Today, Explained

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.

News
Daily News
Politics
26
It's the economy, stupid
Economic concerns are shaping this year’s election, especially in Nevada. As candidates promise no taxes on you-name-it, it’s a glimpse into how each would reshape American taxes while in office.
22 min
27
Why do I keep getting these weird fundraising t...
In this special feed drop of the new Vox podcast Explain It to Me, we answer some of the questions you have asked Vox about the election, like why you’re getting so many urgent texts asking for money.
49 min
28
Is there a Dr Pepper in the house?
Dr Pepper has overtaken Pepsi as the second-bestselling soda in the US. Its rise helps explain dirty sodas, healthy sodas, and the overall explosion of the beverage market.
23 min
29
Musk’s million dollar giveaway
Elon Musk has become Trump’s most important fundraiser and his hands-on approach is breaking political norms, according to Tim Higgins and Dana Mattioli of the Wall Street Journal.
22 min
30
Demographics aren't destiny
Latinos and other groups that typically vote for Democrats are showing weaker support for Kamala Harris. Vox's Christian Paz and Cook Political Report's Amy Walter explain how that's shaking up this election.
22 min
31
The battle for Congress
Republicans are projected to take the Senate in November, but Democrats have a fighting chance to win the House — if they can turn out a broad anti-Trump coalition.
22 min
32
Category 2024
WFAE’s Steve Harrison explains how North Carolina is readying itself for Election Day after Hurricane Helene. And CNN’s Sara Murray says other states have their own issues, too.
22 min
33
Reconsidering the Menendez brothers
A new documentary and a Ryan Murphy drama have Lyle and Erik Menendez back in the news. Vox's Aja Romano explains how new evidence and new attitudes about abuse survivors might help free the brothers.
22 min
34
Is Trump for real?
Donald Trump talked over the weekend about deploying the military against an "enemy from within." The Washington Post's Isaac Arnsdorf explains how Trump's comments fit into a broader pattern of alarming campaign promises, and New York Times reporter Shawn McCreesh explains whether Republican voters even take this sort of talk seriously.
22 min
35
The minds behind MAGA
Vox's Andrew Prokop and Zack Beauchamp explain the right-wing thinkers whose ideas could dominate Trump's next term.
22 min
36
Can Democrats win back rural voters?
Wisconsin wasn’t always a battleground state, but following Trump’s victory there in 2016, Democrats are trying to regain their footing among rural voters.
22 min
37
Pennies don’t make cents
Pennies cost more than a cent to make — and no one spends them. The New York Times Magazine’s Caity Weaver explains why we can’t get rid of them.
22 min
38
A hurricane of misinformation
Lies about disaster relief are spreading like never before this hurricane season, and it’s making FEMA’s job harder. Juliette Kayyem, author of The Devil Never Sleeps: Learning to Live in an Age of Disasters, explains.
22 min
39
Mysterious Melania
Book critic Martin Pengelly read MELANIA so you don’t have to. Intelligencer’s Margaret Hartmann says the book is the latest in a long line of Trump grifts.
23 min
40
Abortion on the ballot
Ten states have an initiative on the ballot that would protect access to abortion. KJZZ’s Camryn Sanchez explains how Arizona's Proposition 139 could swing the presidential election.
22 min
41
The future of Gaza
It's been one year since Hamas attacked Israel and started a war in Gaza. Israelis and Palestinians look back, and Vox's Joshua Keating says Israel's occupation is looking permanent.
22 min
42
Puberty hits different now
Kids are going through puberty earlier, and scientists think they have found another reason why. Pediatrician Dr. Cara Natterson and puberty educator Vanessa Kroll Bennett explain why it should also change the way we talk about puberty.
23 min
43
Christmas in October
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro landed himself on the naughty list for stealing an election. He's hoping an early Christmas will improve his standing.
23 min
44
Mr. Veep
Vox's Andrew Prokop says the vice-presidential debate between Tim Walz and JD Vance was about policy, but in a weird way. Professor and pollster Dan Cassino explains how these two men represent the future of American masculinity.
22 min
45
Israel’s escalation
Tanks, rockets, missiles, and the death of Hassan Nasrallah. Israel is asserting itself as the most powerful player in the Middle East.
22 min
46
How to win Pennsylvania
Vox’s Christian Paz and Miles Bryan head to Philadelphia and Lancaster to see what the Harris and Trump campaigns are doing to win the state.
22 min
47
The office vs. everyone else
Amazon is the latest high-profile company to mandate in-person work five days a week. Today, Explained heads to Miami, where many people are back in the office, to see how they feel about it.
23 min
48
Leaving America for work-life balance
Today, Explained flies to Portugal to find out how the dust has settled on the pandemic-era quest for better living and working conditions.
23 min
49
AI’s nuclear option
Microsoft needs so much energy for its AI data centers that it’s helping to reboot Three Mile Island, the site of the US’s worst nuclear accident. Evan Halper of the Washington Post explains.
22 min
50
War in Lebanon?
It looks a lot like all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah. Semafor’s Sarah Dadouch has the latest from Beirut and CNN’s Nick Paton Walsh explains Israel's strategy.
22 min