What Next | Daily News and Analysis

The problem with the news right now? It’s everywhere. And each day, it can feel like we’re all just mindlessly scrolling. It’s why we created What Next. This short daily show is here to help you make sense of things. When the news feels overwhelming, we’re here to help you answer: What next? Look for new episodes every weekday morning.


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Daily News
News Commentary
Politics
101
TBD | The Future of the Internet Hinges on Gail...
You may be asking, “Who?”
25 min
102
Main Character: Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs
Slate’s Nadira Goffe visits with reporting from the courthouse.
6 min
103
TBD | Is Palantir Building a Data Big Brother?
Palantir is laying the groundwork for a central government data system - one that sounds an awful lot like a surveillance state.
26 min
104
She Was Tortured. America Shut Her Out.
One of the last avenues of protection at the southern border appears to have closed.
26 min
105
Can Zionism Survive This War?
A self-described Zionist feels the path Israel is on isn’t leading to a safe, peaceful nation for Jews, which he once believed was the goal.
28 min
106
George Floyd Square, Five Years Later
Searching for progress, in Minneapolis and America.
30 min
107
Can the U.S. Learn from the U.K.'s Post-Brexit ...
Even with a US trade deal in hand, British politics still feel lost in the woods, five years after leaving the EU.
24 min
108
TBD | So Long, Elon
He came, he sawed, he conq—well, he left.
25 min
109
TBD | The Drone Wars
Russia and Ukraine are locked in an arms race that will change war forever.
22 min
110
Legally Dead—And Pregnant
Adriana Smith is being kept on life support, at her family’s expense, until her fetus reaches 32 weeks.
25 min
111
Does Gavin Newsom Have It All Figured Out?
Why the California governor seems to be engineering a big pivot to the center.
26 min
112
What Would You Pay to Stay Alive?
A reporter investigates why his lifesaving medication costs nearly $1,000 a day.
25 min
113
The Glaring Problem with Headlights
Why car headlights have gotten so bright—and why they’re likely to stay that way.
40 min
114
TBD | Crypto's Big Win
Even if you've never touched crypto, you could be burned by the GENIUS Act.
26 min
115
Bonus: Main Character: The One Big Beautiful Bill
Slate’s Jim Newell stops by to remind us how reconciliation works.
5 min
116
TBD | Inside OpenAI's Empire
How the company convinced everyone that AGI is inevitable—and that they need to be the ones who control it.
34 min
117
Can A “Morality Coalition” Succeed Against Trump?
He brought “Moral Mondays” to the Capitol—and getting arrested isn’t going to stop him.
22 min
118
If Trump Guts FEMA, Are Tornado Victims On Thei...
It’s tempting to cut something that doesn’t seem essential…until it is.
26 min
119
Here’s How the GOP Cuts Medicaid
They’re getting the old “work requirements” argument down from the attic.
24 min
120
Is Immigration Still Trump’s Strongest Issue?
Voters may be getting what they voted for, but not what they want.
25 min
121
TBD | You’ve Been Deepfaked
How AI generated revenge porn is spreading across the internet.
24 min
122
TBD | The Newarkification of Flying
Can we avoid an air travel future that is nasty, brutish, and severely delayed?
26 min
123
The Qatari Plane Is Just The Start
If you give a mouse a jumbo jet…
22 min
124
Trump’s Middle East Diplomacy
Israel keeps getting surprised by the mercurial American president.
24 min
125
David Hogg Wants Democratic Politicians to Be A...
The call is coming from inside the party.
23 min