We talk about the Supreme Court with writer and reporter, Dahlia Lithwick. How should one report on the Court, at a time when analysis of opinions is expected within hours or even minutes? What is the role of the Court press: middle men, translators, or something else? And come to think of it, what’s the role of the Supreme Court? Oracles, politicians, teachers? Should judges give speeches like politicians do? Politics, policy, religion, guns. And, of course, speed traps.

This show’s links:


Dahlia Lithwick’s latest articles on Slate
Adam Smith, The Theory of Moral Sentiments (pdf) and wikipedia summary
Slate Plus
Derek Muller, The Five Law-Related Podcasts You Should Listen To
Jack Shafer, Serving up the Supreme Court Dough Before It’s Baked
Tom Goldstein, We’re Getting Wildly Different Assessments (a deep look into what went wrong with the reporting on the Obamacare decision)
RonNell Andersen Jones, U.S. Supreme Court Justices and Press Access
Jesse Wegman, (Supreme) Court TV and the Magically Disappearing Protest
Kenneth Vogel, Defiant Clarence Thomas Fires Back
Vikram Amar, Why Did Justice Scalia Decline to Participate in the "One Nation Under God" Case?
Jack Balkin, ”High” Politics and Judicial Decisionmaking
Justice Scalia’s memo on a recusal motion in Cheney v. United States District Court for the District of Columbia
Oral Argument Episode 6: Productive Thoughtlessness, in which we previously discussed Dahlia Lithwick
Pew Research Center, Political Polarization in the American Public
Eduardo Peñalver, Property as Entrance
Town of Greece v. Galloway
Dahlia Lithwick, You Don’t See What I See
Oral Argument Episode 8: Party All Over the World, for some of our discussion on speed traps
Waze app
Artist Aaron Fein
Statler and Waldorf:
Special Guest: Dahlia Lithwick.