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.
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.
25 min
852
You know who kinda crushed Covid?
Senegal. Vox’s Jen Kirby flew there to find out how.
23 min
853
Mare of New York
New York City is picking a new mayor with a new election system. What could go wrong?
23 min
854
Mexico’s deadly election
Gangs and drug cartels killed dozens of candidates in Mexico’s midterm elections. Voters weren’t intimidated.
18 min
855
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.
23 min
856
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.
25 min
857
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.
23 min
858
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.
21 min
859
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.
23 min
860
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.
30 min
861
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.
24 min
862
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.
20 min
863
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.
23 min
864
Remember the insurrection?
Some would rather forget.
25 min
865
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.
55 min
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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.
22 min
867
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.
25 min
868
The 2020* Olympics
*Are being held this summer in Tokyo. And it’s a mess.
27 min
869
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.
23 min
870
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.
27 min
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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.
28 min
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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 it might be a turning point for cybersecurity.
25 min
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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.
22 min
874
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.
25 min
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“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.