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Radio Atlantic
The Atlantic has long been known as an ideas-driven magazine. Now we’re bringing that same ethos to audio. Like the magazine, the show will “road test” the big ideas that both drive the news and shape our culture. Through conversations—and sometimes sharp debates—with the most insightful thinkers and writers on topics of the day, Radio Atlantic will complicate overly simplistic views. It will cut through the noise with clarifying, personal narratives. It will, hopefully, help listeners make up…
Episodes
Radio AtlanticHow to Cover Racist Tweets
On Sunday, President Trump told four members of Congress to “go back” to the countries “from which they came.” Journalists have spent the week working through…
Radio AtlanticTrump Diplomacy
This week, the British ambassador to the United States resigned after private cables leaked with his frank assessment of the White House and its occupant. Sir…
Radio AtlanticThe Other Republican
Former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld has experience taking down a Republican president. He began his career in politics as one of the first lawyers hired to…
Radio AtlanticThe Fight for Reparations
On Wednesday—for the first time in a decade—Congress held a hearing on reparations for slavery. It was a crystallizing moment for an issue that has gained…
Radio AtlanticThe Reelection Battle Begins
The 2020 race is on. Staff writer Edward-Isaac Dovere, who covers Democratic politics, was in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for the unofficial kick-off of the fight to…
Radio AtlanticPartisanship at the Supreme Court
In the coming days, the Supreme Court will announce its decisions on two cases that ask the same basic question: how far should partisan politics go? One will…
Radio AtlanticThe Abortion Debate’s New Urgency
Recent weeks have seen unprecedented anti-abortion bills pass in states across the country. In Alabama, abortion is now banned under state law, without any…
Radio AtlanticIntroducing Crazy/Genius Season 3
Privacy is now the most important idea on the internet—so what exactly is it? And if we care about our privacy, why aren’t we willing to pay to keep it? This…
Radio AtlanticTrump’s Trade War
Trump isn’t like most Republican presidents, but his views on trade have been an unusually firm departure from his party. Despite long championing free trade…
Radio AtlanticLiberalism’s Last Stand
Franklin Foer joins Isaac Dovere to discuss his story in the June issue of The Atlantic about Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Orbán described his…
Radio AtlanticIs Politics Funny Anymore?
Last weekend’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner was the first one in years without a comedian. In the Trump era, comedians have struggled to adjust — are…
Radio AtlanticTo Impeach Or Not To Impeach?
Atlantic Ideas Editor Yoni Appelbaum and Vox editor-at-large Ezra Klein have both deeply researched the question of impeachment — and each came to a different…
Radio AtlanticThe Trauma at the Border
On Tuesday, Attorney General William Barr ordered immigration judges to stop releasing asylum seekers on bail. The move signals an even fiercer immigration…
Radio AtlanticCan A Long-Shot Candidate Beat Donald Trump?
The crowded race for the Democratic nomination includes both frontrunners and long-shots, but how do we know which is which? Some big names have trailed in…
Radio AtlanticSex, Gender, and the Democratic Party
In recent days, three women have accused former Vice President Joe Biden of inappropriate contact. On Wednesday, Biden announced in a video that he is going to…
Radio AtlanticPolitics After Mueller
Last week, the special counsel submitted his report to Attorney General Bill Barr. And this week, Barr shared his brief summary of the big conclusions: there…
Radio AtlanticPresident Trump’s Post-Mueller Corruption Problem
When elected, most presidents either sell their assets or put them in a blind trust. Isolating a president’s financial interests from their time in office has…
Radio AtlanticPaul Manafort and the Problem of White-Collar Crime
Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort will spend around seven years in federal prison — far less than the nineteen to twenty-four years recommended by…
Radio AtlanticThe Future of the Democratic Party
The Democratic party is in a battle with itself. After devastating losses in 2016, the party was resurgent in 2018, but the lessons from both elections remain…
Radio AtlanticPresident Trump's New Legal Nightmare
On Wednesday before the House Oversight Committee, Michael Cohen called the president a racist, a conman, and a cheat. He also brought documents. Trump’s…
Radio AtlanticState of Emergency
Last week, President Trump declared a national emergency to get funding for the wall. The move gave him elevated power to move money around, but it was…
Radio AtlanticPecker Pics and Tabloid Tricks
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos recently accused the National Enquirer of “extortion and blackmail” over private photos of him obtained by the tabloid. In a Medium…
Radio AtlanticSomething Rotten in the State of Virginia
Recently, news broke that Virginia’s Democratic governor and attorney general both wore blackface in the 1980s. The controversy now enveloping the state has…
Radio AtlanticKamala Harris, Progressive Prosecutor?
Senator Kamala Harris has drawn criticism for beginning her 2020 campaign by pitching herself as a ‘progressive prosecutor’ despite a more mixed record. Alex…
Radio AtlanticThe Art of the Shutdown Deal
The government shutdown is now the longest in U.S. history, but President Trump seems no closer to a deal to resolve it. Why does the “master dealmaker” -- as…
Radio AtlanticIs the President a Russian Asset?
On Friday, the New York Times published a startling story: In 2017, days after Trump fired FBI Director James Comey, the bureau opened an inquiry into whether…
Radio AtlanticHow to Fix Social Media
Social media platforms once promised to connect the world. Today’s digital communities, though, often feel like forces for disunity. Anger and discord in 2018…
Radio AtlanticWhat Happened to the GOP?
Observing antidemocratic ‘power grabs’ by state Republicans, Atlantic staff writer George Packer writes that “the corruption of the Republican Party in the…
Radio AtlanticDoes the NRA Connect Trump to Russia?
On Thursday, Maria Butina became the first Russian national convicted of seeking to influence the 2016 election. As part of Russia’s years-long effort to cozy…
Radio AtlanticThe First Gene-Edited Babies
A Chinese researcher recently touched off a global controversy when he announced the birth of the world’s first genetically edited babies. The claims remain…
Radio AtlanticWhat’s Happening With Mueller and Manafort?
Paul Manafort’s cooperation with the Mueller probe has collapsed. In a Monday filing, the special counsel’s office said he repeatedly lied to federal…
Radio AtlanticFlorida Flashbacks
The midterms were over a week ago, but a number of races have yet to be called. In Florida, the senate and governor elections have both come down to a recount…
Radio AtlanticWhat Did We Learn From the Midterms?
Executive Editor Matt Thompson interviews Atlantic reporters on what lessons they drew from the midterm elections, speaking in turn with: Vann Newkirk, Emma…
Radio AtlanticMidterms in the Wake of Political Violence
The upcoming midterms mark the first nationwide referendum on the Trump presidency and the GOP-led Congress. Coming amid a shocking spree of political violence…
Radio AtlanticThe Murder of Jamal Khashoggi
On October 2nd, Washington Post contributing columnist Jamal Khashoggi entered the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, never to be seen again. Details of the…
Radio AtlanticThe Politics of Ancestry
Senator Elizabeth Warren recently shared results of a genetic analysis to back up her family’s story of Cherokee ancestry, hoping to blunt a favorite…
Radio AtlanticAmerica's Higher Education Crisis
A college education has become a key asset towards success in the American economy, but for many Americans, access to higher education—especially at a…
Radio AtlanticRemembering Ferguson with DeRay Mckesson
Four years ago, after a police officer shot and killed Michael Brown, protestors took to the streets of Ferguson, Missouri. Among them was a school…
Radio AtlanticIs the Public Square Gone?
After a news week that’s felt more like a news month, Matt Thompson sits down with two experienced editors to ask how people manage to make and consume news in…
Radio AtlanticThe Reputations and Reckonings of #MeToo
As Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh faces assault allegations, the #MeToo movement reaches its first anniversary. Beyond a potential hearing reminiscent…
Radio AtlanticIs Democracy Dying?
With authoritarianism and populism on the rise around the world, The Atlantic examines the fate of democracy in its October issue. Anne Applebaum writes that…
Radio AtlanticHow Much Longer Can Football Last?
Mark Leibovich has a day job covering the reality show of politics as the New York Times Magazine’s Chief National Correspondent, but he’s spent the spent the…
Radio AtlanticThe Endless Devastation of Hurricane Season
This week, the most rigorous estimate yet of deaths caused by Hurricane Maria was published, marking a grim milestone: the hurricane season of 2017 was one of…
Radio AtlanticTrump’s Worst Day
Matt and Gillian discuss Paul Manafort’s guilty verdict and Michael Cohen’s guilty plea with Franklin Foer and David A. Graham. Was Tuesday a turning point for…
Radio AtlanticWhen Does Hollywood’s Diversity Become Real Representation?
With movies like Crazy Rich Asians, BlacKkKlansman, and Sorry To Bother You out in theaters, Hollywood is trying to mute the complaint that it lacks racial and…
Radio AtlanticCharlottesville: One Year Later
It’s been a year since the violence of the “Unite the Right” rally and the political turmoil of its aftermath. How did Charlottesville change the country? Has…
Radio AtlanticKeepers of the Year 2018
The first anniversary of Radio Atlantic this week coincides with one of the newsiest weeks of 2018. So we’ve decided to take the opportunity to lift our sights…
Radio AtlanticThe Future of Europe
As President Trump meets with other western leaders in Europe, the spirit of democratic cooperation we’re used to in NATO summits is gone. But it’s not just…
Radio AtlanticAre We Ready for the Next Pandemic?
“Humanity is now in the midst of its fastest-ever period of change,” writes Ed Yong in the July/August issue of The Atlantic. Urbanization and globalization…
Radio AtlanticThe View from the Border
Outrage over families separated at the border has reached a fever pitch. Social media is awash with images of undocumented migrants held in cages, sounds of…
Radio AtlanticBeing Black in America Can Be Hazardous to Your Health
Nationwide, black Americans live three years less than white Americans. In places with a history of segregation, that life-expectancy gap can be as much as…
Radio AtlanticThe North Korea Summit
Two of the world’s most volatile heads of state—Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump—have moved in the span of a year from trading insults to trading fawning letters…
Radio AtlanticA White House Troll ‘Owning the Libs’
A new generation of political activists have grown up more interested in provoking outrage from their fellow citizens than in winning them over. Among the most…
Radio AtlanticIs the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Past Solving?
The decades-old dispute between Israelis and Palestinians seems to be at a new low these days. Two American-born writers – an Israeli author and a Muslim…
Radio AtlanticHappy Mueller-versary
Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation has been the focus of headlines and cable news for a full year now. Despite his seemingly leak-proof team…
Radio AtlanticIntroducing Crazy/Genius: Why Can't Facebook Tell the Truth?
This week's Radio Atlantic brings you the first episode of our new show Crazy/Genius, hosted by Atlantic staff writer (and past Radio Atlantic guest) Derek…
Radio AtlanticIs Politics Ruining Pop Culture?
Some Americans who grew up identifying with Roseanne have found themselves alienated by Roseanne Barr’s outspoken devotion to President Trump. Many of Kanye…
Radio AtlanticIs the Presidency Broken?
“We are a president-obsessed nation, so much so that we undermine the very idea of our constitutional democracy,” writes John Dickerson in his May cover story…
Radio AtlanticThe Syria Disaster, Seven Years In
Long the crossroads of civilizations, Syria has now spent seven years as the proxy warzone of great powers. With over half a million dead and millions more…
Radio AtlanticBecoming White in America
In her new book Futureface, Alex Wagner writes that “immigration raises into relief some of our most basic existential questions: Who am I? Where do I belong?…