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.
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Episodes
Can nuclear fusion save the world?
December 22, 2022 20:39After decades of attempts, scientists have finally created a nuclear fusion reaction in a lab. On today’s show, what this breakthrough means for the future of energy. Read more: Last week, the Energy Department announced that for the first time, scientists have been able to produce a fusion reaction that creates a net energy gain. This essentially means that in a lab-based setting, researchers were able to replicate the nuclear reaction by which energy is created within the sun. It’s a maj...
What Ukrainian refugees were promised
December 21, 2022 21:09Today on “Post Reports,” how the chaos of war can put even well-intentioned efforts to help Ukrainian refugees on unstable ground. Read more: It’s been 300 days since the start of the war in Ukraine. And since that war began, millions of Ukrainians have fled their homes to seek safety in Western Europe. Back in March, the leaders of European Union countries pledged to help Ukrainians by enacting their Temporary Protection Directive for the first time. This gave refugees access to housing...
Baby, it’s covid outside
December 20, 2022 21:49Holidays and winter illnesses go hand in hand. Today on Post Reports, we unpack how to prevent the spread. As families face a “tripledemic” of highly contagious respiratory viruses, we turn to national health reporter Lena Sun to understand the latest on how to stay healthy this holiday season. From effective flu and covid vaccines to DIY air filters, we find out what she has learned to keep viruses at bay, as well as what happened when she pressed a leading health official about the curren...
Inside the antiabortion war room for 2023
December 19, 2022 20:34Months after their Supreme Court victory, conservatives fear that new abortion bans aren’t being sufficiently enforced. Now, from mobilizing citizen investigators to blocking abortion pill websites, they’re pursuing unorthodox ideas to further crack down. Read more: Nearly six months after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, triggering abortion bans in more than a dozen states, many antiabortion advocates fear that the growing availability of illegal abortion pills has undercut thei...
Investigating the sport my dad made famous
December 16, 2022 16:24How a tip at a funeral became a year-long investigation into the sport of bodybuilding. Read more: When Post investigative reporter Desmond Butler’s father, George Butler, died last year, work was the last thing on Desmond’s mind. But a friend of his father came to him with a tip – startling allegations in the world of bodybuilding, a sport Desmond’s father helped make famous through his film “Pumping Iron.” What followed was a year-long investigation of the sport of bodybuilding and its ...
The journey to Qatar's World Cup final
December 15, 2022 23:02Ahead of Sunday’s final match, two Post journalists and die-hard soccer fans discuss all things World Cup. Columnist Ishaan Tharoor sits down with Jeff Pierre, host of “The 7,” to unpack the controversies, the triumphs and what’s at stake this weekend. Read more: This year’s World Cup has been mired in debates about its host country, Qatar. But it’s more complicated than that, according to Ishaan Tharoor: “I think being there helped me think a bit more deeply and hopefully with a bit more ...
New life hack: The joy snack
December 14, 2022 21:52Today on “Post Reports,” we dive into research on happiness and talk about finding joy in mundane experiences to cultivate a more meaningful life. Read more: Here’s an antidote to an ever-stressful, busy and uncertain world: Try finding and savoring little bites of joy throughout your day. Our Brain Matters columnist, neuroscientist Richard Sima, calls them “joy” snacks. By mindfully tuning in to the pleasant, nice and sometimes routine experiences of every day, we can transform an otherw...
Operation Sour Cream
December 13, 2022 22:26Since 2019, the number of Americans killed by fentanyl has jumped 94 percent. Today on "Post Reports," we go inside Operation Sour Cream — and inside the pipeline bringing the deadly drug from Mexican labs to U.S. streets. Read more: In 2019, Drug Enforcement Administration agent Brady Wilson noticed big loads of synthetic drugs, like fentanyl, popping up around St. George, Utah. St. George is not exactly known as a hot spot for drugs; it’s a sleepy city of retirees, out-of-town hikers and...
Hope and fear: Dispatches from Iran
December 13, 2022 00:14Today, we hear from a mother and son in Iran about life amid ongoing protests and an escalating government crackdown. Despite communication challenges, journalist Sanam Mahoozi has been carefully corresponding with them for weeks about their lives in a changing Iran. “I am devastated by the way the system is treating the youth,” a mother in Tehran told journalist Sanam Mahoozi during one exchange. “Every mother in Iran is miserable now.” Protests erupted across Iran following the September...
What it’s like to survive a school shooting
December 09, 2022 20:36A decade after the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, the story of a 10-year-old girl who survived the shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Tex. — and how she has become a voice for the friends she lost that day. Read more: After a school shooting, we often hear numbers — how many children and teachers were killed or injured. But for the survivors and their families, the trauma can be overwhelming. “I think the scope of this crisis is so much larger than people are willing to ac...
Bringing Brittney Griner home
December 08, 2022 21:43Today, the White House announced that WNBA star Brittney Griner has been released from Russian detention and is coming home – in exchange for a notorious arms dealer. We talk about why this deal happened now, and what it means for other American hostages. Read more: More than nine months after she was arrested in Russia, WNBA star Brittney Griner has been freed. Griner is one of the world’s best women’s basketball players. She’s been in Russian custody since February, when authorities deta...
Who is Kevin McCarthy?
December 07, 2022 21:06Republican Kevin McCarthy wants to be the next speaker of the House, but first he’ll need to secure 218 votes. Despite winning a majority in the midterm elections, Republicans have felt deflated by an election cycle many hoped would be a “red wave,” and some are now saying they won’t endorse McCarthy’s leadership bid. Read more: Read Michael Kranish’s profile of Kevin McCarthy’s rise to power.
The downfall of FTX
December 06, 2022 23:09The crypto world is in shock after FTX, a major cryptocurrency exchange, declared bankruptcy. We discuss what led to the company’s collapse and how its 30-year-old founder went from a philanthropic darling to disgraced CEO. Read more: What led to the ruin of FTX, one of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges? It’s the question confounding Silicon Valley — and Washington. After the collapse, founder and CEO Sam Bankman-Fried stepped down amid claims of mismanagement. Newly appointed...
What to expect in Georgia’s runoff election
December 05, 2022 22:30For the fifth time in two years, Georgians will cast a ballot for or against Raphael G. Warnock, and despite Democratic control of the Senate, the stakes of this race for both parties are big. Read more: Despite Democratic control of the senate, both parties still see a lot to gain or lose in Tuesday’s runoff election.
What drug overdoses did to my hometown
December 02, 2022 10:50Every time producer Jordan-Marie Smith would visit her hometown, it seemed as if another person she knew from high school had died of a drug overdose. She went back home to investigate, along with reporter Lenny Bernstein. Read more: Post Reports producer Jordan-Marie Smith always thought of her hometown of Greenville, N.C., as a nice place to grow up. A small city about halfway between Raleigh and the Outer Banks, it was home to a university, beautiful walking trails and lots of local bus...
Iran is ramping up its secret kidnapping plots
December 01, 2022 21:34The Iranian government is increasing its efforts to kill or kidnap activists, journalists and others living in the West — a change that alarms U.S. intelligence officials. Shane Harris explains the extent and escalation of Tehran’s efforts. Read more: Read Shane Harris’ reporting on Iran’s assassination and kidnapping program, and the steps Western officials have taken to try to counter it.
Inside senators’ fight to protect same-sex marriage
November 30, 2022 22:51They needed 10 Republicans. Today on Post Reports, we take you inside the efforts of a small bipartisan group of senators – and how it gathered enough GOP support to pass same-sex marriage protections in a divided Congress. Read more: Back in July, after this year’s first attempts to codify protections for same-sex marriage in Congress, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) had a revelation. “I remember the day that happened,” Baldwin told Liz Goodwin, congressional reporter for The Post. . She r...
Trump continues to be plagued by legal woes
November 29, 2022 22:15November wasn’t a great month for Donald Trump. The U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for a congressional committee to examine the former president’s tax returns, ending a legal battle that has consumed Congress and the courts for years. Meanwhile, a special counsel appointed by the Justice Department has been tasked with investigating Trump’s role in efforts to undo the results of the 2020 election, as well as possible mishandling of classified documents recovered from his Mar-a-Lago home...
The outrage over ‘zero covid’ in China
November 28, 2022 23:04For the first time in decades, massive protests broke out in cities across China. Today on “Post Reports” — what's behind the protests and what they mean for the future of China’s leadership. Read more: Protests erupted throughout China this weekend over the country’s “zero covid” policy, which has led the government to implement strict lockdown and testing measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The protests were triggered by a botched response to a deadly fire in Urumqi, a ...
Say goodbye to Black Friday
November 23, 2022 16:24The years of one-day deals and long lines the day after Thanksgiving are over. Black Friday is now more than a month long. We break down what’s changed and why. Read more: Retail reporter Jaclyn Peiser discusses how last year’s supply chain issues and delayed inventory are a win for consumers, how people are shopping despite inflation, and she outlines her holiday shopping survival guide. And as a bonus – we give you a taste of Alexandra Petri’s column, ”The 9 best Thanksgiving songs I...
Is your kid ready for a phone?
November 22, 2022 19:49A guide for when and how to give your kid a smartphone. Heather Kelly polled the experts, and there’s a lot we can all learn from their advice – whether we have kids or not. Plus, we dive into the reported benefits of “brown noise.” Read more: A guide to giving your child their first phone. Children are getting smartphones younger than ever. Make sure you’re all prepared. Even older adults struggle with screen time. Here's how to help them put down their phones and be more present. Liste...
The end of the Pelosi era
November 21, 2022 22:17Last week, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced she would step down from Democratic leadership. Today on the show, we discuss Pelosi’s legacy and the new era of Democrats in line to take her place. Read more: Nancy Pelosi has spent 35 years in Congress. Last week, she stepped down as speaker of the House, ending her historic tenure as the first woman to serve as speaker. “She has been an incredibly powerful figure that has ruled the House of Representatives in this sort of iron-fisted way ...
No beer, plenty of scandal: Qatar’s World Cup
November 18, 2022 22:08The 2022 World Cup starts this weekend in Qatar, and it is already marked by controversy. Today on “Post Reports,” the geopolitical stakes of this year’s World Cup, and a preview of the most exciting players and teams to watch in Doha. Read more: World Cup organizers said Friday that they were abandoning plans to sell beer around match stadiums. Qatar, a conservative Muslim country, strictly limits the sale of alcohol and bans its consumption in public places. It had made exceptions to ...
The urgent situation in Haiti
November 17, 2022 21:33Today on Post Reports, we hear from a journalist on the ground in Haiti about the country’s growing humanitarian crisis, and what can be done about it. Read more: Natural disasters and political turmoil have plagued Haiti for decades. But last year, the country reached a tipping point: President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated and the country was hit by another deadly earthquake. Capitalizing on the situation, gangs have overrun many parts of the country, frequently kidnapping and killing p...
Trump is back. Back again.
November 16, 2022 22:43Tuesday night, Former president Donald Trump announced his fourth bid for the White House in 2024. The announcement comes just a week after voters decidedly rejected the candidates he backed in the midterm elections. Trump has taken the brunt of the criticism from his fellow Republicans who aren’t sold on having him represent the party again, with potential rivals already planning to challenge Trump for the nomination. National political reporter Isaac Arnsdorf recaps last night’s announc...
Inside the covert abortion pill pipeline
November 15, 2022 23:48In a post-Roe America, tens of thousands of people without access to legal abortions are turning to a new covert network to get abortion pills. Today on Post Reports, we trace the network’s surprising supply chain and look at the precarious position of those participating in it. When the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade in June, abortion bans instantly took effect in large swaths of the United States, prompting people around the country to seek alternatives amid new legal and medical r...
Ukraine’s triumph in Kherson
November 14, 2022 21:50A triumphant President Volodymyr Zelensky visited the liberated Ukrainian city of Kherson Monday morning, declaring “the beginning of the end of the war.” Today on “Post Reports,” we talk about whether that’s true and why this city is so significant. Read more: Kherson residents celebrate liberation and describe the trauma of occupation. Witnesses recount detentions, torture, disappearances in occupied Kherson. Fighting-age men in Russia are still hiding in fear of being sent to war. Fo...
Who should pay for climate disasters?
November 11, 2022 22:09There’s a big, contentious question at the heart of this year’s COP27, the U.N. climate change conference: Should richer countries foot the bill when it comes to climate disasters? Read more: Thousands of government officials from all over the world have gathered in Egypt for the 27th annual U.N. climate change conference, which started this week. Amid a backdrop of protests — on climate change and the Egyptian government’s spotty human rights record — the focus is on the commitments each...
Is Ron DeSantis the GOP’s golden ticket?
November 10, 2022 22:21Today on Post Reports, we dig into the election results in Florida, where Gov. Ron DeSantis and other Republicans sailed to victory this week. What does their win mean for the party nationally, and for Florida’s long-standing “swing-state” status? Read more: On a night when Republicans across the country did worse than many had predicted, Gov. Ron DeSantis won in a landslide in Florida. Once a swing state that both parties fought to win in presidential elections, Florida has increasingly b...
So, who won?
November 09, 2022 20:12Democrats outperformed expectations in Tuesday’s midterms, but Republicans still look likely to take back the House. We talk to reporters covering Congress and the White House about what to make of the results we have so far, and what to look for next. Read more: Control of both chambers of Congress remained undecided Wednesday morning after Democrats showed surprising strength in key battleground races on Election Day. On “Post Reports,” we’re joined by White House reporter Tyler Pager...
Gen Z’s political coming of age
November 08, 2022 20:25It’s Election Day in America. Record-breaking voter turnout is expected, and the results could change the nation’s political landscape. Today, we look at Gen Z and how today’s election is about more than politics; it’s about shaping the future. Read more: Voters are finally casting their ballots in the midterm elections. In battleground states across the country, long-awaited contentious races are coming to a head as Washington prepares for a potential shift in power. Today, eyes are tur...
What Musk’s Twitter chaos means for Election Day
November 07, 2022 22:59Elon Musk has made his mark on Twitter, but after he laid off thousands of employees, some are warning that the social network is ill-prepared to combat misinformation on Election Day. Read more: On the day before the midterms, Twitter owner Elon Musk encouraged Americans to vote for the GOP, breaking with other social media CEOs who’ve sought to remain apolitical.
Goodbye Daylight Saving Time… For now
November 06, 2022 13:00For many of us here in the U.S., today marks the end of Daylight Saving Time - the day when we “fall back” an hour to Standard Time. But changing the clocks is divisive - and in Congress there’s even a stalled effort to stop it. Read more: Earlier this year, our colleague health reporter Dan Diamond took a break from covering covid to report on something a bit sunnier: the push in Congress to stay on Daylight Saving Time forever. We aired an episode in March about it on Post Reports, and...
An election to upend elections
November 04, 2022 20:04Today on Post Reports, we look at how voting is going across the country, what to expect on Tuesday, and what the results of the midterm election could mean for how future elections are run. Read more: We have spent a lot of time this week talking about the midterm election and which party is likely to gain control of the House and Senate next year. But the results of the election could also change how future elections are run. That’s because a majority of Republican nominees on the bal...
Fauci’s not done yet
November 03, 2022 20:40Today on “Post Reports,” a conversation with Anthony Fauci. The prominent U.S. infectious-disease doctor is stepping down from the government next month, and he reflects on viruses, vaccines and getting Americans to believe in science again. Read more: After more than half a century in the government, Anthony Fauci plans to step down next month. Fauci’s tenure as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases put him on the front lines of the AIDS epidemic, the...
Was the attack on the Pelosi home preventable?
November 02, 2022 21:51When a man entered Nancy Pelosi’s home in San Francisco last week and attacked her husband, the act was documented on cameras viewable by Capitol Police. What the delayed response exposes about limits in protecting lawmakers. A Washington Post investigation found that while Capitol Police in Washington were tasked with monitoring live feeds of more than 1,500 cameras placed around the Capitol Complex and beyond, they had the best chance to stop what could have been a deadly attack at Nancy ...
Introducing "The 7"
November 02, 2022 11:30 - 4.58 MBEvery minute of your morning counts. Host Jeff Pierre takes you through the seven most important and interesting stories of the day, with the reporting and insight of The Washington Post. Get caught up in just a few minutes every weekday at 7 a.m. Launches Nov. 14. Subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen.
The Arizona news anchor turned GOP darling
November 01, 2022 20:20In a campaign season filled with critical races, Republican Kari Lake’s bid to be the next governor of Arizona stands out. Reporter Ruby Cramer joins us to discuss Lake’s candidacy, and why some think she represents the future of the GOP. Read more: National political enterprise reporter Ruby Cramer wrote about what it’s like to watch Lake on the campaign trail.
How the war in Ukraine is shaping Ohio’s Senate race
October 31, 2022 21:20The war in Ukraine may be thousands of miles away from Ohio. But because of the state’s large Ukrainian population, the war could determine who wins the state’s open Senate seat: isolationist Republican J.D. Vance or Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan. Read more: Republican J.D. Vance and Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan are in a tight race over an open Senate seat in Ohio, a state Donald Trump carried in 2020. While both candidates have talked plenty about domestic matters, there is one issue that could sw...
The illness straining pediatric hospitals
October 28, 2022 20:53Today on “Post Reports,” why RSV — respiratory syncytial virus — is overwhelming children’s hospitals, and what parents can do to keep their children safe. Read more: Children’s hospitals are under strain as they care for unusually high numbers of kids infected with respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV. RSV, a common cause of cold-like symptoms, started surging in late summer, months before its typical season. This surge in RSV comes as the flu is sending a record number of people to the ho...
Will you ever be able to buy a house?
October 27, 2022 20:38Today on “Post Reports,” we talk about mortgage rates, which are the highest they’ve been in two decades – what that means for the housing market, and why it could make housing costs even higher for renters and buyers alike – at least in the short term. Read more: Mortgage rates topped 7 percent this week, the highest level in 20 years — and the latest sign that the Federal Reserve’s aggressive moves to slow the broader economy are hitting the housing market hard already. Fed reporter Rach...
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s rise to power
October 26, 2022 20:55Rishi Sunak is Britain’s new prime minister – the third one in two months. He’s also the first person of color to lead the country. But will he really be a departure from his predecessors? Read foreign affairs columnist thoughts on Britain having its first leader of South Asian descent.
The pandemic wake-up call for schools
October 25, 2022 21:08What data from the “nation’s report card” shows about how students progressed during the pandemic — and why people like Education Secretary Miguel Cardona are calling the results “appalling and unacceptable.” Read more: This week the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as the “nation’s report card,” was released for the first time since 2019. Widely considered to be the most comprehensive look at how students are progressing academically, it showed that during the pande...
Can Fetterman flip a Senate seat in Pennsylvania?
October 24, 2022 22:51Democrat John Fetterman and Republican Mehmet Oz are in a tight Senate race in purple Pennsylvania. The stakes are high as the nation waits to see if Democrats can flip this seat. Read more: On Nov. 8, Pennsylvanians will vote for their next senator – Republican Mehmet Oz, the TV personality, or Democrat John Fetterman, the state’s Lieutenant Governor. Many believe that this seat is the best chance for Democrats to maintain a majority in the Senate. So what do we know about Senate hopefu...
America has a Black sperm donor shortage
October 21, 2022 21:39Only 2 percent of sperm donors in the United States are Black. This, in turn, leaves many aspiring Black parents with an agonizing choice: choose a donor of another race or try to buy sperm from unregulated apps and online groups. Read more: Post reporter Amber Ferguson has spent months reporting on why so few Black men donate sperm. She found that the reasons for the shortage are myriad: failure of sperm banks to recruit Black donors; a selection process that demands a three-generation m...
The Black-White covid death rate flipped. Why?
October 20, 2022 20:51Today on “Post Reports,” why White people in the U.S. are now more likely to die of covid than Black Americans. Read more: The imbalance in death rates among the nation’s racial and ethnic groups has been a defining part of the pandemic since the start. Early in the crisis, Black people died at higher rates than White people. But at the end of last year, the racial disparity in covid deaths vanished. Now, White people are more likely to die of covid than Black people. Reporter Akilah John...
Battleground Georgia
October 19, 2022 21:34Georgia, the state that was key to the Democrats taking control of Washington in 2020, could now be responsible for giving some of that power back to Republicans. In a contentious Senate race, former NFL star Herschel Walker (R) is taking on the Democratic incumbent, Raphael Warnock. Walker, however, is plagued with controversy that’s making it hard for Republicans to throw their support behind him. A rematch for governor pits incumbent Brian Kemp (R) against his 2018 challenger, Stacey ...
The retired military cashing in with repressive governments
October 18, 2022 21:48A new Washington Post investigation has uncovered the fact that hundreds of veterans have taken lucrative foreign jobs — often for countries with known human rights abuses. U.S. officials approved these contracts — but fought to keep them secret. Read more: The Post found more than 500 retired members of the military – from helicopter mechanics to high-ranking generals – have cashed in on work with foreign governments since 2015, sharing military expertise and political clout. Many worke...
Making hearing more accessible
October 17, 2022 22:06Today, hearing aids are finally available over the counter. What this means for accessibility and first-time buyers. Plus, a test of the Earth’s planetary defense. Read more: For the hard of hearing, it feels like the Food and Drug Administration is finally listening. On Monday, the FDA is allowing hearing aids to be sold over the counter for people with mild to moderate hearing loss. This means you no longer need a prescription or custom fitting to get a hearing aid. Experts have called i...
Investigating families of trans kids gets personal
October 14, 2022 20:27After Texas Gov. Greg Abbott ordered child abuse investigations of the parents of transgender children, Morgan Davis – a trans man with Child Protective Services in Austin – was assigned two cases. They didn’t go as planned. Read more: Morgan Davis used to believe that his workplace – the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services – had a noble mission: to remove children from abusive situations. But when he was asked to comply with a new mandate from Gov. Greg Abbott – one that r...