logo
episode-header-image
Dec 2021
28m 31s

Best of 2021 | The Plight of the Deliver...

Slate Podcasts
About this episode

In the last few years, New York City’s delivery workers have become a key part of the food industry’s infrastructure, allowing restaurants to do business with customers who are too stressed to leave their desks, or too cautious to leave their homes. But a spate of violent attacks and bike thefts has shown that the people delivering your Grubhub and Seamless orders are deeply vulnerable. Why are these essential workers being exploited by apps and abandoned by the police, forced to band together just to get by?

Guest: Josh Dzieza, an investigations editor and feature writer at The Verge covering technology, business, and climate change.

We’re re-running some of our favorite episodes from the past year. This episode originally aired in September of 2021.

If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Today
Should I Be Freaking Out About Hantavirus?
The world is watching with a wary eye, as passengers leave the hantavirus-infected MV Hondius cruise ship and head to medical facilities or home. Is this the start of the next pandemic—or is our collective response still informed by the last one?Guest: Katherine J. Wu is a staff ... Show More
23m 31s
Yesterday
Has Trump Doomed the GOP?
How long can the MAGA faithful control the GOP? Will Trumpism last long after the big man is gone—or will it not even make it to the end of this term?Guest: Sarah Longwell, publisher of The Bulwark, author of “How to Eat an Elephant: One Voter at a Time.”Want more What Next? Subs ... Show More
27m 33s
May 10
Does Anyone Like A.I.?
Everyone would probably hate A.I. less if we could just see some upside to it. But despite all the investment—into the companies, into infrastructure like data centers, so much into marketing—it’s widely known: artificial intelligence sucks.Guest: Nilay Patel, co-founder and edit ... Show More
31m 44s
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2021
What Next - Best of 2021 | When Your Town Burns Down
We’re re-running some of our favorite episodes from the past year. This episode originally aired in August 2021.Last week, the northern California mountain town of Greenville was wiped out by the Dixie Fire, which lasted for two months and is now the second largest wildfire in Ca ... Show More
27m 39s
Nov 2021
What Next - “I Quit My Job Today”
You’ve likely heard about the great resignation -- this moment when millions of workers across the country have handed in their notice. Sometimes, people left because they were overworked. Sometimes, it’s because they wanted to change paths, or make more money elsewhere. But for ... Show More
33m 7s
Jun 2022
What Next - The Right’s Poll-Watcher Army
Republicans who still haven’t accepted that Joe Biden beat Donald Trump in 2020 are recruiting “a volunteer army” of poll watchers and poll workers for upcoming elections. For those who want transparent and fair elections, an influx of enthusiasm is theoretically a good thing. Bu ... Show More
22m 38s