What Next Plus
The problem with the news right now? It’s everywhere. And each day, it can feel like we’re all just mindlessly scrolling. It’s why we created What Next. This short daily show is here to help you make sense of things. When the news feels overwhelming, we’re here to help you answer: What next? Look for new episodes every weekday morning.
551
When Politicians Need Mental Healthcare
John Fetterman isn’t the first elected official to struggle and seek treatment.
25 min
552
Beijing’s Crackdown on Hong Kong Dissidents
A new law is set to silence a generation of political dissidents.
23 min
553
TBD | Is a 25-Year-Old’s Brain Mature?
How the new science of brain development isn’t just changing policy, but how we live.
21 min
554
TBD | Why A.I. Says the Darndest Things
Microsoft is working out the kinks of their chatbot in real time, and we're the guinea pigs.
25 min
555
Ukraine’s War Is Its New Normal
So long as Putin is alive, there's no end in sight.
20 min
556
When an Earthquake Hits a Civil War
Where Turkey, Syria, borders, and fault lines all intersect.
26 min
557
The Ohio Trainwreck Blame Game
How a train carrying vinyl chloride opened a new front in the culture war.
25 min
558
Amicus: The “Stop the Steal” Fight That Never E...
A State Supreme Court Justice reveals the long-term toll of calling out the Big Lie.
47 min
559
TBD | The Baby-Sleep Industrial Complex
Is the Snoo a life-saving necessity, or $1700 luxury item for bougie babies?
28 min
560
TBD | What Made the Balloon Drama Pop Off?
Blown cover or just blown off course?
32 min
561
Will Abortion Pills Be Banned?
How far can anti-abortion activists push against FDA-approved medication?
23 min
562
Is Nikki Haley the GOP’s Future?
Can the former governor and ambassador to the UN define herself apart from Donald Trump—without alienating the Republican base?
19 min
563
Why the West Bank Is at a Boiling Point
Tension is rising in the region as one side’s leadership grew more extreme, and the other’s looked more feckless.
23 min
564
The Mass Shooter Database
Perpetrators of these horrific crimes have a lot in common—including deep despair.
24 min
565
TBD | Contraband Tech Behind Bars
Why prisoners risk the consequences to have a cell phone.
28 min
566
TBD | Why Ban TikTok?
If the U.S. wants to protect users, there are better options.
24 min
567
How Florida’s School Censorship Spreads
This culture war didn't start with canceling AP African American Studies. It's not ending there, either.
25 min
568
The Russian “Collaborators”
When Ukraine retakes territory, the social fabric needs to be rebuilt as much as the infrastructure.
26 min
569
His Son Died in Uvalde. He’s Still Fighting.
Brett Cross’s gun control advocacy has taken him to Austin and Washington.
27 min
570
Georgia Takes on Trump
His phone call to Brad Raffensberger seems to be getting painstaking legal scrutiny.
27 min
571
TBD | Did a Twentysomething Con America’s Bigge...
How the start-up “Frank” went from a shiny new acquisition to “a huge mistake” for JP Morgan Chase.
29 min
572
TBD | How COVID Changes Our Immune Systems
The data doesn't tell the whole story.
25 min
573
The Plot Against Pope Francis
The 86-year-old knows there are people in the Vatican working to undo everything he’s done once he’s dead—but he has succession ideas of his own.
24 min
574
The Hysteria Over D.C.’s New Crime Bill
Updating the district’s motley 1901 criminal code patchwork isn’t the “reform” activists have called for—or tough-on-crime types fear.
24 min
575
From Rodney King to Tyre Nichols
After three decades of outrage and activism, why is this still happening?
26 min