong
20 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
(This episode originally aired in March 2020.) The 1998 romantic comedy You’ve Got Mail, starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, is about the brutal fight ...
Cellino & Barnes, Injury Attorneys, 800-888-8888
13 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Ross Cellino and Steve Barnes were two Buffalo-based lawyers who became the literal poster-men for personal injury advertising. They poured millions o...
How Preppy Became Streetwear
06 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We bring you a special episode from the Articles of Interest podcast hosted by Avery Trufelman about the incredible reach and adaptability of preppy c...
The New Age Hit Machine
29 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
For this episode, a story from Slate senior producer Evan Chung about how Yanni, John Tesh and a number of other surprising acts made it big in the 19...
The Butt and the Bustle
22 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
For about two decades towards the end of the Victorian era, in the 1870s and 1880s, a large bustle-enhanced bottom was the height of fashion. In this ...
The Truth About #TheDress
15 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In the history of viral images, #TheDress has got to be in the top 10. This unassuming photo of a party dress kicked off a global debate when people r...
Fall 2022 Teaser
10 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Decoder Ring is back with a new season of juicy topics, like.... Remember the viral phenomenon and optical mind-blower known as “The Dress”? What ...
Fall 2022 Teaser
10 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Decoder Ring is back with a new season of juicy topics, like.... Remember the viral phenomenon and optical mind-blower known as “The Dress”? What ...
McGruff Takes a Bite Out of Crime Pt. 2
12 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
McGruff the Crime Dog arrived on the scene at the dawn of the 1980s, just as a firehose of anti-drug PSAs was inundating the youth of America. These m...
McGruff Takes a Bite Out of Crime Pt. 1
04 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
McGruff the Crime Dog arrived on the scene at the dawn of the 1980s, just as a firehose of anti-drug PSAs was inundating the youth of America. These m...
Slate Plus Exclusive: The Making of This Season
23 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Host Willa Paskin talks about topics versus narratives, translating fabulists, and creating a sound landscape for the world of Mae West. Slate Plus ...
Slate Plus Exclusive: The Making of This Season
23 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Host Willa Paskin talks about topics versus narratives, translating fabulists, and creating a sound landscape for the world of Mae West. Slate Plus me...
The “Sex” Scandal That Made Mae West
16 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In the early 1930s, Mae West’s dirty talk and hip swiveling walk made her one of the biggest movie stars in America. But before West hit the big-scr...
The First Alien Abductees
09 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
When you think of an alien abduction, what do you picture? Humanoid creatures, medical experiments, lost memories retrieved through hypnosis? That nar...
The Most Famous Poet No One Remembers
02 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Rod McKuen sold multiple millions of poetry books in the 60s and 70s. He released dozens of albums, was a regular on late night, and was even nominate...
The Mall is Dead (Long Live the Mall)
26 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What do we lose if we lose the mall? 70 years into their existence, these hulking temples to commerce are surprisingly resilient and filled with contr...
Summer 2022 Teaser
19 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Decoder Ring is coming back with a new season featuring a whole new set of questions.... Like, is the shopping mall really dying? How did a poet who s...
Summer 2022 Teaser
19 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Decoder Ring is coming back with a new season featuring a whole new set of questions.... Like, is the shopping mall really dying? How did a poet who s...
The Storytelling Craze
17 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
When did everyone become a storyteller? Decades after George Lucas and Steve Jobs made storytelling a big business, every company now wants to tell “...
“We Got Ourselves a Convoy”
10 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In the 1970s, a song about protesting truckers topped the music charts in multiple countries, and kicked off a pop culture craze for CB radios. In ear...
The Sideways Effect
03 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In 2004, the indie flick Sideways was released in just four theaters, but it had a big impact, earning five Oscar nominations and $110 million worldwi...
The Madness Behind ‘The Method’
26 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
When we think of method acting, we tend to think of actors going a little over the top for a role – like Jared Leto, who allegedly sent his colleagu...
“F--k Everything, We're Doing Five Blades”
19 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In the early 2000s, an arms race broke out in the world of men’s shaving. After decades with razors that had only one blade and then decades with ra...
Spring 2022 Teaser
12 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Decoder Ring is coming back with a new season featuring a whole new set of questions…and some good surprising answers. Like, how did razors come to ...
Spring 2022 Teaser
12 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Decoder Ring is coming back with a new season featuring a whole new set of questions…and some good surprising answers. Like, how did razors come to ...
Custer's Revenge
23 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Custer's Revenge is widely considered one of the worst video games ever made. Originally released as part of a series of Swedish Erotica-branded adult...
The Fame That Got Away
14 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Today on Decoder Ring: Three stories about fame, and one about monkeys. Are primates susceptible to celebrity endorsements? What does fame do to the m...
Truly Tasteless Jokes
07 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Note: This episode is about offensive material, and so contains explicit and offensive language. Truly Tasteless Jokes were a series of joke books tha...
The Philosophy of Vampires
30 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In literature, the choice to become a vampire is a metaphor for transformative experiences. On this episode, we bring you a story from Slate's Hi-Phi ...
You Just Lost The Game
23 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
When you think about the game, you lose the game. When you lose the game you must declare that you have lost the game, causing all others in your vici...
The Alberta Rat War
16 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Rats live wherever people live, with one exception: the Canadian province of Alberta. A rat sighting in Alberta is a major local event that mobilizes ...
The Great Helga Hype
09 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In the summer of 1986, both Time Magazine and Newsweek ran blockbuster cover stories on the same subject: a secret cache of provocative, intimate pain...
Selling Out
06 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In 2001, Oprah Winfrey invited Jonathan Franzen to come on her show to discuss his new novel The Corrections. A month later she withdrew the invitatio...
Selling Out
06 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In 2001, Oprah Winfrey invited Jonathan Franzen to come on her show to discuss his new novel The Corrections. A month later she withdrew the invitatio...
Tattoo Flash
27 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Time does funny thing to everything, but especially to tattoos. Today, four stories about tattoos whose meanings have shifted with the passage of year...
Tattoo Flash
27 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Time does funny thing to everything, but especially to tattoos. Today, four stories about tattoos whose meanings have shifted with the passage of year...
The Tootsie Shot
20 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
You know the Tootsie Shot. It’s that shot from the movies: a really busy midtown street, protagonist smack in the middle of it all, everyone goin...
The Tootsie Shot
20 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
You know the Tootsie Shot. It’s that shot from the movies: a really busy midtown street, protagonist smack in the middle of it all, everyone goin...
Who Killed The Segway?
13 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In the year 2000, Dan Kois was a junior book agent working on selling a secretive book proposal called IT, a codename for what would eventually be re...
Who Killed The Segway?
13 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In the year 2000, Dan Kois was a junior book agent working on selling a secretive book proposal called IT, a codename for what would eventually be re...
The Sign Painter
06 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Ilona Granet was a New York art-scene fixture who won the praise of the art world when she put up anti-harassment street signs in lower Manhattan in t...
The Sign Painter
06 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Ilona Granet was a New York art-scene fixture who won the praise of the art world when she put up anti-harassment street signs in lower Manhattan in t...
That Seattle Muzak Sound
29 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
If you love the show and want to support us, consider joining Slate Plus. With Slate Plus you can binge the whole season of Decoder Ring right now, pl...
That Seattle Muzak Sound
29 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
If you love the show and want to support us, consider joining Slate Plus. With Slate Plus you can binge the whole season of Decoder Ring right now, pl...
The Invention of Hydration
22 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
To say that hydration is an invention is only a slight exaggeration. Back in the 1970’s and ‘80s, no one carried bottled water with them, but by t...
The Invention of Hydration
22 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
To say that hydration is an invention is only a slight exaggeration. Back in the 1970’s and ‘80s, no one carried bottled water with them, but by t...
The Soap Opera Machine
15 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to a brand new season of Decoder Ring! On this episode, we investigate the wild world of soap operas through the lens of one legendary, decade...
The Soap Opera Machine
15 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to a brand new season of Decoder Ring! On this episode, we investigate the wild world of soap operas through the lens of one legendary, decade...
Decoder Ring Presents The Sporkful’s Mission: ImPASTAble
15 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Right now Decoder Ring is working on a full season of new episodes coming this June, but in the meantime we wanted to share this episode from our frie...
Decoder Ring Presents The Sporkful’s Mission: ImPASTAble
15 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Right now Decoder Ring is working on a full season of new episodes coming this June, but in the meantime we wanted to share this episode from our frie...
The Blue Steak Experiment
21 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What took blue food so long to catch on? Today it’s all over the freezer aisle, in candies for kids, in tortilla chips, and novelty foods, but it wa...
The Blue Steak Experiment
21 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What took blue food so long to catch on? Today it’s all over the freezer aisle, in candies for kids, in tortilla chips, and novelty foods, but it wa...
The Cabbage Patch Kids Riots
23 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In 1983, the Cabbage Patch Kids were released, causing widespread pandemonium in toy stores and in the media. How did a children'a toy inspire such ba...
The Cabbage Patch Kids Riots
23 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In 1983, the Cabbage Patch Kids were released, causing widespread pandemonium in toy stores and in the media. How did a children'a toy inspire such ba...
Jane Fonda's Workout, Part 2: Hanoi Jane's VHS Revolution
26 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
How did Hanoi Jane become Exercise Jane? This is the second part of our two-parter on Jane Fonda's Workout. If you haven't yet, listen to the previous...
Jane Fonda's Workout, Part 2: Hanoi Jane's VHS Revolution
26 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
How did Hanoi Jane become Exercise Jane?This is the second part of our two-parter on Jane Fonda's Workout. If you haven't yet, listen to the previous ...
Jane Fonda's Workout, Part 1: Jane and Leni
12 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
When Jane Fonda granted us an interview to talk about her famous workout tape, things didn't go as planned. On part one of a special two-part Decoder ...
Jane Fonda's Workout, Part 1: Jane and Leni
12 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
When Jane Fonda granted us an interview to talk about her famous workout tape, things didn't go as planned.On part one of a special two-part Decoder R...
Mystery of the Mullet
14 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The mullet, the love-to-hate-it hairstyle is as associated with the 1980's as Ronald Reagan, junk bonds, and break dancing. But in at least one major ...
Mystery of the Mullet
14 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The mullet, the love-to-hate-it hairstyle is as associated with the 1980's as Ronald Reagan, junk bonds, and break dancing. But in at least one major ...
The Karen
13 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The Karen, a white woman who surveys, inconveniences, and terrorizes, service workers and people of color is a relatively new term in the culture, but...
The Karen
13 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The Karen, a white woman who surveys, inconveniences, and terrorizes, service workers and people of color is a relatively new term in the culture, but...
The Metrosexual
10 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In 2003, the word "metrosexual", meaning a well-groomed heterosexual man, exploded all over the English lexicon. It invaded the news, TV, and even Ame...
The Metrosexual
10 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In 2003, the word "metrosexual", meaning a well-groomed heterosexual man, exploded all over the English lexicon. It invaded the news, TV, and even Ame...
Gotta Get Down on Friday
11 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Rebecca Black's music video for Friday was Youtube's most watched video of 2011, thrusting the thirteen-year-old Rebecca into a very harsh spotlight. ...
Gotta Get Down on Friday
11 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Rebecca Black's music video for Friday was Youtube's most watched video of 2011, thrusting the thirteen-year-old Rebecca into a very harsh spotlight. ...
Unicorn Poop
08 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
How did poop get cute? On this episode of Decoder Ring we trace the rise of cute poop from the original Japanese poop emoji to more modern poop toys w...
Unicorn Poop
08 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
How did poop get cute? On this episode of Decoder Ring we trace the rise of cute poop from the original Japanese poop emoji to more modern poop toys w...
Rubber Duckie
19 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work. Ho...
Rubber Duckie
19 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work.How...
The Shop Around the Corner
02 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work. Th...
The Shop Around the Corner
02 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work.The...
Friend of Dorothy
10 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work. Wh...
Friend of Dorothy
10 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work.Whe...
The Stowe-Byron Controversy
03 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work. Wh...
The Stowe-Byron Controversy
03 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work.Whe...
Murphy's Law
09 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work. Ni...
Murphy's Law
09 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work.Nic...
Gender Reveal Party
06 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work. Je...
Gender Reveal Party
06 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work.Jen...
Bart Simpson Mania
07 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work. In...
Bart Simpson Mania
07 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work.In ...
Ice Cream Truck
12 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work. Wh...
Ice Cream Truck
12 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work.Why...
Pillow Talk
15 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work. Ov...
Pillow Talk
15 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work.Ove...
Chuck E. Cheese Pizza War
11 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Slate Plus members get ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes of shows like Dear Prudence and Slow Burn. Sign up now to listen and support our work. Th...