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Today, Explained is Vox's daily news explainer podcast. Hosts Sean Rameswaram and Noel King will guide you through the most important stories of the day.
Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Let’s talk about terror (Part II)
When people see Deeyah Khan's documentary about white supremacists, they tell her, "The real problem is jihad. You should spend time with jihadists." She says, "I did."
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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23:3707/07/2021
Let’s talk about terror (Part I)
Documentary filmmaker Deeyah Khan grew tired of receiving death threats from white supremacists so she traveled to a Detroit motel to meet up with one.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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26:5106/07/2021
The case for drinking
Getting buzzed helped build civilization.. The Atlantic's Kate Julian explains.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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30:1902/07/2021
Law & Order: Special POTUS Unit
The Trump Organization and its top lieutenant have been indicted for tax fraud. Andrew Prokop says the case could have uge implications for American politics.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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23:2101/07/2021
Unfair housing
A housing watchdog says real estate companies often discriminate against low-income tenants who use federal rental assistance. Now it’s suing.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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24:1930/06/2021
Canada’s residential schools
The discovery of mass graves of Indigenous children in Canada has led to reckonings on both sides of the border.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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27:3429/06/2021
The doctors are not all right
Doctors have suffered psychologically throughout the pandemic, but as Vox’s Julia Belluz reports, those who seek mental health treatment in the US put their careers at risk.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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36:0028/06/2021
Food fight
Restaurant delivery apps have made it possible to order pretty much anything we want to eat with the click of a button. The latest season of the Land of the Giants podcast explores the cost of that convenience.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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35:3625/06/2021
Bish, don't kill my vibe
Catholic bishops want to deny President Biden communion, even though Pope Francis thinks that's a terrible idea. The Atlantic's Emma Green explains.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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27:4924/06/2021
Why stuff is getting more expensive
Vox’s Emily Stewart explains how scared you should be of inflation.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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24:2923/06/2021
The delta variant
The fast-spreading coronavirus variant first detected in India is coming for the rest of the world.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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21:2522/06/2021
A $55,000 drug that doesn’t cure Alzheimer’s
After 20 years of waiting, there’s a new drug to treat Alzheimer’s. For some patients, it’s a glimmer of hope. For some scientists, it’s one of the FDA’s worst drug approval decisions ever.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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30:4521/06/2021
Tales from the crypto
Cryptocurrency is everywhere! And now some people are saying it could be good for the environment?! New York Magazine's Jen Wieczner is here to explain.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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27:0417/06/2021
Once more unto the Brexit
The Atlantic’s Tom McTague provides a halftime report on Brexit. It appears it’s going very well for Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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26:5716/06/2021
Israel is under new management
Benjamin Netanyahu is out. Israel has a new leader and a new coalition government. The question now is whether they bring anyone closer to peace.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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21:2815/06/2021
QAmom
What to do when your mom is with Q.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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28:4914/06/2021
The Kardashi-end
Over 14 years and 20 seasons of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians,” the show rewrote the rules of reality TV, social media, marketing, and popular culture. Next up? Politics.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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29:2411/06/2021
You know who kinda crushed Covid?
Senegal. Vox’s Jen Kirby flew there to find out how.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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26:5510/06/2021
Mare of New York
New York City is picking a new mayor with a new election system. What could go wrong?
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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26:3509/06/2021
Mexico’s deadly election
Gangs and drug cartels killed dozens of candidates in Mexico’s midterm elections. Voters weren’t intimidated.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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22:0208/06/2021
Critical race theory
Across the country, Republican lawmakers are pushing laws banning “critical race theory” in schools. It’s already had a chilling effect on teachers.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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26:3807/06/2021
It’s getting harder to vote in America
Texas isn’t the only state advancing legislation that would disenfranchise voters in Democratic strongholds. Vox’s Ian Millhiser explains why some voter suppression efforts are worse than others.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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29:0104/06/2021
The lab leak theory
The idea that Covid-19 emerged from a Chinese lab once sounded too fringe to take seriously. That’s starting to change.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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27:1403/06/2021
Myanmar wants a revolution
Despite a violent terror campaign by the military junta, protesters are still fighting for a new government. The latest conflict is uniting ethnic and religious groups that have long been at odds with one another.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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25:1902/06/2021
The Tulsa massacre, 100 years later
It was one of the worst incidents of racial violence in American history, but for a long time very few Americans learned what happened to the Black residents of the Greenwood district in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Guest host Jamil Smith explores why — and how — that’s changing.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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26:5701/06/2021
The truth is out there
UFOs are having a renaissance. The New Yorker’s Gideon Lewis-Kraus explains what we stand to learn from an expected government disclosure, and why we want to believe.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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34:2928/05/2021
MO Medicaid MO Problems
Missourians voted for more Medicaid. Missouri lawmakers said no. St. Louis Public Radio’s Jason Rosenbaum explains what happens when you bypass the will of the people.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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28:2927/05/2021
Why Belarus hijacked a plane
The hijacking of Ryanair flight 4978 is a big escalation of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s attempts to hold on to power. It might also be his downfall.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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24:0226/05/2021
You’re vaxxed. You test positive. Don’t panic.
Nine New York Yankees tested positive for Covid-19, even though they were all vaccinated. Vox’s Brian Resnick says it’s proof the system is working, just as New York City is opening back up.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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26:5325/05/2021
Remember the insurrection?
Some would rather forget.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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29:2624/05/2021
A million Muslims detained
China’s Uyghur minority has been subjected to torture, forced labor, religious restrictions, and even forced sterilization. NPR’s Throughline explains how they became the target of what many are calling a genocide.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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58:5521/05/2021
Ctrl+Alt+Divorce
For decades, Bill Gates exemplified the “good billionaire.” His reputation — tarnished almost overnight — highlights the danger of relying too much on billionaire philanthropists.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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25:5820/05/2021
America and Israel
An arms deal between the United States and Israel is drawing criticism from Democrats. It's part of a shifting tide in the American approach to the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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29:2219/05/2021
The 2020* Olympics
*Are being held this summer in Tokyo. And it’s a mess.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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31:0318/05/2021
Take this job and shove it
Job growth has slowed, but there are plenty of positions posted. That's got politicians arguing about the cost of benefits. Matt Yglesias explains.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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26:3217/05/2021
A new constitution
This weekend, Chileans head to the polls to decide who will rewrite the country's constitution. CNN's Daniel Matamala explains why it's a historic experiment in democracy not just for the country, but the world.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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31:1314/05/2021
Jerusalem
Weeks of tensions between Israelis and Palestinians in Jerusalem have escalated into the region's worst violence in years. Two journalists in the holy city explain the conflict and its history.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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32:0914/05/2021
How America’s gas got hacked
The largest-known ransomware attack on American energy infrastructure is driving up gas prices and creating shortages. Wired's Lily Hay Newman says Colonial Pipeline might be a turning point for cybersecurity.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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28:3012/05/2021
Liz Cheney and the Big Lie
A push to remove Cheney from her House leadership position shows how Trump, marooned at Mar-a-Lago without Twitter, continues to hold sway in the GOP.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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26:0211/05/2021
Vaccinated! (Still anxious.)
There’s no vaccine for Covid-19 anxiety. Nor is there one for those who aren’t ready to “go back to normal.” But, as Vox’s Sigal Samuel explains, there is hope.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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28:3610/05/2021
“Free the vaccine!”
President Joe Biden heeded calls from low-income countries to try to relax patents on Covid-19 vaccines so they can make cheaper generic versions. Big Pharma was furious.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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29:2807/05/2021
Fortnite fights Apple for your phone
One of the world's biggest video games is suing one of the world's biggest tech companies. The Wall Street Journal's Tim Higgins explains how the fight might fundamentally change your phone.
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28:4906/05/2021
Can we get to 70%?
That’s President Joe Biden’s new vaccination goal, and he’s got some fresh ideas on how to get there. Vox’s German Lopez explains.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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26:5105/05/2021
Congress takes on sexual assault in the military
Congress wants to change how the military prosecutes sex crimes. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand explains her bill.
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28:0404/05/2021
The bonkers housing market
Is it a bubble? Is it going to pop? Do you need to bid over asking? Has it already sold? Are there any houses left? Will you ever find one? Vox’s Jerusalem Demsas explains.
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27:2003/05/2021
The enduring mystery of long Covid
An estimated 10 percent of people who test positive for Covid-19 experience long-haul symptoms. Vox’s Julia Belluz joins the Unexplainable podcast to sort out what’s known and what remains mysterious about long Covid.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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25:3730/04/2021
We scored Biden's first 100 days
Biden’s biographer, Evan Osnos, explains why the president is a weather vane for the Democratic Party.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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28:4529/04/2021
Apple vs. Facebook (feat. Privacy)
Apple updated its software and Facebook was very upset. Recode’s Sara Morrison and Peter Kafka explain. Roller derby is involved.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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22:5928/04/2021
Biden vs. Putin (feat. Navalny)
President Biden is cranking the pressure on President Putin, but it was Russian dissident Alexei Navalny who scored a victory by refusing his prison food.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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30:1727/04/2021
India’s SOS to the world
The world’s biggest vaccine manufacturer ended up with the world’s worst Covid-19 surge. Neha Arora, New Delhi correspondent for Reuters, explains.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
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25:2926/04/2021