Willa Paskin, host of Slate's Decoder Ring, joins POP-The Podcast to talk about her show that delves into the fascinating back-stories of everyday cultural phenomena.Curious about why a thing is a thing? Decoder Ring investigates the stories behind cultural phenomena such as sun tans, mullet haircuts or the Jane Fonda Workout.Host Willa Paskin shares with Pick of the Pods:- how ‘writing for the ear’ is different from writing an article- what’s a ‘high touch’ podcast, and did Willa jump into the podcast deep end by choosing to make one?- should you be ‘nice’ to the people featured in your podcasts?Decoder Ring - homepage: https://slate.com/podcasts/decoder-ring- on any podcast app: https://pod.link/1376577202- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYjxRBfBp4syi0tCgWRnwXGkF4i2lbvoREpisodes of Decoder Ring featured on this episode:Jane Fonda’s Workout, Part 1: Jane and Leni: https://slate.com/podcasts/decoder-ring/2020/10/jane-fonda-leni-cazdenThe Sign Painter: https://slate.com/podcasts/decoder-ring/2021/06/ilona-granet-feminist-artBridget in the Buff: https://slate.com/podcasts/decoder-ring/2026/09/bridget-in-the-buff-naked-fat-puzzles-puzzles-gifts-1970s-naafaWilla’s Pod Picks:Death of an Artist Introducing Death of an Artist Season 3: Petra Mathers and Her Michael: https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/death-of-an-artist/introducing-death-of-an-artist-season-3-petra-mathers-and-her-michaelDan Taberski’s Manifesto https://podcastreview.org/review/dan-taberskis-manifesto/The Rest is History (of course): https://therestishistory.com/series/the-french-revolutionWatch here on the POP YouTube channel or listen on any podcast app: https://pod.link/1891273310.POP-The Newsletter:

For a fresh recommendation of the one podcast you should be listening to right now, follow POP at pickofthepods.substack.comPOP-The Podcast:Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQu6D1uClH0i-nR9YppCSgzhElMbfPcv7Listen on any podcast app: https://pod.link/1891273310

Update: Episode 7 is now available wherever you get podcasts: https://pod.link/1891273310 or here on Substack:

Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQu6D1uClH0i-nR9YppCSgzhElMbfPcv7

Some people use podcasts to help them fall asleep. Some people are kept awake by existential dread. How about a podcast that can combine the two?!

Are We Doomed? is an excellent narrative documentary series that looks at genuine, or potential, threats to the planet or humanity. Think nuclear war, the next pandemic, or killer robots.

Host Ben Bradford joins us on POP-The Podcast to tell all about the show, published by National Public Radio (NPR).

Find out:

* why nuclear armageddon is perfectly possible, but would be “embarrassing”

* is there really a “supervolcano” waiting to blow up the entire United States?

* why Ben hates one futurist’s idea that one day we will all have tiny pet hippos

Yes, it’s a fun, but not flippant, podcast that is rooted in science and expertise.

Links:

Are We Doomed on the Pick of the Pods newsletter: https://pickofthepods.substack.com/p/armageddon-it-are-you

Are We Doomed

* homepage: https://www.npr.org/2026/04/21/g-s1-118208/a-new-npr-network-podcast-asks-the-big-question-are-we-doomed

* on any podcast app: https://pod.link/1893359212

* YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AreWeDoomedPod

Episodes of Are We Doomed featured on this episode of POP-The Podcast:

* Our Vision of the Post-Apocalypse Is Wrong:

* The Yellowstone Supervolcano Panic!

* How To Survive a Nuclear War

Ben’s Pod Picks:

* This American Life, Swim Towards the Shark: https://www.thisamericanlife.org/837/swim-towards-the-shark

* Oh, Hello: the P’dcast:

* Search Engine:

https://www.searchengine.show/

Ben’s fantasy interview:

Sam Altman or Jeff Bezos, locked in a room and forced to say honestly what is their vision of the future.

Subscribe to Pick of the Pods - the newsletter - on Substack: https://substack.com/@robinpomeroy

Discover one new podcast every week with the Pick of the Pods Substack: https://pickofthepods.substack.com/Watch POP-The Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQu6D1uClH0i-nR9YppCSgzhElMbfPcv7

Or follow on any podcast app - new episodes drop monthly: https://pod.link/1891273310

Music by fAR

Pick of the Pods: copyright Spinney Hill Media 2026.