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.

News
1401
Our Year: 1 Out of 530,000
When the pandemic hit home.
18 min
1402
Our Year: Who's “Essential” Now?
Do we treat essential workers like they’re essential?
29 min
1403
TBD | Does Google Actually Want to Hire Black E...
The tech giant’s partnerships with HBCUs are still coming up short.
21 min
1404
The Fight to Reopen Schools in Memphis
How the state forced school leaders' hand.
19 min
1405
White, Republican, and Vaccine Skeptical
Vaccine hesitancy lingers in many pockets of the country. What does that mean for the spread of the virus?
23 min
1406
Who Gets to Work on Capitol Hill?
Congress is more diverse than ever. Why isn’t its staff?
17 min
1407
Derek Chauvin on Trial
This will not be a simple prosecution.
20 min
1408
TBD | The Failing Lifeline for Low-Income Ameri...
A Reagan-era program designed to provide phone access for the poor has hardly changed in 40 years.
20 min
1409
Good Luck Voting in Georgia Next Election
After the presidential elections, state republicans want to change the rules they made.
28 min
1410
A National Wave of Anti-Trans Bills
The coordinated flood of legislation isn’t new. But now, it’s targeting kids.
24 min
1411
Biden’s First Foreign Policy Test
It wasn’t really what he wanted.
21 min
1412
Texans Can't Catch a Break
What it’s like to live from disaster to disaster.
22 min
1413
TBD | Australia’s Kinda-Sorta Win Over Big Tech
A new type of legislation could change the way governments and big tech do business.
19 min
1414
A Biden Pick in Trouble
Neera Tanden’s OMB nomination is hanging by a thread.
26 min
1415
The Marines’ Sexual Assault Problem
Years of scandals seem to have wrought little change.
25 min
1416
Should Student Debt Be Canceled?
Diving into one solution to several problems.
24 min
1417
Will Andrew Cuomo Say Sorry?
Even on the cusp of having his emergency powers revoked, a mea culpa is probably not in the cards.
22 min
1418
TBD | Why Texas Went Dark
The state is no stranger to extreme weather. But not like this.
20 min
1419
What Rush Limbaugh Left Behind
He embodied what the right has come to stand for: not a substance, but a style.
27 min
1420
A Year of Anti-Asian Violence
These kinds of attacks are not new.
23 min
1421
When the Vaccine Skeptic Is Your Dad
How to change a ‘pandejo’s’ mind.
22 min
1422
TBD | How Clubhouse Cracked China’s Firewall
Two weeks of extraordinary conversations led to an inevitable result.
21 min
1423
The Fight to Unionize an Amazon Warehouse
Amazon may be at a tipping point.
21 min
1424
The Most Powerful Man in Washington?
Just how much sway does Joe Manchin have?
22 min
1425
Trump on Trial — Again
Impeachment, round two.
25 min