Explain It to Me

Latest Episodes:

The Weeds, Live – Anti-trans legislation, explained May 10, 2023

Show notes

In recent years, there’s been a dramatic increase in the number of anti-LGBTQ bills introduced in state legislatures across the country. The ACLU is currently tracking 474 such bills, the majority of which target transgender rights. Meanwhile, trans people are over four times more likely than cisgender people to be the victims of violent crime. And according to a 2022 report from the Trevor Project, 45 percent of LGBTQ youth seriously considered suicide in the past year, including more than half of transgender and nonbinary youth.

In this live taping of The Weeds, host Jonquilyn Hill sits down with Danni Askini, co-executive director of national programs for the Gender Justice League. The two examine the history of gender-affirming care, discuss how changes in health policy and advancements in marriage equality have led to this backlash, and explore how advocates are responding.

Credits:

Jonquilyn Hill, host

Sofi LaLonde, producer

Cristian Ayala, engineer

A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

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Policymaking on the high seas May 03, 2023

Show notes

Question: What is the world’s largest habitat? Here’s a hint: It also takes up about half of the Earth’s surface. Any guesses? It’s the high seas, the parts of the open ocean outside any single country’s jurisdiction. And for the first time ever, there is a plan to protect it.

The High Seas Treaty, Explained | Reuters

The BBNJ agreement and liability | ScienceDirect Journal

Credits:

Jonquilyn Hill, host

Sofi LaLonde, producer

Cristian Ayala, engineer

A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

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How Secretary Buttigieg wants to make America’s roads safer Apr 26, 2023

Show notes

On this week’s episode ofThe Weeds, we sit down with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to talk about transportation policy in America. From subways and buses to cars and safer roads, listen for more about the future of public transportation and the policies that can curb traffic deaths. Plus, more from Vox’s Marin Cogan and her reporting on the deadliest road in America.

Cars transformed America. They also made people more vulnerable to the police.

A driver killed her daughter. She won't let the world forget.

Credits:

Jonquilyn Hill, host

Sofi LaLonde, producer

Cristian Ayala, engineer

A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

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Mifepristone and the FDA’s exhaustive approval process, explained Apr 18, 2023

Show notes

It’s been 10 days since a federal judge in Texas issued an unprecedented ruling that nullified the 2000 Food and Drug Administration approval of mifepristone, the first medication in a two-pill combination for medication abortion. A confusing legal battle ensued, and now we are waiting to hear from the Supreme Court. But we still want to know: What does this mean for the future of FDA drug approval? Vox’s Keren Landman (@landmanspeaking) explains.

References:

Abortion pill ruling: Why mifepristone is safe abortion medication - Vox

Credits:

Jonquilyn Hill, host

Sofi LaLonde, producer

Cristian Ayala, engineer

A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

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How corporations got all your data Apr 11, 2023

Show notes

Sean Illing speaks with Matthew Jones, historian of science and technology, and co-author (with data scientist Chris Wiggins) of the new book How Data Happened. They discuss the surprisingly long history of data from the 18th century to today, in service of explaining how we wound up in a world where our personal information is mined by giant corporations for profit. They talk about how the allure of measurement and precision spread from astronomy to the social sciences, why advertising became so bound to the operation of the internet, and how we can imagine a more democratic future for us and our data, given the unprecedented power of today's tech companies.

Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling), host, The Gray Area

Guest: Matthew L. Jones (@nescioquid), author; James R. Barker Professor of Contemporary Civilization, Columbia University

References:

How Data Happened: A History from the Age of Reason to the Age of Algorithmsby Chris Wiggins and Matthew L. Jones (W.W. Norton; 2023)
"How Alan Turing Cracked The Enigma Code" (Imperial War Museum)
Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass media by Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky (1988)
"The manipulation of the American mind: Edward Bernays and the birth of public relations" by Richard Gunderman (The Conversation; July 9, 2015)
On Herbert Simon (The Economist; Mar. 20, 2009)
The Age of Surveillance Capitalismby Shoshana Zuboff (Profile; 2019)
Jeffrey Hammerbacher quoted in "This Tech Bubble Is Different" by Ashlee Vance (Bloomberg Businessweek; Apr. 14, 2011)

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This episode was made by:

Producer: Erikk Geannikis
Engineers: Patrick Boyd & Brandon McFarland

Editorial Director, Vox Talk: A.M. Hall

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Do assault weapons bans work? Apr 04, 2023

Show notes

After the shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville in late March, President Biden once again called for reinstating the federal assault weapons ban. The United States banned new sales of assault weapons from 1994 to 2004, but the law was easy to skirt, and the data we do have about its effectiveness is complicated. Is an assault weapons ban where advocates should spend their political capital?

References:

America's unique, enduring gun problem, explained

The Secret History of Guns

Gun Policy in America | RAND

Credits:

Jonquilyn Hill, host

Sofi LaLonde, producer

Cristian Ayala, engineer

A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

Help keep this show and all of Vox's journalism free by making a gift to Vox today: bit.ly/givepodcasts

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Medicaid’s “Great Unwinding” Mar 28, 2023

Show notes

On April 1, 2023, a Covid-era Medicaid policy called continuous enrollment will end. The policy allowed recipients to retain their benefits, even if they were no longer eligible, throughout the federal public health emergency and prevented lapses in coverage. Now that that’s coming to an end, state Medicaid offices need to audit their enrollees. But that process isn’t so simple, and millions are expected to slip through the cracks. Vox senior correspondent Dylan Scott (@dylanlscott) explains.

References:

Millions of people are about to get kicked off Medicaid

Our Welfare Puritanism : Democracy Journal

Subscribe to the VoxCare newsletter

Credits:

Jonquilyn Hill, host

Sofi LaLonde, producer

Cristian Ayala, engineer

A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

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Why Illinois wants to end cash bail Mar 21, 2023

Show notes

This month, the Illinois Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case examining the Safe-T Act. The legislation would bring sweeping reform to the state’s criminal justice system, but one policy in particular has caught the eye and the ire of prosecutors: the elimination of cash bail. Proponents say ending cash bail bonds will get rid of inequities that favor the rich; opponents say it will lead to a rise in crime. What does the fight over cash bail in Illinois tell us about criminal justice in America?

References:

Season 4 of WBEZ’s Motive podcast

Safe-T Act and cash bail goes before Illinois Supreme Court | WBEZ Chicago

The Chicago Community Bond Fund

I Was Locked Away from My Children for 14 Months Because I Couldn't Make Bail

The Lifeline and 988

Guests:

Lavette Mayes

Shannon Heffernan (@shannon_h)

Insha Rahman

Credits:

Jonquilyn Hill, host

Sofi LaLonde, producer

Cristian Ayala, engineer

A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The debt ceiling drama Mar 14, 2023

Show notes

You’ve probably heard by now that President Joe Biden released his 2024 budget proposal. You’ve also probably heard that it has almost no chance of passing through both chambers of Congress. What is likely to come to pass is more drama over a recurring problem: the fight over the debt ceiling. If the US doesn’t raise the ceiling and defaults on its debt, financial catastrophe would ensue. What does that mean for the country’s fiscal future?

References:

What’s in Biden’s new White House budget - Vox

Biden’s billionaire tax proposal, explained - Vox

House Republicans are taking steps to prepare for a possible debt ceiling default - Semafor

President's Budget | OMB | The White House

Guests:

Joseph Zaballos-Roig (@josephzeballos)

Kathleen Day (@kathleenday)

Credits:

Jonquilyn Hill, host

Sofi LaLonde, producer

Cristian Ayala, engineer

A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

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What East Palestine can tell us about the rail industry Mar 07, 2023

Show notes

On the evening of February 3, 2023, a Norfolk Southern train carrying toxic chemicals derailed outside of East Palestine, Ohio. The environmental impact was almost immediate: Residents were forced to evacuate while authorities carried out a controlled release of the hazardous chemical vinyl chloride. The aftermath also raises questions about freight rail policy and regulation. Host Jonquilyn Hill talks with Joanna Marsh of FreightWaves and Ian Duncan of the Washington Post about what East Palestine tells us about the rail industry’s past and future.

References:

Ohio senators introduce rail safety bill after fiery crash

5 questions you might ask about freight train accidents

Yes, the Ohio train wreck is an environmental disaster. No, it's not Chernobyl.

The East Palestine, Ohio, train wreck didn't have to be this bad

Credits:

Jonquilyn Hill, host

Sofi LaLonde, producer

Cristian Ayala, engineer

A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

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