After the Senate vote failed to convict former President Donald Trump, a clearer picture of the political consequences is emerging — both for the Republican party and for the United States on the world stage. NPR's Don Gonyea reports on Republican infighting the national, state and local level. Secretary of State Antony Blinken tells NPR that the events of Jan. 6 have came up in conversations he's had with diplomatic counterparts around the world. Read more of Blinken's wide-ranging interview wi...
Feb 17, 2021•14 min
There's evidence of at least seven U.S. variants of the coronavirus, while another that emerged from the U.K. is poised to become the dominant strain here by the end of March. One adviser from the Food and Drug Administration tells NPR there's a tipping point to watch for: when a fully vaccinated person winds up hospitalized with a coronavirus variant. NPR science correspondent Richard Harris reports on concerns that COVID-19 vaccines themselves could cause the virus to mutate. NPR science repor...
Feb 16, 2021•13 min
The United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR, says more than 60 countries around the world are using COVID-19 as an excuse to skirt international law by closing borders and ports to asylum-seekers. That has contributed to an increase in delayed rescues and unlawful expulsions of refugees to dangerous places. NPR's Joanna Kakissis tells the story of one teenage survivor. And NPR's Ruth Sherlock reports on a doomed journey of Lebanese refugees attempting to cross the Mediterranean sea — where over 1,0...
Feb 15, 2021•12 min
We asked for your questions on navigating love and dating during the pandemic. Therapist and sexologist Lexx Brown-James has answers. She's joined by Sam Sanders , host of NPR's news and pop culture show, It's Been A Minute. Listen via Apple or Spotify . And University of Georgia social scientist Dr. Richard Slatcher shares some findings from his global research project, Love In The Time Of COVID . In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of w...
Feb 12, 2021•15 min
The pandemic economy has left different people in vastly different situations. Today, we introduce four American indicators — people whose paths will help us understand the arc of the recovery. Hear their stories now, and we'll follow up with them in a few months: Brooke Neubauer in Nevada, founder of The Just One Project ; Lisa Winton of the Winton Machine Company in Georgia; Lee Camp with Arch City Defenders in Missouri; and New Jersey-based hotel owner Bhavish Patel. In participating regions,...
Feb 11, 2021•15 min
The Biden administration has set a goal: a majority of public schools open "at least one day a week" by the 100th day of his presidency. But it's possible the country is already there — and decisions about when to reopen largely fall to cities and school districts, where administrators and teachers sometimes don't see eye-to-eye. Students are losing a lot of academic ground the longer their schooling is disrupted. Maine Public Radio's Robbie Feinberg reports on how one rural district is trying t...
Feb 10, 2021•14 min
In the weeks after Jan. 6. insurrection, even top Republicans like Mitch McConnell said Donald Trump provoked the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol, leaving five people dead. But it appears unlikely enough Republican Senators will find that he bears enough responsibility to warrant conviction in his second impeachment trial — which could prevent him from ever holding office again. Charlie Sykes , founder and editor at large of the conservative site The Bulwark , argues that Republicans are faili...
Feb 09, 2021•13 min
Using data from several states that have published their own maps and lists of where vaccination sites are located, NPR identified disparities in the locations of COVID-19 vaccination sites in major cities across the Southern U.S. — with most sites placed in whiter neighborhoods. KUT's Ashley Lopez , Shalina Chatlani of NPR's Gulf States Newsroom, and NPR's Sean McMinn explain their findings. Read more here . Also in this episode: how one county in Washington state is trying to make vaccine dist...
Feb 08, 2021•14 min
People of color experience more air and water pollution than white people and suffer the health impacts. The federal government helped create the problem, and has largely failed to fix it. In this episode of Short Wave , NPR climate reporter Rebecca Hersher talks about the history of environmental racism in the United States, and what Biden's administration can do to avoid the mistakes of the past. Read Rebecca's reporting on how Biden hopes to address the environmental impacts of systemic racis...
Feb 07, 2021•14 min
Why does Whitney Houston's 1991 Super Bowl national anthem still resonate 30 years later? In this episode of NPR's It's Been A Minute , host Sam Sanders chats with author Danyel Smith about that moment of Black history and what it says about race, patriotism and pop culture. Smith wrote about the significance of that national anthem performance back in 2016 for ESPN. Listen to more episodes of It's Been A Minute on Apple Podcasts and Spotify . See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collec...
Feb 06, 2021•25 min
The pandemic leveled live performance, and the industry is last in line for a return to normal. Musician Zoe Keating and production designer Terry Morgan describe how their work has changed with live venues nationwide shuttered for nearly a year. Venue owner Danya Frank of First Avenue and Jim Ritts of the Paramount Theatre explain why the gears of the performing arts economy are not designed for a slow return to normalcy. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment that will...
Feb 05, 2021•14 min
Raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour is one of President Biden's priorities with the newest COVID-19 relief package. But Republicans say it will hurt small businesses too much and some swing voting Democrats are hesitant too. The history of the minimum wage in the U.S. is tied closely to civil rights. Ellora Derenoncourt, an economist at the University of California, Berkeley, says one theme of the 1963 March on Washington was a call for a higher minimum wage. Many states have a higher minimu...
Feb 04, 2021•14 min
A third COVID-19 vaccine could receive emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration this month. The vaccine made by Johnson & Johnson is 66% effective in preventing moderate to severe disease, according to a global study. Combined with the two vaccines currently in circulation, the U.S. could have three vaccines that are all highly effective at preventing death or hospitalization due to COVID-19. Despite that promising news, NPR's Richard Harris reports on why the journe...
Feb 03, 2021•12 min
For months, Myanmar's military party has claimed — without evidence — that its poor performance in the country's November parliamentary elections was the result of voter fraud. This week, when the new Parliament was scheduled to convene, the military launched a coup, detaining top civilian officials including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi. Michael Sullivan reports from Thailand on the uncertainty over what happens next . Washington Post columnist Fareed Zakaria explains why the coup represen...
Feb 02, 2021•13 min
This past week, President Biden signed executive orders that represent his administration's first actions in the fight against climate change. Some changes will take longer than others — and many more will not be possible without help from Congress. Correspondent Lauren Sommer of NPR's climate team explains the likelihood of that happening — and what Biden could do if it doesn't. NPR's Kirk Siegler reports from Wyoming on Biden's ban on federal oil and gas leasing. Most of the oil and gas drille...
Feb 01, 2021•13 min
In 2019, GameStop seemed to be just another failing brick-and-mortar business. But a couple of internet dwellers at Wall Street Bets, in a strange corner of the giant forum, reddit, thought the hedge funds were making a mistake. On this episode of NPR's Planet Money : how a standoff between big market movers and an irreverent community of anonymous traders erupted into an epic showdown that is changing the way people think about power on Wall Street. Listen to Planet Money wherever you get your ...
Jan 30, 2021•28 min
There's is a reckoning happening across the media. Major news organizations are reconsidering what they cover and how. The Trump presidency is one big reason for the self-examination. But this new scrutiny goes beyond politics — beyond Washington, D.C. 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...
Jan 29, 2021•13 min
In its very first broadcast, the U.S.-government-run service called Voice of America pledged honesty. "The news may be good and it may be bad. We shall tell you the truth." The idea was to model a free press, especially for audiences in places that might not have one. Places where political parties and governments might pressure or intimidate journalists. But over the past seven months, Voice of America and its federal parent organization, U.S. Agency for Global Media, have been caught in an ide...
Jan 28, 2021•15 min
President Biden said Tuesday that the federal government's vaccine distribution program is "in worse shape than we anticipated." His administration's coronavirus response team held its first public briefing on Wednesday where officials detailed plans to increase vaccine supply and capacity, but also said it will be months before anyone who wants a vaccine can get one. The lack of supply has led to different challenges in different areas of the country. NPR gathered three reporters to learn more:...
Jan 27, 2021•14 min
Removing disinformation — and users who spread it — can come at a cost for web hosts and social media platforms. But studies indicate "deplatforming" does stem the flow of disinformation. Kate Starbird with the University of Washington explains why it's easier to see the effects of deplatforming in the short-term. And NPR's Shannon Bond looks at how one growing social media site is dealing with new attention and new challenges. Additional reporting in this episode from NPR's Bobby Allyn , who's ...
Jan 26, 2021•13 min
Adam Jentleson knows firsthand how powerful a tool the filibuster can be — and what's possible without it. He was deputy chief of staff to former Nevada Sen. Harry Reid, who was majority leader in 2013 when Democrats exercised "the nuclear option," eliminating the filibuster for presidential appointees. Now, Jentleson and a growing number of Democrats argue Senate leaders should eliminate the filibuster for legislation, which would enable Democrats to pass major legislation with a simple Senate ...
Jan 25, 2021•15 min
Breathing is essential to life. And lately, the safety of the air we inhale, or the need to pause and take a deep breath, is on our minds a lot. In this episode of NPR's TED Radio Hour, we explore the power of breath. Guests include former world champion freediver Tanya Streeter, journalist Beth Gardiner, activist Yvette Arellano, paleontologist Emma Schachner, scent historian Caro Verbeek and mindfulness expert Andy Puddicombe. Listen to TED Radio Hour wherever you get your podcasts, including ...
Jan 24, 2021•54 min
More than 400,000 Americans have been killed by the coronavirus. That's more Americans than were killed in all of World War II, President Biden pointed out this week. He calls his new plan to fight the pandemic a "wartime effort." That effort begins with taking charge of a bottlenecked vaccine rollout. NPR pharmaceutical correspondent Sydney Lupkin reports on several factors that are slowing the process down . And NPR's Yuki Noguchi explores why it may take some time for pharmacies to become maj...
Jan 22, 2021•14 min
President Biden followed through on a day-one promise to send a massive immigration reform bill to Congress. Now the hard part: passing that bill into law. Muzaffar Chishti of New York University's Migration Policy Institute explains the president's plans — and the signal they send to other countries around the world. Biden is also pursuing big changes in how the U.S. admits refugees. Corine Dehabey, an Ohio-based director of the refugee settlement organization Us Together , says families who've...
Jan 21, 2021•15 min
"Through a crucible for the ages, America has been tested anew," President Biden said in his inaugural address on Wednesday. "And America has risen to the challenge." Outgoing Vice President Pence was present for the inauguration of the 46th president. President Trump was not. He left the White House in the morning after an overnight issuance of commutations and pardons — including for Steve Bannon, his former adviser who was arrested on charges of wire fraud and money laundering. NPR's Franco O...
Jan 20, 2021•13 min
When Joe Biden takes the oath of office at noon ET on Wednesday, he will become the oldest president to ever hold the office. His journey to the White House spans nearly half a century in public life. New Yorker writer Evan Osnos has written a book about that journey called Joe Biden: The Life, The Run, And What Matters Now . He explains how Biden's deep "acquaintance with suffering" prepared him to meet the country at a moment of grief and loss. In participating regions, you'll also hear a loca...
Jan 19, 2021•15 min
President-elect Joe Biden has outlined a plan to administer 100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine in his administration's first 100 days. But before that he'll have to convince Congress to pay for it. NPR White House correspondent Scott Detrow spoke to Vice President-elect Kamala Harris about that, and her reaction to the siege at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Listen to more of their interview on the NPR Politics Podcast on Apple or Spotify . It's been almost a full year since the first case of co...
Jan 18, 2021•14 min
In this episode from the team at NPR's Embedded , hear the stories of two NPR teams that spent January 6th on the grounds of the Capitol — and stories from a lawmaker, photographer, and police officer who were inside the building. Subscribe to or follow Embedded on NPR One , Apple Podcasts , Google Podcasts , Pocket Casts , Spotify , and RSS . See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR ...
Jan 16, 2021•49 min
The QAnon conspiracy theory originated in 2017, when an anonymous online figure, "Q" started posting on right-wing message boards. Q claims to have top secret government clearance. Q's stories range from false notions about COVID-19 to a cabal running the U.S. government to the claim there's a secret world of satanic pedophiles. This culminates in the belief that President Trump is a kind of savior figure. Today, U.S. authorities are increasingly regarding QAnon as a domestic terror threat — esp...
Jan 15, 2021•14 min
House Democrats — joined by 10 Republicans — voted to impeach President Trump on Wednesday. Now the process moves to the Senate, where Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he hasn't made a final decision — and that he'll listen to the legal arguments presented in the Senate. GOP strategist Scott Jennings, who is familiar with McConnell's thinking, spoke to NPR about why that might be. No matter what McConnell does, Trump will not be president by this time next week. But between now and then, the...
Jan 13, 2021•11 min
