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
151
The kids are all home
Living with your parents is so hot right now, with more adults doing it now than at any other time in the modern era. First, we hang out with a member of Gen Z who’s moved back in with the folks. Then, a closer look at the trend with Donna Butts of Generations United.
23 min
152
Buy a house? In this economy?
Home affordability hasn’t been this bad in decades. Wall Street Journal housing reporter Nicole Friedman explains the economic forces shaping the market. And Dave Ramsey, the popular, controversial finance guy, says this time isn’t that different.
24 min
153
The Baltimore bridge collapse
The Key Bridge disaster is yet another reminder of the vulnerability of global shipping.
23 min
154
Why ISIS attacked Moscow
The Moscow terror attack could mark the beginning of an even more brutal phase in Russia’s war in Ukraine — even if Ukraine had nothing to do with it. It's also a sign that ISIS-K is making a global comeback.
23 min
155
Spoiler alert: RFK’s VP
Robert Kennedy Jr. is set to announce his running mate this week. To mark the occasion, Semafor’s Dave Weigel explains whether third-party options can move the needle.
23 min
156
Beyoncé country
Beyoncé has a new country album. The first single has already broken records and drawn criticism from those who think of country music as a “white” genre. Except it’s not. Author and songwriter Alice Randall tells the story of country music’s very Black roots.
24 min
157
Can Caitlin Clark fix college sports?
The biggest star of this year’s March Madness basketball tournament isn’t one of the male players, explains SB Nation’s Ricky O’Donnell. The Wall Street Journal’s Laine Higgins says that’s great, but women are still somehow fighting for equality in college sports.
23 min
158
Can Congress ban TikTok?
Probably not. Punchbowl’s Andrew Desiderio and Kate Ruane from the Center for Democracy and Technology explain.
23 min
159
How gangs took over Haiti
Haiti’s latest crisis is being driven by something new: The country’s gangs have united, and they are demanding political power. Financial Times journalist Joe Daniels and peace activist Louis-Henri Mars explain.
22 min
160
Conned into the Russian army
Desperately low on troops for its protracted war with Ukraine, the Russian military is relying on men from countries like India to fill its ranks. Journalist Shalu Yadav tells the story of a man who was tricked into joining the army and managed to escape.
23 min
161
Live from SXSW: Noel King interviews Charlamagn...
In this no-holds-barred interview from the SXSW stage, Vox's Noel King asks comedian and radio host Charlamagne tha God and political commentator Angela Rye whether Black voters are turning away from Joe Biden and toward Donald Trump.
67 min
162
Hollywood’s still not back
Covid and last year’s strikes delivered a one-two punch that the entertainment industry still hasn’t recovered from. Entertainment journalists Mark Harris and Diane Haithman explain why this is bad news for the people who make movies and the people who watch them.
23 min
163
Lip gloss, gum, and the Pill
Soon you can buy them all at your local drugstore. The FDA approved an over-the-counter birth control pill that will be available later this month. Journalist Lux Alptraum and Megan Kavanaugh of the Guttmacher Institute explain why available doesn’t necessarily mean more accessible.
23 min
164
Where's Kate?!?
Two grainy paparazzi shots and an edited Mother’s Day photo are the only “sightings” of the Princess of Wales the public has had since Christmas. The Palace says she is recovering from abdominal surgery, but the internet … has some other theories.
23 min
165
The real fight over fake meat
Americans are eating more meat than ever, and it’s wreaking havoc on the environment. Vox’s Kenny Torrella explains how lab-grown meat could be the solution — if only manufacturers can overcome technological setbacks and political blowback.
23 min
166
Charlamagne tha God on Biden v. Trump
A recent poll shows almost a quarter of registered Black voters would vote for Donald Trump. We ask Charlamagne tha God, author and radio host of “The Breakfast Club,” about Black voters’ dissatisfaction with the Democratic Party.
23 min
167
Bringing back the SAT
Four years after a pandemic pause, some colleges and universities are again requiring applicants to submit standardized test scores. Inside Higher Ed’s Liam Knox and the University of Delaware’s Dominique Baker explain.
24 min
168
Can Reddit survive going public?
It’s the first major social media IPO since 2017. CNN’s Clare Duffy breaks down what is at stake, and New York magazine’s John Herrman explains why Reddit may not survive it.
23 min
169
Why measles is back
One state (cough, cough Florida) is leading the US in measles cases. The contagious disease was once declared eliminated, but Florida’s surgeon general is taking a hands-off approach to managing the outbreak.
22 min
170
How Israel is upending Democratic races
Super Tuesday is the biggest day of the presidential primary campaign, but the biggest race in the biggest state isn’t about Biden or Trump. Instead, the leading candidates for California’s open Senate seat — three Democrats and a Republican — are finding themselves talking a lot about Israel, Palestine, and the war in Gaza.
23 min
171
Why groceries are still so expensive
When it’s time to Stop & Shop, the American Publix is finding it costs more than ever to fill a Market Basket. Whizy Kim and Elizabeth Pancotti help Target the problem and explain whether a Price Chopper is coming to save us.
23 min
172
It’s Shotime!
Shohei Ohtani made his Dodger debut this week. His record-setting contract solidifies an international era for Major League Baseball, which hasn’t yet overcome a diversity problem at home.
23 min
173
The politics of IVF
A theologian explains why he agrees with Alabama’s Supreme Court ruling that embryos are children. A conservative pollster explains why it's a bad look heading into the 2024 election.
23 min
174
“Make Argentina Great Again!”
US inflation feels bad until you look at Argentina’s, which is breaking 200 percent. Today, Explained’s Sean Rameswaram reports from Buenos Aires, where residents are divided over their new anarcho-capitalist President Javier Milei’s shock therapy.
23 min
175
The protest vote against Biden
Michigan’s primary today will test President Biden’s viability with Muslim voters amid the war in Gaza. One Arab American leader says the community is abandoning Biden and looking for alternatives — Donald Trump might be one of them.
23 min