What Next | Daily News and Analysis - 2025: The Music of the Year

2025 might not have been a great year —but the music sure was stellar.

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Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme and Rob Gunther. 


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Tech Won't Save Us - How Spotify Remade the Music Industry w/ Liz Pelly [Replay]

Paris Marx is joined by Liz Pelly to discuss how Spotify changes how we listen to music and the broader impacts it has on the wider music industry. This episode previously aired in February 2025.

Liz Pelly is a music journalist and the author of Mood Machine.

Tech Won’t Save Us offers a critical perspective on tech, its worldview, and wider society with the goal of inspiring people to demand better tech and a better world. Support the show on Patreon.

The podcast is made in partnership with The Nation. Production is by Kyla Hewson. Production for this episode was originally by Eric Wickham.

Also mentioned in this episode:

  • Shout-out to the book The People’s Platform by Astra Taylor

  • You can read an excerpt of Liz’s book in Harper’s.

  • The CEO of Suno AI said people “don’t enjoy” making music.

  • The Edmonton Public Library was mentioned for spearheading some cool projects featuring local musicians - combat capitalism by supporting the cool projects operating out of your own local library!

  • Hoopla works with local libraries to share music (and Libby partners with libraries to share audiobooks)

Global News Podcast - Trump removes National Guard from some US cities

Donald Trump says he is withdrawing the National Guard from the Democrat-led cities of Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland after the Supreme Court blocked the deployment of troops for policing duties. But the president said federal forces would "come back" if crime rates go up.

Also: President Volodymyr Zelensky says only 10 per cent of a peace deal with Russia remains to be agreed, but Ukraine is not prepared to sign a "weak agreement" that would prolong the war. We speak to a Syrian refugee who spent years living in Europe but is now ready to move home. The discoveries that could solve the mystery of a medieval Welsh cemetery. And a campaign to build more toilets for women in the Japanese parliament. Photo credit: Reuters.

The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight. Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment. Get in touch: globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk

Serious Inquiries Only - SIO500: A New Study Suggests Brain Imaging Might Have Significant Flaws

Brain pics, or they didn't happen? There's a recent study that demonstrates that some brain region activity might interact differently with oxygen than previously assumed. This could upend significant neuroscience research spanning decades. Thankfully SIO has Dr. Jenessa Seymour to come in and break it all down for us!

We start with a primer on the science of neuroimaging tools and the images they produce. How in the WORLD can we get a picture of a brain while a person is still alive? What are the things we need to know when evaluating scholarly articles or popular media coverage about the brain that uses these brain "scans" in discussing their results? And what do we need to see next to support the findings of this study that could have incredible ramifications across our understanding of the brain?

Jenessa's brain sMRI

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PBS News Hour - World - Trump signals Russia blocking path to peace as CIA rejects Putin’s drone attack claim

The CIA has assessed that Ukraine was not targeting a residence of Russian President Vladimir Putin in a recent drone attack, a claim that Putin told President Trump, and that Trump seemed to accept. Trump now suggests that he agrees with European leaders that it's Russia blocking the path to a peace agreement. Nick Schifrin discussed more with Angela Stent. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy

PBS News Hour - World - Onboard an expedition to study a massive, melting glacier in Antarctica

Some call it the 'Doomsday Glacier,' a vast expanse of Antarctic ice roughly the size of Florida. As temperatures rise, the Thwaites Glacier is melting fast and threatens to raise global sea levels. That's why a team of nearly 40 researchers is embarking on a two-month journey to study it. Science correspondent Miles O'Brien is with the expedition and reports. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy

PBS News Hour - World - Azerbaijan-Armenia peace plan hinges on narrow strip of land along Iran border

President Trump has claimed to have solved eight conflicts since he began his second term. One of those is between Azerbaijan and Armenia, rivals since the collapse of the USSR, whose leaders met with Trump in the Oval Office this summer. Special correspondent Simon Ostrovsky and producer Katia Patin travelled to the Armenian border with Iran to assess whether that agreement could lead to peace. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy

Marketplace All-in-One - What’s next for the job market in 2026

Total jobless claims fell last week, which is the second-lowest reading in the last two years. Experts, though, say it’s likely a seasonal blip — especially since the labor market has been slowing all year. In this episode, what might be ahead in 2026. Plus: Los Angeles expands rent control, influencers change the consumer economy with “shopaganda,” and tribute bands get a moment in the spotlight.


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