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Recent reports on the advances of AI in computer coding could spell a major shift in the software sector and cause substantial shifts in society. Is the AI singularity upon us, and how do we handle this emerging future? Plus John and Eliana recommend the Mel Brooks documentary The 99 Year Old Man!
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Women’s pain is too often dismissed in medicine. An alarming number of women report feeling major surgery and dealing with doctors and nurses who make light of their complaints.
Susan Burton, reporter and host of the podcast “The Retrievals,” shares stories from just a few of the many cases of women who felt significant pain during their C-sections.
Guest: Susan Burton, the host, writer and reporter of “The Retrievals,” a podcast series by Serial Productions.
Background reading:
Photo: Illustration by Getty Images
For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.
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Ragebait, sponcon, A.I. slop — the internet of 2026 makes a lot of us nostalgic for the internet of 10 or 15 years ago.
What exactly went wrong here? How did the early promise of the internet get so twisted? And what exactly is wrong here? What kinds of policies could actually make our digital lives meaningfully better?
Cory Doctorow and Tim Wu have two different theories of the case, which I thought would be interesting to put in conversation together. Doctorow is a science fiction writer, an activist with the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the author of “Enshittification: Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What to Do About It.” Wu is a law professor who worked on technology policy in the Biden White House; his latest book is “The Age of Extraction: How Tech Platforms Conquered the Economy and Threaten Our Future Prosperity.”
In this conversation, we discuss their different frameworks, and how they connect to all kinds of issues that plague the modern internet: the feeling that we’re being manipulated; the deranging of our politics; the squeezing of small businesses and creators; the deluge of spam and fraud; the constant surveillance and privacy risks; the quiet rise of algorithmic pricing; and the dehumanization of work. And they lay out the policies that they think would go furthest in making all these different aspects of our digital lives better.
Mentioned:
Enshittification by Cory Doctorow
The Age of Extraction by Tim Wu
“Fighting Enshittification” by Josh Richman
Book Recommendations:
Small Is Beautiful by E. F. Schumacher
Manipulation by Cass R. Sunstein
The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers by Paul Kennedy
Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams
Little Bosses Everywhere by Bridget Read
Jules, Penny & the Rooster by Daniel Pinkwater
Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com.
You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast, and you can find Ezra on Twitter @ezraklein. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs.
This episode of “The Ezra Klein Show” was produced by Annie Galvin. Fact-checking by Will Peischel. Our senior engineer is Jeff Geld, with additional mixing by Isaac Jones and Aman Sahota. Our executive producer is Claire Gordon. The show’s production team also includes Marie Cascione, Rollin Hu, Kristin Lin, Emma Kehlbeck, Jack McCordick, Michelle Harris, Marina King and Jan Kobal. Original music by Pat McCusker. Audience strategy by Kristina Samulewski and Shannon Busta. The director of New York Times Opinion Audio is Annie-Rose Strasser. And special thanks to Natasha Scott.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
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Jonathan Cohen, author of Losing Big: America's Reckless Bet on Sports Gambling, makes the case that the only credible reform agenda is friction, slowing bets, delaying deposits, and cutting off the design features that turn even Czech table tennis into a high stakes trap. Also on the show, Conor Patrick Heffernan traces how ideas of strength evolved, from Charles Atlas chests to bodybuilding's takeover of Hollywood, and why the human body mostly just responds to resistance, not trends. Plus a lament for the Washington Post's decline, how the Times out-competed it by poaching talent, and the brutal economics of serious nonfiction journalism in 2026.
Produced by Corey Wara
Video and Social Media by Geoff Craig
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The massive layoffs at Jeff Bezos's Washington Post involve more than just the financial situation at the paper. The Amazon founder's real priority is keeping Donald Trump happy so the money keeps flowing from his lucrative government contracts. And the man worth $260 billion will do what it takes, even if that means hollowing out a great news organization and potentially turning it into a MAGA-friendly outlet. Maybe having the economy so dependent on government contracts—with an erratic, megalomaniac at the top of the food chain—is not such a good idea. The former executive editor at The Post says Bezos should turn the paper into a nonprofit. Plus, the origin story of "Democracy Dies in Darkness," and the profiteering and corruption in the administration is not getting the press attention it deserves.
Marty Baron joins Tim Miller.
show notes
A major shift, it seems, in the Trump administration's approach to illegal aliens is taking place; what does this mean for Stephen Miller's hyper-aggressive approach and the White House's efforts to find a way to forestall a blue wave in November? Also, what is the purpose of these Iran negotiations? Give a listen.
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MintPress News journalist Alan MacLeod returns to Bad Faith to talk us through the latest Epstein file revelations: New links between Epstein & Mossad, race science & Jewish supremacy, celebrity sightings, media influence, right-wing pedophile apologia, & more.
Subscribe to Bad Faith on YouTube for video of this episode. Find Bad Faith on Twitter (@badfaithpod) and Instagram (@badfaithpod).
Produced by Armand Aviram.
Theme by Nick Thorburn (@nickfromislands).