Explain It to Me

Is my dentist scamming me? Why do political campaigns cost so much? Should Gen Z bother to save for retirement?

Explain It To Me is the hotline for all your unanswered questions. Sometimes explanations are hard to find, misinformation is rampant, and those internet searches and AI asks can come up empty. Call 1-800-618-8545 with what’s on your mind, and host Jonquilyn Hill will be your friendly guide to the answers you're looking for — and maybe even the ones you don’t expect. New episodes every Wednesday starting September 18. 

Part of Vox and the Vox Media Podcast Network.

Education
Society & Culture
Politics
51
The sandwich generation: Caring for kids and se...
Baby boomers are aging. Their kids aren’t ready.
34 min
52
Why your health insurance is tied to work
The wartime policy that changed health insurance forever
41 min
53
Conservative socialism?
A conservative makes the case for democratic socialism.
52 min
54
How (not) to budget
The no-good-very-bad federal budget problem
42 min
55
NYC’s not-so-sudden migrant surge
What New York City tells us about our broken immigration system.
48 min
56
What’s up, doc(ket)?
It’s (already) time for a new SCOTUS preview.
40 min
57
Who protects workers from extreme heat?
Why we need a federal heat standard
43 min
58
Why isn’t school lunch free?
School is back. So is lunch debt.
34 min
59
Trump’s RICO problem
How a law targeting organized crime trapped Trump
43 min
60
Biden messed with Texas
The Texas buoy border battle
40 min
61
Biden wants YOU (to go to therapy)
Finding a therapist sucks. President Biden wants to make it easier.
37 min
62
A new era for birth control
The Pill (OTC version)
47 min
63
Who broke student loans?
The debt that just won’t quit.
48 min
64
Expecting: Weed and Pregnancy
The unknowns of weed and pregnancy
39 min
65
It's an HOA world; you're just living in it
Don’t like your HOA? Good luck. We dive into how HOAs became an unnecessary necessary evil and why these tiny unregulated governments are likely here to stay.
47 min
66
The Republican plot to defund public libraries
Move over book bans — why not just get rid of libraries?
44 min
67
A conversation with Ambassador Linda Thomas-Gre...
Taped live from TruCon 2023
31 min
68
We need to rethink discipline in schools
Discipline, segregation, and the achievement gap
48 min
69
The kids suing their state for climate change
The first constitutional climate lawsuit is going to trial
38 min
70
The fate of affirmative action
What you need to know about the upcoming SCOTUS ruling on affirmative action
55 min
71
Why is child labor making a comeback?
America’s history with child labor, explained
49 min
72
The Weeds, Live – Anti-trans legislation, expla...
Live from the Crosscut Ideas Festival
42 min
73
Policymaking on the high seas
Getting into the (sea) weeds of the high seas treaty
40 min
74
How Secretary Buttigieg wants to make America’s...
Transportation policy is cool now. Thanks, Pete.
49 min
75
Mifepristone and the FDA’s exhaustive approval ...
The fight over the abortion pill and the future of the FDA
33 min