Kenneth C. Davis , author of Don't Know Much About History and Don't Know Much About Mythology , quizzes listeners on how well they know their American history. Photo: The White House pictured in June 2025. (Credit: Jack Walker/WNYC) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising....
As part of a series on spring cleaning, KC Davis , author of How to Keep House While Drowning: A Gentle Approach to Cleaning and Organizing , offers realistic strategies for how neurodivergent people can build healthy habits around cleaning. Photo: Cover art for "How to Keep House." Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising....
Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them. Economic News from Marketplace (First) | Our Bodies & Our Tech (Starts at 14:32) | Wild NYC - Air Migrations (Starts at 33:54) If you don't subscribe to the Brian Lehrer Show on iTunes, you can do that here . Photo: SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - MAY 11: Gas prices over 6 dollars a gallon are seen on a sign at a Shell station on May 11, 2026 in San Diego, CA. (Photo by Kevin Carter/Getty Images) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz ...
Andrew Marantz , staff writer at The New Yorker and author of Antisocial: Online Extremists, Techno-Utopians, and the Hijacking of the American Conversation (Viking Press, 2019), talks about his recent reporting on Péter Magyar, the new prime minister of Hungary who recently toppled Viktor Orbán, and on OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman. Photo: Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar speaks at the first press conference of the new Hungarian government in Opusztaszer, Hungary, May 13, 2026. (Photo by Peter Z...
On The Media's Micah Loewinger talks about his reporting in the series "The Movement to Kill FEMA," and co-host Brooke Gladstone previews her conversation for OTM about the Supreme Court's Voting Rights Act decision from last week. Image: Courtesy of On the Media Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising....
Listeners try their hand at a news quiz, with questions and commentary by Mo Rocca , host of the podcast Mobituaries, a CBS Sunday Morning correspondent, a frequent panelist on NPR’s hit weekly quiz show Wait, Wait…Don’t Tell Me! and co-author of Roctogenarians: Late in Life Debuts, Comebacks, and Triumphs. Photo: Mo Rocca, host of "My Grandmother's Ravioli."; Courtesy of The Cooking Channel Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and us...
John Donvan , moderator-in-chief of the radio show Open to Debate, discusses what the show Open to Debate, which airs on WNYC (and many other NPR stations) aims to do, and spotlights some of the recent issues they've taken on. Image: Podcast logo, courtesy of Open to Debate Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising....
Lulu Miller , host of Terrestrials and co-host of WNYC's Radiolab, shares some recent standout moments from Radiolab's kids podcast, Terrestrials. Image courtesy of Terrestrials/Radiolab Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Nate Swanson , former director for Iran at the National Security Council between 2022 and 2025 and current director of the Iran strategy project for the Atlantic Council, offers analysis of President Trump's claim that the US will sign a nuclear deal with Iran, and the major obstacles standing in the way. Photo: Photojournalists take pictures of an Iranian technician walking at the Isfahan Uranium Conversion Facilities (UCF), 420 kms south of Tehran, 03 February 2007. (BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP via Gett...
Manoush Zomorodi , host of NPR's TED Radio Hour and author of Body Electric: The Hidden Health Costs of the Digital Age and New Science to Reclaim Your Well-Being (Flatiron, 2026), talks about the impact on our bodies of our interactions with our phones and other tech -- and how to stay healthy and stay connected. Photo: A close-up view of a person using a smartphone indoors, showcasing modern technology. Public Domain , via pexles. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com f...
Listeners try their hand at a quiz based on people in the news. Photo: President Donald J. Trump holds up a copy of The Washington Post during the 2020 National Prayer Breakfast Thursday, Feb. 6, 2020, at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C. (Official White House Photo by Joyce N. Boghosian) PDM 1.0 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising....
As part of a series on "spring cleaning," Kaitlyn Wells , senior staff writer for The New York Times' product review site, Wirecutter, offers more advice on how to organize and digitize life's most important documents. Then, she'll share tips for organizing and digitizing the memorabilia you hold most dear. Photo: Stock image by Tsuji /E+ via Getty Creative Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising....
Mayor Mamdani has released his executive budget. Elizabeth Kim , Gothamist and WNYC reporter, explains how the mayor proposes the city closes the major funding gaps and how the tardy state budget has factored in. Plus, she shares her related reporting on the mayor's relationship with the business community and his base. Photo: Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani and Speaker Julie Menin hold a press conference at City Hall on Tuesday, April 28, 2026 to call on Albany to help close New York City's multi-bi...
Kai Ryssda l, host and senior editor of Marketplace, talks about the latest economic news, including recent data on inflation, jobs and productivity, the effects of President Trump's tariffs and more. Photo: High gas prices are displayed at a Shell gas station on May 11, 2026 in Burbank, California. President Trump today said he wants to suspend the national gas tax amid elevated gas prices as the war in Iran continues. The gas tax currently stands at 18.4 cents per gallon for gasoline and 24.4 ...
Listeners try their hand at a quiz based on places in the news. Photo: Colorful Pins Locating Destinations on World Map, Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License , Credit: freebie.photography Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Jodi Kantor , New York Times investigative reporter, co-author of She Said (Penguin, 2019) and author of How to Start: Discovering Your Life's Work (Hachette, 2026), expands on her Columbia University commencement address where she tried to answer the question, “How, in this environment, is anyone supposed to find and start their life’s work?” Photo: Cover art for 'How to Start: Discovering Your Life's Work.' (Credit: Hachette) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for in...
As part of a series on "spring cleaning," Kaitlyn Wells , senior writer at Wirecutter, offers advice on how to organize and digitize life's most important documents. Photo: Stock image by Tsuji /E+ via Getty Creative Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising....
Mara Liasson , NPR national political correspondent, talks about the latest national political news, including what's happening in foreign policy as President Trump travels to China and a deal to end the Iran war is still not happening. Plus, she discusses the redistricting wars and what a recent NPR/PBS/Marist poll found about the president's approval ratings. Photo: A Democratic candidate for Congress in Florida speaks during an emergency town hall about Florida Republicans’ newly approved con...
As state lawmakers continue to hammer out the details in this year's budget, Jon Campbell , Albany reporter for WNYC and Gothamist, reports that it looks like the state will loosen the emissions goals in the landmark 2019 climate law, and explains why Gov. Hochul is dedicated to this, and why environmentalists are furious. Photo: Factory smoke via rawpixel. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising....
Listeners try their hand at a quiz based on numbers in the news. Image: Stock illustration, ( GrafikLab via Getty Creative) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
As part of the yearlong series "Wild NYC," Marielle Anzelone , urban botanist and ecologist and the founder of NYC Wildflower Week, and Christian Cooper , science and comics writer, host of the National Geographic TV series Extraordinary Birder, NYC Bird Alliance board member, and the author of Better Living Through Birding: Notes from a Black Man in the Natural World (Random House, 2023), talk about the spring migration of birds and butterflies, happening now. Photo: Northern Parula, a small wa...
As part of a series on "spring cleaning," Kaitlyn Wells , senior staff writer for The Wirecutter, offers advice on how to purge your old clothes, including where to send them when they're out of your closet. Image: Stock photo; ( smirart via Getty Creative ) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising....
Jimmy Vielkind , New York State Issues reporter for WNYC, digs into the details of the new, though still not final, $268 billion dollar New York State budget. Photo: The New York State Senate. (Credit: The New York State Senate ) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising....
As the Trump administration is in the process of revamping Penn Station, Tom Wright , CEO and president of the Regional Plan Association (RPA), talks about a new report that offers the RPA's ideas for how to increase capacity and make the transit hub work for commuters. Photo: A clock at Penn Station. (Credit: Boaventuravinicius via Wikimedia Commons CC BY 4.0 ) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for adverti...
Civil rights scholar Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw , co-founder and executive director of the African American Policy Forum, founder and executive director of the Center for Intersectionality and Social Policy Studies at Columbia Law School, distinguished professor and Promise Institute chair for human rights at UCLA Law School and Isidor and Seville Sulzbacher professor at Columbia Law School, and author of Backtalker: An American Memoir (Simon & Schuster), talks about key moments in her life ...
Jessica Grose , opinion writer at The New York Times , discusses the still-mostly-unequal division of household labor. Photo: Two women wash dishes in a kitchen in Australia in 1944. (Credit: Jim Fitzpatrick via National Library of Australia/ Wikimedia Commons ) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising....
Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them. Demise of Spirit Airlines (First) | Is a Rent Freeze Coming? (Starts at 38:21) | Avoiding Phishing Scams (Starts at 57:35) If you don't subscribe to the Brian Lehrer Show on iTunes, you can do that here . Photo: The self-service check-in kiosks of Spirit Airlines stand idle with a message to customers after the company ceased global operations at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on ...
Janai Nelson , president-director counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, talks about the implications of the Supreme Court's decision in Callais V. Louisiana, which they say gutted the Voting Rights Act. Plus, her reaction to the news that the Virginia Supreme Court overturned the voter-approved redistricting ballot measure that would have been a boon to Democrats. Photo: United States Supreme Court Building in Washington D.C., (Marielam1, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons) Hosted by Simple...
David Brand , housing reporter for WNYC and Gothamist, talks about the Rent Guidelines Board's preliminary vote on rent regulations for about one million regulated apartments, and other housing news. Photo: The Queensbridge public housing development in the neighborhood of Long Island City in Queens, New York, (NewYork 1956 at the English-language Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection an...
Ian Shapiro , professor of political science and global affairs at Yale University, a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Philosophical Society, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the author of After the Fall: From the End of History to the Crisis of Democracy, How Politicians Broke Our World (Basic Books, 2026), traces the breakdown in democratic institutions to missteps by Western leaders following the fall of the Soviet Union. Photo: US President...
