Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai made an assault allegation in November, then disappeared from the public eye. She has since re-emerged, but in protest of her treatment, the Women's Tennis Association's has now suspended all tournaments in China. That decision by the WTA could cost the organization and its players hundreds of millions of dollars, maybe more, in revenue. And it's the threat of losing that kind of money that usually keeps most professional sports organizations — like the NBA — tread...
Dec 06, 2021•13 min
Banning books from classrooms and school libraries is nothing new, but it's recently become a topic of considerable political debate. How should parents react to this news, and to the books their children are reading? In this episode of NPR's It's Been A Minute senior editor Barrie Hardymon and Traci Thomas, host of The Stacks podcast, joined guest host Ayesha Rascoe to talk about banned book lists.The three talk about why it's important for kids to discover books freely, even if that means star...
Dec 05, 2021•31 min
It was only a matter of time before cases of the COVID-19 omicron variant started popping up in the U.S., and now, it's here. Although it's too early to tell how this virus strain will spread, the threat it poses has already lit a fire under public health messaging. President Biden announced a new strategy to avoid a winter surge of cases that involves free at-home testing, a vaccine booster messaging campaign and heightened international travel safeguards. Meanwhile, the race is on to detect ho...
Dec 03, 2021•14 min
Buying stuff is a part of this country's DNA. It's a tradition that really took off near the end of World War II, when the American economy was thriving and the market exploded with products Americans didn't even know they wanted. And even in an economy rocked by a pandemic, buying is on track to exceed 2020 levels this holiday season. The result of all that spending means consumption drives 70% of our country's GDP, but it's also the leading driver of nearly every environmental issue our planet...
Dec 02, 2021•13 min
Getting an abortion in Mississippi has never been easy, but it hasn't been impossible. Now, a case before the Supreme Court that centers on a clinic in Mississippi could upend abortion rights for pregnant people across the country. Today, the conservative-leaning court heard arguments in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization . The clinic, which is the only abortion provider remaining in Mississippi, is challenging a 2018 state law that bans termination after 15 weeks of pregna...
Dec 01, 2021•13 min
After years of jokes about unsuccessful Infrastructure Weeks, months of deliberation, and bouts of gridlock on the political left, a $1.2 trillion package made its way through Congress at long last. The president signed it into law earlier this month. Now, the challenge of actually getting the money where it needs to be remains. NPR's White House Correspondent Franco Ordonez followed President Biden around the country earlier this month to report on the changes to come, now that the bill is law....
Nov 30, 2021•11 min
The World Health Organization is warning that the omicron variant of the coronavirus, which was first detected in South Africa, has a "very high" global risk because of the possibility that it spreads more easily and might resist vaccines and immunity in people who were infected with previous strains. On Monday, President Joe Biden said this this variant is a "cause for concern, not a cause for panic." He urged Americans to get fully vaccinated and get a booster dose if they qualify. WHO spokesp...
Nov 29, 2021•12 min
This Thanksgiving week, we're sharing a segment from our special series Play It Forward , in which artists tell us about their own music and the musicians who inspire them. This episode, opera singer and funk keyboardist Constance Hauman speaks to Ari Shapiro about her new album, Tropical Thunderstorm , her experiences as a multi-genre musician and an artist she's grateful for: Daf player Asal Malekzadeh. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sen...
Nov 26, 2021•9 min
For Thanksgiving Day, we're sharing a segment from our special series Play It Forward , in which artists tell us about their own music and the musicians who inspire them. In this episode, funk legend George Clinton speaks to Ari Shapiro about the longevity and enduring influence of his band, Parliament-Funkadelic, being a hype man for other musicians, and an artist he's grateful for: opera singer and funk keyboardist Constance Hauman. On tomorrow's episode: Constance Hauman plays it forward. In ...
Nov 25, 2021•10 min
The commonly-told version of the first Thanksgiving story leaves out a lot: The indigenous Wampanoag people who lived in a complex society long before the Mayflower arrived at Plymouth Rock; Squanto escaping bondage in Spain before becoming an emissary to the Pilgrims; and the long legacy of violent displacement that followed. Paula Peters, a writer and a member of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, still lives near where the Pilgrims made landfall on her ancestral homeland. She talks about how the 16...
Nov 24, 2021•11 min
CTE — chronic traumatic encephalopathy — is a degenerative brain disease found in many former professional football and hockey players, for whom blows to the head have long been part of the job. But those injuries also occur outside the world of pro sports. And as awareness of CTE has grown, so has a thriving market of dubious remedies marketed to everyday people who believe they are suffering from CTE — a disease that can't even be diagnosed until after death, through an autopsy of the brain. I...
Nov 23, 2021•14 min
CTE — chronic traumatic encephalopathy — is a degenerative brain disease found in many former professional football and hockey players, for whom blows to the head have long been part of the job. But those injuries also occur outside the world of pro sports. And as awareness of CTE has grown, so has a thriving market of dubious remedies marketed to everyday people who believe they are suffering from CTE — a disease that can't even be diagnosed until after death, through an autopsy of the brain. I...
Nov 22, 2021•15 min
For those living with long COVID, daily activities like going for a walk, washing the dishes, or being on a Zoom call can be incredibly draining. These long-term effects of a COVID infection - called post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2, PASC, or more simply long COVID - have been a reality for many patients since the start of the pandemic. While it is not known exactly how common long COVID is, it isn't rare. One study found that some 30% of participants across multiple age ranges reported persist...
Nov 19, 2021•11 min
Migrants from faraway countries are stuck in Belarus, just across its border with Poland. They've traveled there to seek asylum in the EU. But Poland has refused to accept them. How did they get there? They were invited — and in some cases, their travel facilitated — by the regime of Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko. EU leaders say Lukashenko and his backers in Russia are 'weaponizing' migration in retaliation for sanctions placed on Belarus last year. Those sanctions came after the EU a...
Nov 18, 2021•15 min
Afghanistan is facing its worst drought in decades, but that's not the only reason it is on the verge of a hunger crisis. After the Taliban took over, much of the country's international development aid was suspended, and the United States froze $9.5 billion in Afghan government assets. The economy has plummeted. Richard Trenchard, country director for the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization in Afghanistan, explains what he's heard from farmers and herders. PBS NewsHour special corr...
Nov 17, 2021•10 min
This week's virtual summit between President Joe Biden and China's President Xi Jinping may have restored a tone of respect between the world's two largest powers, but U.S. intelligence is telling a different story. NPR's Greg Myre reports on a national security conference held in Georgia last month where former and current U.S. intelligence officers were surprisingly candid about what they see as the biggest growing threat: China. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment ...
Nov 16, 2021•11 min
The holiday shopping season is basically here. But a lot of things that Americans want to buy are not. Now the race is on to get goods off ships and into stores and warehouses — before it's too late. NPRs Scott Horsley reports some retailers are already feeling the pinch from less inventory and higher shipping costs. Even if goods do make it into the U.S., many are sitting in warehouses, which are bursting at the seams. NPR's Alina Selyukh explains why. In participating regions, you'll also hear...
Nov 15, 2021•14 min
Thousands of youth activists from all over the world gathered in Scotland this week for the COP26 UN climate summit. They say climate change is already transforming their countries — and that their generation has the most to lose if greater action isn't taken. This episode contains reporting from Ari Shapiro in Glasgow, with production and editing by Mia Venkat, Noah Caldwell, and Ashley Brown. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what'...
Nov 12, 2021•12 min
Who is to blame for the deaths of nine people at the Astroworld Festival last Friday? Houston police have opened a criminal investigation and concertgoers have already filed more than 20 lawsuits against the event organizers and rapper Travis Scott, who continued to perform for more than half an hour after officials declared a mass casualty event. Crowd safety expert Keith Still explains the science behind how a concert crowd can transform into an uncontrollable mass that threatens human life. H...
Nov 11, 2021•15 min
Following the Columbine shooting in April of 1999, top leaders of the National Rifle Association huddled in private to discuss their public response to the tragedy. Secret tapes of those deliberations were obtained by NPR investigative correspondent Tim Mak. He explains what's revealed in the tapes: that the group considered a much different stance than the one it ultimately took — a stance that would help set the stage for decades of debate about gun violence in America. Tim Mak is also author ...
Nov 10, 2021•12 min
Mark Zuckerberg says the metaverse is not just the next chapter of his company: it's the next chapter of the internet. There are a lot of questions about what role Meta, the company formerly known as Facebook, should play in building that future. Meta's Vice President of metaverse, Vishal Shah, argues that the company has learned from its struggle to moderate content on Facebook, and will build safety and privacy into the metaverse. Jason Moore — Assistant Professor at Brooklyn College teaching ...
Nov 09, 2021•14 min
Now that the hot takes have cooled after Virginia's gubernatorial election, NPR correspondents Anya Kamenetz and Tamara Keith dissect the role of education in the race — and why it was about way more than critical race theory. Read more from Anya here . In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community. Email us at considerthis@npr.org . See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal da...
Nov 08, 2021•13 min
Waking up at dawn with the bakers and the baristas may not be for everyone — especially night owls. Whether you have to wake up early, or you'd like to become more of a morning lark, here are a few habits that can help you set yourself up for success at that first alarm. In this episode of NPR's Life Kit, host Kavitha George speaks with early risers who have tips to help adjust one's biological clock. Listen to more episode's of Life Kit on Apple Podcasts , Spotify or NPR One . See pcm.adswizz.c...
Nov 07, 2021•22 min
In recent years, Sudan has been home to one of the most successful pro-democracy movements on the African continent. Now, a military coup threatens that movement's progress. NPR's Eyder Peralta , who has been reporting in the region, explains how it all unfolded — and what could happen next. Read more on the events in Sudan from NPR's Becky Sullivan : The coup in Sudan could threaten U.S. influence in a strategically important region . In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segm...
Nov 05, 2021•13 min
The CDC made it official on Tuesday: kids 5 - 11 are now eligible to receive Pfizer's COVID-19 pediatric vaccine. Within hours, some of the first shots were administered in Hartford, Connecticut. Jenny Brundin of Colorado Public Radio spoke to parents and kids in Denver about getting a shot. While some are eager, others want to 'wait and see.' NPR's Allison Aubrey and Selena Simmons-Duffin wrote about why pediatricians say it's better not to wait. Read their piece: Some parents want to wait to v...
Nov 04, 2021•12 min
Any ruling is months away, but this week's oral arguments provided some clues. NPR's Nina Totenberg watched them unfold. Hear more from Nina's coverage on the NPR Politics Podcast via Apple , Google , or Spotify . Also in this episode: Dr. Ghazaleh Moayedi , an OB-GYN in Texas, who told NPR pregnant people in Texas have been travelling to Oklahoma for abortions. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what's going on in your community. Ema...
Nov 03, 2021•10 min
In what some have called "Striketober," workers in factories as well as the health care and food industries have either started or authorized strikes in the past month. Thousands of workers across the U.S. are on strike, demanding better wages, better working conditions and more benefits. NPR's Ailsa Chang speaks with Joseph McCartin, professor of history at Georgetown , about what this moment means for the future of labor in America and how long the momentum may last. In participating regions, ...
Nov 02, 2021•12 min
A U.N. climate summit is underway this week in Glasgow, Scotland. Many of the world's top carbon emitting-countries will be represented there. Scientists say they need to do more to curb greenhouse gas emissions in order to avoid the most catastrophic effects of climate change. The U.S, along with the China, are the world's top greenhouse gas emitters. India is third. And Brazil plays a crucial role in global climate, because it is home to vast rainforests that feed on carbon. But those rainfore...
Nov 01, 2021•12 min
In this episode of NPR's investigative podcast Embedded , Chris Benderev reports on the trial of a man who shot and killed five people in the office of an Annapolis newspaper in 2018. Embedded 's series of episodes on the Capitol Gazette began in February of 2021. Listen via Apple , Spotify , or Google . See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy...
Oct 31, 2021•33 min
A final girl in the horror genre is the woman who is left to deal with the aftermath of surviving a terrifying killer. From The Texas Chainsaw Massacre , to Friday the 13th , to Halloween . The term 'Final Girl' was first coined by writer Carol J. Clover in her book Men, Women, and Chainsaws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film . Society knows this trope well. But after the credits roll, audiences typically don't know much about what actually happens to that final girl. Or whether she can live a no...
Oct 29, 2021•11 min
