Vox Quick Hits

The Undefeated's culture critic Soraya Nadia McDonald talks with Emmy Award-winning television writer and producer Cord Jefferson. They discuss the transition from journalism to TV, delving into Jefferson's move from Gawker to writing for hit shows like Succession, The Good Place, and Watchmen. They also touch on what needs to change about TV writer's rooms, and what our current era of streaming giants and tech barons means for news and pop culture. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Andrew Cuomo was hailed for his leadership early on in the pandemic. Now, he's mired in scandal. Journalist Ross Barkan explains. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new documentary has brought Britney Spears back into the spotlight, making us questions if we’ve changed our ways as a celebrity-obsessed culture. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this Vox Quick Hits exclusive, Vox's Emily Stewart joins Matt and Dara to issue dreary prognostications on the fate of the $15 minimum wage Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What’s taking so long? What’s happening with those $1,400 checks? Are the Democrats betraying the people who voted for them? Vox’s Li Zhou explains. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Black and brown communities have been disproportionately impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, on both the health and economic fronts. Across the country, it appears that vaccination strategies aren’t designed in light of that reality. White people are being vaccinated at higher rates than people of color, and many places aren’t tracking who’s getting vaccinated, race-wise, at all. Vox reporter Fabiola Cineas discusses vaccinations in the context of race and what an equitable policy should look like. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Australia just reined in Google. Dozens of other countries want in on the action. The latest season of Land of the Giants explains how two grad students, Sergey Brin and Larry Page, turned a search engine into what might be the most powerful company in history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hollywood award shows are rigged by the industry, so why should we watch them? In the age of endless streamable content, are award shows becoming obsolete? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

May 25 will be the one-year anniversary of George Floyd’s killing at the hands of police, which sparked protests across the country. There’s more conversation about police violence in America right now than ever before, but what would it actually take, policy-wise, to address the problem? Vox editor Sean Collins discusses two proposals that activists say could make an important difference and what progress after the protests could look like. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

First it was brutal winter weather, power outages followed. Texas Public Radio’s Joey Palacios explains what comes next. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vox film critic Alissa Wilkinson and critic-at-large Emily VanDerWerff recommend Minari, starring Steven Yeun. It’s a beautiful drama about an immigrant family trying to start a vegetable farm in the Ozarks, based on the childhood recollections of writer and director Lee Isaac Chung. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Zack, Jenn, and Alex break down one of the DC foreign policy world’s hottest new catchphrases: “great power competition.” It’s the idea that international politics in the 21st century will be dominated by a struggle for influence between the US, China, and (to a lesser extent) Russia. The gang talks about what the concept actually means and whether it’s a useful framework for understanding international politics today and in the future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Author Nicole Hemmer explains how Limbaugh transformed conservative politics. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vox's Sean Illing talks about the the little-known history of psychedelics and spirituality in the Western world with Brian Muraresku, author of The Immortality Key. What role did psychedelic drugs play in the rise and spread of Christianity — and could they save the church today? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Biden says he wants to undo his predecessor’s immigration policies? The El Paso Times’s Lauren Villagran explain. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Constance Grady suggests some reads that make you feel like you’re trapped in one of Hopper’s classic scenes: In Sunlight or in Shadow, Raymond Chandler books, and Play It as It Lays. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Matt, Dara, and Vox's Emily Stewart ponder what will come next for the twice-impeached former president. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Democrats made a strong impeachment case against Donald Trump. Republicans are being punished for supporting it. Vox’s Zack Beauchamp explains. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Imagine waking up one day to find Google and all of its services gone. Gmail, search, Google Drive, YouTube, Google Home, Google Maps — all gone. In Australia, a world without Google might not be far off. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When news broke of a possible Harry Potter TV series, not everyone seemed excited. Why J.K. Rowling’s transphobic statements are tarnishing the series’ legacy and making fans question the characters’ meaning and influence. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2020, the conversation around giving people money changed — namely, the federal government got much more on board with the idea. At the outset of the pandemic, the government sent out $1,200 checks, and then in December, Congress passed another round of $600 checks. Now, $1,400 checks are on the horizon. Vox senior correspondent Dylan Matthews explains the evolving politics around the government sending people money, how we got here, and whether these policies are likely to stick around. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The pandemic hasn’t stopped Americans from dating, hooking up, or tying the knot. In fact, lockdown has been helping people get down. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The movement to liberate Britney Spears from her conservatorship may not succeed, but it’s revealing a lot about how we treat young women. Vox’s Constance Grady explains. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Zack, Jenn, and Alex discuss the huge farmers’ protests in India. They explain the very real policy debate over new agricultural reform laws that sparked the protests, and how that debate has now been obscured by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist politics, international celebrity activism, and online trolls. Oh, and they talk about Rihanna. Yes, that Rihanna. References: Vox’s Jariel Arvin explains the Indian farmers’ protest. And he also writes about why India’s government is mad at Rihanna. The New Yorker in 2019 had an excellent feature on Modi’s Hindu nationalism. The Times of India looks into the rise of internet trolls. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A few weeks ago, Vox critic-at-large Emily VanDerWerff and film critic Alissa Wilkinson shared their favorite movies. This week they're back with their favorite shows: The Simpsons on Disney Plus (Emily) This classic has been on the air since 1989. Not all the jokes will fly today, but looking back on the comedy of the 1990s, The Simpsons seems to have aged the best. Since it's animated and the characters never age, it can continually comment on American life. And it will only take 258 days to watch all 695 episodes! The Comeback on HBO Max (Alissa) There are so many good reasons to watch this meta-comedy co-created by Lisa Kudrow (who also stars in it) and Michael Patrick King, the executive producer of Sex and the City. It's funny and binge-able. It cleverly skewers the kind of sexism that was present on the set of sitcoms in the 1990s. And although it's not necessarily cheerful, it has a lot of heart. You'll see new jokes and funny bits with each re-watch. There are 21 episodes in all, each lasting between 25 and 55 minutes. Deadwood on HBO Max (Emily) Set in the town of Deadwood, South Dakota, this series follows the town's new sheriff Seth Bullock, played by Timothy Olyphant. He's not trying to be law enforcement. He just wants to have a quiet life opening a hardware store. Deadwood is a Western, yes, but it explores the ways in which we construct civilization and societies are born — the ways America was born. There's tension between the need for individuality and the need for community. And this is one of best shows at believably tracing a really terrible person's movement toward getting involved with his community. There are three seasons and a wrap-up movie. You can watch all in around 35 hours. High Maintenance on HBO Max (Alissa) At face value, this is a show about buying weed. But it's really about all the different characters that the weed dealer — the connecting thread of each episode — comes into contact with. We meet people from all walks of life who have weird jobs, weird problems, weird fetishes, weird predicaments. You won't get long, drawn-out character arcs with this show, just little snippets of people's lives. Every episode is delightful. There are 34 in all, and there's even one that's entirely from the perspective of a (very good) dog. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sen. Mitt Romney wants to throw money at parents, Andrew Yang-style. President Biden is into it, too. Vox’s Dylan Matthews explains. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

NPR journalist, memoirist, and host of the upcoming WBEZ podcast The Art of Power Aarti Shahani talks with Cecilia Muñoz, a former aide to Obama and part of Biden's transition team. It's a conversation about immigration policy reform and the challenges ahead for President Biden — and for a country wrestling with changing demographics, racism, and its history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Picking up skating in your 30s and beyond, the trend stories tell us, signals some sort of desperation. You’re either going through a midlife crisis or trying to hide one if you think that awkwardly rolling around on a wooden toy, risking a hospital visit the entire time, is a good idea. Steve Rousseau considered all of this, and then decided not to worry about it. He bought a skateboard at the very start of the pandemic, and it’s the best money he’s ever spent. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Poorer countries have received less than 1 percent of the Covid-19 vaccines distributed around the world. Vox’s Julia Belluz explains what the WHO is calling a “catastrophic moral failure.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vox culture writer Constance Grady explains why TV shows like Dragnet, Law & Order, Hawaii Five-0, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine always seem to feature police as heroes. She explains how police consultants became the go-to for procedurals, the police archetypes that saturate pop culture, and how cop shows are pivoting for 2021. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vox's Ella Nilsen joins Matt and Dara to discuss the overlooked implications of Biden's rescue bill, and the debate surrounding it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Law professor Jeff Kosseff explains the long history of Section 230, the law that made the modern internet possible. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Now that Jeff Bezos is leaving his role as Amazon’s CEO, everyone’s wondering what the future holds for one of the wealthiest people in the world. Will he finally step up in the philanthropy world? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nearly a year into the pandemic, the country still hasn’t quite figured out how to keep students and teachers safe at school. It’s largely been up to states, school districts, and teachers to figure out whether to keep schools open or switch to distance learning. Experts say measures like masks, ventilation, and testing can make schools safer — but those measures often require resources that schools don’t have. Vox’s Anna North explains what’s happening with schools during the pandemic, and whether the Biden administration can turn things around. References: Anna’s story about reopening schools. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vox’s Andrew Prokop previews the historic second impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to the latest installment of Vox’s Ask a Book Critic, in which Vox book critic Constance Grady, provide book recommendations to suit your very specific mood: either how you’re feeling right now or how you’d like to be feeling instead. In today's episode, a caller from Colorado is searching for books that find joy in the daily minutiae. Constance recommends: Wintering by Catherine May Autumn by Karl Ove Knausgaard Home Comforts by Cheryl Mendelsohn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Redditors of WallStreetBets should maybe take a look at the 1990s before piling into their next trade. The GameStop saga has shed a light on the growing individual investing trend, brought about by commission-free trading, gamified apps, and a lot of down time during the pandemic. But like so many trends, this isn’t new: Day trading was super popular in the 1990s, when people were also looking on chat boards for stock tips and making speculative bets. Recode’s Peter Kafka puts the current day trading craze into context. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

All Creatures Great and Small is PBS’s new adaptation of the book series about a young veterinarian in late 1930s rural England. It is comfort food TV right down to its bones, and it is comfort food TV that works. The seven-episode first season is full of heartwarming moments, camaraderie among townspeople, and adorable animals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Zack, Jenn, and Alex discuss the recent coup in Myanmar, in which the Myanmarese military deposed the country’s quasi-democratic government and detained its civilian leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, along with hundreds of members of her political party. References: Alex wrote an explainer on the Myanmar coup. Jen Kirby wrote about the laughable charges the military leveled against Aung Sang Suu Kyi. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ten years ago, a Tunisian fruit vendor set himself on fire and set off a revolution across the Middle East. The Independent’s Borzou Daragahi says the Arab Spring never ended. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An excerpt from Ezra Klein's conversation with Anne Helen Petersen and Derek Thompson in April 2019. They discuss what happens when work becomes an identity, capitalism becomes a religion, and productivity becomes the way we measure human value. Hear the whole conversation here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vox's Dylan Matthews talks with author and Revolutions podcaster Mike Duncan about what history can tell us about the insurrection at the US Capitol. Is America experiencing a true moment of revolution? So many republics throughout history have crumbled - could this one be next? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vox’s Aaron Rupar explains why Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has likened a fellow Republican’s views to cancer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A caller from Canada seeks cerebral mysteries to help him get through the brutal winter, Vox's book critic Constance Grady recommends: Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellmann Piranesi by Susanna Clarke If On a Winter’s Night a Traveler by Italo Calvino Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson If you’d like Constance to recommend a book for you, email her at [email protected] with the subject line “Ask a Book Critic.” The more specific your mood, the better! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

German Lopez joins Matt Yglesias and Dara Lind to discuss some of the obstacles to vaccine distribution — and some possible solutions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some would say the military has always been in control of Myanmar. On Monday morning, they made it official once again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Biden is hitting the ground running on climate and trying to make up for lost ground under the Trump administration. He signed an executive order for the United States to rejoin the Paris climate agreement on his first day in office and has ordered a slate of actions across the executive branch to try to combat climate change. He’s also set ambitious goals, such as getting to 100% clean electricity by 2035. Climate reporter Lili Pike discusses Biden’s approach to the climate crisis and how much further the country still has to go. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Carter Smith served in the armed forces for twenty years. Then he became a military investigator. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vox's book critic Constance Grady recommends books for Wilkie Collins fans. Spontaneous combustion included. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After years of haggling, two prime ministers, and countless fits and starts, the United Kingdom has finally left the European Union — mostly. Britain left the EU at the start of the year, and now both sides are learning to navigate life after the divorce. Vox foreign reporter Jen Kirby explains life after the Brexit breakup, including why some people in the UK won’t feel the weight of the change until the Covid-19 pandemic is over and why Scotland’s political future is still uncertain. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices