

Hang Up and Listen
Slate Podcasts
A weekly sports discussion from Slate.Get more Hang Up and Listen with Slate Plus! Join for weekly bonus episodes of Hang Up and Listen and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Hang Up and Listen show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or visit slate.com/hangupplus for access wherever you listen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jun 8, 2020 • 1h 17min
Roger Goodell Says Black Lives Matter
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about the NFL’s about-face on players and social activism. They also assess the different roads taken by the NBA and Major League Baseball to returning to play. Finally, they interview Bao Nguyen, the director of the documentary Be Water, on the life of martial arts legend Bruce Lee.NFL (05:44): Roger Goodell, Drew Brees, Colin Kaepernick, and the changing conversation about civil rights and pro football.NBA and MLB (24:54): There’s labor peace in the NBA and labor strife in pro baseball. What does that say about those two leagues?Be Water (39:31): The latest film in ESPN’s 30 for 30 series is about Bruce Lee, and about racism in America.Afterballs (01:02:56): Josh and Joel on black football coaches and Stefan on a man who could have played in the majors.To help support Hang Up and Listen and listen to every episode in full, sign up now for Slate Plus. Members get to skip the ads and get bonus segments and episodes on many Slate podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 1, 2020 • 1h 3min
George Floyd Is a Sports Story
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about how the sports world is reacting, and how all of us are reacting, to the killing of George Floyd in Minnesota. They’re also be joined by ESPN’s Myron Medcalf to talk about college sports, and who is and isn’t speaking out about racial injustice.George Floyd (01:12): What athletes and leagues are saying and doing after Floyd’s killing, and what should happen next.Floyd and college sports (26:16): Basketball coach LeVelle Moton called out his white colleagues for their silence. Will anything change going forward?Afterball (54:27): Joel on George Floyd, Houston high school athlete. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 26, 2020 • 20min
The NBA Is (Probably) Going to Disney World
In this Plus episode preview, Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the latest plans to bring back professional and college sports. In the full show, Ultrarunner Zach Bitter also joins to talk about setting a 100-mile world record on a treadmill. Finally, Stefan speaks with Simon Anthony about his experience solving the “miracle Sudoku.”To help support Hang Up and Listen and listen to every episode in full, sign up now for Slate Plus. Members get to skip the ads and get bonus segments and episodes on many Slate podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 18, 2020 • 1h 15min
What Was The Last Dance?
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the final episodes of ESPN’s documentary The Last Dance. Announcer Ian Eagle also joins to talk about the challenge of calling games remotely. Finally, they assess the NFL’s proposed modifications to the Rooney Rule.The Last Dance (01:29): What we learned, and didn’t learn, about Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. Remote broadcasting (22:22): A veteran sportscaster on what it’s like to call a huge sporting event from a studio.Rooney Rule (44:49): Does it make sense to offer teams better draft picks to hire minority coaches and executives?Afterballs (01:01:54): Stefan on 19th century baseball and smoking and Josh on Michael Jordan’s absence from NBA Jam.To help support Hang Up and Listen and listen to every episode in full, sign up now for Slate Plus. Members get to skip the ads and get bonus segments and episodes on many Slate podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 11, 2020 • 29min
Michael Jordan is a Jerk
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the latest episodes of ESPN’s Chicago Bulls documentary The Last Dance.To help support Hang Up and Listen and listen to every episode in full, sign up now for Slate Plus. Members get to skip the ads and get bonus segments and episodes on many Slate podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 4, 2020 • 1h 15min
What Happened to Equal Pay?
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin check in with ESPN’s Chicago Bulls documentary The Last Dance. They also discuss the latest turn in the U.S. women’s national soccer team’s equal pay lawsuit. Finally, the Hang Up and Listen Quarantine Magazine Club discusses the 1998 Sports Illustrated story “Where’s Daddy?”The Last Dance (02:33): Assessing the episodes on Jordan’s gambling and political stances (or lack thereof).Equal pay lawsuit (22:02): A judge ruled against the USWNT. What happens next?Quarantine Magazine Club (41:24): Looking back at a story on athletes and out-of-wedlock children and the controversy it kicked up.Afterballs (01:00:00): Stefan on Pele’s final competitive match and Josh with another round of pandemic sports trivia. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Apr 27, 2020 • 23min
Let’s Have an NFL Draft at Home
In this Hang Up Plus preview, Stefan Fatsis and Josh Levin are joined by David Roth to talk about the socially distanced NFL Draft.Further in the episode, Lindsay Gibbs of Power Plays joins to talk about when and if women’s sports leagues will come back. Finally, Mike Schur of Parks and Recreation and the Good Place helps us assess the 2020 Name of the Year bracket.To hear the full episode, sign up for Slate Plus at Slate.com/HangUpPlus. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Apr 20, 2020 • 1h 8min
Michael Jordan, the Bulls, and the Last Dance
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss ESPN’s documentary on the Chicago Bulls, The Last Dance. They also talk about whether the NBA’s new development program is a threat to college basketball and assess the state of sports media during the coronavirus pandemic.The Last Dance (05:38): What we made of the first two episodes of the 10-part documentary.G League (22:46): Jalen Green is passing on the NCAA to go pro. What does that mean for the future of basketball?Sports media (37:33): How the pandemic will change sports journalism.Afterballs (53:34): Stefan on his daughter’s Scrabble triumphs and Josh on KO Pete McBride.To help support Hang Up and Listen and listen to every episode in full, sign up now for Slate Plus. Members get to skip the ads and get bonus segments and episodes on many Slate podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Apr 13, 2020 • 1h 19min
What Happened to the Warriors and Kevin Durant
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin discuss the latest on sports and the coronavirus. They also talk with the Athletic’s Ethan Strauss about his new book on the Golden State Warriors, The Victory Machine. And the Hang Up and Listen Quarantine Magazine Club convenes to discuss Bill Russell’s “How I Psych Them.”The pandemic (03:48): ESPN televising HORSE and Major League Baseball’s insane plan to restart the season.The Victory Machine (23:36): The decline and fall of the Warriors’ basketball dynasty.Quarantine Magazine Club (44:29): A conversation about a classic Sports Illustrated piece about sports and psychology.Afterballs (01:01:46): Stefan on SI’s 1963 profile of Bill Russell and Josh with some sports trivia. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Apr 6, 2020 • 1h 9min
The NFL Is America’s Bellwether
Joel Anderson, Stefan Fatsis, and Josh Levin talk about the push to bring football back and the psychology around restarting sporting events with crowds. Hurdling champion Dawn Harper-Nelson also joins to discuss how her life has changed now that the Olympics have been postponed.NFL (4:04): Donald Trump wants games to start back up again by August or September. Is that realistic? Dawn Harper-Nelson (26:25): Our live show guest from December returns for an update on her life and her training now that the Summer Games are off the calendar for 2020.Afterballs (47:24): Joel on Bobby Bowden, Stefan on Fountains of Wayne’s “All Kinds of Time,” and Josh on a 1948 race between old baseball men. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.


