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PODCAST

Plain English with Derek Thompson

Longtime Atlantic tech, culture and political writer Derek Thompson cuts through all the noise surrounding the big questions and headlines that matter to you in his new podcast Plain English. Hear Derek and guests engage the news with clear viewpoints and memorable takeaways. New episodes drop every Tuesday and Friday, and if you"ve got a topic you want discussed, shoot us an email at plainenglish@spotify.com! You can also find us on tiktok at www.tiktok.com/@plainenglish_

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All Episodes

42:02

Why the U.S. Media Industry Is in Meltdown

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2024/01/23

Sports Illustrated layoffs. The demise of independent Pitchfork. Hundreds of millions of dollars in losses at major newspapers like the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times. The state of the U.S. news industry is dire. How did we get here? Who knows the way out? The Ringer's Bryan Curtis joins the show, with contributions from an interview with NPR's David Folkenflik. If you have questions, observations, or ideas for future episodes, email us at PlainEnglish@Spotify.com. Host: Derek

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50:15

World on Fire, Part 3: How Did America's Border...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2024/01/19

Today is the third and final episode in our miniseries on this unique moment in global war and conflict. In the first episode, we looked at the turmoil in the Middle East. In the second episode, we offered explanations for the historic rise in global conflict between states and within states, from Eastern Europe to Central America. Now, we come home to the U.S. By just about any measure, the U.S. southern border is facing a historic crisis. Last year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported 2.5

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53:13

World on Fire, Part 2: Global Conflict Has Surged to...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2024/01/16

This is the second episode in "World on Fire," a series on the historic levels of global violence and conflict in the Middle East, the Americas, and beyond. Listen to Part 1 here: "World on Fire, Part 1: The Houthis, Israel's Impossible War, and Worsening Middle East Chaos." You and I are living through an extraordinary period of global conflict. In Europe, Russia, and Ukraine are engaged in one of the continent's deadliest hot wars since 1945. In Africa, the last few years have seen devastating

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58:01

World on Fire, Part 1: The Houthis, Israel's...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2024/01/12

The chaos in the Middle East is getting worse. It’s not just in Gaza. It’s not the spasms of violence in the West Bank. It’s not just the northern border with Lebanon, where Israel is braced for the possibility of a new war. It’s not the Houthis in Yemen, disrupting Red Sea trade. It's not just Iran urging on these groups. It's all of it, all at once. Natan Sachs, director of the Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings, joins to break this all down and offer several big-picture explanations for

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48:04

The Dark Side of the Obsession With Focus

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2024/01/09

The 'New York Times' bestselling author and contrarian self-help writer Oliver Burkeman joins the show to talk about his new audio essay series on work, focus, and interruptions—and how, too often, our emphasis on eliminating distractions ironically takes us away from the most important things in life. If you have questions, observations, or ideas for future episodes, email us at PlainEnglish@Spotify.com. Host: Derek Thompson Guest: Oliver Burkeman Producer: Devon Baroldi Learn more about your ad

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31:49

Four Megatrends for 2024 in Tech, Economics, Media,...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2024/01/03

Derek shares what he considers the most important narratives of the moment, including the return of normalcy in economics, a big shift in sports media, Big Tech's 1890 moment, and ... aliens. Host: Derek Thompson Producer: Devon Baroldi Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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63:19

The Biggest Breakthroughs in Science Happening Right Now

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/12/27

If you're looking for a hopeful and mind-expanding conversation to round out the year, this one is for you. It's our breakthroughs of the year episode, covering 2023's biggest achievements in science and tech, including space technology, life extension, fusion, gene editing, vaccines, and, of course, GLP-1s. It has become a 'Plain English' tradition—after weeks of stories that often take us into sad areas, like anxiety, depression, and war—to close the year with a nerdy conversation about the most

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43:52

The Truth About Ketamine: Depression Cure, Health...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/12/22

One week ago, Matthew Perry’s autopsy report came back, finding that the ‘Friends’ actor died from the acute effects of ketamine overdose. His death has sharpened focus on the popular and controversial drug. Ketamine has been hailed as a miracle cure for depression and anxiety, criticized as a VC-fueled fad, and investigated as a placebo. But what is ketamine, what is its history, what do we know about how and why it works, and how could it help hundreds of millions of people with depression and

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60:56

The Year in Media and Entertainment: What’s Broken...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/12/19

Today’s episode is about 2023 in media—from TV to film, from the miracle of Barbenheimer’s to the superhero drought, from Netflix’s show of strength to Taylor Swift’s invincibility, from the podcast purge to so much more. Our guest is Matt Belloni, the host of Ringer podcast ‘The Town’ and a writer with Puck. If you have questions, observations, or ideas for future episodes, email us at PlainEnglish@Spotify.com. Host: Derek Thompson Guest: Matthew Belloni Producer: Devon Baroldi Learn more about

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91:32

How Weight-Loss Drugs Could Impact U.S. Healthcare...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/12/15

Today’s episode is our second in a series on the weight-loss drug revolution of the last two years. On Tuesday, we talked to endocrinologist Beverly Tchang about the science of glucagon like peptide 1 receptor agonists—also known as GLP1s, also known as Ozempic, Wegovy, Moujargo, and Zepbound. If you haven’t listened to that show, I think you’ll feel safe and entertained within the bounds of this episode. But if you want to know more about how these drugs work, their effect on insulin and glucose

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50:34

The Weight-Loss Drug Revolution, Part 1: Why These...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/12/12

Today’s podcast is about the weight-loss drug revolution—which I believe might be one of the most important stories in the world right now. Despite all the attention weight-loss drugs are receiving, it’s possible that they might soon affect the world even more than we realize as they teach us about the science of human metabolism, decision-making, and even free will. Beverly Tchang, an endocrinologist at Weill Cornell, explains how these drugs work, what they mean for people with diabetes and

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46:26

Why It’s So Hard to Buy a House Right Now—and Why It...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/12/08

Today, we’re examining the U.S. housing market, starting with a specific question: Should you look to rent or buy your next home? By some metrics, this is the worst time to buy a house in 40 years. Housing prices are near record highs, especially compared to local rents. For many young people, the dream of homeownership might seem completely impossible right now, thanks to huge national demand colliding with short supply, especially in high-income areas. Meanwhile, high mortgage interest rates have

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54:48

How Henry Kissinger’s Catastrophes and Triumphs...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/12/05

Today’s episode is about the controversial life and legacy of Henry Kissinger, who died last week at the age of 100. First as Nixon’s National Security Advisor and Secretary of State, and then as an author and diplomacy whisperer in almost every subsequent administration, Kissinger's life is overstuffed with achievements and disasters and breakthroughs and catastrophes—many of which continue to shape the world we live in. Today’s guest is George Packer, an Atlantic staff writer and the author of

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55:40

Elon Musk’s Meltdown, the Death of Twitter, and the...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/12/01

Today’s episode is a wide-ranging one, from breaking news in tech to the philosophy of social media. The Atlantic's Charlie Warzel joins to discuss Elon Musk's bizarre and crude comments at The New York Times DealBook Summit, the corporate meltdown of X, whether its demise would make the world better off, the fragmentation of the social media landscape, and its implications for audiences and news-makers everywhere. If you have questions, observations, or ideas for future episodes, email us

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56:41

How China's Economic Miracle Went Off the Rails

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/11/28

This month, President Joe Biden and President Xi Jinping of the People's Republic of China (PRC) met in San Francisco amid trade wars and even the prospect of a catastrophic hot war over Taiwan. Their meeting took place during a nervous period in the history of China. After decades of spectacular growth, the Chinese economic miracle has sputtered, with huge implications for its own population and the world. And yet, even as the most dire aspects of the Chinese economy make headlines, it remains the

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61:02

Inside the OpenAI Meltdown

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/11/21

Today’s episode is about whatever the hell just happened—is still happening—at OpenAI, where CEO Sam Altman has been fired, almost rehired, and then shipped off to Microsoft, while the most famous startup in artificial intelligence self-immolates for reasons that the company refuses to explain. Our panel has some theories. Charlie Warzel is a staff writer at The Atlantic who has been texting and talking with OpenAI employees for the last few days. Karen Hao is a contributing writer at The Atlantic

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50:41

The Media is Missing Something Big in Biden’s Bad...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/11/17

Today’s episode is about the question of the moment in politics: the meaning of Joe Biden’s terrible polling numbers. Today’s guest is Nate Cohn, chief political analyst at the New York Times, where he does public opinion, polling, demographics, and politics. We talk about the notorious New York Times poll that showed Donald Trump trouncing Biden in the swing states. We talk about why it’s not crazy to take presidential polls seriously right now—even though we're 300 days out from the election. We

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60:56

How ChatGPT Can Change the Future of Jobs—Starting...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/11/14

Today’s episode is about thinking practically about the AI revolution. Yes, it may one day usher in some now unthinkable utopia or dystopia. But in the meantime, our imperfect world exists, and your imperfect job exists, and you face a forced choice: Should you use this technology? And if so, how do you make it work for you? Kevin Roose, a tech columnist for The New York Times and the host of the podcast 'Hard Fork,' talks about how generative AI tools are already changing his job and others,

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64:04

What Most People Get Wrong About Wealth, Fame, and...

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/11/10

Morgan Housel, the author of 'The Psychology of Money' and a partner at Collab Fund, talks about his new book, 'Same as Ever,' on the virtues of ancient truths in a world where everything seems to be changing. We also talk about why so many successful people are miserable, why great ideas don't scale, the difference between happiness and contentment, the wisdom of a Snickers bar, the downsides of fully optimized culture, and how to write. If you have questions, observations, or ideas for future

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50:35

The Fragile Hope for Peace in Israel-Palestine

Plain English with Derek Thompson ·

2023/11/07

In the last few weeks, our coverage of this conflict has tried very hard to see the problem from as many angles as possible. In our first episode, we considered the political motivations of Hamas’s October 7 attack. In our second episode, we considered the behavior of Israel’s government from a critical perspective. In a third episode, we asked whether Israel’s military objectives made sense by speaking to a counter-terrorism expert. And last week, we told the 150-year history of Israel, Palestine,

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338 results

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