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
1101
Facebook’s PTSD payout
Facebook has agreed to pay a $52 million settlement to its content moderators. Reporting by The Verge’s Casey Newton was a game changer.
22 min
1102
Covid, kids, and a mystery illness
Dozens of children have fallen ill with an inflammatory syndrome that may be linked to Covid-19. Harvard Medical School’s Dr. Kevin Friedman explains.
15 min
1103
Will Ahmaud Arbery’s killing change Georgia law?
Two white men are accused of killing a black jogger. Georgia state Rep. Jasmine Clark wants to change the laws that could be used to defend them.
21 min
1104
A few men in fishing boats try to take Venezuela
While the world was distracted by a pandemic, a ragtag team of Americans and Venezuelans attempted to overthrow President Maduro.
15 min
1105
Quarantine dreams
Think you’ve been having exceptionally strange dreams lately? Harvard psychologist Deirdre Barrett says it’s not a figment of your imagination.
23 min
1106
The Reopening States of America
Dr. Richard Besser, former head of the Centers for Disease Control, explains how states can reopen without putting lives in danger. Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
19 min
1107
Why Sweden stayed open
The Kingdom of Sweden watched the world lock down and decided to do the opposite. Swedish journalist Nathalie Rothschild explains. Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
18 min
1108
How to be happy
The most popular course in Yale's 300-year history is all about achieving happiness. The pandemic has made it more relevant than ever.
22 min
1109
Tara Reade alleges, Joe Biden denies
Vox's Laura McGann explains the sexual assault allegation against former Vice President Joe Biden, and the implications for his campaign. Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
16 min
1110
The Island of Explained
Come with us to the magical Island of Explained, where we’ll climb trees and venture into caves to answer kids’ biggest coronavirus questions. Go to vox.com/todayexplainedlearning to find supplemental activities, from testing how far snot travels to coloring in a map of the Island of Explained. Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained.
23 min
1111
The Invisible Man
Vox's Alex Ward explains what's going on with North Korea's Kim Jong Un.
17 min
1112
Overflowing farms, desperate food banks
American farmers are destroying their crops while demand is mounting at food banks. Politico food and agriculture reporter Helena Bottemiller Evich explains.
24 min
1113
Inside the world's biggest lockdown
Prime Minister Narendra Modi ordered 1.4 billion Indians to stay home. The world had never seen anything like it.
22 min
1114
Oil is broke. Green New Deal with it?
Oil just went negative for the first time in history. Vox's David Roberts says that creates an opportunity to make more history.
21 min
1115
Georgia on my mind
As the state reopens, Vox's Jillian Weinberger zooms to rural Georgia to hear how a Covid-19 outbreak spiraled out of control.
16 min
1116
Conspiracy-19
Vox’s science editor, Eliza Barclay, arms you with the facts you need to fight your uncle’s favorite coronavirus conspiracy theories.
22 min
1117
This one's for Earth
Cryptic treehunters. Unknown apples. Flowers fighting back. On the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, Vox’s Umair Irfan and Brian Resnick explain what we learned about the planet in the last year.
19 min
1118
One day, three healthcare workers
A nurse, a paramedic, and a physician’s assistant record themselves throughout the course of a day in the fight against Covid-19.
21 min
1119
The epicenter of the epicenter
Covid-19's victims, and the people they leave behind.
23 min
1120
Long shot
It could be a year or more before the vaccine is ready, but there’s a radical plan to speed up the process.
25 min
1121
Zeke Emanuel’s exit strategy
President Trump wants to reopen the country yesterday. Bioethicist Zeke Emanuel, who served as a health policy advisor to former President Obama, offers a safe path.
25 min
1122
Death Cab for The Postal Service?
The United States Postal Service is on the brink of collapse. Vox's Matthew Yglesias explains how and why the country should save it.
25 min
1123
All praise, no pay
Essential workers in the food, transportation, and retail industries are being called American heroes. They want to be paid as such.
25 min
1124
Elizabeth Warren has a plan for this, too
Friend of the show Ezra Klein speaks to Sen. Elizabeth Warren about several plans she has proposed to combat this pandemic.
51 min
1125
The loneliness pandemic
Coronavirus has led to another pandemic: social isolation. Vox’s Ezra Klein says this sickness has a cure.
19 min