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.
A 2012 law tried to limit lawmakers' ability to make money on Wall Street. It hasn’t worked.
23 min
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The isolation of Vladimir Putin
The Russian president has come to rely on a skewed version of history and an increasingly small circle of advisers. Journalist Marvin Kalb explains what that means for the war in Ukraine.
23 min
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Did we just invent telepathy?
A groundbreaking new study claims to have found a way for a fully paralyzed person to communicate entirely via thought. But the scientists behind it have a checkered past.
23 min
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Umami Mama
For thousands of years, there have been four basic tastes recognized across cultures. But thanks to Kumiko Ninomiya (aka the Umami Mama), scientists finally accepted a fifth. As part of its Making Sense series, Vox’s Unexplainable podcast explores whether there could be even more.
34 min
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Microdosing goes mainstream
There is growing support for psychedelics as performance enhancers, mood boosters, and a shortcut to therapy. The science is mixed.
19 min
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Ukrainians (and Russians) meet US Border Patrol
The US southern border remains closed to asylum seekers on account of Covid-19, unless you happen to be Ukrainian.
22 min
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The National Guard is tired
And in Texas, they’re trying to unionize.
21 min
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“The greatest night in the history of television”
The Oscars were bordering on irrelevancy until Will Smith slapped Chris Rock on stage.
22 min
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Is the war in Ukraine unwinnable?
One month in, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine isn’t going according to plan. Historian and retired Army colonel Andrew Bacevich explains how it might end.
22 min
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(Ukrainian) refugees welcome!
As Poland welcomes almost 2 million Ukrainians in, it’s spending $4 million on a wall to keep Syrians, Iraqis, and Afghans out. Vox’s Sigal Samuel explains the myth of the “deserving” refugee.
22 min
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Mariupol under siege
The Russian military may have committed war crimes in its brutal attack on the Ukrainian city of Mariupol. International law expert Philippe Sands explains how Vladimir Putin could be held accountable.
22 min
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Permanent daylight saving time?
A bill to make daylight saving time permanent slipped through the Senate. Now, the real fight for time begins.
22 min
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The Americans fighting for Ukraine
President Biden insists he won’t send American troops to join Ukraine’s war with Russia. Veterans like Alexander Szokoly joined the fight anyway.
23 min
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South Korea’s incoming “anti-feminist” president
With its neighbor distracted by domestic culture wars, North Korea is making new moves.
22 min
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“Don’t Say Gay”
The furor over Florida’s latest culture-war legislation has Disney, among the state’s largest employers, turning red.
22 min
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Why Ukraine won’t quit
Millions of people have fled Ukraine since Russia’s war begin. We check back in with Kurii Vasyl, who stayed behind, and his niece Yulya, who fled.
22 min
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Defunding Covid-19
The coronavirus pandemic isn’t over, but certain corners of Congress don’t want to spend a penny more on it. Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel argues for $100 billion in new spending to fight Covid-19.
22 min
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Beware the Madness of March
Americans bet more than $50 billion on sports last year, and that record will likely be broken in 2022 as more states legalize the practice. A professional named Captain Jack and a novice named Emily Stewart explain the perils and glory of betting on the game.
26 min
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Radio, someone still loves you
The BBC is bringing back shortwave radio broadcasts to counter censorship and disinformation in Russia and Ukraine. Professor D.W. Stupples explains.
22 min
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Putin’s war spills into space
Russia has threatened to let the International Space Station plummet. The Verge’s Loren Grush explains the Star Wars.
22 min
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From Kabul’s airport to Virginia’s burbs
The world watched in horror as tens of thousands fled Afghanistan last August. Today, Explained’s Haleema Shah meets with an evacuee still stuck in immigration limbo.
26 min
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Banning Russian oil
Gas prices hit a record high in the United States today. Then the White House put an embargo on Russian oil. The Atlantic's Robinson Meyer explains.
22 min
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Breaking Russia’s banks
The US and EU are denying a handful of Russian banks access to SWIFT, a key tool in the global financial system.
22 min
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Volodymyr vs. Vladimir
Volodymyr Zelenskyy went from a middling peacetime president to a heroic wartime president. Kyiv Independent’s Oleksiy Sorokin explains from an undisclosed location in western Ukraine.
22 min
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The Texas transgender panic
Gov. Greg Abbott has instructed child protection officials to investigate the parents of transgender children. Dallas Morning News reporter Lauren McGaughy explains why.