Across the world, developed nations have locked themselves into unsustainable, energy-intensive lifestyles. As environmental collapse threatens, the journalist Noah Gallagher Shannon explores the lessons in sustainability that can be learned from looking “at smaller, perhaps even less prosperous nations” such as Uruguay. “The task of shrinking our societal footprint is the most urgent problem of our era — and perhaps the most intractable,” writes Shannon, who explains that the problem of reducin...
Nov 20, 2022•58 min
The midterm elections have left both parties in a moment of reflection. For Republicans, it’s time to make a choice about Trumpism, but one that may no longer be theirs to make. For Democrats, it’s about how much of their future is inherently tied to the G.O.P. Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
Nov 19, 2022•41 min
Earlier this year, much of the crypto industry imploded, taking with it billions of dollars. From that crash, one company and its charismatic founder emerged as the industry’s savior. Last week, that company collapsed. Who is Sam Bankman-Fried, how did he become the face of crypto, and why did so many believe in him? Guest: David Yaffe-Bellany , a reporter covering cryptocurrencies and fintech for The New York Times. Background reading: Here’s what to know about the collapse of FTX . In an inter...
Nov 18, 2022•34 min
This week, Israel swore in a new Parliament, paving the way back to power for former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, even as he is on trial for corruption. Now, the country is on the cusp of its most right-wing government in history. Who and what forces are behind these events in Israeli politics? Guest: Patrick Kingsley , the Jerusalem bureau chief for The New York Times. Background reading: To win election, Mr. Netanyahu and his far-right allies harnessed perceived threats to Israel’s Jewis...
Nov 17, 2022•29 min
Divided government appears poised to return to Washington. In the midterm elections, the Republicans seem likely to manage to eke out a majority in the House, but they will have a historically small margin of control. The Republican majority will be very conservative, made up of longtime members — some of whom have drifted more to the right — and a small but influential group of hard-right Republicans who are quite allied with former President Donald J. Trump and helped lead the effort to try to...
Nov 16, 2022•28 min
Days after voters rejected his vision for the country in the midterms, former President Donald J. Trump is expected to announce a third run for president. Despite the poor results for candidates he backed, why are Republican leaders powerless to stop him? Guest: Maggie Haberman , a White House correspondent for The New York Times. Background reading: Republicans may still win the House. But an underwhelming showing has the party wrestling with what went wrong: Was it bad candidates, a bad messag...
Nov 15, 2022•25 min
On the first nationwide test of American students since the pandemic, scores plummeted to levels not seen in 20 years. The results show how challenging it was to keep students on track during the pandemic. What do the scores tell us about remote learning, who lost the most ground academically, and what can schools do to help students recover? Guest: Sarah Mervosh , a national reporter for The New York Times. Background reading: In the U.S., students in most states and across almost all demograph...
Nov 14, 2022•23 min
Sandra Plantz, an administrator at Gallia County Local Schools for more than 20 years, oversees areas as diverse as Title I reading remediation and federal grants for all seven of the district’s schools. In recent years, though, she has leaned in hard on a role that is overlooked in many districts: homeless liaison. Ms. Plantz’s district, in rural Ohio, serves an area that doesn’t offer much in the way of a safety net beyond the local churches. The county has no family homeless shelters, and tho...
Nov 13, 2022•43 min
This week’s elections have been startlingly close. Control of both chambers of Congress remain up in the air. Historically, the president’s party is blown away in midterms. And the Democrats were further hampered this time round by President Biden’s unpopularity. Considering the headwinds, how did they do so well? Guest: Nate Cohn , chief political analyst for The New York Times. Background reading: President Biden appears to have had the best midterms of any president in 20 years . Election den...
Nov 10, 2022•25 min
In the early hours of Wednesday, control of both the House and Senate remained uncertain. Going into the midterms, some analysts expected a repudiation of the Democrats and a surge of Republican victories. But this “red wave” did not materialize. Today, we try to make sense of the surprising results. Guest: Astead W. Herndon , a national political reporter for The New York Times. Background reading: As the results continue to come in, follow the latest updates here . For more information on toda...
Nov 09, 2022•26 min
Over the last decade, Wisconsin has become an extreme experiment in single-party rule. Republican officials have redrawn the state’s election districts and rewritten laws to ensure their domination of the state’s legislature. In Tuesday’s elections, those officials are asking voters for the final lever of power: control over the entire system of voting. Guest: Reid J. Epstein , a reporter covering elections and campaigns for The New York Times. Background reading: In Wisconsin, a 50-50 battlegro...
Nov 08, 2022•50 min
For the Democrats to hold on to power in Washington, they have to do what President Biden did in Pennsylvania two years ago: Break the Republican Party’s grip on the white working-class vote, once the core of the Democratic base. In tomorrow’s midterm election, no race better encapsulates that challenge than the Pennsylvania Senate candidacy of John Fetterman. Is the plan working or is this crucial group of voters now a lost cause for the Democrats? Guest: Shane Goldmacher , a national political...
Nov 07, 2022•41 min
The phenomenon of babies stolen from hospitals in Spain, once shrouded in secrecy, is now being spoken about. The thefts happened during the end of the regime of Francisco Franco, the right-wing dictator who ruled the country until 1975, and even today the disappearances remain a subject of mystery and debate among scholars. According to the birth mothers, nuns who worked in maternity wards took the infants shortly after they were delivered and told the women, who were often unwed or poor, that ...
Nov 06, 2022•1 hr
This moment in politics will be defined by shifts at the grass-roots level. It wasn’t long ago that Democrats used to brag about the coalition they had built — full of young people, minority voters and college-educated women. Today, we talk to members of the Democratic base, many of whom no longer see a clear path forward for the party. “The Run-Up” is a new politics podcast from The New York Times. Leading up to the 2022 midterms, we’ll be sharing the latest episode here every Saturday. You can...
Nov 05, 2022•57 min
With an unpopular president and soaring inflation, Democrats knew they had an uphill battle in the midterms. But the fall of Roe v. Wade seemed to offer the party a way of energizing voters and holding ground. And one place where that hope could live or die is Michigan. Guest: Lisa Lerer , a national political correspondent for The New York Times. Background reading: Some top Democrats say that their party has focused too much attention on abortion rights and not enough on worries about crime or...
Nov 04, 2022•38 min
For decades, many universities have used race as a factor when deciding which students to admit. In the past, the Supreme Court has backed that practice, called affirmative action, in the interest of creating a diverse student body. This week, however, the majority-conservative court is considering a case that may change affirmative action forever. Guest: Adam Liptak , a correspondent covering the Supreme Court for The New York Times. Background reading: The Supreme Court appears ready to rule t...
Nov 03, 2022•26 min
Early on Friday, an intruder broke into the San Francisco home of Nancy Pelosi and bludgeoned Ms. Pelosi’s husband, Paul, with a hammer. The shocking attack underlined fears about the growing number of threats against members of Congress and the woeful lack of security around those lawmakers. Guest: Catie Edmondson , a congressional correspondent for The New York Times. Background reading: A trail of strained relationships. An itinerant life that included a stint living in a storage unit. A pers...
Nov 02, 2022•29 min
It was long awaited, and some doubted that it would ever come to pass, but last week, the tech billionaire Elon Musk officially took over Twitter. The platform was once the place of underdogs, a public square that allowed users to challenge the moneyed and powerful. Is that about to change? Guest: Kevin Roose , a technology columnist for The New York Times, and co-host of the Times podcast “ Hard Fork .” Background reading: A decade ago, Twitter was a tool for rebels and those challenging author...
Nov 01, 2022•25 min
Four years ago, Xi Jinping set himself up to become China’s leader indefinitely. At last week’s Communist Party congress in Beijing, he stepped into that role, making a notable sweep of the country’s other top leaders and placing even greater focus on national security. Guest: Chris Buckley , chief China correspondent for The New York Times. Background reading: At the congress, Mr. Xi didn’t mention two long-repeated maxims. To many, it’s a warning of the turbulent times to come . Mr. Xi has cre...
Oct 31, 2022•25 min
For Sam Anderson, a staff writer, traveling with animals can lead to enlightening experience. In this essay for The New York Times Magazine, Mr. Anderson explores what he has learned from a lifetime of voyaging with animals, and what it means to connect with another creature: bridging spiritual, physical and even temporal distances, and reaching into “something like evolutionary time.” “An animal voyage,” Mr. Anderson writes, “is special because it requires us to make many journeys all at once.”...
Oct 30, 2022•27 min
This moment in politics will be defined by shifts at the grass-roots level. Today, we talk to conservative voters about the forces animating the midterm elections for them — and what Washington can learn from the people. What do you think of “The Run-Up” so far? Please take our listener survey at nytimes.com/therunupsurvey. “ The Run-Up ” is a new politics podcast from The New York Times. Leading up to the 2022 midterms, we’ll be sharing the latest episode here every Saturday. If you want to hea...
Oct 29, 2022•52 min
Voters in Brazil on Sunday will choose between two larger-than-life, populist candidates in a presidential race that is widely seen as the nation’s — and Latin America’s — most important election in decades. Who are the candidates, and why is the future of Brazilian democracy also on the ballot? Guest: Jack Nicas , the Brazil bureau chief for The New York Times. Background reading: The contest — a matchup between Brazil’s two biggest political heavyweights — could swing either way and promises t...
Oct 28, 2022•29 min
As Democratic Party leaders assessed their vulnerabilities in this year’s midterm elections, the one state they did not worry about was New York. That — it turns out — was a mistake. Despite being a blue state through and through, and a place President Donald J. Trump lost by 23 points two years ago, the red tide of this moment is lapping at New York’s shores. Why is New York up for grabs? Guest: Nicholas Fandos , a Metro reporter for The New York Times. Background reading: Ahead of the midterms...
Oct 27, 2022•24 min
A few days ago, when the House committee investigating Jan. 6 issued a subpoena to former President Donald J. Trump, it raised a legal question: Can Congress compel a former president to testify? The committee’s move, while dramatic, is not without precedent. What do presidential subpoenas of the past teach us about the moment we’re in, and about what the former president might do next? Guest: Luke Broadwater , a congressional reporter for The New York Times. Background reading: The Jan. 6 commi...
Oct 26, 2022•28 min
In the early days of its war on Ukraine, Russia cut off gas supplied to most of Europe, plunging the continent into the most severe energy crisis in decades. Soaring prices have put some European leaders on the defensive over their support of Ukraine in the war as they navigate economic crises and bubbling unrest at home. Guest: Matina Stevis-Gridneff , the Brussels bureau chief for The New York Times. Background reading: European countries are facing dwindling supplies of Russian natural gas. T...
Oct 25, 2022•22 min
This episode contains strong language. Hundreds of candidates on the ballot in November still deny that President Biden won in 2020 — a level of denialism that is fueling harassment and threats toward election workers. Few have experienced those attacks as viscerally as election workers in Arizona. Today, we speak with the top election official in the state’s largest county. Guest: Stephen Richer, the recorder of Maricopa County in Arizona. Background reading: Election officials are on alert as ...
Oct 24, 2022•49 min
Yiyun Li has garnered legions of fans with her unsparing prose, writing extensively about her own struggles with depression and suicidality. Her latest novel, “The Book of Goose,” is no different, sharing the same quality that has made Ms. Li something of a beacon to those suffering beneath unbearable emotional weight. Alexandra Kleeman, also a novelist, meets Ms. Li to discover the secrets of her charm, her experience of growing up in China and her writing process. This story was written by Ale...
Oct 23, 2022•33 min
How a 12-year project to lock in political power in Wisconsin could culminate in this year’s midterms – and provide a glimpse into where the rest of the country is headed. “ The Run-Up ” is a new politics podcast from The New York Times. Leading up to the 2022 midterms, we’ll be sharing the latest episode here every Saturday. If you want to hear episodes when they first drop on Thursdays, follow “The Run-Up” wherever you get your podcasts, including on Apple , Spotify , Google , Stitcher and Ama...
Oct 22, 2022•34 min
Prime Minister Liz Truss of Britain has resigned after only 44 days in office. Hers is the shortest premiership in the country’s history. What led to her downfall, and why has Britain entered a period of such profound political dysfunction? Guest: Mark Landler , the London bureau chief for The New York Times. Background reading: Prime Minister Liz Truss’s resignation, yet another episode of political instability , only added to Britons’ concerns and frustrations over galloping inflation and a lo...
Oct 21, 2022•30 min
After a summer of news that favored Democrats and with just two weeks until the midterms, a major new poll from The Times has found that swing voters are suddenly turning to the Republicans. The Times’s Nate Cohn explains what is behind the trend and what it could mean for Election Day. Guest: Nate Cohn , the chief political analyst for The New York Times. Background reading: According to the Times/Siena College poll, American voters see democracy in peril , but saving it isn’t a priority. Despi...
Oct 20, 2022•25 min
