Category: 3-DailySometimeCommentary

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What A Day - Does Washington, D.C. Need Federal Intervention?

On Tuesday, the Department of Justice announced it's launching a much-needed and super important investigation into Washington D.C.'s crime statistics. The DOJ said it's looking into whether the stats have been QUOTE: "manipulated" to make the crime rate seem lower. Why, might you ask, is the DOJ using time, money, and resources to look into this? Probably because it's searching for a way to justify President Donald Trump's takeover of the Metropolitan Police Department and deployment of National Guard troops to the district. However, it has been roughly two weeks since Trump's takeover, and we have some questions. Is DC's crime problem really that bad? And is it better now after federal intervention? We spoke with journalist Josh Barro. He's also co-host of the podcast "Serious Trouble".

And in headlines, the Trump administration decides it doesn't want feedback from its federal employees, the White House says arrangements for a meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Putin are underway, and Oklahoma is making sure teachers from California and New York aren't "woke".

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The Indicator from Planet Money - Cobalt-free batteries reign in Chinese EVs. Why not the US?

There’s been an era-defining race underway between two types of batteries used in electric vehicles: lithium batteries that use cobalt, and ones that use iron phosphate. Cobalt, a metal with a checkered human rights record, has been in the lead. Until recently. 

Henry Sanderson’s book on the elements that build electric vehicles is Volt Rush: The Winners and Losers in the Race to Go Green.

Related episodes: 
The race to produce lithium 
How batteries are already changing the grid 
How batteries are riding the free market rodeo in Texas 
How EV batteries tore apart Michigan (Update) 
Batteries are catching fire at sea 

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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What Next | Daily News and Analysis - Can Trump Kill Mail-In Ballots?

Donald Trump returned from his meeting with Vladimir Putin convinced that mail-in voting is how he was cheated from winning the 2020 election. Though he’s come to this conclusion without evidence, how much damage can he do to American democracy?


Guest:  Rick Hasen, UCLA School of Law, Director, Safeguarding Democracy Project, Election Law blog

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Cato Podcast - Trade, Power, and Tension: The U.S.-China Story

Justin Logan and Clark Packard break down the twists and turns of the U.S.-China relationship—from trade liberalization and consumer benefits to lost manufacturing and rising geopolitical tensions. They unpack how economic integration shaped today’s challenges and what it means for America’s future.


Justin Logan, “Liberty at Home, Restraint Abroad: A Realist Approach to Foreign Policy,” Free Society (June 20, 2024) 

Justin Logan, “Uncle Sucker: Why U.S. Efforts at Defense Burdensharing Fail,” Policy Analysis no. 940 (March 7, 2023) 

Clark Packard, Course Correction, Policy Analysis no. 897 (July 21, 2020)

Clark Packard and Scott Lincicome, “Presidential Tariff Powers and the Need for Reform,” Briefing Paper no. 179 (October 9, 2024)

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What A Day - The AI Chatbot Childhood Is Officially Here

The conversation surrounding artificial intelligence in the US is hard to avoid right now. Powerful companies like Nvidia are making AI chips, doctors are using AI to revolutionize and enhance healthcare, and companies like Waymo have implemented the technology in self-driving cars. But even with all these advances, concerns continue to grow over how children are using AI. Reports about chatbots engaging children in "sensual" conversations have led to amplified concerns. However, others have found that students and teachers alike are using AI to complete schoolwork and create class assignments. For more information about the intersection of AI and America's children, we spoke with Lila Shroff, Assistant Editor at The Atlantic.

And in headlines, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spruces up for his White House visit, President Donald Trump rants about the evil that is mail-in ballots, and MSNBC is changing its name to MS NOW.

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The Indicator from Planet Money - How algorithms are changing the way we speak

Social media has birthed an entire lexicon replicated by millions online — even if these words don’t actually mean skibidi. On today’s show, we talk to author Adam Aleksic about how TikTok and Instagram's engagement metrics, and viral memes, are rewiring our brains and transforming language at warp speed.

Adam Aleksic’s book is Algospeak: How Social Media is Transforming the Future of Language 

Related episodes: 
What we’re reading on the beach this summer  

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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What Next | Daily News and Analysis - Zelensky Brings a Posse to Washington

After visiting with Vladimir Putin, Volodymyr Zelensky, and European leaders, where does Donald Trump stand on the Ukraine-Russia war—and where does that leave Ukraine?

Guest:  Tim Mak, editor of the Kyiv-based publication The Counteroffensive.

Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.

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

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What A Day - What It’s Like To Have Trump Hold Your Science Research Hostage

The Trump administration’s crackdown on universities across the country for alleged antisemitism has made its way from the East Coast to the West Coast. Earlier this month, the administration demanded the University of California Los Angeles pay $1-billion to the federal government to resolve what it’s calling civil rights violations. That was on top of more than half a billion dollars in cuts to federal research funding from the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and other federal sources. But, a federal judge on Friday said the cuts to UCLA’s funding violated a previous order and ruled some of the funding must be restored. To talk more about the impact the funding cuts have had, we spoke with Dr. Aradhna Tripati, a professor of climate science and geochemistry at UCLA. Joining her in the conversation is Monique Trinh, a program Manager in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine.

And in the headlines: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is set to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House, Secretary of State Marco Rubio defends the department's decision to halt visitor visas for people from Gaza, and more National Guard troops are headed to DC at the behest of Trump.

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The Indicator from Planet Money - Three innovations pushing the medical field forward

Innovation is crucial for long-term economic prosperity. One area where that’s happening aplenty: medical technology. From a cancer vaccine to an Alzheimer’s blood test to a life-changing exoskeleton, we take you on a tour of the economics of health technology. 

Related episodes: 
The hidden costs of healthcare churn  (Apple / Spotify) 
More for Palantir, less for mRNA, and a disaster database redemption arc (Apple / Spotify) 
It's actually really hard to make a robot, guys (Apple / Spotify) 

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. Voice-over by Greg Hardes. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter. 

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What Next | Daily News and Analysis - How Trump Brought Home a Murderer

Characteristic of this administration’s over-the-top but never-thought-out immigration enforcement, Trump traded more than 250 Venezuelans who had been deported to El Salvador’s notorious CECOT prison for 10 Americans who were being held prisoner in Venezuela—including a man convicted of a triple homicide. 

Guest:  Jonathan Blitzer, staff writer at the New Yorker and author of Everyone Who Is Gone Is Here: The United States, Central America, and the Making of a Crisis.

Want more What Next? Subscribe to Slate Plus to access ad-free listening to the whole What Next family and across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of our show page. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.

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


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