The Commentary Magazine Podcast - Rise of the Machines

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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The Ezra Klein Show - Everything Wrong With the Internet and How to Fix It

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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The Indicator from Planet Money - Just how bad are these job numbers?

It’s a weird time for jobs numbers. Another month, another jobs report pushed back by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Averaging two private sources, ADP and Revelio Labs: an estimated 4,500 jobs were added in January. Sounds like … not many. 

And, yet, the unemployment rate hasn’t seemed to have risen. This might be, in part, due to the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. We’ll explain through the story of one Angeleno.

On today’s show, how bad are these job numbers? Or are they not bad at all? And what does immigration have to do with it? 

Related episodes: 
Can we still trust the monthly jobs report? (Update) 
What you need to know about the jobs report revisions 
What really goes on at the Bureau of Labor Statistics (Update) 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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Pod Save America - 1117: Trump Threatens to Steal the Midterms

Donald Trump, Steve Bannon, and Mike Johnson hint at plans to steal the midterm elections, from "nationalizing" the voting to straight-up sending ICE to "surround" the polls. Jon and Dan sound the alarm and offer Democrats some advice on how to respond. Then, they react to Border Czar Tom Homan's announcement that 700 DHS officers (out of 3,000) will be leaving Minneapolis, Vice President Vance's refusal to apologize to the family of Alex Pretti for calling him a "domestic terrorist," and Jeff Bezos's gutting of The Washington Post. Then Dan talks to Maine Governor and Senate candidate Janet Mills about ICE's operations in her state, what blue states can do to protect the midterms, and whether the Democratic Party has an age problem.

NPR's Book of the Day - Two new books take on lesser-known chapters of WWII and Cold War-era Black history

Two new books focus on lesser-known chapters of Black history. First, Kings & Pawns tells the story of Jackie Robinson and Paul Robeson, who were pitted against each other during the Red Scare. In today’s episode, author Howard Bryant, a frequent contributor to NPR’s Weekend Edition, speaks with Scott Simon about how the men got caught between patriotism and activism. Then, NPR investigative reporter Cheryl W. Thompson tells NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe about Forgotten Souls, a history of the 27 Tuskegee Airmen who went missing during World War II.


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The Commentary Magazine Podcast - Oh, the Homanity!

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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