Kat Torres has the insta-perfect life. She is rich, gorgeous and not ashamed to share it. Her posts about witchcraft and “alien baths” drew in over a million followers, all chasing the dream of a lifestyle like hers. But as she gathers more followers around her, the secrets beneath her fame grow darker and more dangerous.
One woman sets out to bring back her best friend who has fallen under the spell of this modern-day guru. And what begins as a search for a missing friend soon puts her on a collision course with Kat.
Based on the hit Brazilian podcast, journalist Chico Felitti uncovers a gripping story of influence, control, and those who dare to fight back.
Jon Lovett joins Leah and Melissa to talk about what’s at stake in this week’s Wisconsin Supreme Court election and what it was like campaigning for Susan Crawford in Madison and Milwaukee. Then, the ladies run through a busy week of argument recaps, opinions, and legal news, covering the relitigation of the Voting Rights Act, the sunsetting of the administrative state, and that text chain.
Hosts’ favorite things this week:
Leah: After Dobbs, David Cohen & Carol Jaffe; Mayhem, Lady Gaga; Black Bag, Steven Soderbergh; Wrexford & Sloane mystery series by Andrea Penrose; Lawsuits by Wilmer & Jenner challenging wildly unconstitutional executive orders; Judge Howell’s order rejecting the request for her to recuse in the challenge to the EO targeting the Perkins Coie order
We're talking about why President Trump is now threatening other countries—one he wants to sanction, another he wants to take over, and a third he’s talking about bombing.
Also, calls for more aid in the aftermath of a natural disaster that’s killed thousands of people.
And another round of storms is headed for Americans today.
Plus, which U.S. state is becoming the first to ban fluoride in the drinking supply, and—overwhelmed with cuteness? There’s now a word for that, and more, as dictionaries get an update.
Those stories and even more news to know in about 10 minutes!
Join us every Mon-Fri for more daily news roundups!
Wisconsin voters will head to the polls Tuesday (if they haven’t already) to choose a new member of the State Supreme Court. The race between two state circuit court judges — liberal Susan Crawford and conservative Brad Schimel — is now the most expensive judicial race in U.S. history, in no small part because the winner will decide control of the key swing state's highest court. But also because Elon Musk and his allies have been pouring millions into the race. Ben Wikler, chair of the Wisconsin Democratic Party, explains what's at stake in Tuesday's race.
And in headlines: President Donald Trump called up NBC to say some crazy shit, Iran rejected direct negotiations with the U.S. over its nuclear program, and the death toll from a massive earthquake in Myanmar climbed to around 1,700.
“The Best Idea Yet”: The untold origin stories of the products you’re obsessed with — From the McDonald’s Happy Meal to Birkenstock’s sandal to Nintendo’s Susper Mario Brothers to Sriracha. New 45-minute episodes drop weekly.
It seems like artificial intelligence is everywhere in our virtual lives. It's in our search results and our phones. But what happens when AI moves out of the chat and into the real world? NPR science editor and correspondent Geoff Brumfiel took a trip to the Intelligence through Robotic Interaction at Scale Lab at Stanford University to see how scientists are using AI to power robots and the large hurdles that exist for them to perform even simple tasks.
The satirical news magazine The Onion has been putting out ironic and often absurd headlines for more than 40 years. Christine Wenc was part of the paper's original staff, dating back to its origins as an alt weekly in Madison, Wisconsin. Now, Wenc has written a book Funny Because It's True: How the Onion Created Modern News Satire that traces the history of the magazine's influence. In today's episode, she joins NPR's Scott Detrow for a conversation about the cheap living conditions that allowed the original The Onion staff to experiment, how the paper responded to 9/11, and why she believes The Onion is "good fake news."
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
How an election to the Wisconsin Supreme Court has become a referendum on Elon Musk—and the most expensive state supreme court race ever.
Guest: John Nichols, associate editor at The Capital Times in Wisconsin, contributor on electoral politics and public policy for The Nation, and author of multiple books on media and politics.
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Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Ethan Oberman, and Rob Gunther.
