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.
1
Introducing Explain It to Me
2 min
2
Our next chapter
There are some big changes coming to this feed, and we need your help with them!
2 min
3
How we Got Milk
And why the government wants you to drink it.
37 min
4
Those pesky delivery fees
Nobody is happy with delivery apps right now
36 min
5
Panic! At The Drugstore
The panic about the crime rate really is just a panic.
37 min
6
A new era of cannabis research
What rescheduling cannabis could mean for science.
34 min
7
Are baby bonds a good investment?
A unique policy program that could help close the racial wealth gap
35 min
8
Alexa, is Amazon a monopoly?
Antitrust is back, baby!
31 min
9
Is homelessness a crime?
The Supreme Court weighs in on the homelessness crisis.
29 min
10
Abortion and the erosion of privacy
Do Americans still have a right to privacy?
36 min
11
What is “fetal personhood”?
The legal definition tearing the anti-abortion movement apart.
32 min
12
A safety net’s poverty trap
What would you do if you could only save $2,000?
31 min
13
Let’s fix child care together
The real issue blocking universal child care? Politics.
40 min
14
Bringing back the SAT
Four years after a pandemic pause, some colleges and universities are again requiring applicants to submit standardized test scores.
23 min
15
The AI election
Will we be able to spot the deepfakes this election season?
38 min
16
The case for banning...millionaires?
Sean talks with political philosopher Ingrid Robeyns, whose new book Limitarianism makes the case for imposing limits on personal wealth.
51 min
17
How racism ages Black people
Racism and the long-term health effects of weathering
34 min
18
Skipping the broom
Why the marriage rate for Black women is falling
38 min
19
Eviction: the scarlet E
What we can learn about eviction from Black women and children
37 min
20
Let’s fix retirement together
An economist’s take on policy fanfiction
40 min
21
How to be a (realistic) climate optimist
A data scientist who’s cautiously optimistic about the climate
37 min
22
How celebrity fandom explains Trump
When “stanning” goes mainstream.
39 min
23
Why we can’t stop talking about Harvard
What’s really going on in higher ed.
36 min
24
Are unions making a comeback?
The labor movement’s big year.
33 min
25
Why are so many kids missing school?
Chronic absenteeism, from the barriers to the solutions.
34 min