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Decoder Ring
Decoder Ring
Slate Podcasts

Decoder Ring is the show about cracking cultural mysteries. In each episode, host Willa Paskin takes a cultural question, object, or habit;... more

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Episodes

The Scratch-Off Ticket’s Instant Win

You may never have thought very hard about scratch-off tickets, but that’s part of their power. They’re a form of... more

12 Feb 2025 · 40 minutes
Jump, Jive and Fail: The ’90s Swing Craze

When we got multiple listener emails asking about the swing revival of the late 1990s, host Willa Paskin’s first, knee... more

29 Jan 2025 · 1 hour, 6 minutes
I am Tupperware, I Contain Multitudes

The storage container is a stealthy star of the modern home. It’s something we use to organize more of our... more

15 Jan 2025 · 46 minutes
Introducing Planet Money: Can Money Buy Happiness?

People often say that money can't buy you happiness. Sometimes, if you ask them to tell you more about it,... more

01 Jan 2025 · 30 minutes
Mailbag: Fruit Snacks, Waterbeds, and Lobster Tanks

It’s our annual mailbag episode! We get a lot of wonderful reader emails suggesting topics for the show — and... more

18 Dec 2024 · 52 minutes
Mystery of the Mullet (Encore)

The mullet, the love-to-hate-it hairstyle, is as associated with the 1980’s as Ronald Reagan, junk bonds, and breakdancing. But in... more

04 Dec 2024 · 54 minutes
Reconsidering One of the “Worst” TV Shows of All Time

In 1980, a variety show debuted on NBC called Pink Lady and Jeff. Its stars were a pair of Japanese... more

20 Nov 2024 · 1 hour, 4 minutes
A Feel-Good Story About the End of the World

The fear that the Earth could be destroyed by a killer asteroid is an anxiety that pops up all the... more

06 Nov 2024 · 43 minutes
The Wrongest Bird in Movie History

There is a prominent bird in the 2000 film Charlie’s Angels that makes absolutely no sense. This so-called Pygmy Nuthatch... more

23 Oct 2024 · 51 minutes
Selling Out (Encore)

Whatever happened to selling out? The defining concern of Generation X has become a relic from another era. How that... more

09 Oct 2024 · 53 minutes
Decoder Ring
The Scratch-Off Ticket’s Instant Win
Decoder Ring
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