Carlos Lozada: Lydia, my co-host! We are having a conversation in Opinion Today to announce our new podcast, "Matter of Opinion," which we're hosting, along with Michelle Cottle of the editorial board and our fellow columnist Ross Douthat. This week, we're talking about the outrage swirling around Clarence Thomas. But before we get to that: You've done podcasts before — what do you want this show to be? |
Lydia Polgreen: Carlos! Is this thing on? [Taps mic warily.] It's true: I used to make podcasts, but I've never actually hosted one, so this is new territory for me, too. A confession to start — I don't listen to a lot of conversational podcasts. They are usually either a slugfest between people with sharply divergent views or chatter among people in violent agreement with one another. I think our show will be something different. I hope listeners will want to listen in on four curious people who like working through ideas together. How about you? |
Carlos: My favorite podcasts are either strictly utilitarian (quick shows that update me on the news of the day) or extended conversations that go deep on unexpected topics or ideas. In my ideal world, "Matter of Opinion" will be a perfect combo of the two — a show that geeks out on the critical news and questions of the moment. I think our first episode today is a good example of that. |
Lydia: Yes! We've all been following the pileup of scandal around the Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas, which throws up all kinds of big questions about ethics, the perhaps too-powerful nature of the Supreme Court in our deeply polarized times, the role of the justices as political actors and why we are only learning about all of these apparent scandals now. There's so much to chew on! And you have read a lot about the court — it's fascinating to hear you puzzle it through. |
Carlos: Yes, I like to read about the court, and about lots of other things. I hope that's something I'll bring to the show: my view of the world through the prism of books. Then there's Michelle, who digs deep into politics. Ross writes about religion and the right. And you've traveled the world as a Times foreign correspondent. As listeners will (hopefully!) get to know each of us and our pet obsessions and strange ideas, we'll be getting to know one another, too. That's actually one of the things I look forward to most. |
Lydia: And we all have quite small-c catholic interests, which can take the conversation in unpredictable directions. Sometimes we'll be talking about the news of the day, but other times we might dive deep into our individual passion projects. We are, however, absolutely united in our obsession with "Succession." |
Carlos: Oh, yeah. But our theme song is catchier. |
Here's what we're focusing on today: |
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