Slate Articles

The 2012 TV Upfronts

Troy Patterson — Wed, 16 May 2012 19:01:49 GMT

When I say that the Univision upfront was the best show that media buyers are likely to see to this week, I am including actual television programs among the competition. Tuesday at the New Amsterdam Theatre, near the start of its festive display of pan-American salesmanship, the Spanish-language titan marshaled impressive statistics and marched out network alumna Sofia Vergara to do some winsome shtick. It ended the presentation with a song-and-dance number. This is in itself no big deal; many a network will hire a multi-Grammy winner to croon its clients out of the door with a stripped-down number or bring on a house-made singing-contest winner to keep them alert. Univision raised the bar by delivering Shakira with eight back-up dancers, a full band, and indoor fireworks.

Unleash the Hounds

Richard L. Hasen — Wed, 16 May 2012 18:29:03 GMT

The New Yorker’s Jeffrey Toobin this week revealed juicy bits from the Supreme Court’s deliberations as it considered Citizens United, the thunderous case in which the court allowed corporations and unions to spend unlimited sums on candidate elections, paving the way for big-spending super PACs. Toobin told of a secret draft Citizens United dissent by Justice David Souter that has never been released—a draft that Souter, who has since retired, should now make public.

Parent Traps

Katie Roiphe — Wed, 16 May 2012 17:54:03 GMT

Here’s a scene in my house: My almost 9-year-old is on the Internet doing something or other, and I am not standing over her shoulder or otherwise monitoring her.

And the Greatest Ad of the Year Is …

Seth Stevenson — Wed, 16 May 2012 17:36:00 GMT

At last night’s Clio Awards—the ad world’s annual fete—host Joan Rivers immediately won my affection when she opened with a grisly joke about an ad campaign I’ve come to despise. “I want to welcome most of you here tonight,” Rivers croaked to the assembled crowd of advertising executives. “But not the people responsible for the E*Trade Baby. You can go fuck yourselves. Where is Casey Anthony when you need her?”

The Mystery of the Vanishing IPO

Matthew Yglesias — Wed, 16 May 2012 17:26:55 GMT

Facebook’s initial public offering on Friday is notable in part because Facebook is a gigantic, fascinating, and famous company. But it’s also notable because IPOs have become incredibly rare. Between 1980 and 2000, an average of 311 companies went public per year, more than one every day the markets were open, according to a recent paper by Xiaohui Gao, Jay Ritter, and Zhongyan Zhu.

Mad Men Style: The Drapers and the Francises

Tom Fitzgerald & Lorenzo Marquez — Wed, 16 May 2012 16:39:09 GMT

Each week, Tom and Lorenzo analyze the costumes on Mad Men with inimitable wit and charm—showing how the work of the show’s costume designer Janie Bryant reveals character, supplements the plot, and just plain looks great. This article is a short excerpt from this week’s Mad Style post. For much, much more on the costumes of “Dark Shadows”—from Megan’s leather trim to Dark Betty herself—visit tomandlorenzo.com.

The Culture Gabfest, “Heeeeere's Johnny (Depp)” Edition

Daniel Engber — Wed, 16 May 2012 15:53:37 GMT

Listen to Culture Gabfest No. 191 with Daniel Engber, Stephen Metcalf, Dana Stevens, and Julia Turner by clicking the arrow on the audio player below:

Brewing the Best

Brian Palmer — Wed, 16 May 2012 10:30:00 GMT

Every February, the superlimited release of Russian River Brewing Company’s Pliny the Younger sends beer lovers swarming to bars like ants to crusts of bread. All of this hubbub because the beer currently holds the No. 1 ranking at the user-driven review site BeerAdvocate.com, making it the unofficial “best beer in the world.”

Wes Anderson’s Last Meal

Wed, 16 May 2012 00:17:00 GMT

Wes Anderson doesn’t love to talk about his work and he doesn’t do a ton of interviews.

Nobody for President

David Weigel — Wed, 16 May 2012 00:13:00 GMT

The founders of Americans Elect had a dream: A 50-state presidential campaign that would upend, smash, destroy the two-party system. Today, these founders admitted that it wouldn’t work. No presidential candidate had survived the first round of the online primary. At least $35 million had been spent on absolutely nothing.