Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
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Once a rising star of the New Right via New Media, Ben Shapiro and his Daily Wire have spent the second Trump administration in precipitous decline. Is it simply a case of bad business decisions running into their beloved capitalistic scythe or did their audience outpace them on a race to…let’s say “the right”?
Guest: Will Sommer, senior reporter at The Bulwark.
Subscribe to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock exclusive episodes of What Next —you’ll also access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.
Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, and Rob Gunther. Video production by Rob Gunther.
Social:
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If you love What Next, join Slate Plus at slate.com/youtubeplus?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=link&utm_content=What_Next&utm_campaign=show_description&tpcc=youtube-link-show_description-What_Next to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts.
Once a rising star of the New Right via New Media, Ben Shapiro and his Daily Wire have spent the second Trump administration in precipitous decline. Is it simply a case of bad business decisions running into their beloved capitalistic scythe or did their audience outpace them on a race to…let’s say “the right”?
Guest: Will Sommer, senior reporter at The Bulwark.
Subscribe to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock exclusive episodes of What Next —you’ll also access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.
Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, and Rob Gunther. Video production by Rob Gunther.
Social:
@maryharris.bsky.social on Bluesky
https://bsky.app/profile/maryharris.bsky.social
Note: Captions are auto-generated by YouTube.
Learn more: slate.com/podcasts/what-next
Follow Slate on Social:
Slate on Twitter - twitter.com/Slate
Slate Podcasts on Twitter - twitter.com/SlatePodcasts
Slate on Facebook: facebook.com/slate
Slate on Instagram: instagram.com/slate










