Stephen Metcalf Stephen Metcalf is a critic, essayist, and podcaster based in New York. His work has also appeared in The New York Times, the New York Observer, New York magazine, The Atlantic, Slate, Travel + Leisure, and The New Yorker, among other publications. Stephen began his career as a freelance writer and speech writer for Hillary Clinton during her senate campaign. Subsequently, he joined Slate as a staff writer and later became a cultural columnist. He is currently the magazine's critic-at-large and also the co-creator and host of the Culture Gabfest, a Slate podcast. He resides in upstate New York with his family.• Critic-at-large and culture columnist at Slate• Co-creator and host of the podcast Slate Culture Gabfest• Taught at Yale, the University of Pennsylvania, and New York University About Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure, a Dotdash Meredith Brand, is a top travel media brand with a mission to inform and inspire passionate travelers. Our expert team includes a network of hundreds of writers and photographers across the globe, all providing a local eye on the best places to stay, eat, and explore. We reach an audience that takes 76 million round trips annually, offering valuable travel tips, ideas and inspiration, and products you need to get you to your destination — whether it’s a small town or big city, beach or lake, national park or theme park, road trip, cruise, or long-haul flight, and everything in between. Learn more about us and our editorial process