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Death, Sex & Money

Slate Podcasts

Anna Sale explores the big questions and hard choices that are often left out of polite conversation. read less

Our Editor's Take

It seems many of life's most important conversations never happen. If these tough topics never arise in polite conversations, perhaps a podcast is the place to do it. At least, that's what Anna Sale, host of Death, Sex & Money, thinks.

Everyone faces tough questions and challenging choices in life. Life is full of awkward obstacles that ordinary conversation can't handle. Things can be hard, from student loans to the unspoken hardships of marriage. Why should these universal experiences be taboo to talk about?

Follow along as host Sale explores life's biggest questions and roughest rides. With a smattering of compelling topics and fascinating guests, Death, Sex & Money is captivating. Each episode focuses intensely on things of consequence and intrigue. It goes where other people (and podcasts) will not. It's also compelling enough to listen to many episodes all at once.

From pop culture icons to the plight of teachers, the diversity of Death, Sex & Money keeps it fresh. This immersive podcast faces friendship, financial hardship, divorce, and social issues head-on. The entertainment factor is through the roof. A few life lessons might pop up along the way too.

The Death, Sex & Money podcast is a must-listen for lovers of real-life conversations and hard-to-broach topics. Nothing is off-limits. And, of course, every episode is sure to mesmerize. Be sure to tune in as Sale tackles the tough topics. It's guaranteed to be a surprising and exciting time.

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Society & CultureSociety & Culture
Health & FitnessHealth & Fitness
BusinessBusiness
RelationshipsRelationships
SexualitySexuality
CareersCareers

Episodes

Should You Divulge a Disability in Your Dating Profile?
24-12-2024
Should You Divulge a Disability in Your Dating Profile?
Todd is looking for love, but he’s unsure about disclosing something in dating profiles: his multiple sclerosis. On Slate’s How To podcast, Todd got some crucial advice from Jessica Slice and Caroline Cupp, authors of Dateable: Swiping Right, Hooking Up, and Settling Down While Chronically Ill and Disabled.  This week, we’re sharing that wonderful episode with Death, Sex & Money listeners, and to kick things off, Anna talks to Carvell Wallace (the host of How To) about what makes this episode special. Listeners may remember Carvell from his appearance on DSM earlier this year.  Do you have a problem that needs solving? Reach out to the How To podcast at howto@slate.com or leave them a voicemail at 646-495-4001.  How To’s executive producer is Derek John. Joel Meyer is their senior editor/producer. The show is produced by Rosemary Belson, with Kevin Bendis and Sara McCrae. Anna and Carvell’s conversation was produced by Cameron Drews. The rest of the DSM team includes Andrew Dunn, Zoe Azulay, and Daisy Rosario.  Here’s the estate planning checklist that Carvell mentions in the episode and the full episode of How To about estate planning. And here’s the episode featuring Carvell’s son – it’s delightful. To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, Slate Plus! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at slate.com/dsmplus. Ad Disclosure in Podcast Description: A Bond Account is a self-directed brokerage account with Public Investing, member FINRA/SIPC. Deposits into this account are used to purchase 10 investment-grade and high-yield bonds. As of 9/26/24, the average, annualized yield to worst (YTW) across the Bond Account is greater than 6%. A bond’s yield is a function of its market price, which can fluctuate; therefore, a bond’s YTW is not “locked in” until the bond is purchased, and your yield at time of purchase may be different from the yield shown here. The “locked in” YTW is not guaranteed; you may receive less than the YTW of the bonds in the Bond Account if you sell any of the bonds before maturity or if the issuer defaults on the bond. Public Investing charges a markup on each bond trade. See our Fee Schedule. Bond Accounts are not recommendations of individual bonds or default allocations. The bonds in the Bond Account have not been selected based on your needs or risk profile. See https://public.com/disclosures/bond-account to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chaz Ebert on Loss, Intuition and Her 'Cougar' Group Chat
17-12-2024
Chaz Ebert on Loss, Intuition and Her 'Cougar' Group Chat
Ten years ago, Chaz Ebert talked to us about grief and loss as she was mourning the 2013 death of her husband, movie critic Roger Ebert. Her deep sense of connection to Roger continued after he was gone, including, she described, hearing his voice and feeling like they were still in conversation. When Chaz talked about this a decade ago, though, she was skittish about sharing too much about their ongoing communication, nervous that it would sound too out there.  No longer.  When we talked just a few weeks ago, Chaz described a lifetime of intuitive sensing, a skill she inherited from her mother. While her conversations with Roger have stopped, her intuition still powers much of what she does, including writing her new book, which she describes as “a download from the universe.” It’s called It’s Time to Give a FECK: Elevating Humanity through Forgiveness, Empathy, Compassion and Kindness. This week, we listen back to our original conversation with Chaz and hear what has shifted in the ten years since.  Podcast production by Andrew Dunn.  Death, Sex & Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, Slate Plus! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at slate.com/dsmplus. Come out for a LIVE Death, Sex & Money show at SF Sketchfest, San Francisco’s comedy and improv festival, on January 31. Get your tickets here.  And if you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Find us and follow us on Instagram and you can find Anna’s newsletter at annasale.substack.com. Our new email address, where you can reach us with voice memos, pep talks, questions, critiques, is deathsexmoney@slate.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Betting on America: Two Gamblers, One Presidential Election
10-12-2024
Betting on America: Two Gamblers, One Presidential Election
On election night, while many voters across the country were focused on who would win the presidency, a growing number of Americans were watching the returns with another question in mind: will I win or lose money? That’s because, just weeks before November 5th, a judge ruled that for the first time in almost a century Americans could bet large amounts of money on the outcome of political races.  In this episode, we talk to two people who made big bets: Mike, a Latino Democrat who bet $10,000 on Kamala Harris winning, and Jordan, a white conservative Trump supporter who risked $60,000 on Trump's victory. And Slate’s business and tech reporter Nitish Pahwa helps Anna understand the changing legal context for gambling in America.  Read Slate’s Nitish Pahwa's post on prediction markets and politics here. Plus, we have new totebags for sale! Check them out.  Podcast production by Zoe Azulay  Death, Sex & Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, Slate Plus! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at slate.com/dsmplus. And if you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Find us and follow us on Instagram and you can find Anna’s newsletter at annasale.substack.com. Our new email address, where you can reach us with voice memos, pep talks, questions, critiques, is deathsexmoney@slate.com. Ad Disclosure in Podcast Description: A Bond Account is a self-directed brokerage account with Public Investing, member FINRA/SIPC. Deposits into this account are used to purchase 10 investment-grade and high-yield bonds. As of 9/26/24, the average, annualized yield to worst (YTW) across the Bond Account is greater than 6%. A bond’s yield is a function of its market price, which can fluctuate; therefore, a bond’s YTW is not “locked in” until the bond is purchased, and your yield at time of purchase may be different from the yield shown here. The “locked in” YTW is not guaranteed; you may receive less than the YTW of the bonds in the Bond Account if you sell any of the bonds before maturity or if the issuer defaults on the bond. Public Investing charges a markup on each bond trade. See our Fee Schedule. Bond Accounts are not recommendations of individual bonds or default allocations. The bonds in the Bond Account have not been selected based on your needs or risk profile. See https://public.com/disclosures/bond-account to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Why I Chose Estrangement
26-11-2024
Why I Chose Estrangement
When is it time to go no contact? In this episode, we talk to four listeners who have recently become estranged from loved ones. This episode was originally aired in 2022, and is part of a three-part series on estrangement. You can listen to the other episodes here:  Estrangement Purgatory - Our episode about the contemplation stages of estrangement with a listener named Brian who is considering leaving his religious community. Estrangement’s Alternate Endings - What does long term estrangement look like? And one listener’s choice to get back in touch.  Death, Sex & Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, Slate Plus! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at slate.com/dsmplus. And if you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Find us and follow us on Instagram and you can find Anna’s newsletter at annasale.substack.com. Our new email address, where you can reach us with voice memos, pep talks, questions, critiques, is deathsexmoney@slate.com. Ad Disclosure in Podcast Description: A Bond Account is a self-directed brokerage account with Public Investing, member FINRA/SIPC. Deposits into this account are used to purchase 10 investment-grade and high-yield bonds. As of 9/26/24, the average, annualized yield to worst (YTW) across the Bond Account is greater than 6%. A bond’s yield is a function of its market price, which can fluctuate; therefore, a bond’s YTW is not “locked in” until the bond is purchased, and your yield at time of purchase may be different from the yield shown here. The “locked in” YTW is not guaranteed; you may receive less than the YTW of the bonds in the Bond Account if you sell any of the bonds before maturity or if the issuer defaults on the bond. Public Investing charges a markup on each bond trade. See our Fee Schedule. Bond Accounts are not recommendations of individual bonds or default allocations. The bonds in the Bond Account have not been selected based on your needs or risk profile. See https://public.com/disclosures/bond-account to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Will He Still Love Me When I'm Off Ozempic?
12-11-2024
Will He Still Love Me When I'm Off Ozempic?
In 2021, we released an episode called The Weight of Love, where listeners shared stories about weight, body size, and how those factors affect their romantic relationships. Fast-forward to 2024, and weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy have complicated these issues even further.  This week, listeners share stories and questions about dating, romance, sex, and self-love in the Ozempic era, and we’ve assembled a panel of experts to respond. Ronald Young Jr. is the host of Weight For It, a podcast about the conversations that we tend to avoid when it comes to our bodies. Anna Holmes wrote about her experience with the weight loss drug Mounjaro for Slate (and she is also executive producer for the exciting new podcast, The Wonder of Stevie). Jill Lewis is a body-positive therapist based in Atlanta. You can follow her on Instagram @jlewistherapy.  Podcast production by Zoe Azulay and Cameron Drews.  Death, Sex & Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, Slate Plus! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at slate.com/dsmplus. And if you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Find us and follow us on Instagram and you can find Anna’s newsletter at annasale.substack.com. Our new email address, where you can reach us with voice memos, pep talks, questions, critiques, is deathsexmoney@slate.com. Ad Disclosure in Podcast Description: A Bond Account is a self-directed brokerage account with Public Investing, member FINRA/SIPC. Deposits into this account are used to purchase 10 investment-grade and high-yield bonds. As of 9/26/24, the average, annualized yield to worst (YTW) across the Bond Account is greater than 6%. A bond’s yield is a function of its market price, which can fluctuate; therefore, a bond’s YTW is not “locked in” until the bond is purchased, and your yield at time of purchase may be different from the yield shown here. The “locked in” YTW is not guaranteed; you may receive less than the YTW of the bonds in the Bond Account if you sell any of the bonds before maturity or if the issuer defaults on the bond. Public Investing charges a markup on each bond trade. See our Fee Schedule. Bond Accounts are not recommendations of individual bonds or default allocations. The bonds in the Bond Account have not been selected based on your needs or risk profile. See https://public.com/disclosures/bond-account to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
A Celebration (and Critique) of American Freedom
05-11-2024
A Celebration (and Critique) of American Freedom
From an early age, Alynda Segarra saw the people they loved grind it out in an American system that offered them little reward. Their father, a musician and Vietnam War veteran, suffered from PTSD, and their aunt and uncle, with whom they lived, were stretched beyond their means. Alynda decided they would take a different path: drop out of school, hop trains, and form a band. "I just thought I should take a bunch of risks in [my family's] honor," Alynda told Anna. In 2024, Hurray for the Riff Raff released their ninth album, The Past Is Still Alive, and it explores that early period of risk-taking and leaving home. In this episode, Alynda talks to Anna about how writing the album, plus the recent death of their father, made them reconsider family dynamics, joy, and what it means to be free. You can read their newsletter, Resist Psychic Death, here. There’s a playlist of the songs in our episode here.  Podcast production by Zoe Azulay Death, Sex & Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, Slate Plus! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at slate.com/dsmplus. And if you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Find us and follow us on Instagram and you can find Anna’s newsletter at annasale.substack.com. Our new email address, where you can reach us with voice memos, pep talks, questions, critiques, is deathsexmoney@slate.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Haley Joel Osment Is Not Your Typical Former Child Star
22-10-2024
Haley Joel Osment Is Not Your Typical Former Child Star
When he was 11 years old, actor Haley Joel Osment was nominated for an Oscar. His resume was already long and impressive, but his role as Cole Sear in M. Night Shyamalan’s psychological thriller The Sixth Sense cemented him as an acting prodigy and a big star. Money, fame, and accolades rapidly flew in his direction.  But Osment managed to avoid a lot of the common hurdles that early fame can bring. This week, he talks to Anna Sale about the many factors that led to his relatively smooth child star experience and his continued positive outlook in an industry that can be cruel and unpredictable.  Podcast production by Cameron Drews.  Death, Sex & Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, Slate Plus! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at slate.com/dsmplus. And if you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Find us and follow us on Instagram and you can find Anna’s newsletter at annasale.substack.com. Our new email address, where you can reach us with voice memos, pep talks, questions, critiques, is deathsexmoney@slate.com. Ad Disclosure in Podcast Description: A Bond Account is a self-directed brokerage account with Public Investing, member FINRA/SIPC. Deposits into this account are used to purchase 10 investment-grade and high-yield bonds. As of 9/26/24, the average, annualized yield to worst (YTW) across the Bond Account is greater than 6%. A bond’s yield is a function of its market price, which can fluctuate; therefore, a bond’s YTW is not “locked in” until the bond is purchased, and your yield at time of purchase may be different from the yield shown here. The “locked in” YTW is not guaranteed; you may receive less than the YTW of the bonds in the Bond Account if you sell any of the bonds before maturity or if the issuer defaults on the bond. Public Investing charges a markup on each bond trade. See our Fee Schedule. Bond Accounts are not recommendations of individual bonds or default allocations. The bonds in the Bond Account have not been selected based on your needs or risk profile. See https://public.com/disclosures/bond-account to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
My Father Planned His Death. I Didn’t Stop Him.
08-10-2024
My Father Planned His Death. I Didn’t Stop Him.
One day on his morning Uber route, Jason Armstrong got an email from his father. The message: at 85, he'd decided to end his life by stopping eating and drinking. Jason's first reaction? This was the "ultimate act of narcissism." But over the next few months, as Jason witnessed his dad's careful preparations, his perspective shifted. In this episode, Jason talks to Anna about processing his father's choice - from panic attacks on morning walks to a poignant final night sharing tiny sips of favorite drinks, and opens up about grappling with love, tenderness, and what it means to honor a parent's wishes, even when they're hard to accept.  Podcast production by Zoe Azulay Death, Sex & Money is now produced by Slate! To support us and our colleagues, please sign up for our membership program, Slate Plus! Members get ad-free podcasts, bonus content on lots of Slate shows, and full access to all the articles on Slate.com. Sign up today at slate.com/dsmplus. And if you’re new to the show, welcome. We’re so glad you’re here. Find us and follow us on Instagram and you can find Anna’s newsletter at annasale.substack.com. Our new email address, where you can reach us with voice memos, pep talks, questions, critiques, is deathsexmoney@slate.com. Public.com Ad Disclosure: A Bond Account is a self-directed brokerage account with Public Investing, member FINRA/SIPC. Deposits into this account are used to purchase 10 investment-grade and high-yield bonds. As of 9/26/24, the average, annualized yield to worst (YTW) across the Bond Account is greater than 6%. A bond’s yield is a function of its market price, which can fluctuate; therefore, a bond’s YTW is not “locked in” until the bond is purchased, and your yield at time of purchase may be different from the yield shown here. The “locked in” YTW is not guaranteed; you may receive less than the YTW of the bonds in the Bond Account if you sell any of the bonds before maturity or if the issuer defaults on the bond. Public Investing charges a markup on each bond trade. See our Fee Schedule. Bond Accounts are not recommendations of individual bonds or default allocations. The bonds in the Bond Account have not been selected based on your needs or risk profile. See https://public.com/disclosures/bond-account to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices