Post Reports
1,462 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 month ago - ★★★★ - 4.7K ratingsPost Reports is the daily podcast from The Washington Post. Unparalleled reporting. Expert insight. Clear analysis. Everything you’ve come to expect from the newsroom of The Post, for your ears. Martine Powers and Elahe Izadi are your hosts, asking the questions you didn’t know you wanted answered. Published weekdays around 5 p.m. Eastern time.
Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Episodes
Biden's fury over the special counsel report
February 09, 2024 22:33A special counsel report on President Biden concluded that he would not be charged for mishandling sensitive documents. Yet the report painted a scathing picture of the president’s memory, refueling attacks on his mental agility as he faces reelection. Read more: On Thursday evening, President Biden gave an emotional and angry response to a report issued by special counsel Robert K. Hur. While the report found that criminal charges were not merited for Biden’s handling of classified docume...
Supreme Court seems ready to keep Trump on the ballot
February 08, 2024 22:57The Supreme Court seemed prepared to keep Donald Trump on the Colorado ballot Thursday, expressing concern about a single state disqualifying a candidate from seeking national office. Today on the show, we break down what we heard and what it means. Read more: On Thursday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in former president Donald Trump’s appeal of a Colorado ruling to remove him from the state’s 2024 primary ballot because of his role in the insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021. We bre...
Why El Salvador elected a self-proclaimed 'coolest dictator'
February 07, 2024 22:22On Sunday, President Nayib Bukele won reelection in El Salvador in a landslide. Today, The Post’s Mary Beth Sheridan addresses what’s behind Bukele’s striking popularity, his self-proclaimed nickname on social media and his controversial war on gangs. Nayib Bukele first took office in 2019 as an independent, becoming El Salvador’s – and Latin America’s – youngest president. He made a name for himself through his alleged crackdown on gangs and savvy use of social media to market his efforts....
The 91-year-old fighting to kick Trump off the ballot
February 06, 2024 22:43Today on “Post Reports,” we’re going deep on Trump v. Anderson, the Supreme Court case that could reshape the course of the 2024 election. Read more: Norma Anderson carries a pocket Constitution in her purse. She has another copy, slightly larger with images of the Founding Fathers on the cover, that she leaves on a table in her sitting room so she can consult it when she watches TV. She’s turned down a page corner in that copy to mark the spot where the 14th Amendment appears. She has r...
Iran’s proxy attacks in the Middle East
February 05, 2024 22:11After a drone attack killed three U.S. soldiers in Jordan last week, the United States struck more than 85 targets in Iraq and Syria on Friday. The U.S. response is the latest escalation in a widening conflict in the Middle East. Read more: Several Iran-allied groups aligned with Hamas have mobilized since the militant organization’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel prompted an ongoing Israeli military offensive. According to Pentagon data, Iranian-backed militias have launched at least 165 attack...
Deep Reads: Ripples of hate
February 03, 2024 22:00 - 29.9 MBOne month into the Israel-Gaza war, Ashish Prashar put on a kaffiyeh and took his 18-month-old son to a playground near their home in Brooklyn, where a woman he’d never seen before began yelling at him. As Prashar took out his phone and began filming, the woman continued to yell, threw her phone at him, and then threw a coffee cup holding a hot beverage. It was a chance encounter that led to spiraling repercussions: a police investigation, hate crime charges, an angry mob on the internet, a ...
The Texas border city caught in a constitutional crisis
February 02, 2024 20:47Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) is in a standoff with the U.S. government over who controls the Texas border with Mexico. That fight has centered on the border city of Eagle Pass, where Abbott has seized a park and is testing the limits of the Constitution Read more: Eagle Pass, Tex., is a small border city that in recent weeks has been mired in a bitter standoff between Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) and the federal government. In an effort to deter migrants from crossing the border from Mexico ...
Why Mark Zuckerberg apologized
February 01, 2024 22:55On Wednesday, U.S. senators hammered major tech CEOs for not doing more to prevent child abuse online. Today on “Post Reports,” we dive into the takeaways from a contentious Senate hearing amid rising concerns about the well-being of youth online. Read more: In a bipartisan push, the Senate Judiciary Committee gathered to scrutinize the chief executives of Meta, TikTok, Snap, Discord and X, formerly known as Twitter, about child abuse on their platforms. The hearing largely focused on how ...
The broken promises of the NFL’s concussion settlement
January 31, 2024 21:07The “landmark” settlement promised payouts for suffering players. But a Washington Post investigation found that strict guidelines and aggressive reviews have led to denials for hundreds of players diagnosed with dementia, including many who died with CTE. Read more: This week, there has been a lot of excitement about football as fans gear up for a Super Bowl attended by Taylor Swift (assuming she can make it in time from her concert in Tokyo.) It’s easy to forget that just a few years ...
The debate over gas stoves reignites
January 30, 2024 21:31This week, the Energy Department announced new standards for gas stoves made after 2028. The government isn’t coming for your gas stoves — but should it? We talk about the risks with Climate Coach columnist Michael Coren. Read more: Gas stoves have been fiercely debated for decades — most recently after a government employee suggested that they should be banned. There’s mounting evidence that they emit a mix of gases that can lead to respiratory illnesses and also produce tons of carbon p...
What the U.N. court ruling means for Israel and Gaza
January 29, 2024 22:17On Friday, the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to do more to prevent civilian deaths in Gaza. South Africa brought the case to the court, alleging that Israel is committing genocide. Today, we break down the court’s ruling. Read more: This month, the International Court of Justice heard a case brought by South Africa against Israel. South Africa alleged that, following the attacks on Oct. 7 by Hamas, Israel has committed genocide during its military campaign in the Gaza Stri...
The ‘love languages’ are popular. Are they real?
January 26, 2024 21:57Since the ’90s, couples have turned to the theory of the five “love languages” to help navigate relationship pitfalls. But a new scientific paper suggests that the science behind the idea is shaky. Read more: If you’ve ever tried to improve communication in a relationship, you may have come across the concept of the five “love languages” — different ways of showing and receiving affection that have helped couples understand each other for decades. The theory comes from a Baptist pastor tur...
How one abortion ad changed an election
January 25, 2024 22:18As candidates and political strategists on both sides look at how to handle the abortion issue in 2024, all eyes have been on one viral ad credited with reelecting a Democrat in Kentucky. Today on “Post Reports,” we hear from the young woman behind it. Read more: Since Roe v. Wade fell, voters have overwhelmingly backed abortion rights in each of the states where the issue has appeared directly on the ballot, including in conservative Kentucky, Kansas and, most recently, Ohio. Democrats h...
Trump won again. Now what happens?
January 24, 2024 08:08Today in an early edition of “Post Reports,” we recap the New Hampshire primary results. Trump won decisively – but the results show divisions in the GOP. Plus, the unusual write-in campaign in the Democratic race that led President Biden to victory. Read more: Former President Donald Trump defeated former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley in New Hampshire’s primary. But Tuesday’s results also show enduring divisions in the GOP, and they expose Trump’s weaknesses with moderates. President Biden...
Tracking the Trump trials
January 23, 2024 22:38Trump is juggling campaign events and courtroom appearances for the many cases he’s fighting. Today on Post Reports, we break down these legal battles and what they could mean for Trump’s political future. Read more: This week, Donald Trump is rallying support in New Hampshire while also fighting a defamation case in a New York courthouse. In addition to this case, the former president has been indicted in four criminal cases that involve allegations of hush money payments, mishandling of...
Haley’s make-or-break moment in New Hampshire
January 22, 2024 23:06New Hampshire is a make-or-break moment for Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor challenging Trump for the Republican nomination. Plus – on the Democrats’ side – why Biden isn’t on the ballot, and who is. Read more: Nikki Haley has emerged as the only major candidate remaining in the Republican primary against former president Donald Trump. A strong showing in New Hampshire on Tuesday could give her the momentum she needs to forge ahead with her campaign. Campaign reporter Dy...
Deep Reads: The real cost of one man’s $1 million stereo
January 20, 2024 22:00Ken Fritz spent decades of his life working on his perfect stereo system at his home in Richmond, Va. Weekends and vacations were lost to the project. Fritz’s family were recruited for years of labor. After decades of work, Fritz completed his project with towering speakers that look like alien monoliths. He estimated the custom-built system to be worth more than $1 million. The real price of the stereo on Fritz and his family was even more staggering. – This story is part of our Deep Rea...
How to spot (and avoid) ultra-processed foods
January 19, 2024 21:11Ultra-processed foods are designed to be tasty and absorb easily — but they’re not good for us. Today on “Post Reports,” a food columnist explains how ultra-processed food is actually made and gives tips for simple, healthier swaps. Read more: Chips, peanut butter, bread — these are just a few of the foods in your kitchen that could be ultra-processed, and they make up over half of the average American’s diet. But because of the way they are manufactured, studies have shown that people who...
A famine looms in Gaza
January 18, 2024 22:44As Israel continues to wage its military campaign against Hamas, we break down why it has blocked humanitarian aid — including food — into Gaza. Hunger and disease now threaten hundreds of thousands of people in Gaza. Read more: More than 100 days into the Israeli military campaign in the Gaza Strip, the humanitarian crisis there continues to worsen. As Israel continues to block food and basic supplies from entering Gaza, the World Food Program estimates that 93 percent of people in Gaza ...
Coronavirus, mpox and rabies: A tale of three viruses
January 17, 2024 21:16Today, we dissect three recent public health responses to learn about the world’s ability to prevent outbreaks – covid and beyond – in 2024. Viruses are having a moment. Outbreaks around the world are on the rise, thanks to such factors as climate change, war and instability, and increased animal-to-human contact. Covid-19 is still here. Even though fewer people are winding up in the hospital compared with last year, some health facilities are requiring masks again as a new variant appears...
The U.S., Yemen and the risk of regional escalation
January 16, 2024 22:48After the Biden administration launched airstrikes against Houthi fighters in Yemen, the group attacked a U.S. cargo carrier. U.S. officials say that their operations are limited and that they do not want to be drawn into a wider conflict – but is that possible? Read more: In the wake of Israel’s invasion of the Gaza Strip, Houthi rebels based in Yemen have been carrying out attacks on U.S. and British commercial ships. Last week, President Biden authorized airstrikes on Houthi targets in ...
Why a Trump win in Iowa may not mean victory later
January 12, 2024 22:28Despite Donald Trump leading in the polls, victory in the GOP presidential primaries isn’t certain. Ahead of the Iowa caucuses, Trump hopes to extinguish his opponents. But history has shown that not every winner in Iowa goes on to become the nominee. Read more: Donald Trump has consistently led his opponents in polling for the Republican nomination, often by a wide margin. But victory isn’t certain. In Iowa, the first state in the Republican primaries, Trump wants to fully knock out his ...
The global stakes of Taiwan’s election
January 11, 2024 23:04Voters across Taiwan head to the polls Saturday in an election that could reverberate around the world. As pressure tactics increase from Beijing, the island of 23 million faces existential questions about how to preserve its identity and fend off war. With Beijing military planes at times looming, Taiwan’s ruling party’s candidate, Lai Ching-te, contends democracy itself is on the ballot this weekend. Opposition candidate Hou Yu-ih warns that voters face a choice between war and peace. An...
What we know about Alaska Airlines Flight 1282
January 10, 2024 22:14A terrifying accident on an Alaskan Airlines flight has put renewed scrutiny on Boeing, the airline industry titan, which has seen a series of accidents and mechanical failures in recent years Read more: On Friday, a side panel on an Alaska Airlines flight popped out of place as the plane was ascending, sending air whistling through the cabin and terrifying passengers. The plane landed safely — but this was the latest in a series of mechanical issues on Boeing planes, some of which have en...
Trump wants revenge in 2024
January 09, 2024 20:27If he wins reelection, former president Donald Trump will probably seek revenge on his political enemies. Less than a week before the Iowa caucuses, Trump remains the front-runner, but it’s unclear how that message of retribution will play with the general electorate. Read more: On the third anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, former president Donald Trump stood at a lectern in Iowa and applauded those who have been charged with participating in the riot and calle...
Is Florida cracking the push for cheaper medicine?
January 08, 2024 22:09After a years-long push, the Food and Drug Administration just allowed Florida to import cheaper prescription drugs from Canada. This decision follows decades of frustration over U.S. drug prices and could open the doors for other states to do the same. Read more: While a number of logistical and legal hurdles remain, Florida has been cleared to import prescription drugs from Canada. The path for Florida started years ago, along with efforts by Congress and pushes from the White House, inc...
Harvard and the growing battle over DEI in America
January 05, 2024 22:31Harvard’s first Black president, Claudine Gay, resigned this week amid pressure over plagiarism allegations and her comments about antisemitism on campus. For conservative activists, though, her downfall was a victory over diversity initiatives. Read more: The conservative victory laps began moments after Harvard University President Claudine Gay announced her resignation. Gay has faced growing pressure since her much-criticized comments about antisemitism on campus during testimony on Ca...
Attacks in Beirut and Baghdad, and fears of a wider war
January 04, 2024 22:52A Hamas leader killed in Beirut. U.S. strikes in Baghdad. This week, tensions in the Middle East have been rising – and with them, the specter of a widening Israel-Gaza war. Our correspondent in Beirut joins us to explain what happened this week. Read more: On Tuesday, senior Hamas leader Saleh Arouri was killed in a suspected Israeli drone strike in a Beirut suburb called Dahieh. Hezbollah, an Iran-aligned Lebanese militant and political group, holds sway in the densely packed neighborhoo...
How record migration is testing Biden
January 03, 2024 21:55A record number of migrants have arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border, as war and poverty push people from their homes worldwide. The Post’s Nick Miroff reported from the border and saw how the Biden administration is grappling with migration as we enter a pivotal election year. Read more: In recent weeks, a historic number of people have arrived at the U.S.-Mexico border. It’s a rise happening as Democratic lawmakers push for aid to Ukraine and Israel, while Republican negotiators want a bo...
The recession that wasn't
January 02, 2024 21:39It’s a new year and the economic forecast for 2024 is looking strong – but that doesn’t quite align with how many Americans feel. What does that mean for the president heading into an election year? Read more: After years of historic inflation, price hikes are finally getting back under control and wages are catching up. Unemployment is low. The looming recession that was threatened hasn’t materialized, and the Fed has signaled it’s done raising interest rates — and it might even lower th...
‘Field Trip’: Gates of the Arctic National Park
December 30, 2023 17:00Today we join Lillian Cunningham on a “Field Trip” to one of the most remote and least-visited national parks as she confronts the question facing its future: whether a portion of this untouched wilderness will soon include a path for industry. Read more: Established in 1980, Gates of the Arctic marked a radically different way of thinking about what a national park should be. Compared to previously established parks, it’s hard for the public to access. This park is truly undeveloped — the...
Can’t sleep? ‘Try This.’
December 29, 2023 17:00 - 8.84 MB“Try This” from The Washington Post is a series of audio courses designed to jump-start the parts of life where we can all use a few pointers — with pithy, snackable solutions you can easily use. The first course is about how to get better sleep. Read more: In the first class of our course on how to sleep better, learn why worrying about not falling asleep can make things worse. There are steps you can take during the day that can help lessen the anxiety at night. To hear more, check out ...
‘Throughline’: There Will Be Bananas
December 28, 2023 17:00The banana is a staple of the American diet and has been for generations. But how did this exotic tropical fruit become so commonplace? Today on “Post Reports,” Martine Powers shares an episode of one of her favorite podcasts, “Throughline.” Find “Throughline” here, or wherever you’re listening to this podcast. Subscribe to The Washington Post here.
Applying for college after the end of affirmative action
December 27, 2023 17:00The Supreme Court’s decision to end race-based affirmative action in college admissions sent counselors scrambling and students worrying about their chances. For two seniors, it made them totally rethink their applications – in very different ways. Read more: When high school senior Demar Goodman found out that the Supreme Court had struck down race-based affirmative action, he immediately called his best friend. “So,” Demar said. “Safe to say Harvard is out, right?” Thousands of miles...
Ava DuVernay on making a film her way
December 26, 2023 17:00Some people said Isabel Wilkerson’s book “Caste” was unadaptable. The subject matter was too heavy and too academic. But Ava DuVernay had a vision – and she pursued an unusual funding model to get her new film “Origin” made. Read more: When filmmaker Ava DuVernay couldn’t get traditional financing to film “Origin,” the Ford Foundation, Melinda Gates and other philanthropists stepped in. National arts reporter Geoff Edgers says it might be cinema’s new business model. Today’s show was pro...
A murdered peace activist and a war in her name
December 22, 2023 18:18Canadian Israeli activist Vivian Silver dedicated her life to peace. When she was killed in the Oct. 7 attacks, her sons faced an impossible question: Is peace still worth fighting for? Read more: Vivian Silver grew up in Winnipeg, Canada, and moved to Israel in 1974 to start a new kibbutz and devote her life to peace. She arranged a solidarity bike ride on both sides of the Gaza border fence. Her friends from Gaza called her on Jewish holidays. Her politics had been unwavering. But then...
What you don’t know about assisted living in America
December 21, 2023 21:00Patients with memory problems walk away from assisted-living facilities just about every day in America; many die. The Post examines a pattern of neglect in America’s booming assisted-living industry. Read more: Since 2018, more than 2,000 people have wandered away from assisted-living and memory-care facilities unattended or unsupervised. These are facilities that charge families thousands of dollars a month to care for families’ loved ones. It’s a phenomenon known in the industry as a...
Colorado kicked Trump off the ballot. What’s next for 2024?
December 20, 2023 21:01In a momentous ruling that may shape U.S. political history, the Colorado Supreme Court has ruled that former president Donald Trump engaged in insurrection and is therefore disqualified from the presidency. Read more: The decision by Colorado’s highest court, the first of its kind involving Trump, would keep him off the 2024 primary ballot in the state over his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection. A state district court previously ruled that Trump had engaged in insurrection but that...
Is Israel running out of goodwill?
December 19, 2023 22:26U.S. support of Israel’s war in Gaza has been unwavering – but as the civilian death toll climbs, international calls for a ceasefire are growing. Today, the mounting concern over Israel’s tactics and how the Biden administration is responding. Read more: Nearly 20,000 Palestinians have been killed and millions displaced since Israel declared war on Hamas in Gaza. Conditions for people in Gaza are incredibly hard. Food is scarce, the health infrastructure is collapsing, and the death toll ...
Harvard, big-tech money, and the whistleblower
December 18, 2023 21:56As social media disinformation grows, academics are studying its harms. But big-tech funding at universities is creating a fraught power dynamic that recently erupted at Harvard, where a researcher claimed Meta forced her ouster amid critical research. Read more: Silicon Valley tech giants, including Google and Facebook parent Meta, are increasingly influential at universities across the United States, with ramped-up charitable giving. The donations can give the companies influence over ac...
Deep Reads: Their sons’ lives ended in gunfire. In grief, they found a second act.
December 16, 2023 22:00After about 10 weeks of coaching this summer, six women turned their experiences of motherhood, loss and empowerment into their biggest display yet: a play called “Turning Pain Into Purpose: Say My Son’s Name.” They had hoped if a broader audience could hear their stories, something in the community might change — no more mothers crying over dying sons. – This story is part of a collection of new, occasional bonus episodes you’ll be hearing from “Post Reports.” We’re calling these stories ...
The last endangered whale in captivity
December 15, 2023 22:02After half-a-century in a tank, a beloved orca named Tokitae was about to be freed. Then her life ended, and a moment of reckoning began. Read more: Most of the nearly 50 southern resident orcas taken from the Pacific Northwest during the 1960s and ’70s died within the first years after their capture. One endured. Tokitae spent more than 50 years performing in the Miami Seaquarium’s “whale bowl” – the smallest orca tank in North America. In March, a plan was announced to move her to a ...
The climate clues buried under Greenland’s ice sheet
December 14, 2023 20:29Scientists came to Greenland on an unprecedented mission to drill for rocks that would reveal the fate of the country’s fast-melting ice sheet. A sudden crack in the ice threatened their experiment. Read more: The Greenland Ice Sheet contributes more to sea level rise than any other ice mass. If it disappeared, it would raise global sea levels by 24 feet, devastating coastlines home to about half the world’s population. Computer simulations and modern observations alone can’t precisely pr...
The woman who took on the Texas abortion ban
December 13, 2023 21:16Kate Cox caught the attention of the nation last week when she asked a Texas judge for permission to end her pregnancy. Today on “Post Reports,” we talk to Caroline Kitchener about the new legal battles over abortion access. Read more: Kate Cox caught the attention of the nation last week when she asked a Texas judge for permission to end her pregnancy. Three days later, a pregnant woman filed suit anonymously in Kentucky, arguing that the state’s near-total abortion ban violates her co...
Does the GOP race for second even matter?
December 12, 2023 22:08Nikki Haley is up, Ron DeSantis is down and Trump is still trouncing both of them. Today, we’re debriefing on the Republican presidential primary and how Trump’s legal battles are shaping the race. Read more: Politics reporters Dylan Wells, Isaac Arnsdorf and Ashley Parker sit down for a roundtable about the current state of the Republican primary race. Right now, it’s a competition for second place, with all the candidates trailing behind former president Donald Trump in polls. But is the...
Free speech, antisemitism, and the university fallout
December 11, 2023 22:26College campuses across the United States are embroiled in conflict over free speech amid the Israel-Gaza war. The stakes are so high that the University of Pennsylvania’s president resigned after a congressional hearing on antisemitism. Read more: Last week, a Republican-led House committee summoned the leaders of Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania and MIT to Capitol Hill for a scalding critique of their efforts to address antisemitism on their campuses since the eruption ...
How a neuroscientist beats winter depression
December 08, 2023 21:47Each year, millions of people experience seasonal affective disorder or SAD. Today we talk to neuroscientist-turned-journalist Richard Sima about how to get ready for the change in season and beat the winter depression. Read more: Susceptible people — an estimated 5 percent of Americans — already are feeling the effects of winter SAD: lower moods, lethargy and excessive sleep. Today on “Post Reports,” we talk about strategies that can help you cope. Subscribe to The Washington Post here.
How to keep junk mail out of your mailbox
December 07, 2023 21:00Americans are inundated with junk mail in their physical mailboxes. Climate coach Michael Coren tried to manage the flood – and his techniques actually worked. Read more: The typical American gets about 41 pounds of junk mail every year delivered to their door. And for some, it’s even worse during the holiday season, as catalogs and coupon booklets come flooding in. The Post’s climate coach Michael Coren looked at this junk mail as a challenge and started asking: How do I get it all to ...
Why Ukraine’s counteroffensive failed to deliver
December 06, 2023 22:51 - 23 MBThe war in Ukraine has reached a critical point. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hoped for victory in 2023, but a lagging counteroffensive put Ukraine’s ability to defend itself in doubt – and has raised questions about the U.S.’s role in the war. Read more: In January, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told Ukranians that he expected 2023 to be a victorious year for the country. With support from the United States and other Western allies, Ukraine had planned a counteroffensi...
Who will run Gaza after the war?
December 05, 2023 22:01The Israel-Gaza war escalated this week with Israel’s military forces beginning their invasion into southern Gaza. But what happens when the fighting stops? Today, we tackle the question of who runs Gaza post-war. Read more: As Israel’s assault on Gaza rages on, the United States and Arab nations are wondering who will control the area after the fighting stops. Michael Birnbaum covers the State Department for The Post and traveled with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken last week. H...