News and Happenings

It’s hard to tell if the nation is making progress on police reform when another high profile killing like that of Tyre Nichols hits the news. Have body cameras helped? How about diversifying staff? Or doing away with no knock warrants? Andy poses those questions to activist DeRay Mckesson, who began Campaign Zero after Michael Brown was killed in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014. DeRay explains why police violence persists, outlines the positive steps made in the last decade, and shares how you can continue the work at the local level.

How will America change as Baby Boomers retire and Millennials gain more power? White House advisor Andy Slavitt talks to Washington Post columnist Philip Bump about what sets these two generations apart from one another and how the transition will...

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is likely to be Donald Trump’s greatest challenger for the GOP presidential nomination. The Bulwark editor Charlie Sykes says that’s because he’s younger, smarter, and equally mean. Charlie tells Andy why DeSantis’ “anti-wokeism” platform resonates with conservatives, how his bullying behavior is just as dangerous as Trump’s, and who Joe Biden would rather run against.

Artificial intelligence programs like Chat GPT are becoming so advanced that it’s getting harder and harder to distinguish between something a human wrote and a robot. How could chatbots change our jobs, for better and worse? How could they threaten national security? Andy speaks with Congressman Ted Lieu and Stanford researcher Renée DiResta about the risks and benefits of dramatically developing AI.

Three years into the pandemic, roughly 65 million people suffering from Long COVID worldwide are still looking for answers to the mix of symptoms that has baffled doctors and experts. Dr. Eric Topal and three researchers suffering from the condition themselves published a new study laying out the newest major findings and preventative measures. Andy asks Eric about the likelihood of getting chronic symptoms from an infection, what those symptoms typically are, and how the data influences his own precautions.

America’s debt represents every deficit that’s been run by every president, from George Washington to Joe Biden. Now, there’s a showdown between the White House and Congress over whether or not the House will vote to lift the debt ceiling as they’ve done dozens of times in the past. Andy gets specific with Jason Furman, who was an advisor to President Obama during the 2011 debt ceiling debate, about how we got here, whether our debt is too high, and what actually happens if America defaults on its debt.

Why do progressive states with lots of wealth often have the worst homelessness problem? Simply put, they stopped building enough affordable housing. Atlantic writer Jerusalem Demsas and California YIMBY policy director Ned Resnikoff explain the obvious answer to homelessness, debunk myths about drugs and mental health, and spell out what needs to change in government policy and neighborhood sentiment.

The pandemic has caused many of us to ask ourselves what is truly important in our lives. What makes us happy? To answer that question, Andy brings on Robert Waldinger, who has done the longest research that’s ever been completed on happiness. He and his team at Harvard Medical School have studied more than 700 families for 85 years, tracing their ups, downs, and in-betweens. They dig into what the results teach us about the ways we should live our lives and Robert shares some practical ways to turn unhappiness around.

Epidemiologist Mike Osterholm has devised a three-part formula for what to do if you want to get together with people in close quarters without a mask. He shares that advice with Andy and answers questions many of us have, including whether people under 50 should get boosted and when to take antivirals. Then, Andy and Mike critique the missteps made as this pandemic unfolded and what lessons we need to learn to better prepare for the next one.

The latest fire in the culture war ignited when a government official suggested the possibility of banning gas stoves. Republicans quickly took to social media to proclaim their love for the household appliance, while environmentalists were left trying to explain the nuance of another long-term goal. Andy convenes a group of experts to cut through partisan politics in order to get facts, reasonable opinions, and alternative options. Vox climate reporter Rebecca Leber explains why the gas stove has become a status symbol over the past century and what climate implications come along with it. Then, Dr. Aaron Bernstein at the Harvard School of Public Health explains the health implications and ways to mitigate those risks without having to give up your stove immediately.