The Daily

Warning: This episode contains strong language. Border Patrol agents shot and killed Alex Jeffrey Pretti, a Minneapolis resident, on Saturday. It was the second fatal shooting by federal agents in the city during protests against a ramped-up immigration enforcement effort by the Trump administration. Devon Lum, from the Visual Investigations team, and Ernesto Londoño, who covers the Midwest, explain how the shooting unfolded and what may come next. Guest: Devon LumVisual InvestigationsErnesto LondoñoBackground reading: A moment-by-moment look at the shooting Mr. PrettiHere’s what we knowFor more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Pop culture has not been kind to the Neanderthal. In books, movies and even TV commercials, the species is portrayed as rough and mindless, a brutish type that was rightly supplanted by our Homo sapiens ancestors. But even 40,000 years after the last Neanderthals walked the earth, we continue to make discoveries that challenge that portrayal. New research suggests Neanderthals might have been less primitive — and a lot more like modern humans — than we might have thought. The Times science reporters Carl Zimmer and Franz Lidz discuss recent discoveries about Neanderthals, and what those discoveries can tell us about the origins of humanity. On Today’s Episode: Carl Zimmer writes the Origins column and covers news about science for The Times. Franz Lidz writes about archaeology for The Times. Background Reading: The Year in Neanderthals Morning Person? You Might Have Neanderthal Genes to Thank. What Makes Your Brain Different From a Neanderthal’s? The Neanderthal Inside Us Photo: Frank Franklin II/Associated Press Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

The “Hamnet” director on trying to overcome her deepest fears — and open her heart. theinterview@nytimes.comyoutube.com/@TheInterviewPodcastnytimes.com/theinterview Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Three years after his appointment as special counsel, Jack Smith finally delivered the legal argument against President Trump on Thursday that he was never allowed to make in court. Glenn Thrush, who reports on the Justice Department, explains what Mr. Smith told Congress and why his message is likely to make him Mr. Trump’s next target. Guest: Glenn Thrush, who reports on the Justice Department for The New York Times. Background reading: Jack Smith defended the decisionfour takeaways from what he saidPhoto: Kenny Holston/The New York Times For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

President Trump has been raising tensions around the world for weeks by claiming that he would stop at nothing in his quest to seize Greenland from Denmark. But on Wednesday, he appeared to back down, announcing that he’d reached the framework of an agreement with NATO over Greenland’s future. Mark Landler, the London bureau chief, explains the ups and downs of Mr. Trump’s Greenland gambit, and why it may signal the beginning of a new world order. Guest: Mark Landler, the London bureau chief of The New York Times, working with a team of correspondents to cover the United Kingdom. Background reading: Mr. Trump said he had a framework for a Greenland dealturned the forum into a bracing clash between his worldview and theirsPhoto: Sean Gallup/Getty Images For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

For weeks, protests around Minneapolis have caught nationwide attention as the city shows open defiance to a federal immigration crackdown. But behind the scenes, a quieter organized resistance has taken shape. Anna Foley and Michael Simon Johnson, producers for “The “Daily,” go on the ground in Minneapolis to capture that effort, and Charles Homans, a New York Times reporter, explains why the city has become ground zero in the fight over the government’s deportation strategy. Guest: Charles Homans, a reporter for The New York Times and The Times Magazine, covering national politics. Background reading: is putting enraged residents face to face with heavily armed federal agentsPresident Trump’s fight with MinnesotaPhoto: Jamie Kelter Davis for The New York Times For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

In the 365 days since Donald J. Trump was sworn into his second term as president, he has fired, pardoned, prosecuted, tariffed, deployed, deposed, dismantled and deported his way to a new kind of American government, one designed almost entirely in his image. In the process, he has not only transformed the federal government, he has also changed, possibly forever, the very nature of the American presidency. On today’s episode, Michael Barbaro speaks with three longtime chroniclers of Trump’s presidency about how to make sense of what Trump has done over the past year and what his next three years in office might bring. Guests: Maggie HabermanJonathan SwanCharlie SavageFor more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Photo: Kenny Holston/The New York TImes Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

There’s a lot of anxiety about artificial intelligence invading Hollywood; the general mood there right now could be called “doom and gloom.” But speculation about a future where A.I. actors perform A.I. scripts in A.I.-generated movies often obscures the role A.I. is currently playing in the industry. In this episode, the host Michael Barbaro talks with the Hollywood reporter Brooks Barnes and the movie critic Alissa Wilkinson about the ways that A.I. is already showing up in our movies and television today, and how they see it contributing to — and complicating — the future. On Today’s Episode: Alissa Wilkinson is a Times movie critic. Brooks Barnes is the chief Hollywood correspondent for The Times. Background Reading: Can You Believe the Documentary You’re Watching? Disney Agrees to Bring Its Characters to OpenAI’s Sora Videos ‘The Wizard of Oz’ Is Getting an A.I. Glow-Up. Cue the Pitchforks. Is ‘The Wizard of Oz’ at Sphere the Future of Cinema? Or the End of It? Photo: Roger Kisby for The New York Times Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

The ultrarunner and mountaineer finds peace through doing unimaginably hard things. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

For millions of families, in vitro fertilization is a modern medical miracle. But the field is largely unregulated, and for a small number of parents, things can go terribly wrong. Susan Dominus discusses her story about how two families navigated an unthinkable I.V.F. mistake that will connect them for the rest of their lives. Guest: Susan Dominus, a staff writer at The New York Times Magazine. Background reading: original article from 2024Photo: Holly Andres for The New York Times For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

The Trump administration’s decision to open a criminal investigation into the Federal Reserve chairman, Jerome H. Powell, has stunned the worlds of business and politics. Colby Smith and Glenn Thrush, who have been covering the news, discuss how the investigation came about, the panic it unleashed and why it might have made the Fed chair stronger than ever. Guest: Colby SmithGlenn ThrushBackground reading: Blowback buildsHere’s what to knowPhoto: Caroline Gutman for The New York Times For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Iran is experiencing expansive protests after economic grievances snowballed over the past two weeks into a broader challenge to the country’s authoritarian clerical rulers. In recent days, a full picture of the government’s crackdown on demonstrators has emerged, garnering global condemnation and threats of action from President Trump. Farnaz Fassihi, who has been covering the story, explains what is driving the protesters and why the regime may be facing one of its gravest challenges in decades. Guest: Farnaz Fassihi, the United Nations bureau chief for The New York Times. Background reading: Accounts of a brutal crackdown are emergingHere’s what to knowPhoto: Getty Images/Getty Images For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

In the days since deposing Nicolás Maduro, President Trump has given several justifications for his dramatic actions in Venezuela. But perhaps most central to his ambitions is opening Venezuela’s oil fields to American companies. Anatoly Kurmanaev, who covers Venezuela, explains the history behind Mr. Trump’s claims of ownership and what it would really take to get the oil back. Guest: Anatoly Kurmanaev, a reporter for The New York Times who covers Venezuela. Background reading: The United States detailed a plan for Venezuela’s oil salesMr. Trump’s goals for reviving Venezuela’s oil industryPhoto: Adriana Loureiro Fernandez for The New York Times For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Warning: This episode contains strong language. Just hours before a federal immigration officer killed Renee Good in her car, Brian O’Hara, the Minneapolis police chief, warned that a tragedy involving ICE seemed inevitable. In an interview, Chief O’Hara discusses his experience with ICE in Minneapolis and why, in his mind, President Trump’s campaign of mass deportation is undermining faith in police departments. Guest: Brian O’Hara, chief of the Minneapolis Police Department Background reading: Here’s what we knowLocal officials called for federal forcesPhoto: Tim Evans/Reuters For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

On January 7, 2025, the Palisades and Eaton Fires erupted, eventually burning down more than 16,000 structures and killing at least 31 people, becoming among the most destructive and deadly wildfires in California’s history. Two Wirecutter writers, Gregory Han and Mike Cohen, lived through the Eaton fire. Both lived in Altadena, just outside Los Angeles. Gregory’s home was damaged, while Mike’s burned to the ground. They collaborated on an article sharing their biggest lessons of recovery, which Wirecutter published last July, as part of our emergency preparation coverage. Now, in a special podcast series, they are sharing the biggest lessons they’ve learned from the past year–—and what they can teach you about how to prepare for a disaster. Unfortunately, climate change is making extreme weather events more frequent, more intense, and more unpredictable. In the last year alone, we’ve seen cataclysmic floods in the Texas Hill Country, deadly tornadoes in many parts of the U.S., and increasing flash floods across the country, just to name a few. No one is completely insulated from these types of events. In this first episode, we’ll introduce you to Gregory and Mike, and why they think it’s imperative to invest in your community before a disaster. You can listen to parts two and three of this series here. Part three will be published on Jan. 12. Actionable steps you can take from this episode: Invest in your community before a disaster.Create an easy way to communicate with your neighbors. Join a volunteer organization in your community. You can find out more about Gregory Han on his website and on Instagram @typefiend Additional reading: The LA Wildfires Devastated the Homes of Two Wirecutter Writers. Here’s What They Learned While Recovering.Build Your Own Disaster-Prep KitHow to Prepare Your Pantry for an Emergency9 Extreme Weather Survivors Share the Tools That Helped Them Get Through Disaster We independently review everything we recommend. When you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. Learn more› Wirecutter Social and Website Instagram: /wirecutter Threads: /@wirecutter Twitter: /wirecutter Facebook: /thewirecutter TikTok: /wirecutter LinkedIn: /nyt-wirecutter Website: https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/ Newsletter: https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/newsletters/ The Wirecutter Show is executive produced by Rosie Guerin and produced by Abigail Keel.Engineering support from Maddy Masiello and Nick Pitman. Episodes are mixed by Catherine Anderson, Efim Shapiro, Rowan Niemisto, Sophia Lanman, and Sonia Herrero. Original music by Dan Powell, Marion Lozano, Elisheba Ittoop, and Diane Wong. Wirecutter’s deputy publisher and general manager is Cliff Levy. Ben Frumin is Wirecutter’s editor-in-chief. Hosted by Rosie Guerin, Caira Blackwell and Christine Cyr Clisset. Find edited transcripts for each episode here: The Wirecutter Show Podcast Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

The celebrated author on the challenges of being kind, the benefits of meditation and the reality check of death. theinterview@nytimes.comyoutube.com/@TheInterviewPodcastnytimes.com/theinterview Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Four White House reporters from The New York Times sat down with President Trump on Wednesday for an extended interview in the Oval Office. David E. Sanger, one of the reporters, walks us through their conversation. Guest: David E. Sanger, a White House and National Security Correspondent for The New York Times Background reading: what we saw when we interviewed the presidentPresident Trump made clear that he would be the arbiter of any limits to his authoritiesPhoto: Doug Mills/The New York Times For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Warning: This episode contains strong language. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday released new guidelines that dramaticaly cut down the number of childhood vaccines recommended by the federal government. Apoorva Mandavilli and Benjamin Mueller, who cover health, explain what is being cut and how it fits into Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s broader agenda. Guest: Apoorva MandavilliBenjamin MuellerBackground reading: scaled back the number of vaccines recommended for childrenHere’s what to knowPhoto: Annie Rice/EPA, via Shutterstock For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

This year, the 2026 midterm elections will decide which party controls Congress, and whether Republicans can hold on to every lever of influence in Washington. Annie Karni and Shane Goldmacher, who cover politics, discuss the opportunities and perils for both parties. Guest: Annie KarniShane GoldmacherBackground reading: are floating unusual midterm conventionssix big political questionspolls for the 2026 electionsPhoto: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

On Monday, President Trump picked Vice President Delcy Rodríguez of Venezuela, now the interim leader, to continue to preside over the country instead of María Corina Machado, the opposition leader. Anatoly Kurmanaev, who reports on Venezuela, explains why Mr. Trump chose a Maduro loyalist to run the country. And Venezuelan citizens reflect on the realities of a post-Maduro era. Guest: Anatoly Kurmanaev, a reporter for The New York Times who covers Venezuela. Background reading: How Mr. Trump fixed on a Maduro loyalistWhy he refused to backPhoto: From left, Gaby Oraa/Reuters; Leonhard Foeger, via Reuters For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.