The Indicator from Planet Money - The economic challenges facing men without college degrees

Many men in the U.S. feel like they're not doing as well as their fathers. But what does the data say? This episode, we're sharing an extended conversation between Darian Woods and Richard Reeves, the president of the American Institute for Boys and Men. They discuss what's really going on with men's wages. Richard also argues economic and cultural changes are needed to address the struggles unique to working-class men.

This interview was included in one of our bonus episodes for NPR+ supporters. Today we're sharing it with everyone. Learn more about NPR+ and sign up at plus.npr.org. 

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1A - Best Of: The Map Men On Missing Islands And The Meaning Of Mistakes

Last year, Americans spent more than 300 billion minutes on navigation apps, like Waze or Google Maps.

The GPS systems in our pockets have come a long way from the first known map, carved into a mammoth tusk 30,000 years ago.

But even with satellites tracking us and the ever-changing Earth from the skies – digital maps aren’t fact. Errors can show up and are sometimes as old as maps themselves. The phantom island of Sandy Island appeared on Google Maps until 2012, when Australian scientists sailed to its supposed location and found only open ocean.

Mistakes on maps were sometimes intentional, sometimes not – but every single one tells a bigger story.

How and why did it get there? What does it reveal about the creator of the map and the world around them?

We sit down with Jay Foreman and Mark Cooper-Jones, better known as the Map Men on YouTube, to talk through these questions and more.

Find more of our programs online. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a

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Consider This from NPR - U.S. foreign aid changed in 2025 – and it was felt around the world

On the night of his inauguration, President Trump signed an executive order that froze almost all international assistance.


What followed was the termination of billions of dollars in aid programs — and the dismantling of the U-S Agency for International Development. Now, the future of U.S. foreign assistance looks very different.

NPR global health correspondents Fatma Tanis and Gabrielle Emanuel have been following this all year and break down the impact of this move both on the ground and for the U.S.

For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

This episode was produced by Mallory Yu, with additional reporting by Jonathan Lambert. It was edited by Patrick Jarenwattananon and Rebecca Davis. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.

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State of the World from NPR - Looking Back: The Effects of Melting Glaciers in Europe

As we look back at our international reporters' most memorable stories of the last year we revisit a story about how Europe is experiencing a changing climate.  It is the world’s fastest warming continent with temperatures there increasing at twice the average global rate. That is melting Europe's glaciers, which may disappear by the end of the century, forever altering the continent's rivers with ripple effects on shipping. We go to the water’s source in the Swiss Alps to understand the changes taking place.

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Up First from NPR - U.S. Strikes ISIS In Nigeria, The Year In Congress, Holiday Spending

President Trump has announced the U.S. launched a number of strikes against Islamic State militants in northwestern Nigeria. Congress started 2025 with an ambitious legislative agenda, but 12 months later has ceded much of its power to President Trump and has passed a record low number of bills. And, shoppers spent a record amount of money this holiday season even as polling finds Americans are feeling glum about the economy.

Want more analysis of the most important news of the day, plus a little fun? Subscribe to the Up First newsletter.

Today’s episode of Up First was edited by Gerry Holmes, Jason Breslow, Emily Kopp, Lisa Thomson and Alice Woelfle.

It was produced by Ziad Buchh, Nia Dumas and Christopher Thomas. 

We get engineering support from David Greenberg. Our technical director is Carleigh Strange.

And our Executive Producer is Jay Shaylor.

(00:00) Introduction
(02:00) U.S. Strikes ISIS In Nigeria
(05:40) The Year In Congress
(09:28) Holiday Spending

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Planet Money - The Rest of the Story, 2025

Most stories keep going even after we set down our microphones and the music fades up. That's why, at the end of each year, we look back and we take stock. 

We call this tradition "The Rest of the Story." And we bring you updates on the stories we've reported, and from the people we've met along the way.

Today, we check in on an engineer and patent attorney who made a safer saw; we get an update on the Planet Money game; an update on money in Gaza; and we have updates on a diamond that may or may not have had a second life. 

Listen to the original stories:

The Subscription Trap 

Planet Money buys a mystery diamond 

In Gaza, money is falling apart 

BOARD GAMES 1: We're making a game  

How to save 10,000 fingers 


This episode of Planet Money was produced by Luis Gallo, edited by Alex Goldmark, fact-checked by Vito Emanuel, and engineered by Debbie Daughtry.

Pre-order the Planet Money book and get a free gift. / Subscribe to Planet Money+

Play the new version of our game here. Version 4.

Listen free: Apple PodcastsSpotifythe NPR app or anywhere you get podcasts.

Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Our weekly Newsletter


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Short Wave - Why Drones Are Catching Whale Breaths

Scientists in the Arctic are catching the exhaled breaths of whales to better understand their health. How? Drones. Whales breathe through their blowholes, which are the equivalent of nostrils on their heads. By studying the microbes in exhaled whale breaths, scientists are piecing together how deadly diseases spread in whale populations. Host Emily Kwong and producer Berly McCoy talk to All Things Considered host Juana Summers about what scientists can do with this information, from reducing stress on whales and monitoring ocean health to warning people who could be in close proximity to whales carrying zoonotic diseases. 


Interested in more science on charismatic megafauna? Email us your question at shortwave@npr.org.


Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave.

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The Indicator from Planet Money - The secret to Nintendo’s success (Encore)

For the next week, we're running some of our favorite shows from this year. On today's show, a brief history of Nintendo and how a small playing card company in Japan became a gaming juggernaut. 

This piece originally aired June 16, 2025.

Related episodes:  
Inside video game economics  
Forever games: the economics of the live service model 
The boom and bust of esports 

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.  

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NPR's Book of the Day - Dorie Greenspan and Paul Hollywood discuss their new and nourishing cake cookbooks

If you’re feeling burnt out from your annual holiday cookie-baking marathon, don’t fear. There’s hope on the other side… in the form of cake. In today’s episode, Here and Now's Robin Young speaks with two authors and bakers about their newest cookbooks focused on cake. First, she joins Dorie Greenspan to discuss Dorie’s Anytime Cakes, a beginner-friendly collection of comforting cake recipes. Then, Young talks with The Great British Baking Show’s Paul Hollywood about Celebrate, his volume of cakes meant to inspire joyful, low-stakes baking with the whole family.

To listen to Book of the Day sponsor-free and support NPR's book coverage, sign up for Book of the Day+ at plus.npr.org/bookoftheday

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Consider This from NPR - Remembering the World War I Christmas truce

In the months after World War I erupted, young men in Europe were killing each other by the tens of thousands. Yet on a frozen Christmas Eve in 1914, the guns briefly fell silent. 


On the 100th anniversary of the truce, former All Things Considered host Ari Shapiro set out to reconstruct the events of that day using the accounts of the people who were there.  We bring you that story. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.


This episode was produced by Elena Burnett. It was edited by Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.




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