It's Been a Minute

What's next for President Trump once he leaves the White House? And what's next for his business? And what's he being investigated for again? And by whom? We take a step back and break it all down with Andrea Bernstein , co-host of the WNYC & ProPublica podcast Trump, Inc. , about Trump's finances, his mounting debt and how, after decades of bad business, he has always managed to find a way out. S...

The rapper Bobby Shmurda had a big viral hit in 2014, and it looked like he was going to be a star. But just months later, Bobby and his friends were arrested and charged in connection with a murder and several other shootings. Our friends at NPR Music podcast Louder Than A Riot trace the interconnected rise of hip-hop and mass incarceration, and they take a look at Bobby's story in this episode....

What could a new president mean for the coronavirus pandemic? Sam talks to Ed Yong , staff writer at The Atlantic , about President-elect Joe Biden's coronavirus task force and how much the federal government can do to change the course of the pandemic. Then, Sam chats with comedian Matt Rogers , whose projects this year include competition show Haute Dog on HBO Max, Quibi's Gayme Show and the pod...

Talia Lavin went undercover in white supremacist online communities, creating fake personas that would gain her access to the dark reaches of the internet normally off-limits to her, a Jewish woman. That research laid the groundwork for her book, Culture Warlords: My Journey Into the Dark Web of White Supremacy . Lavin talks to Sam about what it was like to infiltrate those online spaces, what she...

Joe Biden appears to be inching closer to a victory, but there wasn't a blowout for Democrats this election. Sam talks to New York Times national political reporter Astead Herndon about what we know, what we thought we knew, and what the results could mean for the left moving forward. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage yo...

With the election still too close to call, The Atlantic reporter McKay Coppins joins Sam with the latest on what we know about the results, what they mean for President Trump, and how much Trumpism will live on in the Republican Party. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Po...

It's Election Day, but instead of the latest politics news, we're giving you some therapy. Sam shares listener questions around mental health issues with psychotherapist Lori Gottlieb. In addition to her clinical practice, Gottlieb is the New York Times best-selling author behind Maybe You Should Talk To Someone: A Therapist, HER Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed . She and Sam discuss burnout, whi...

With 2020 progressing the way it has, comedian Sarah Cooper wants you to know that Everything's Fine in her new comedy special. Sam talks to Sarah Cooper about her journey from going viral on TikTok lip-syncing to President Donald Trump, to starring in her own Netflix special. Then, Sam chats with Linda Holmes and Aisha Harris , hosts of the NPR Podcast Pop Culture Happy Hour , about their favorit...

Election Night 2020 is a week away. It's hard to know whether we'll have results that night, in a week or maybe even a month. But that's exactly what happened 20 years ago — between candidates Vice President Al Gore and Texas Gov. George W. Bush. Sam goes back to that night with NPR's Ron Elving and Mara Liasson to chat about what they remember from working in the newsroom, why it was so chaotic,...

On this bonus drop, we feature an episode from the NPR podcast Rough Translation. A Chinese idol had millions of fans who adored him for his kindness and good looks. Then, this February, one group of fans accused another of violating their image of him. What happens is a lesson in morality and revenge, love and hate, and how these feelings are weaponized on the internet. See pcm.adswizz.com for in...

Voter outreach took on an unconventional form Tuesday night when Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez streamed her gameplay of the hit game "Among Us" on Twitch. While she played the game with friends, her stream became one of the 20 most watched streams in Twitch history. Sam chats with Wired writer Cecilia D'Anastasio who explains the streaming platform's potential to reach new voters. Also, the pandem...

Latinos are the second largest group of eligible voters by race or ethnicity in the United States, but they continue to be misunderstood and underappreciated by political campaigns of all parties. Sam talks to Lisa García Bedolla , a scholar of Latino politics, about how the word "Latino" encompasses diverse communities of all political stripes and life experiences, and he checks in with the forme...

From fights over early voting applications to ballot drop-off sites, voting in Texas has drawn national attention. Sam talks to Texas reporters Ashley Lopez of member station KUT and Jessica Huseman of ProPublica to unpack what's happening and what it means for voting access. Then, Sam gets advice from John Paul Brammer , creator of the advice column " Hola Papi ." See pcm.adswizz.com for informat...

Writer and thinker James Baldwin used the power of his words to confront in order to connect, something that feels especially relatable in a year when the United States has been forced to reckon with racial inequality. This week we share an episode from our friends at NPR's Throughline , about James Baldwin, his life and philosophy, and what we can learn from him to lead us into the future. See pc...

In honor of Coming Out Day this weekend, Sam talks to comedian and actor Joel Kim Booster about his experience coming out to his evangelical Christian family. As Kim Booster grew up in this religious household, he struggled to come to terms with his sexual orientation. On top of that, he was also adopted into an all-white family living in an all-white town. Kim Booster often jokes about his upbrin...

Sam revisits his 2017 chat with author and Radio Ambulante host, Daniel Alarcón . They discuss Alarcón's book of short stories, The King Is Always Above The People , which holds a mirror to the immigrant experience in today's political climate. Alarcón also shares his own experiences immigrating from Peru to the U.S. as a child. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of p...

When President Trump told white supremacists to "stand back and stand by," the country responded with heavy criticism. Sam talks with Kathleen Belew, assistant professor of history at the University of Chicago, about what we get wrong when we talk about the white power movement. Then, Sam chats with Demi Adejuyigbe, writer for The Amber Ruffin Show . They talk about his career, his viral September...

Sam chats with comedian Bowen Yang about becoming the first Chinese American cast member on Saturday Night Live , what it was like to do the show during a pandemic, and why Adele Dazeem is the number one moment in the history of culture. Watch Sam's extended interview with Bowen here: https://youtu.be/1KMRAhxeDpA See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for...

When the biggest news stories happen all at once, it's easy to miss what each of them really means. Since Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death last week, there have been questions about who will replace her and what it means for the court. Sam talks to Slate's Mark Joseph Stern about the Supreme Court's history and what recent discussions get wrong. Then, Democrats and progressives br...

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away last week at the age of 87. The conversation has quickly moved to the politics around her replacement, but what kind of legacy did she leave? In the award-winning documentary RBG , filmmakers Julie Cohen and Betsy West chronicle the life of Ginsburg, from her rise to the judicial branch to becoming the 'Notorious RBG.' NPR legal affairs corresp...

This school year is proving to be unlike any other. Teaching might be a nightmare in schools doing hybrid learning, a success for those doing virtual learning, or vice versa. It all depends on which school district you're in and what resources and funding you might be able to access. So what's the experience been like so far for the teachers trying to make school happen? See pcm.adswizz.com for in...

The movie industry is hurting. Most theaters in the U.S. are still shut down, and who knows when—or if—audiences will pack into theaters again. Adam B. Vary and Angelique Jackson of Variety talk about the state of the movie industry and how it's adapted, for better or worse, in this pandemic. Also, Sam talks to actor LeVar Burton about reading, why we like being read to, what he really wanted you...

Larry Wilmore has a resume that could rival pretty much anyone's in Hollywood. Name a show and he probably had his hands in it. He created The Bernie Mac Show , co-created Insecure , wrote for shows like In Living Color , The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and The Office , and served as the "Senior Black Correspondent" on The Daily Show . He also had his own late night show called The Nightly Show . Now...

The smoke, the flames, the creepy orange and red skies. It's fire season out west and it's already one for the books. Sam talks a resident of Napa County, CA, who had to flee her home because of the fires. Then he's joined by New York Times opinion writer Farhad Manjoo , who is convinced this is the end of California as we know it. Finally, comedian and SNL writer Sam Jay talks about her new Netfl...

Poet Claudia Rankine is back with a new book called Just Us: An American Conversation . Much like her acclaimed 2014 book of poetry, Citizen: An American Lyric , her new volume offers an unflinching examination of race and racism in the United States — this time in conversations with friends and strangers. Guest host Audie Cornish talks to Rankine about what she learned about herself and others in...