# decoder ring (podcasts) — RSS Amplifier Recent posts from the 2 feeds in the RSS Amplifier directory that cover decoder ring. Page: Feed: --- ## [Decoder Ring | McGruff Takes a Bite Out of Crime, Part 1 (Encore)](https://shows.acast.com/slow-burn/episodes/decoder-ring-mcgruff-takes-a-bite-out-of-crime-part-1-encore) _2026-08-12 · Slow Burn_ McGruff the Crime Dog arrived on the scene at the dawn of the 1980s, just as a firehose of anti-drug PSAs was inundating the youth of America. These messages didn’t always work as intended—but they did work their way into the long term memories of the kids who heard them. In the first of two episodes, originally released in 2022, we take a look at PSAs and their strange afterlife through the lens… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6965759d79fe7d554545528a/e/6a7b385360037525731c7556/media.mp3) ## [McGruff Takes a Bite Out of Crime, Part 1 (Encore)](https://shows.acast.com/decoder-ring/episodes/mcgruff-takes-a-bite-out-of-crime-part-1-encore) _2026-08-12 · Decoder Ring_ McGruff the Crime Dog arrived on the scene at the dawn of the 1980s, just as a firehose of anti-drug PSAs was inundating the youth of America. These messages didn’t always work as intended—but they did work their way into the long term memories of the kids who heard them. In the first of two episodes, originally released in 2022, we take a look at PSAs and their strange afterlife through the lens… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/696572d375c092ac4e159c27/e/6a7b3572f91cd396b385bf9e/media.mp3) ## [Decoder Ring | The Fight Over Sunlight](https://shows.acast.com/slow-burn/episodes/decoder-ring-the-fight-over-sunlight) _2026-07-29 · Slow Burn_ The sun has always been a hot topic. For centuries, we’ve flip-flopped over whether our health depends on soaking up its rays—or shielding ourselves from them. The current conventional wisdom is clear: Avoid sunburns at all costs, using shade, hats, long sleeves, and the highest SPF sunscreen your drugstore has to offer. But in a historical sense, that advice is pretty new. Not long ago, doctors… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6965759d79fe7d554545528a/e/6a692e6089139487960c6681/media.mp3) ## [The Fight Over Sunlight](https://shows.acast.com/decoder-ring/episodes/the-fight-over-sunlight) _2026-07-29 · Decoder Ring_ The sun has always been a hot topic. For centuries, we’ve flip-flopped over whether our health depends on soaking up its rays—or shielding ourselves from them. The current conventional wisdom is clear: Avoid sunburns at all costs, using shade, hats, long sleeves, and the highest SPF sunscreen your drugstore has to offer. But in a historical sense, that advice is pretty new. Not long ago, doctors… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/696572d375c092ac4e159c27/e/6a692a427e01e420e5cf6022/media.mp3) ## [Decoder Ring | Weapons of Map Destruction](https://shows.acast.com/slow-burn/episodes/decoder-ring-weapons-of-map-destruction) _2026-07-15 · Slow Burn_ Most of us use GPS—the Global Positioning System—on a daily basis: to find our location when we’re driving, running, shopping, dating, and so much more. But GPS is even more important, and more vulnerable, than you think. In the last few years, GPS interference has been reported all over the world, from war zones to shipping routes to public squares. What was once the fanciful plot of a Bond movie… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6965759d79fe7d554545528a/e/6a56a747f821a821094e2fb0/media.mp3) ## [Weapons of Map Destruction](https://shows.acast.com/decoder-ring/episodes/weapons-of-map-destruction) _2026-07-15 · Decoder Ring_ Most of us use GPS—the Global Positioning System—on a daily basis: to find our location when we’re driving, running, shopping, dating, and so much more. But GPS is even more important, and more vulnerable, than you think. In the last few years, GPS interference has been reported all over the world, from war zones to shipping routes to public squares. What was once the fanciful plot of a Bond movie… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/696572d375c092ac4e159c27/e/6a56a4b092be37cb7b430e57/media.mp3) ## [Introducing First America: “Merciless Indian Savages”](https://shows.acast.com/slow-burn/episodes/introducing-first-america-merciless-indian-savages) _2026-07-08 · Slow Burn_ Here at Slow Burn, we explore the events and people who shaped America as we know it today. As the country marks its 250th birthday this summer, we want to introduce you to the first installment of First America , a great podcast series that explores a truly consequential moment from our nation’s past. We have been told the American Revolution was fought over taxation and representation. First… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6965759d79fe7d554545528a/e/6a45942e6771af4aa483e402/media.mp3) ## [Decoder Ring | We Are Monumentally Bad at Statues](https://shows.acast.com/slow-burn/episodes/decoder-ring-we-are-monumentally-bad-at-statues) _2026-07-01 · Slow Burn_ It seems like the only time you hear about new statues these days is when something goes horribly wrong. Unfortunate bronze renditions of Lucille Ball, Cristiano Ronaldo, Dwayne Wade, and many others are always going viral, becoming a fixture of late-night shows and mocking comment sections. Is the internet too harsh a critic? Or is American statuary a total bust? In this episode of Decoder Ring,… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6965759d79fe7d554545528a/e/6a443206d668ce4585056eeb/media.mp3) ## [We Are Monumentally Bad at Statues](https://shows.acast.com/decoder-ring/episodes/we-are-monumentally-bad-at-statues) _2026-07-01 · Decoder Ring_ It seems like the only time you hear about new statues these days is when something goes horribly wrong. Unfortunate bronze renditions of Lucille Ball, Cristiano Ronaldo, Dwayne Wade, and many others are always going viral, becoming a fixture of late-night shows and mocking comment sections. Is the internet too harsh a critic? Or is American statuary a total bust? In this episode of Decoder Ring,… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/696572d375c092ac4e159c27/e/6a442fd175e7a3e961d8e16a/media.mp3) ## [Decoder Ring | Tina Turner and the Dance That Conquered Australia](https://shows.acast.com/slow-burn/episodes/decoder-ring-tina-turner-and-the-dance-that-conquered-austra) _2026-06-17 · Slow Burn_ In Australia, no wedding or school dance is complete without the Nutbush, Australia’s unofficial national dance. The Nutbush – a simple line dance to the song “Nutbush City Limits,” by Ike and Tina Turner – has become as stereotypically Australian as kangaroos, boomerangs, and Vegemite. And yet, hardly anyone outside of Australia even knows the Nutbush exists. Here at Decoder Ring, we certainly… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6965759d79fe7d554545528a/e/6a31abca9b6fd8dcabcb6576/media.mp3) ## [Follow Releases, Get Reminders (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/r8uRiNw6Wadk) _2026-06-17 · **Sponsored**_ Follow a genre or a name and receive reminders on release day — free. ## [The Tootsie Shot (Encore)](https://shows.acast.com/decoder-ring/episodes/the-tootsie-shot-encore) _2026-06-17 · Decoder Ring_ You know the Tootsie Shot. It’s that image that pops up all the time in movies set in a dense city: a really busy midtown street, everyone going somewhere—and smack in the middle of it all is the protagonist. You can find it in Working Girl, Midnight Cowboy, Wall Street , Heartburn , Elf , Bridget Jones’s Diary , The Devil Wears Prada , The Wolf of Wall Street , and so many more. But while it’s… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/696572d375c092ac4e159c27/e/6a31a12031f6783268ea3e8f/media.mp3) ## [Tina Turner and the Dance That Conquered Australia](https://shows.acast.com/decoder-ring/episodes/tina-turner-and-the-dance-that-conquered-australia) _2026-06-03 · Decoder Ring_ In Australia, no wedding or school dance is complete without the Nutbush, Australia’s unofficial national dance. The Nutbush – a simple line dance to the song “Nutbush City Limits,” by Ike and Tina Turner – has become as stereotypically Australian as kangaroos, boomerangs, and Vegemite. And yet, hardly anyone outside of Australia even knows the Nutbush exists. Here at Decoder Ring, we certainly… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/696572d375c092ac4e159c27/e/6a1f6fd9570c4c93abeb5d18/media.mp3) ## [Preview: Decoder Rings Back | Duck, Duck, Jeep](https://shows.acast.com/decoder-ring/episodes/preview-decoder-rings-back-duck-duck-jeep) _2026-05-27 · Decoder Ring_ Earlier this year we debuted Decoder Rings Back, our new feature exclusively for Decoder Ring Plus subscribers. In each installment, Willa gets a listener on the phone and tries her best to answer their question about a cultural mystery. We have been having a blast making these episodes, and if you haven’t heard them, we think you’re missing out. So in the hopes of instilling some FOMO that… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/696572d375c092ac4e159c27/e/6a1608ce83dd9b6e11d46036/media.mp3) ## [Becoming Justice Gorsuch | 3. A Lunch Room for Life](https://shows.acast.com/slow-burn/episodes/becoming-justice-gorsuch-3-a-lunch-room-for-life) _2026-05-27 · Slow Burn_ In our final episode, it’s time to talk about Neil Gorsuch and the future of SCOTUS. Host Susan Matthews enlists Slate’s jurisprudence team—Amicus co-hosts Dahlia Lithwick and Mark Joseph Stern—to discuss Gorsuch’s key rulings to date, his unpredictability, and how this textualist will shape this court (and our country) for decades to come. Want more Slow Burn? Join Slate Plus to binge every… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6965759d79fe7d554545528a/e/6a03a095caa0b0ea31f09bf0/media.mp3) ## [No Pulp: The Killing of the Florida Orange](https://shows.acast.com/decoder-ring/episodes/no-pulp-the-killing-of-the-florida-orange) _2026-05-20 · Decoder Ring_ Like the palm tree, the Everglades, Disney World, and the “Florida Man,” the orange is a classic symbol of the Sunshine State. But maybe not for much longer. Production has declined to catastrophic levels, a decrease of more than 95% in less than 25 years. It’s a produce murder mystery—and Decoder Ring is tagging along with reporter Alex Sammon to crack the case. The suspects include insects,… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/696572d375c092ac4e159c27/e/6a0cc36eb23d275dceb6c452/media.mp3) ## [Becoming Justice Gorsuch | 2. The Stolen Seat](https://shows.acast.com/slow-burn/episodes/becoming-justice-gorsuch-2-the-stolen-seat) _2026-05-20 · Slow Burn_ When Justice Antonin Scalia died in February of 2016, the Supreme Court appeared to be headed for a 5-4 liberal majority. Instead, a staggering blockade by Senate Republicans and a shocking electoral upset helped steal a seat and clear the way for today’s conservative supermajority. In our second episode, we examine Neil Gorsuch’s politically fraught path to power and his time on the bench so far,… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6965759d79fe7d554545528a/e/6a039518b443364556851b07/media.mp3) ## [Becoming Justice Gorsuch | 1. Man With a Plan](https://shows.acast.com/slow-burn/episodes/becoming-justice-gorsuch-1-man-with-a-plan) _2026-05-13 · Slow Burn_ Neil Gorsuch may not be the most well-known justice on the Supreme Court, but he might just be the key to understanding how and why the current court has come to wield so much power over our day-to-day lives. In our first episode, host Susan Matthews examines Gorsuch’s early years, what he took away from his iconoclastic mother’s rocky tenure in the Reagan administration, and how his worldview was… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6965759d79fe7d554545528a/e/6a03777e5c981a3573790bbd/media.mp3) ## [Season 11 Trailer: Becoming Justice Gorsuch](https://shows.acast.com/slow-burn/episodes/season-11-trailer-becoming-justice-gorsuch) _2026-05-07 · Slow Burn_ Coming May 13: Host Susan Matthews traces the rise of Neil Gorsuch, from his formative years as a young conservative through his nomination to a “stolen seat” on the U.S. Supreme Court. Through interviews, legal analysis, and archival research, the mild-mannered Westerner emerges as the court’s most unpredictable—and most important—sitting justice. Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6965759d79fe7d554545528a/e/69fba11013990e6fae2590d2/media.mp3) ## [Mailbag: Spooky Strings, Phone Menu Options, and Eye Rolls](https://shows.acast.com/decoder-ring/episodes/mailbag-spooky-strings-phone-menu-options-and-eye-rolls) _2026-05-06 · Decoder Ring_ We are lucky to get fantastic questions from our listeners here at Decoder Ring, and in this episode, we’re going to open up our mailbag to answer three of them. What are the origins of an eerie horror film string motif? Why do companies insist on telling callers to “listen closely” to menu options that could not possibly have changed? And when did we start using the indispensable eye roll? In… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/696572d375c092ac4e159c27/e/69f9fe0f2a1dd3f1a8232c22/media.mp3) ## [Hire AI-Powered Freelancers Fast (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/4GhssfIQLYR8) _2026-05-06 · **Sponsored**_ Browse and hire skilled professionals using AI tools — free to post, free to apply. ## [How to Make Dollars Make Sense](https://shows.acast.com/decoder-ring/episodes/how-to-make-dollars-make-sense) _2026-04-22 · Decoder Ring_ Money is everywhere. Money influences just about everything. We think about money all the time. But how much do we really know about it? In this episode of Decoder Ring, we explore the obscure historical forces that make our money what it is and behave the way it does. We ask two simple-sounding questions with surprising answers: Why is our money called the dollar—and where are those dollars… [Listen](https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/696572d375c092ac4e159c27/e/69e7d76d17df632b85fb2d94/media.mp3)