• Was the 401(k) a Mistake?
    May 20 2024

    The first generation to be fully reliant on 401(k) plans is now starting to retire. As that happens, it is becoming clear just how broken the system is.

    Michael Steinberger, a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, explains.

    Guest: Michael Steinberger, a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine who writes periodically about the economy and the markets.

    Background reading:

    • How an obscure, 45-year-old tax change transformed retirement.
    • What to do when your 401(k) leaves something to be desired.

    For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

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    29 mins
  • The Sunday Read: ‘Why Did This Guy Put a Song About Me on Spotify?’
    May 19 2024

    Have you heard the song “Brett Martin, You a Nice Man, Yes”?

    Probably not. On Spotify, “Brett Martin, You a Nice Man, Yes” has not yet accumulated enough streams to even register a tally. Even Brett Martin, a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine and the titular Nice Man, didn’t hear the 1 minute 14 second song until last summer, a full 11 years after it was uploaded by an artist credited as Papa Razzi and the Photogs.

    When Martin stumbled on “Brett Martin, You a Nice Man, Yes,” he naturally assumed it was about a different, more famous Brett Martin: perhaps Brett Martin, the left-handed reliever who until recently played for the Texas Rangers; or Brett Martin, the legendary Australian squash player; or even Clara Brett Martin, the Canadian who in 1897 became the British Empire’s first female lawyer. Only when the singer began referencing details of stories that he made for public radio’s “This American Life” almost 20 years ago did he realize the song was actually about him. The song ended, “I really like you/Will you be my friend?/Will you call me on the phone?” Then it gave a phone number, with a New Hampshire area code.

    So, he called.

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    31 mins
  • 'The Interview': Ayana Elizabeth Johnson Has an Antidote to Our Climate Delusions
    May 18 2024
    The scientist talks to David Marchese about how to overcome the “soft” climate denial that keeps us buying junk.
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    28 mins
  • The Campus Protesters Explain Themselves
    May 17 2024

    This episode contains explicit language.
    Over recent months, protests over the war in Gaza have rocked college campuses across the United States.

    As students graduate and go home for the summer, three joined “The Daily” to discuss why they got involved, what they wanted to say and how they ended up facing off against each other.

    Guests:

    • Mustafa Yowell, a student at the University of Texas at Austin
    • Elisha Baker, a student at Columbia University
    • Jasmine Jolly, a student at Cal Poly Humboldt

    Background reading:

    • Pro-Palestinian student activists say their movement is anti-Zionist but not antisemitic. It is not a distinction that everyone accepts.
    • The Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Columbia University passed a resolution of no confidence in the university’s president, Nemat Shafik.

    For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

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    50 mins
  • The Make-or-Break Testimony of Michael Cohen
    May 16 2024

    This episode contains explicit language.

    Michael Cohen, Donald J. Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, took the stand in the former president’s hush-money trial.

    Jonah E. Bromwich, a criminal justice reporter, discusses how Mr. Cohen could cause problems for Mr. Trump himself.

    Guest: Jonah E. Bromwich, one of the lead reporters covering the Manhattan criminal trial of Donald J. Trump for The New York Times.

    Background reading:

    • Michael Cohen is the central witness in the first criminal trial of an American president.
    • Mr. Cohen’s account of an arrangement struck in the White House was the only personal testimony tying Donald J. Trump to falsified documents.

    For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

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    30 mins
  • The Possible Collapse of the U.S. Home Insurance System
    May 15 2024

    Across the United States, more frequent extreme weather is starting to cause the home insurance market to buckle, even for those who have paid their premiums dutifully year after year.

    Christopher Flavelle, a climate reporter, discusses a Times investigation into one of the most consequential effects of the changes.

    Guest: Christopher Flavelle, a climate change reporter for The New York Times.

    Background reading:

    • As American insurers bleed cash from climate shocks, homeowners lose.
    • See how the home insurance crunch affects the market in each state.
    • Here are four takeaways from The Times’s investigation.

    For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

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    24 mins
  • Voters Want Change. In Our Poll, They See It in Trump.
    May 14 2024

    The latest Times polling shows the extent of the challenge that President Biden faces and the strengths that Donald J. Trump retains. A yearning for change — as well as discontent over the economy and the war in Gaza among young, Black and Hispanic voters — may lie behind both.

    Nate Cohn, our chief political analyst, explains the surveys: New York Times/Siena College polls of Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia, Nevada and Arizona, and the inaugural Times/Philadelphia Inquirer/Siena poll in Pennsylvania.

    Guest: Nate Cohn, the chief political analyst for The New York Times.

    Background reading:

    • Surveys by The New York Times, Siena College and The Philadelphia Inquirer reveal an erosion of support for the president among young and nonwhite voters upset about the economy and Gaza.
    • With polls showing that Trump is set to make a demographic breakthrough, ticket splitting is also back.

    For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

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    32 mins
  • How Biden Adopted Trump’s Trade War With China
    May 13 2024

    Donald Trump upended decades of American policy when he started a trade war with China. Many thought that President Biden would reverse those policies. Instead, he’s stepping them up.

    Jim Tankersley, who covers economic policy at the White House, explains.

    Guest: Jim Tankersley, who covers economic policy at the White House The New York Times.

    Background reading:

    • Mr. Biden, competing with Mr. Trump to be tough on China, called for steel tariffs last month.
    • The Biden administration may raise tariffs on electric vehicles from China to 100 percent.

    For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

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    25 mins