Episode Description
It's been another "37-day week" in America, and In The Meanwhile is doing what it does best: refusing to let the chaos set the agenda.
Nora and Marcus open on the latest Washington-fueled disaster (a brand-new war with Iran, because apparently weekends are illegal now), then pivot to the scandal the powerful would love you to forget: the Epstein files, and one name still floating above the consequences like a philanthropic forcefield.
Enter Tim Schwab, investigative journalist and author of The Bill Gates Problem, to talk about Gates, Epstein, and the dangerous alchemy of extreme wealth + "good billionaire" mythology. Schwab breaks down why Gates' "I didn't know" era doesn't pass the smell test, how philanthropy can function as reputation-laundering and influence-buying, and why the so-called "Bill Chill" keeps Seattle institutions and media hesitant to speak plainly, even when the story is screaming.
Mentioned in the episode:
Is Bill Gates in the Epstein files? Probably | The Epstein files should end Bill Gates's philanthropic career | Erasing Gates Seattle's Favorite Philanthropist Faces Campus Reality Check from UW Student | NYT Opinion: This Summer, Students From Hundreds of Colleges Will Heed One Urgent Call | Half of Americans want to Abolist ICE
More from Tim Schwab:
Tim Schwab on Substack | On X | on BlueSky | The Bill Gates Problem | on LinkedIn
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Read Nora and Marcus's Books:
Crowded Out: The True Costs of Crowdfunding Healthcare | Readying to Rise
Music: No Tears for a Wolf · Ahamefule J. Oluo · Okanomodé. Used with permission.
Logo by Nikki Barron.
Transcripts are machine-generated and imperfect.
Nora and Marcus's work on the podcast is separate from their professional roles and does not represent the views of their employers.
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