Student debt in America now totals some $1.7 trillion, and the debate about what to do that debt is part of the mainstream political conversation. Pressure is growing on President Joe Biden and Democrats to try to do something about it — including canceling some or even all student loan debt altogether. Fenaba Addo, an associate professor of public policy at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, talks about the burden student debt represents for borrowers and what it would mean for that ...
Mar 22, 2021•10 min
This one goes out to all the dog lovers out there. This weekend, Alissa and Emily recommend Stray, a documentary that follows a trio of (very good) dogs who live on the streets of Istanbul as they explore the city and interact with humans. Even if you're not a dog person, it's still a fascinating look at the city's culture and people. Up for a double-feature? Check out Kedi, which follows the stray cats of Istanbul. Stray is available to rent on digital platforms including Amazon Prime, YouTube ...
Mar 19, 2021•8 min
People want to move on from Covid-19, but that doesn’t mean forgetting its victims. Vox reporter Alissa Wilkinson explain why a memorial could help us all heal and find accountability. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 19, 2021•10 min
Zack, Jenn, and Alex discuss the raft of problems stymying Europe’s vaccine rollout, which has been slower and messier than expected, given some of the earlier successes the continent had controlling infection rates. They talk about why some countries decided to pause administering the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine and how the EU’s decision to negotiate for vaccines as a bloc, rather than as individual countries, slowed down the rollout and exacerbated tensions between some of the wealthier and les...
Mar 19, 2021•11 min
Eight people were killed in shootings at three Atlanta-area spas. Most of the victims were women. Six were Asian American. Georgia state Sen. Michelle Au explains how her community is coping Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 18, 2021•10 min
As the Covid-19 vaccine rollout continues, finding an appointment is competitive. Very competitive. So the federal government is working with national pharmacy chains like Walgreens and CVS to help distribute more vaccines. But to make an appointment, you may need to share some of your personal data. Recode's Sara Morrison explains. References: Read Sara's story here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 18, 2021•9 min
Vox's Sigal Samuel talks with the author of Wintering, Katherine May, about the lessons we can learn during life's darkest seasons. They talk about our long collective pandemic winter, about how times of retreat can allow for personal and political transformation, and about how we might carry new wisdom with us as we emerge into spring. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 18, 2021•8 min
A growing number of unaccompanied minors at the US-Mexico border is highlighting President Biden’s struggle to fulfill his campaign promises on immigration. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 17, 2021•10 min
A caller from Florida asks for help finding books that explore social class with humor and are not set in New York City. Vox’s book critic Constance Grady recommends: Love in a Cold Climate by Nancy Mitford Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld Ask a Book Critic is an exclusive series from Vox Quick Hits. New episodes every other Wednesday and you can read the column here. If you’d like Constance to recommend a book for you, email [email protected] with the subject lin...
Mar 17, 2021•5 min
Vox's Ian Millhiser joins Matt Yglesias and Dara Lind to discuss whether or not the Biden administration has followed through on a campaign promise to reverse Trump's immigration policies. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 17, 2021•5 min
It’s a question the US has struggled with since its founding. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 16, 2021•11 min
Believe it or not, scientists still don’t know exactly how the sense of smell works. But they’re looking at how powerful it is — dogs can actually sniff out cancer and many other diseases — and they’re trying to figure out how to reverse engineer it. In fact, one MIT scientist may have built a robot nose without completely understanding how his invention works. Sign up for our newsletter: http://vox.com/unexplainable-newsletter Show transcript and articles: vox.com/unexplainable Email us! unexpl...
Mar 16, 2021•4 min
Now that the Covid-19 vaccine is here, a lot of people want it as soon as possible. The problem is, there aren’t enough shots to go around. A lot of emotions stem from that, including a new trend — vaccine shaming — where people pile on those who got vaccines, wondering how they qualified and feeling like the system is unfair. Vox senior correspondent Alex Abad-Santos explains why people feel compelled to shame others in the pandemic, whether it’s an effective tactic, and who’s really to blame. ...
Mar 16, 2021•10 min
President Biden says all adults will be eligible for a vaccine by May 1. But for the world to truly return to normal, young people will need shots, too. ProPublica’s Caroline Chen explains how, and when, that might happen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 15, 2021•9 min
The hit series on Disney+ may be over, but new possibilities for superhero movies are just getting started.Vox culture writer Alex Abad-Santos nerds out with Rebecca Jennings and explain why WandaVision changed the action hero genre and why the show resonated with so many of us. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 15, 2021•11 min
The filibuster, a Senate rule that was put in place by accident in the 19th century, is standing in the way of much of President Joe Biden’s agenda. A growing chorus of Democrats are calling for the Senate to scrap the filibuster, arguing that it’s the only way the party can act on issues such as voting rights, gun control, and climate. Not everyone is in agreement — including, importantly, Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema. Vox’s Andrew Prokop explains what’s going on. References: Read Andre...
Mar 15, 2021•10 min
Early in the pandemic, California Governor Gavin Newsom got credit for keeping Covid-19 cases low in his state. Now, over a million Californians want him recalled. The Los Angeles Times’ Melanie Mason explains. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 12, 2021•10 min
This week on What to Watch critic-at-large Emily VanDerWerff recommends the Apple TV+ space series For All Mankind. ` Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 12, 2021•9 min
Zack, Jenn, and Alex discuss the huge news out of Brazil this week, where a judge annulled the corruption conviction of the country’s former leftist president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, opening the door for him to possibly run for president in 2022. References: Here’s Lula’s recent interview with The Ink where he discusses his, uh, vigor. Voice of America offered a good rundown of the case against Lula. Reuters covered Lula’s “stump speech” that has many speculating about his 2022 plans. Bolson...
Mar 12, 2021•9 min
President Biden’s American Rescue Plan has been signed into law. Vox's Dylan Matthews explains why it’s a revolution in American welfare disguised as stimulus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 11, 2021•10 min
Katherine Oung’s mother says “I love you” with plates of cut fruit. She say it with cups of coffee. The Best Money I Ever Spent is a personal essay series from The Goods about the purchases that changed our lives in ways big and small, and it's a Vox Quick Hits exclusive audio series. This episode was produced by Schuyler Swenson, edited by Alanna Okun and mixed by Paul Mounsey. You can read Katherine's essay here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 11, 2021•11 min
A preview of Vox's Sean Illing's discussion with the author of The Sum of Us, Heather McGhee, about the costs of racism in America — for everyone. They discuss what we all lose by buying into the zero-sum paradigm that progress for some has to come at the expense of others, and why the left needs to reframe the country's race problem and persuade the other side with a more compelling story. Hear the entire conversation at: www.vox.com/vox-conversations-podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. ...
Mar 11, 2021•7 min
President Biden’s American Rescue Plan has been approved by Congress. It’s a revolution in American welfare disguised as stimulus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 11, 2021•11 min
It’s been harder to buy things online this past year. Some of that has to do with the pandemic causing supply chain holdups but there’s another reason why so many hard-to-find items are ever harder to find lately. Casey Taylor is a contributor for Vox who tracked down the origin story from sneakers to The Nugget Couch in the online reselling market. One Good Answer is a Vox Quick Hits exclusive series hosted by co-deputy editor of The Goods, Meredith Haggerty, produced by Schuyler Swenson and mi...
Mar 10, 2021•10 min
Scientists all over the world are searching for dark matter: an invisible, untouchable substance that holds our universe together. But they haven’t found it. Are they chasing a ghost? Sign up for our newsletter: http://vox.com/unexplainable-newsletter Show transcript and articles (including one about why we made this show now): vox.com/unexplainable Email us! [email protected] read every email. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 10, 2021•4 min
Vox's Ian Millhiser joins Matt and Dara to talk about the most effective way for Congress to safeguard the right to vote. Bonus episodes of The Weeds are available only on Vox Quick Hits. New episodes every Wednesday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 10, 2021•7 min
New guidelines from the CDC for fully vaccinated people suggest it’s finally time to hug your grandparents. Dr. Kavita Patel explains the do’s and don’ts as we inch back towards “normal” life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 09, 2021•11 min
Current and former employees told Recode's Jason Del Ray the e-commerce giant has a culture of bias, disrespect, and demotions. Black Amazon employees are promoted less frequently and are rated more harshly than non-Black peers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 09, 2021•11 min
President Joe Biden is known for his love of Amtrak — and now, many young Americans are hoping that might translate to a push for public transit, maybe even high-speed rail, from the federal government. A meme has taken off among Gen Z and millennials of an imagined high-speed rail system that would connect many of the biggest cities in the country. Vox policy and politics intern Gabby Birenbaum discusses how a meme about trains took off among young people, and how their aspirations go beyond th...
Mar 09, 2021•11 min
Darryl Richardson, a worker at the Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama, explains why he helped initiate a unionization effort that now has President Biden’s support. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 08, 2021•10 min
