About this episode
This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s legislative win limiting judicial powers while hundreds of thousands of Israelis protest; Harvard University and other elite colleges’ reconsideration of legacy admissions; and the revise-or-bust status of Hunter Biden’s plea deal. Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: Emily Bazelon for The New York Times: “ How Israel’s Supreme Court Might React to the Challenge to Its Power ” Maayan Lubell for Reuters: “ Israel’s Netanyahu down in polls over judicial reform ” John Dickerson for CBS News Prime Time: “ Harvard professor discusses admission at elite colleges ” Claire Cain Miller and Aatish Bhatia for The New York Times: “ How Big Is the Legacy Boost at Elite Colleges? ” and Aatish Bhatia, Claire Cain Miller, and Josh Katz: “ Study of Elite College Admissions Data Suggests Being Very Rich Is Its Own Qualification ” Annie Lowrey for The Atlantic: “ Why You Have to Care About These 12 Colleges ” John Dickerson and Catherine Herridge for CBS News Prime Time: “ What’s next for Hunter Biden after plea deal unraveling ” Here are this week’s chatters: Emily: “ Barbie ” starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling John: Wall Street Journal: “ Yemen Oil Tanker at Risk: An Operation to Avert a Massive Spill ” David: “ Jury Duty ” on Amazon Prime Listener chatter from Susan Bates: The Ride of Her Life: The True Story of a Woman, Her Horse, and Their Last-Chance Journey Across America by Elizabeth Letts For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David and Emily discuss their personal thoughts on Israel and reference Exodus by Leon Uris and “ Exodus ” starring Paul Newman and Eva Marie Saint. In the July edition of Gabfest Reads, David talks with David Grann about his book, The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder . Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com or X us @SlateGabfest . (Messages may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Cheyna Roth Research by Julie Huygen Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices