Decoder Ring

<p>In Australia, no wedding or school dance is complete without the Nutbush, Australia’s unofficial national dance. The Nutbush – a simple line dance to the song “Nutbush City Limits,” by Ike and Tina Turner – has become as stereotypically Australian as kangaroos, boomerangs, and Vegemite.</p><br><p>And yet, hardly anyone outside of Australia even knows the Nutbush exists. Here at Decoder Ring, we certainly didn’t – until we started getting emails from Australians asking us to investigate its origins. How did an American song become the soundtrack for an Australian national tradition? Who invented the iconic steps, and why does every Australian know them?</p><br><p>Our producer Max Freedman put on his dancing shoes to get some answers. The global, century-spanning story of the Nutbush involves Australia, Tennessee, Denmark, primary schools, gay discos, and demonstrates that even the goofiest cultural touchstones can go surprisingly deep.</p><br><p>In this episode you’ll hear from culture journalists <a href="https://slate.com/author/david-mack" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">David Mack</a> and <a href="https://anguskidman.show/2023/08/13/tina-turner-how-australia-saved-her-career/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Angus Kidman</a>; Nutbush researchers <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10304312.2024.2391789" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Panizza Allmark and Jon Stratton</a>; dance historians <a href="https://www.swedishcastle.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Erica Okamura</a> and <a href="https://www.richardpowers.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Richard Powers</a>; Dr. Fiona Chatteur, Jeremy Santolin, and Brian Kerr.</p><br><p>This episode was written and produced by Max Freedman and edited by Evan Chung, our supervising producer. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director.</p><br><p>If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at <a href="mailto:DecoderRing@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DecoderRing@slate.com</a> or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281.</p><br><p>Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><br><p><strong>Further Viewing</strong></p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8U9_j2Hy5o" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">How to do ‘The Nutbush’ - Australian Line Dance</a>&nbsp;</p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iT_QNC6o24E" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dancin’ the Madison on “The Buddy Deane Show” (1960)</a></p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBLL_wQlpdw" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Alley Cat Tutorial — Spark Physical Education</a></p><p><a href="https://vimeo.com/586111670/96edf89e3c" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Nutbush on Countdown (December 5, 1976)</a></p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpuf6AmQH4M" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Tina Turner — Nutbush City Limits, The Midnight Special (1973)</a></p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gInG006w8ek" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Tina Turner — Are You Breaking My Heart, Countdown (1980)</a></p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2eD9mXJ0Jg" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Tina Turner: How “The Best” Became Rugby League’s Anthem | ABC News</a></p><p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_3qfwLdndI" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Tina Turner’s Electrifying 1993 NRL Grand Final Performance</a></p><br><p><strong>Sources for This Episode</strong></p><p>Allmark, Panizza, and Jon Stratton.<a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/10304312.2024.2331796" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> “Doing the Nutbush: How Australia Got Its Very Own Line Dance.”</a> <em>Continuum: Journal of Media &amp; Cultural Studies</em>, vol. 39, no. 1, 2025, pp. 79–94.</p><p>Allmark, Panizza, and Jon Stratton.<a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/10304312.2024.2391789" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> “The Nutbush Dance Reframed: Further Analysis Related to ‘Doing the Nutbush.’”</a> <em>Continuum: Journal of Media &amp; Cultural Studies</em>, vol. 39, no. 1, 2025, pp. 95–103.</p><p>Andrews, Shirley. <em>Take Your Partners: Traditional Dancing in Australia</em>. 3rd ed., Hyland House, 1979.</p><p>Bloomfield, Anne.<a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/00467600701619754" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> “Health or Art? The Case for Dance in the Curriculum of British State Schools 1909–1919.”</a> <em>History of Education</em>, vol. 36, no. 6, 2007, pp. 681–696.</p><p>Bloomfield, Anne.<a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/00467600010002103" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> “The Quickening of the National Spirit: Cecil Sharp and the Pioneers of the Folk-Dance Revival in English State Schools (1900–26).”</a> <em>History of Education</em>, vol. 30, no. 1, 2001, pp. 59–75.</p><p>Gbogbo, Mawunyo.<a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-25/tina-turner-australia-rugby-league-the-best-nutbush-obituary/102387886" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> “Tina Turner and Her Australian Connections: How The Best Became Rugby League’s Anthem and Why Is the Nutbush Mandatory at Gatherings?”</a> <em>ABC News</em>, 24 May 2023.</p><p>Jones, Benjamin T.<a href="https://theconversation.com/australian-politics-explainer-the-white-australia-policy-74084" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> “Australian Politics Explainer: The White Australia Policy.”</a> <em>The Conversation</em>, 9 Apr. 2017.</p><p>Kidman, Angus.<a href="https://anguskidman.show/2023/08/13/tina-turner-how-australia-saved-her-career/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> “Tina Turner: How Australia Saved Her Career.”</a> <em>Angus Kidman</em>, 13 Aug. 2023.</p><p>Meiners, Jeff. <em>So We Can Dance? In Pursuit of an Inclusive Dance Curriculum for the Primary School Years in Australia</em>. 2017. University of South Australia, Doctor of Education thesis.</p><p>Spencer, Eliza.<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2024/may/05/origins-of-the-nutbush-line-dance-australia-schools" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> “Australia and the Nutbush: The Quest for the Origin of a Cultural Phenomenon Goes On.”</a> <em>The Guardian</em>, 5 May 2024.</p><p>Ward, Mary.<a href="https://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/life-and-relationships/schoolhouse-outhouse-the-mysterious-history-of-the-nutbush-20181115-p50g9n.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> “The Mysterious Allure of the Nutbush and Why the Dance Is Uniquely Australian.”</a> <em>Sydney Morning Herald</em>, 25 May 2023.</p><p>Zhuang, Yan.<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/25/world/australia/australia-tina-turner-nutbush.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> “Australia Remembered Tina Turner with a Dance.”</a> <em>New York Times</em>, 25 May 2023.</p><p>Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you subscribed through Slate.com, check out our <a href="https://slate.com/podcastfaqs#plusbenefits" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">FAQ</a> at slate.com/podcastfaqs for easy instructions. Members subscribed via Apple Podcasts get automatic access—no setup required.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Earlier this year we debuted Decoder Rings Back, our new feature exclusively for Decoder Ring Plus subscribers. In each installment, Willa gets a listener on the phone and tries her best to answer their question about a cultural mystery. We have been having a blast making these episodes, and if you haven’t heard them, we think you’re missing out. So in the hopes of instilling some FOMO that motivates you to support the work we do here by becoming a Decoder Ring Plus subscriber, here’s a sneak peek at the latest installment.</p><p>This time, we hear from Julia Latino in Massachusetts who’s been baffled for years by a strange sight: dozens of tiny rubber duckies riding on the dashboard of Jeeps. What started this craze, and why <em>Jeeps </em>of all cars?</p><p>Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><p>Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you subscribed through Slate.com, check out our <a href="https://slate.com/podcastfaqs#plusbenefits" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">FAQ</a> at slate.com/podcastfaqs for easy instructions. Members subscribed via Apple Podcasts get automatic access—no setup required.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Like the palm tree, the Everglades, Disney World, and the “Florida Man,” the orange is a classic symbol of the Sunshine State. But maybe not for much longer. Production has declined to catastrophic levels, a decrease of more than 95% in less than 25 years. It’s a produce murder mystery—and Decoder Ring is tagging along with reporter Alex Sammon to crack the case. The suspects include insects, hurricanes, mortgage-backed securities, and the American habit of not reckoning with enormous, load-bearing flaws until it’s way too late.</p><br><p>In this episode, you’ll hear from Alex, a feature writer at Slate, who visited Florida to check on the orange and <a href="https://slate.com/business/2026/04/florida-state-orange-food-houses-real-estate.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">write about its demise</a>. You’ll also hear from <a href="https://www.usf.edu/arts-sciences/florida-studies/faculty/gary-mormino.aspx" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Gary Mormino</a>, Florida lover, expert, and professor emeritus of Florida Studies at the University of South Florida.</p><br><p>This episode was produced by Katie Shepherd and Evan Chung, Decoder Ring’s supervising producer. It was edited by Josh Levin. Decoder Ring is also produced by Willa Paskin and Max Freedman. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director.</p><br><p>If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at <a href="mailto:DecoderRing@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DecoderRing@slate.com</a> or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281.</p><br><p>Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><br><p><strong>Sources for This Episode</strong></p><p>Hamilton, Alissa. <a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300164558/squeezed/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Squeezed: What You Don't Know about Orange Juice</em></a>, Yale University Press, 2010.</p><p>Hussey, Scott D. “<a href="https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/etd/1664/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Sunshine State's Golden Fruit: Florida And The Orange,1930-1960</a>,” USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Apr. 2, 2010.</p><p>McPhee, John. <a href="https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374512972/oranges/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Oranges</em></a>, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1967.</p><p>Mormino, Gary. “<a href="https://www.gainesville.com/story/opinion/columns/guest/2016/04/03/gary-r-mormino-the-enduring-but-endangered-symbol-of-florida/31893109007/?gnt-cfr=1&amp;gca-cat=p&amp;gca-uir=true&amp;gca-epti=z115245e004100v115245d--52--b--52--&amp;gca-ft=156&amp;gca-ds=sophi" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The enduring but endangered symbol of Florida</a>,” The Gainesville Sun,<em> </em>Apr. 3, 2016.</p><p>Sammon, Alex. “<a href="https://slate.com/business/2026/04/florida-state-orange-food-houses-real-estate.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Who Killed The Florida Orange</a>?” Slate, Apr. 20, 2026.</p><p>Walkey, Will and Amory Sivertson. “<a href="https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2025/08/19/florida-citrus-decline-orange-economy" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The fall of Florida citrus</a>,” <em>On Point,</em> Aug. 19, 2025</p><p>Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you subscribed through Slate.com, check out our <a href="https://slate.com/podcastfaqs#plusbenefits" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">FAQ</a> at slate.com/podcastfaqs for easy instructions. Members subscribed via Apple Podcasts get automatic access—no setup required.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>We are lucky to get fantastic questions from our listeners here at Decoder Ring, and in this episode, we’re going to open up our mailbag to answer three of them. What are the origins of an eerie horror film string motif? Why do companies insist on telling callers to “listen closely” to menu options that could not possibly have changed? And when did we start using the indispensable eye roll?</p><p>In this episode, you’ll hear from historical musicologist <a href="https://musikwissenschaft.phil-fak.uni-koeln.de/en/staff/professors/frank-hentschel" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Frank Hentschel</a>, as well as <a href="https://www.elispindel.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Eli Spindel</a>, artistic director of the <a href="https://www.thesob.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">String Orchestra of Brooklyn</a>. We also speak with writer <a href="https://www.nickgreenewriter.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Nick Greene</a>, <a href="https://www.holdcom.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Holdcom</a> CEO Andrew Begnoché, and linguist <a href="https://www.essex.ac.uk/people/CLIFT78500/Rebecca-Clift" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dr. Rebecca Clift</a>.</p><p>This episode was produced by Katie Shepherd and Evan Chung, our supervising producer. Decoder Ring is also produced by Max Freedman. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director.</p><p>Special thanks to Nicole Holliday, and to <a href="https://leilehualanzilotti.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Leilehua Lanzilotti</a>, whose website <a href="https://www.shakennotstuttered.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Shaken Not Stuttered</a> is a fantastic resource about extended techniques for strings.</p><p>If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at <a href="mailto:DecoderRing@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DecoderRing@slate.com</a> or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281.</p><p>Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Money is everywhere. Money influences just about everything. We think about money all the time. But how much do we really know about it? In this episode of Decoder Ring, we explore the obscure historical forces that make our money what it is and behave the way it does. We ask two simple-sounding questions with surprising answers: Why is our money called the dollar—and where are those dollars really coming from?&nbsp;</p><br><p>First, you’ll hear from <a href="https://history.princeton.edu/people/brendan-greeley" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Brendan Greeley</a>, a veteran finance reporter turned economic historian, and author of the new book, <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/634502/the-almighty-dollar-by-brendan-greeley/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>The Almighty Dollar: 500 Years of the World’s Most Powerful Money</em></a><em>. </em>Then, we get help from <a href="https://home.watson.brown.edu/people/faculty/watson-faculty/mark-blyth" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Mark Blyth</a>, a political economist at Brown University who teaches about the architecture and plumbing of global finance.</p><br><p>This episode was written by Willa Paskin and Max Freedman and produced by Max Freedman. Decoder Ring is also produced by Katie Shepherd and Supervising Producer Evan Chung. Merritt Jacob is our Senior Technical Director. Thank you to Lizzie O’Leary.</p><br><p>If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at <a href="mailto:DecoderRing@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DecoderRing@slate.com</a> or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281.</p><br><p>Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Last week we aired an episode about lonelygirl15, one of the first proper YouTube stars, and perhaps the most famous example of playing around with the boundaries of fiction and truth on the internet. But it was not the first. In 1995, aspiring filmmakers created the first ever soap opera on the Web, on a site called The Spot. Hollywood saw it as the future of entertainment. But a fan-led revolt showed that interactivity sometimes has a price.</p><br><p>Evan Chung explained the rise and fall of The Spot in a 2021 episode of the Slate podcast <a href="https://slate.com/podcasts/one-year/s2/1995/e4/the-spot-online-drama-1995" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">One Year</a>. The overlaps and echoes are so strong with lonelygirl15 we thought you’d be interested to hear it.</p><br><p>This episode was written and reported by Evan Chung. It was edited by Laura Bennett. The host of One Year is Josh Levin. Madeline Ducharme was our assistant producer. Additional production help came from Cheyna Roth, with editorial direction by Lowen Liu and Gabriel Roth. Mixing by Merritt Jacob, our Senior Technical Director.</p><br><p>If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at <a href="mailto:DecoderRing@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DecoderRing@slate.com</a> or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281.</p><br><p>Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>In the summer of 2006, a teenage girl began posting video diaries to a then-new site called YouTube under the handle lonelygirl15. Within weeks she was a phenomenon—even though no one knew the truth of who she really was. The frenzied quest to change that, to solve the mystery of lonelygirl15, would ultimately land her on the front page of newspapers and the covers of magazines. Twenty years on, lonelygirl15 is both an artifact of an earlier online era and an origin point for the internet as we know it: a place full of video diaries, parasocial relationships, influencers, hyper-engaged fandoms, and the knowledge that you can’t always believe your eyes.</p><br><p>In this episode, you’ll hear from some of the people who investigated lonelygirl15 way back in 2006: culture critic Virginia Heffernan, who writes the Substack <a href="https://virginiaheffernan.substack.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Magic + Loss</a> and co-hosts the podcast <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/omnishambles/id1787176282" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Omnishambles</em></a>; entertainment journalist Richard Rushfield of <a href="https://theankler.com/s/richard-rushfield" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Ankler</a>; producer <a href="http://www.jennipowell.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Jenni Powell</a>; and one-time cybersleuth <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/phatboyg" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Chris Patterson</a>. We also speak with the people involved in making lonelygirl15: <a href="https://x.com/mbeckett" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Miles Beckett</a>, <a href="https://www.meshflinderswrites.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Mesh Flinders</a>, Jessica Rose Phillipps, and Amanda Goodfried.</p><br><p>This episode was written by Willa Paskin and Evan Chung, Decoder Ring’s Supervising Producer. Decoder Ring is also produced by Willa Paskin, Katie Shepherd, and Max Freedman. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director.</p><br><p>Thank you to Greg Goodfried, Matt Foremski, and Tom Foremski. Special thanks to <a href="https://www.garbageday.email/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ryan Broderick</a> and Grant Irving of the podcast <a href="https://www.garbageday.email/panic-world" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Panic World</em></a>, who introduced Willa to the lonelygirl15 story on a <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lonelygirl15-and-when-lies-could-be-fun/id1740187810?i=1000747992019" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">recent episode of their show</a> and suggested it might make a good topic for Decoder Ring.</p><br><p>If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at <a href="mailto:DecoderRing@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DecoderRing@slate.com</a> or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281.</p><br><p><strong>Sources for This Episode</strong></p><br><p>Cresci, Elena. “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/jun/16/lonelygirl15-bree-video-blog-youtube" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lonelygirl15: how one mysterious vlogger changed the internet</a>,” The Guardian, June 16, 2006.</p><br><p>Davis, Joshua. “<a href="https://www.wired.com/2006/12/lonelygirl/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Secret World of Lonelygirl</a>,” WIRED, Dec. 2006.</p><br><p>Falconer, Ellen. “<a href="https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/the-wireless/374034/an-oral-history-of-lonelygirl15" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">An oral history of lonelygirl15</a>,” RNZ, June 16, 2016.</p><br><p>Flemming, Brian. “<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20061019210323/http://www.slumdance.com/blogs/brian_flemming/archives/002285.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Arguments for a real LG15 fall short</a>,” Brian Flemming's Weblog, Aug. 25, 2006.</p><br><p>Foremski, Matt and Tom Foremski. “<a href="https://www.siliconvalleywatcher.com/svw-exclusive-the-identity-of-lonelygirl15/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">SVW Exclusive: The identity of LonelyGirl15</a>,” Silicon Valley Watcher, Sep. 11, 2006.</p><br><p>Foremski, Tom. “<a href="https://www.siliconvalleywatcher.com/how-the-secret-identity-of-lonelygirl15-was-found/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">How the secret identity of LonelyGirl15 was found</a>,” Silicon Valley Watcher, Sep. 12, 2006.</p><br><p>Foremski, Tom. “<a href="https://www.siliconvalleywatcher.com/the-hunt-for-lonelygirl15-life-in-a-blogger-household---/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Hunt for LonelyGirl15: Life in a blogger household…</a>,” Silicon Valley Watcher, Sep. 12, 2006.</p><br><p>Glaister, Dan. “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2006/sep/09/news.usnews" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Cult blog a fake, admit 'lonelygirl' creators</a>,” The Guardian, Sep. 9, 2006.</p><br><p>Heffernan, Virginia and Tom Zeller Jr. “<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/13/technology/the-lonelygirl-that-really-wasnt.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Lonelygirl That Really Wasn’t</a>,” New York Times, Sep. 13, 2006.</p><br><p>Heffernan, Virginia. “<a href="https://archive.nytimes.com/themedium.blogs.nytimes.com/2006/08/23/a-pause-for-a-word-from-bree/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">A Pause for Some Words From Bree</a>,” New York Times, Aug. 23, 2006.</p><br><p>Heffernan, Virginia. “<a href="https://archive.nytimes.com/themedium.blogs.nytimes.com/2006/08/24/sweet-weird-fraud-or-other/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sweet, Weird, Fraud or Other</a>,” New York Times, Aug. 24, 2006.</p><br><p>“<a href="http://www.lg15.com/lgpedia/index.php?title=Main_Page" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">LGPedia</a>,” <a href="http://www.lg15.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">LG15</a>, 2016.</p><br><p>“<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/lonelygirl15-and-when-lies-could-be-fun/id1740187810?i=1000747992019" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">lonelygirl15 and when lies could be fun</a>,” <em>Panic World</em>, Feb. 4, 2026.</p><br><p>“<a href="https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/segments/128609-lonely-girl-and-all-her-friends" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lonely Girl And All Her Friends</a>,” <em>On the Media</em>, Sep. 1, 2006.</p><br><p>Nudd, Tim. “<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20181212054729/https://www.adweek.com/creativity/lonelygirl15-still-mystery-now-18443/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lonelygirl15 still a mystery, for now</a>,” ADWEEK, Sep. 1, 2006.</p><br><p>Rushfield, Richard and Claire Hoffman. “<a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-sep-13-me-lonelygir13-story.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lonelygirl15 Video Blog Is Brainchild of 3 Filmmakers</a>,” Los Angeles Times, Sep. 13, 2006.</p><br><p>Rushfield, Richard and Claire Hoffman. “<a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-sep-08-et-lonelygirl8-story.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Mystery Fuels Huge Popularity of Web’s Lonelygirl15</a>,” Los Angeles Times, Sep. 8, 2006.</p><br><p>Wendt, Milo A. “<a href="https://milowent.blogspot.com/2006/08/lonelygirl15-its-not-so-lonely-in-bay.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">LonelyGirl15: It's Not So Lonely In The Bay Area</a>,” milowent, Aug. 30, 2006.</p><br><p>Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>For over a century, fans of Sherlock Holmes have been analyzing, debating, and creating new texts with Arthur Conan Doyle’s characters. But when a fan theory emerged about the BBC TV show <em>Sherlock</em> that posited the inevitability of a gay romance between Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson—it wreaked havoc on the community. In this episode, which originally aired in 2018, we explore the Johnlock Conspiracy, with help from historians, journalists, and the fans at the heart of the controversial idea. It’s almost a Holmesian tale itself, full of brilliant theories, false leads and mysterious motives—except for the ending, which, unlike in a Holmes story, isn’t very neat.</p><br><p>This episode was written by Willa Paskin. It was produced and edited by Benjamin Frisch, who also created the episode art. Shasha Leonárd provided production assistance, and Danielle Hewitt helped us fact check the episode. Decoder Ring is also produced by Katie Shepherd, Max Freedman, and Evan Chung, our supervising producer.&nbsp; Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director.</p><br><p>If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at <a href="mailto:DecoderRing@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DecoderRing@slate.com</a> or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281.</p><br><p>Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>When <em>Eyes Wide Shut</em> opened in the summer of 1999, it was widely considered a disappointment. This final film from legendary director Stanley Kubrick had been sold as an erotic thriller, and potentially even a peek into the real sex lives of its then-married stars, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. But <em>Eyes Wide Shut</em> was stranger than that: a meditative art film whose much-hyped orgy scene is more creepy than sexy, run by a cabal of rich and powerful men who prey on young women.</p><br><p>But <em>Eyes Wide Shut</em> has received a burst of new attention in the last few years, amid constant revelations about a real-life cabal of rich and powerful men who prey on young women. Across the internet, cinema sleuths have been asking: is it possible <em>Eyes Wide Shut</em> was not fictional? Was Stanley Kubrick trying to warn the world about a real conspiracy? And if so… was he murdered for it?&nbsp;</p><br><p>In this episode of Decoder Ring, we follow Lane Brown—a lifelong Kubrick fan and features writer for New York Magazine—as <a href="https://www.vulture.com/article/eyes-wide-shut-conspiracy-stanley-kubrick-jeffrey-epstein.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">he investigates this conspiracy theory</a> and what it says about how we deal with ugly facts and murky fictions.</p><br><p>This episode was written and produced by Max Freedman and edited by Willa Paskin. Decoder Ring is also produced by Katie Shepherd and Evan Chung, our supervising producer. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director.</p><br><p>If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at <a href="mailto:DecoderRing@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DecoderRing@slate.com</a> or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281.</p><br><p><strong>Sources for This Episode</strong></p><p>Barbezat, Michael. “<a href="https://publicmedievalist.com/pizzagate-cults/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">‘Pizzagate’ and the Nocturnal Ritual Fantasy: Imaginary Cults, Fake News, and Real Violence</a>,” The Public Medievalist, May 4, 2017.</p><br><p>Brown, Lane. “<a href="https://www.vulture.com/article/eyes-wide-shut-conspiracy-stanley-kubrick-jeffrey-epstein.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The <em>Eyes Wide Shut</em> Conspiracy</a>,” New York Magazine, Dec. 17, 2025.</p><br><p>Ebiri, Bilge. “<a href="https://www.vulture.com/2019/06/eyes-wide-shut-orgy-scene-oral-history.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">An Oral History of an Orgy</a>,” New York Magazine, June 27, 2019.</p><br><p>Nicholson, Amy. “<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/27/movies/tom-cruise-eyes-wide-shut-magnolia.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Year Tom Cruise Gave Not One but Two Dangerously Vulnerable Performances</a>,” The New York Times, Aug. 27, 2024.</p><br><p>Raftery, Brian. “<a href="https://www.vulture.com/2019/04/the-dream-team.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dream Team: Cruise, Kidman, Kubrick, and the making of <em>Eyes Wide Shut</em></a>,” New York Magazine, Apr. 15, 2019.</p><br><p>Shapiro, Lila. “<a href="https://www.vulture.com/2019/07/what-i-learned-after-watching-eyes-wide-shut-100-times.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">What I Learned After Watching <em>Eyes Wide Shut</em> 100 Times</a>,” New York Magazine, July 1, 2019.&nbsp;</p><br><p>Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>The delicious, healthful prune has long had a cross to bear: It’s best known for making people poop. In the late 1990s, the California Prune Board set out on a quixotic mission to amend this sales-flattening reputation. It would attempt to rechristen this ancient fruit in the hopes the prune could one day be as unencumbered as an apricot, a raisin, or a fig.&nbsp;</p><br><p>In a world where every product and person increasingly believes it’s one good rebrand away from changing how they are seen, the story of the prune’s attempt to become the “dried plum” is a telling tale about the impossibility of escaping who you really are—and the freedom that comes with self-acceptance.&nbsp;</p><br><p>You’ll hear from Richard Peterson, retired Executive Director of the California Prune Board; food writer and chef <a href="https://www.davidlebovitz.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">David Liebovitz</a>; lawyer and lobbyist Dan Haley; and Kiaran Locy, Director of Brand and Industry Communications at the <a href="https://californiaprunes.org/prune-board/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">California Prune Board</a>.</p><br><p>This episode was written by Willa Paskin. It was edited by Evan Chung, our supervising producer. It was produced by Katie Shepherd. Decoder Ring is also produced by Max Freedman. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director.</p><br><p>If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at <a href="mailto:DecoderRing@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DecoderRing@slate.com</a> or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281.</p><br><p>Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><br><p><strong>Sources for This Episode</strong></p><p>Barry, Dave. <a href="https://www.davebarry.com/book-page.php?isbn13=9780345432483" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Dave Barry Hits Below the Beltway</em></a><em>, </em>Ballantine Books, 2002.&nbsp;</p><p>Brasher, Philip. “<a href="https://abcnews.com/Health/story?id=117656&amp;page=1" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">FDA Approves Prune Name Change</a>,” ABC News, Feb. 1, 2001.&nbsp;</p><p>Brasher, Philip. “<a href="https://www.seattlepi.com/national/article/where-s-the-beef-kids-give-prune-burgers-the-1078737.php" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Where's the beef? Kids give prune burgers the taste test</a>,” Associated Press, Jan 29, 2002.&nbsp;</p><p>Cimons, Marlene. “<a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-dec-21-mn-46170-story.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">A New Wrinkle for the Prune Industry</a>,” Los Angeles Times, Dec. 21, 1999.</p><p>Crespi, John M., Harry M. Kaiser, Julian M. Alston, and&nbsp; Richard J. Sexton. “<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Economics-Commodity-Promotion-Programs-California/dp/0820472719" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Evaluation of Prune Promotion by the California Dried Plum Board</a>,” <em>The Economics of Commodity Promotion Programs: Lessons from California</em>, Peter Lang USA, 2005.&nbsp;</p><p>Davis, Glenn. “<a href="https://teachers.yale.edu/curriculum/units/2015/3/4" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">French History in Your City: San Jose, California - the Pellier Brothers</a>,” Yale National Initiative, Sep. 2015.&nbsp;</p><p>Fabricant, Florence. “<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2001/10/31/dining/in-france-the-prune-holds-a-noble-station.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">In France, the Prune Holds a Noble Station</a>,” The New York Times, Oct. 31, 2001.</p><p>Fabricant, Florence. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2000/08/13/business/responsible-party-richard-peterson-rejuvenating-the-humble-prune.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">“Responsible Party: Richard Peterson; Rejuvenating The Humble Prune</a>,” The New York Times, Aug. 13, 2000.&nbsp;</p><p>Fabricant, Florence. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1983/10/12/garden/underappreciated-the-humble-prune.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">“Underapprecaited: The Humble Prune</a>,” The New York Times, Oct. 12, 1983.</p><p><a href="https://archive.org/details/0008_Fortune_in_Two_Old_Trunks_A_08_26_20_00" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>A Fortune In Two Old Trunks</em></a>. Sunsweet, 1947.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>Fullan, Genevieve. “<a href="https://www.eater.com/23169866/prunes-fruit-explainer-dried-fruit" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">In Defense of Prunes</a>,” Eater, Jun 21, 2022.&nbsp;</p><p>Gellene, Denise. “<a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-oct-16-fi-43247-story.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">New Wrinkle in an Old Story</a>,” Los Angeles Times, Oct 16, 1997.&nbsp;</p><p><a href="https://archive.org/details/GoodWrin1951" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Good Wrinkles</em></a><em>. </em>Sunsweet, 1951.&nbsp;</p><p>Kamen, Al. “<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/magazine/1999/12/12/sunday-in-the-loop/3047b7bc-517b-4ad2-8f45-18ba41dcd40d/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sunday in the Loop: Plum Outta Luck</a>,” Washington Post, Dec. 11, 1999.&nbsp;</p><p>Koger, Chris. “<a href="https://www.thepacker.com/news/retail/dried-plums-no-longer-california-prunes-have-new-brand" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dried plums no longer: California prunes have new brand</a>,” The Packer, Nov. 15, 2022.&nbsp;</p><p>Lucas, Greg. “<a href="https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/who-d-have-thought-pruneburgers-juicy-tender-2915998.php" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Who'd Have Thought? Pruneburgers / Juicy, tender and low-fat, they're surprising hits in school cafeterias</a>,” San Francisco Chronicle, Aug. 9, 1999.</p><p>Martin, Ronda Beaman. <a href="https://ttu-ir.tdl.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/07e10912-7a69-4a57-80c2-dd61231a0f74/content" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">“Stan Freberg—His Credits and Contributions to Advertising</a>,” M.A. Thesis, Texas Tech University, Dec. 1986.&nbsp;</p><p>McKay, Leonard. “<a href="https://www.sanjoseinside.com/news/louis_pellier/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Louis Pellier</a>,” San Jose Inside, Sep. 25, 2006.</p><p>Morse, Rob. “<a href="https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/hold-the-prunes-hold-the-lettuce-3073691.php" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Hold the prunes, hold the lettuce</a>,” San Francisco Examiner, July 28, 1999.&nbsp;</p><p>“<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2000/FOOD/news/09/13/prunes.reut/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Prune gets $10 million makeover -- as dried plum</a>,” CNN, Sep. 13, 2000.</p><p>Rao, Tejal. “<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/16/magazine/in-praise-of-the-prune.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">In Praise of the Prune</a>,” The New York Times Magazine, Feb. 16, 2017.</p><p>Roach, Mary. “<a href="https://www.salon.com/1999/11/05/prunes/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The power of prunes</a>,” Salon, Nov. 5, 1999.</p><p>Waters, Michael. “<a href="https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/fruit-burgers-prunes-school-lunches" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">When the Dried Plum Lobby Tried to Make Pruneburgers Happen</a>,” Atlas Obscura, April 13, 2018.&nbsp;</p><p>Zasky, Jason. “<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20201109042347/http://failuremag.com/article/prunes-turning-over-a-new-leaf" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Prunes: Turning Over a New Leaf</a>,” Failure Magazine, Apr. 16, 2002.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Three weeks ago, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum shared <a href="https://x.com/SecretaryBurgum/status/2014382110828536183" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">an unusual tweet</a>: a cartoon image of himself with his arm draped around a giant, anthropomorphized lump of coal. This piece of coal has big googly eyes and a smudge of a nose, and is wearing a safety vest and a hard hat. He is, frankly, adorable—and he has a name: Coalie.</p><br><p>When Coalie first appeared on the internet, he went viral—ridiculed on social media, in newsletters, and even on <a href="https://youtu.be/IhAXXY4SqW0?si=LMRHCeVWQMk0VScC" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">late night talk shows</a>. And that’s because this big-eyed, cute piece of coal was widely understood to be coal propaganda, a tool to soften the coal industry’s image.</p><br><p>But the truth about Coalie is more complicated. His origins tell a story about what it’s like for federal employees to try to do their work while navigating the Trump administration’s agenda. Coalie may be widely seen as a mascot for coal mining, but that’s not what he was made for.</p><br><p>In this episode, you’ll hear from Simone Randolph, Director of Communications for the <a href="https://www.osmre.gov/news/stories/10-things-know-about-how-osmre-supports-americas-energy-legacy-and-communities" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE)</a>; Sara Eckert, formerly of OSMRE; Slate staff writer <a href="https://slate.com/author/nitish-pahwa" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Nitish Pahwa</a>; and <a href="https://www.leahstokes.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Leah Stokes</a>, who researches climate and energy policy at the University of California, Santa Barbara and co-hosts the podcast <a href="https://www.degreespod.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">A Matter of Degrees</a>.</p><br><p>Thank you to Daniel Raimi, Tony Ho Tran, and Hannah Northey.</p><br><p>This episode was written by Willa Paskin and Evan Chung and produced by Evan Chung, Decoder Ring’s supervising producer. Our show is also produced by Max Freedman and Katie Shepherd. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director.</p><br><p>If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at <a href="mailto:DecoderRing@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DecoderRing@slate.com</a> or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281.</p><br><p>Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>It’s a weird time for culture. There is more of it than ever before, it’s more accessible than ever before, but so little of it feels original. New movies are based on old stories, new songs are recycling old hooks, and fashion trends are cycling so fast that everything’s in.&nbsp;</p><br><p>Has our culture grown stagnant? The author and culture critic <a href="https://culture.ghost.io/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">W. David Marx</a> thinks so.&nbsp;</p><br><p>His new book, <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/769187/blank-space-by-w-david-marx/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Blank Space</em></a>, argues that there is a “blank space” in the 21st century where cultural innovation should be. In this episode, David explains to Willa how culture change worked in the 20th century, what changed after the turn of the millennium, and what we might do about it.&nbsp;</p><br><p>This episode was produced by Max Freedman. Decoder Ring is also produced by Willa Paskin, Katie Shepherd, and Evan Chung, our supervising producer. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director.</p><br><p>If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at <a href="mailto:DecoderRing@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DecoderRing@slate.com</a>&nbsp;or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281.</p><br><p>Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>. Or, visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>We are really lucky to get lots of listener suggestions for the show, more good questions than we can possibly answer in a mailbag episode once or twice a year. So we’re starting a new segment we call… Decoder Rings Back! Every month, host Willa Paskin will personally call up a listener to answer their question.&nbsp;</p><p>In this inaugural installment of Decoder Rings Back, Willa calls up listener Dustin Malek about his cultural mystery: Why did the <em>Mona Lisa</em>, of all paintings, become the most famous in the world, bar none? Willa shares the story of daring heist that turned Leonardo da Vinci’s enigmatic smiling subject into a celebrity.</p><p>Future episodes of Decoder Rings Back<em> </em>will only be available to Slate Plus subscribers. So if you want to be sure not to miss them, sign up for Slate Plus! You’ll get exclusive episodes and ad-free listening not just on our show, but all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/decoder-ring/id1376577202" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple Podcasts</a> or <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/3vYNA0Ki5sUHnYC9QwQnKl" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify</a>, or visit <a href="https://slate.com/podcast-plus?utm_medium=link&amp;utm_campaign=plus_pod&amp;utm_content=Decoder_Ring&amp;utm_source=episode_summary" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">slate.com/decoderplus</a> for access wherever you listen.&nbsp;</p><p>This episode was produced by Max Freedman. Decoder Ring is also produced by Katie Shepherd and Evan Chung, our supervising producer. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director.</p><br><p>If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at <a href="mailto:DecoderRing@slate.com" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">DecoderRing@slate.com</a> or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281.</p><br><p><strong>Sources for This Episode</strong></p><p>Cumming, Laura. “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2011/aug/05/mona-lisa-theft-louvre-leonardo" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The man who stole the Mona Lisa</a>,” The Guardian, August 5, 2011.</p><p>Hoobler, Dorothy, and Thomas Hoobler. “<a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2009/05/mona-lisa-excerpt200905?printable=true%C2%A4tPage=all" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Stealing Mona Lisa</a>,” Vanity Fair, April 16, 2009.</p><p>Hoobler, Dorothy, and Thomas Hoobler. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Crimes-Paris-Story-Murder-Detection/dp/0803234325" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>The Crimes of Paris: A True Story of Murder, Theft, and Detection</em></a>, Bison Books, 2010.</p><p>Isaacson, Walter. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Leonardo-Vinci-Walter-Isaacson/dp/1501139169/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Leonardo da Vinci</em></a>, Simon &amp; Schuster, 2018.</p><p>Roberts, Sam. “<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/07/arts/design/mona-lisa-vincenzo-peruggia.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Happy Birthday to the Man Who Stole the Mona Lisa and Took It to Italy</a>,” The New York Times, October 7, 2022.</p><p>Sassoon, Donald. “<a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/4289718" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Mona Lisa: The Best-Known Girl in the Whole Wide World</a>,” History Workshop Journal, Spring 2001.</p><p>Sassoon, Donald. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Mona-Lisa-History-Painting-Best-Known/dp/0007106157" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Mona Lisa: The History of the World’s Most Famous Painting</em></a>, HarperCollins, 2016.</p><p>“<a href="https://www.npr.org/2011/07/30/138800110/the-theft-that-made-the-mona-lisa-a-masterpiece" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Theft That Made The 'Mona Lisa' A Masterpiece</a>,” NPR, July 30, 2011.</p><p>Zug, James. “<a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/stolen-how-the-mona-lisa-became-the-worlds-most-famous-painting-16406234/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Stolen: How the Mona Lisa Became the World’s Most Famous Painting</a>,” Smithsonian Magazine, June 15, 2011.</p><br><p><br></p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

Videomate: Men was a VHS tape released in 1987 featuring 60 single men pitching themselves as dates to women on the other side of the TV screen: “The love of your life could be on your TV tonight!” the box reads. In retrospect, Videomate: Men is a bizarre and hilarious time capsule, but at the time it was one of many manifestations of what was known as video dating. To find out how anyone thought this was a good idea, Decoder Ring examines the weird and forgotten world of video dating in the 1970s, ’80s, and ’90s to find out why video dating once seemed like the future—and if that future is still yet to come. On this episode, originally released in 2019, we talk to the creators of the Found Footage Fest, VHS collectors who unleashed Videomate on the internet; ask the creators of video dating services like Videomate’s Steve Dworman and Great Expectations’ Jeffrey Ullman what they were thinking; and talk to participants who used these services but not necessarily in the way that was intended. We’ll also discuss the future of video dating with Coffee Meets Bagel co-founder Dawoon Kang and former host of The Longest Shortest Time Andrea Silenzi. This episode was written by Willa Paskin and was produced and edited by Benjamin Frisch. We had research assistance from Cleo Levin. Decoder Ring is produced by Katie Shepherd, Max Freedman, and Evan Chung, our supervising producer. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director. If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at DecoderRing@slate.com, or leave a message on the Decoder Ring hotline at 347-460-7281. We love to hear any and all of your ideas for the show.  Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/decoderplus for access wherever you listen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Americans are currently besotted with protein. It’s touted as being good for muscle growth, weight loss, skincare, mental acuity, longevity, and much else besides. It’s sold to men, women, children, the elderly— you can even buy protein for your pets. The protein supplement market alone is worth $21 billion and growing—and extra protein is being added to coffee, cereal, pasta, beer, ice cream, and popcorn. But as frenzied as we currently are about protein, this is not the first protein boom—or even the second. Protein has been promoted as a charismatic, cure-all nutrient for nearly two centuries. In this episode, with the help of Samantha King and Gavin Weedon, the authors of Protein: The Making of a Nutritional Superstar, we look closely at all our protein crazes and their associated protein products—from beef tea to whey powder—and see what they can tell us about our current protein mania.  This episode was produced by Max Freedman. Decoder Ring is also produced by Willa Paskin, Katie Shepherd, and Evan Chung, our supervising producer. We had editing support from Josh Levin and fact-checking by Sophie Summergrad. Merritt Jacob is Senior Technical Director. If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at DecoderRing@slate.com  or leave a message on our hotline at (347) 460-7281. Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/decoderplus for access wherever you listen. Sources for This Episode King, Samantha and Gavin Weedon. Protein: The Making of a Nutritional Superstar, Duke University Press, 2026. Baker, Ryan. “Protein has become America's latest obsession. Companies like General Mills and PepsiCo are capitalizing on it,” CNBC, July 22, 2025. Brock, William H. Justus von Liebig: The Chemical Gatekeeper, Cambridge University Press, 1997. Callahan, Alice. “The More Protein, the Better?” New York Times, April 9, 2025. Draper, Kevin. “America’s Protein Obsession Is Transforming the Dairy Industry,” New York Times, July 16, 2025. Gayomali, Chris. “Big Food Gets Jacked: How protein mania took over the American grocery store,” New York Magazine, Feb. 12, 2025. “The Great Protein Fiasco,” Maintenance Phase, Aug. 31, 2021. Liebig, Justus von. Researches on the Chemistry of Food, Taylor and Walton, 1847. McLaren, Donald S. “The Great Protein Fiasco,” The Lancet, 1974. Oncken, John. “Stingy, 'half-way' dairy farmer's curiosity changed the world,” Wisconsin State Farmer, April 27, 2022. “Subject of Whey Disposal Discussed in UW Bulletin.” Wausau Daily Herald, Aug. 28, 1965. Torrella, Kenny. “You’re probably eating way too much protein,” Vox, Jan. 30, 2024. Wilson, Bee. “Protein mania: the rich world’s new diet obsession,” The Guardian, Jan. 4, 2019. Wu, Katherine J. “Should We All Be Eating Like The Rock?” The Atlantic, Aug. 28, 2023. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hark, the holiday season is upon us—and with it the most solemn of festive traditions: a gift guide! In this video and podcast special, Slate hosts Dana Stevens, Chris Molanphy, and Willa Paskin beam-in from their collective hearths to deliver unto the internet their favorite gifts for culture lovers this holiday. In addition to sharing gifts, they also discuss the cultural artifact that is the “holiday gift guide,” and its history going back to the early 20th century, up to the modern day. See the entirety of the 1910 gift guide Our Special Holiday Gift-Book from Greenhut-Siegel Cooper, and Esquire’s ultra-mod gift guide from 1961. Check out our gift recommendations below: Dana Stevens’ Cozy Movie Night-In:  The Salbree Collapsible Silicone Microwave Popcorn Popper & Amish Country Popcorn L'agraty Chunky Knit Blanket Throw The Adventures of Antoine Doinel, The Criterion Collection Box Set Chris Molanphy’s Hit Parade Collection:  The Beatles’ Revolver CD Box Set Mad Men Blu-Ray Box Set  Can't Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop's Blockbuster Year, by Michaelangelo Matos Willa Paskin’s Fruit-Themed Trompe-l'œil Housewares: Cantaloupe-shaped bowls in the style of Bordallo Pinheiro 4-Pack Orange-Shaped Candle Stocking Stuffer Cherry-Shaped Toilet Brush The Slate Culture Gift Guide is produced for Slate Studios by Benjamin Frisch and Micah Phillips, with Meryl Bezrutczyk and Andrew Harding. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices