The Culture Gabfest “Steak All the Way Through” Edition
Slate's podcast about Paula Deen and celebrity apologies, the new CBS series Under the Dome, and the decline of the humanities.
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On this week’s episode, our critics discuss the Paula Deen scandal and celebrity apologies in general. Do celebrities’ apologies—or nonapologies—even begin to help them atone for awful behavior? Then the gabbers take a look at the new CBS series Under the Dome, based on the Stephen King novel of the same name, in which a mysterious, impenetrable dome surrounds and holds captive an entire small town. Finally, the crew considers the decline of the humanities major: Why is it happening, does it matter, and what can be done about it?
Here are links to some of the things we discussed this week:
- Paula Deen fired by Food Network.
- Deen’s awkward apologies.
- Alyssa Rosenberg on Deen’s apologies, for ThinkProgress.
- Michael Richards’ apology on Letterman.
- Frank Bruni on Paula Deen in the New York Times.
- Anna Holmes on the “theater of public apology” for Time.
- The TV series Under the Dome, on Amazon.
- Under the Dome: A Novel, by Stephen King.
- Troy Patterson reviews Under the Dome for Slate.
- Artist Damien Hirst.
- “The Heart of the Matter,” a report by the Commission on the Humanities & Social Sciences.
- “The Decline and Fall of the English Major,” by Verlyn Klinkenborg in the New York Times.
- “The Humanist Vocation,” by David Brooks in the New York Times.
- Philosopher Richard Rorty.
Endorsements:
Dana: A moving obituary for James Gandolfini, by New York magazine’s Matt Zoller Seitz.
June: The ridiculously addictive smartphone game “Candy Crush.”
Stephen: The indie rock band Beach Fossils and their eponymous debut album.
Outro: Beach Fossils, “Clash the Truth”
You can email us at culturefest@slate.com.
This podcast was produced by Julia Furlan. Our intern is Sam McDougle.
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