Explain It to Me
Episodes
Is your brain lying to you?
21 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Our brain constructs the world we hear, see, and feel — but tinnitus shows how that superpower can backfire. This episode is made in collaboration ...
Let AI replace you
14 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If AI handles all our busy work and optimizes our resources, it may also give us the one thing there never seems to be enough of: time. This episode ...
The rise of the introverts
07 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Turns out those personality tests you’re taking online are all wrong. This episode was produced by Danielle Hewitt, edited by Jenny Lawton, fact-ch...
Talk turkey to me
23 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
How this big, lean bird became the staple of the most American of meals. This episode was produced by Ariana Aspuru, edited by Jenny Lawton, fact-che...
The case for renting forever
16 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Housing prices aren't coming down, and that's challenging us to redefine the American dream. Maybe renting isn't so bad? This story was supported by ...
Why your health insurance is so expensive
09 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It’s open enrollment season, and new health insurance premiums are causing sticker shock around the country. So how do you pick a health care plan t...
That text is a scam
02 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
You know those annoying scam texts offering an easy, remote job? We find out how they work, why they're so ubiquitous and the dark world behind them. ...
Paging Dr. ChatBot
26 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Patients and doctors both are turning to AI for help with diagnosing ailments and managing chronic issues. Should we trust it? This episode was produ...
Why (some) food tastes better abroad
19 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We tell the stories of three ingredients that can shine outside the US: beef, bread, and tomatoes. This episode was produced by Denise Guerra and Pet...
Should we give toddlers phones?
12 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What we know about early childhood and screens, including a surprising argument for introducing tech at a tender age. This episode was produced by Mi...
Is empathy toxic?
05 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Society teaches us empathy is a good thing. But some are now saying the opposite, and science is complicating our assumptions too. This episode was p...
Who is the modern American dad?
28 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Young men are more interested in becoming parents than young women are, and there's a growing number of single dads by choice. A look at modern father...
A nation of jerks
21 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Americans seem to be getting ruder. Are our attempts at making ourselves better actually making us worse? This episode was produced by Avishay Artsy,...
Why horror kills at the box office
14 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Hollywood has always made money from vampires and brain-eating zombies. But this year's a record-breaker thanks to sequels, hilariously unlikely creat...
The United States is Southern now
07 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
From #rushtok to country music, American culture is getting more and more southern. This episode was produced by Denise Guerra, edited by Miranda Ken...
The golden age of exercise
24 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Americans are flocking to gyms and fitness classes. It wasn't always that way. This episode was produced by Hady Mawajdeh, edited by Miranda Kennedy ...
Hacking our health
17 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We track our steps and our sleep, guzzle supplements and protein shakes, and even inject hormones – all in the name of wellness. This episode was p...
What wellness costs us
10 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Americans are investing billions in their health and wellness. What good do all these green powders and costly club memberships actually do? This epi...
America’s high-speed rail fail
03 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The US is well behind much of the world in building passenger rail, especially high-speed trains. But we do have one major advantage. This episode wa...
Is tipping fair?
27 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
From raising the tipped minimum wage to "no tax on tips," we look at the challenges of remaking tipped work. This episode was produced by Peter Balon...
The summer I turned into a bookworm
20 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Summer. Time for pools, BBQs, and the beach read. But why do we read "summer books"? This episode was produced by Avishay Artsy, edited by Amina Al-S...
Chat BFF
13 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
More and more of us are interacting with chatbots. Can we have real relationships with AI, and can AI teach humans to be better people? This episode ...
Our complicated relationship with the flag
06 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar openly celebrate the American flag. But a lot of Black Americans feel differently. What does that tell us about identity t...
Can we ever know our dogs?
29 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
So many of us believe we understand what our pets are feeling. Are we fooling ourselves? This episode was produced by Miles Bryan, edited by Miranda ...
Sleepaway camp's nostalgia economy
22 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Unpacking the American rite of passage that so many children love — but that isn't right for everyone. This episode was produced by Devan Schwartz,...
Let's fight over bike lanes
15 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A caller asks why it's so hard to make biking safe in LA. We bike around different US cities to get the answer. This episode was produced by Miles Br...
The recession indicator game
08 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Press-on nails, new music from Katy Perry, and an uptick in Klarna purchases: signs of an economic downturn or no? This episode was produced by Had...
How Gen Z found religion
01 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
For the first time in decades, American Christianity is not in decline. What are young people looking for–and finding–at church? Further reading:...
Why are my allergies getting worse?
18 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It feels like sneezing season lasts longer and takes more victims every year. An allergist and a public health specialist explain how to fight back. ...
The drama and trauma of 23andMe
11 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
With the at-home DNA testing company 23andMe filing for bankruptcy, what happens to all the data millions of Americans handed over? And how should you...
Why is personal style so hard?
04 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Fashion has made a big swing from a strict set of rules to the idea that we should all just wear what we want. But personal style is still dictated by...
Retire? In this economy?!
27 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
With 401(k)s taking a hit and the fate of Social Security uncertain, we get some advice for how to talk to the elders in your life about work and reti...
Is climate progress doomed?
20 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Many worry that the clean energy transition will be derailed by the Trump administration. But there's reason to believe otherwise. Listen to Explain ...
What if college isn't for everyone?
13 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
For decades, high schools and parents have prioritized college for all graduating seniors. Now, more students are asking if there's another way. This...
Is a house still a good investment?
06 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Given the economy and interest rates, homebuying doesn't seem like it’s necessarily the way to go anymore. So consider this not your parents’ real...
Explain It to Me can be ad-free!
02 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Vox Members now get all our podcasts, ad-free. If you become a member, you will also get unlimited reading on our website, member-exclusive newslet...
Blinded by the headlights
30 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Drivers and passengers are right: Car headlights are brighter now. And the solutions aren't simple. If you have a question for us, please give a call...
Gen Sex
23 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Gen X women are freeing themselves from the hangups of the '90s, and having the best sex of their lives. Media portrayals of middle-aged women are sta...
Did diversity ever work...at work?
16 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
There's a backlash against corporate DEI efforts, and it’s not just from the right. It's everywhere. What does that mean for employees? This episod...
Why does dating suck for guys?
09 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The rules of romance have changed, and many young men feel they can't keep up. We get some tips from a Texas men's relationship coach. This episode wa...
Ok for real, what is a REAL ID?
02 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Listener Tessa was at the airport and noticed that the REAL ID deadline had been extended — yet again — to May 2025. Why does it keep happening? W...
We’ve got some news for you!
26 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Starting this week, Explain It to Me is moving to Sundays. Check out our next episode here on March 2. You can also find us in the Today, Explained fe...
Why can't I sleep?
19 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We spend about a third of our lives either sleeping or trying to fall asleep. Why are we so bad at it? We ask behavioral sleep specialist Jade Wu. T...
Should I freeze my eggs?
12 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Listener Elisa has heard egg freezing touted as “an easy, perfect solution” for women who want to have it all, but she’s skeptical. Writer MeiMe...
We have some questions for you
05 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What’s going on with all those layoffs in the gaming industry? What does being “middle class” actually mean? What’s up with this weird thing t...
Is flying ethical?
29 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Should I give up flying for the environment’s sake? Is it ethical to stay on Twitter and Facebook if I don’t like the owners’ politics? If a DNA...
Why can I make a citizen's arrest?
22 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After seeing someone make an illegal left turn, Mike joked to his daughter that they should do a citizen’s arrest. She had no idea what he was talki...
Should I buy antibacterial soap?
08 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When it gets cold outside, we get colds inside. We also get the flu. And RSV. And — lately — norovirus. We all know that washing our hands helps d...
Is cuffing season real?
18 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It’s the most wonderful time of the year: Cuffing season. Or is it? That’s the question Antares asked this week. She told her lovelorn friend he’...
Bite-sized questions
11 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Are hush puppies racist? Why do we celebrate weddings with a multi-tiered, super fancy, sometimes not particularly tasty, very expensive cake? Can a d...
Why is it so hard to make new friends?
04 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Adulthood comes with a lot of perks: You can set your own bedtime or eat candy for breakfast. But there is at least one thing that’s easier to do as...
Could ranked choice voting fix our elections?
20 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Earlier this month, millions of voters got to pick a president: Kamala Harris or Donald Trump. But what if we had a totally different kind of election...
Why can’t I tell my left from my right?
13 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Listener Piper called us up with this question, “Why do some people have a harder time than others distinguishing their left and right?” When our ...
What just happened, and what comes next
08 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Wow, what a week. The country has a new president-elect, and our listeners have a ton of questions about what comes next. Why did Latino voters swing ...
It’s election week. Ask us anything.
04 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The US elections are officially upon us. And we have the Vox newsroom standing by to answer your questions and reflect on your experiences. All you ha...
Why can I buy Halloween candy that would be banned in other countries?
30 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Listener Sommer calls in to ask why she can buy foods in her grocery store that other countries have banned. Trying to figure out what all the chemica...
Why do I keep getting these weird fundraising texts?
23 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
“We are hitting the PANIC button.” Does that wording sound familiar? You’ve probably seen it on your phone. This week on Explain It to Me, we be...
Will the world end before I can retire?
16 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From the moment Carolina graduated from college and started her first real job, the financial advice came pouring in. It felt like everyone she knew w...
My parents divorced. Will I?
10 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Listener Siobhan is very much in love. So in love that she and her boyfriend will probably walk down the aisle soon. But she’s also seen the marriag...
Is it okay to go to the zoo?
02 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Listener David runs 5K fundraisers for his local zoo. And he wants to know: Is he doing the right thing? Are zoos a bastion for conservation, educatin...
Why do I say “like” so much?
25 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Much to the chagrin of English teachers everywhere, people use the word “like”…a lot. Listener Allison calls the hotline to ask why we talk the ...
Is my dentist scamming me?
18 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Matt wants to know how to tell if he’s being scammed by his dentist. To find the answer, we open up the surprising history of dentistry, ask why it ...
Introducing Explain It to Me
08 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Life is complicated, and here at Vox, we love to explain it. Enter Explain It to Me: your go-to hotline for all the questions you can’t quite answer...
Our next chapter
30 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We have some exciting news to share: There are some big changes coming to this feed, and we need your help with them! The Weeds as you know it is e...
How we Got Milk
29 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If you went to public school in America, you most likely got a serving of milk with your lunch. The National School Lunch Program has been in operatio...
Those pesky delivery fees
22 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Pretty much everyone is unhappy with food delivery these days. Prices are rising for customers; workers are barely making minimum wage; and restaurant...
Panic! At The Drugstore
15 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Do you think crime is on the rise? You aren’t the only one. According to Gallup, over 75 percent of Americans think crime is up from last year. The ...
A new era of cannabis research
08 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Last week, the US Drug Enforcement Administration announced a move to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule III drug, after the Biden administration requ...
Are baby bonds a good investment?
01 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Something is happening in Connecticut. Back in 2021, the state legislature passed a measure that would create something called baby bonds: trust accou...
Alexa, is Amazon a monopoly?
24 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If you’ve never used Amazon, you almost definitely know someone who has. Amazon is pretty much everywhere. In the three decades since its founding, ...
Is homelessness a crime?
17 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
America is in the midst of a homelessness crisis. With little affordable housing and limited space at shelters, many people are instead sleeping outsi...
Abortion and the erosion of privacy
10 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Since the Dobbs decision almost two years ago, reproductive rights have been at the center of our national consciousness. Two of the latest headlines ...
What is “fetal personhood”?
03 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Earlier this year, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled frozen embryos have the same rights as children. The decision sent shockwaves throughout Alabama an...
A safety net’s poverty trap
27 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What if you weren’t allowed to have more than $2,000 at any given time? Could you make it work? For people who receive Supplemental Security Income,...
Let’s fix child care together
20 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
America is in the midst of a child care crisis. The cost of child care has skyrocketed to the point where, in some states, caring for kids in pre-k is...
Bringing back the SAT
13 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Four years after a pandemic pause, some colleges and universities are again requiring applicants to submit standardized test scores. Inside Higher Ed’...
The AI election
06 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
2024 is a big year for elections, not just in the US but globally: More than 50 countries will be holding elections this year. With rampant disinforma...
The case for banning...millionaires?
28 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Political philosopher Ingrid Robeyns believes that there should be a maximum amount of money and resources that one person can have. She tells Sean ho...
How racism ages Black people
21 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
There are a host of health disparities across the racial divide. Black people are more likely to develop chronic diseases like diabetes and heart dise...
Skipping the broom
14 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Romantic relationships are in a weird place right now. Statistically things are shifting, but the numbers are particularly stark for Black Americans. ...
Eviction: the scarlet E
07 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
According to the Eviction Lab, about 7.6 million Americans every year face the threat of eviction, and a disproportionate number of those threatened a...
Let’s fix retirement together
31 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It’s an election year, and there are so many different policy discussions we could be having: affordable child care, housing, health care, you name ...
How to be a (realistic) climate optimist
24 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Earth was its hottest in recorded history in 2023. Our winters are shorter, our summers hotter, and our natural disasters more extreme. It’s dar...
How celebrity fandom explains Trump
17 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
To no one’s surprise, former president Donald Trump handily won the Republican Iowa caucuses this week. Despite his recent bout of legal trouble, he...
Why we can’t stop talking about Harvard
10 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Harvard and elite institutions like it have been in the news a lot lately. Following the outbreak of war in Gaza, three university presidents — Liz...
Are unions making a comeback?
20 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
2023 was a big year for unions. WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes brought Hollywood to a standstill, and the UAW made historic gains for nearly 150,000 of its...
Why are so many kids missing school?
13 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Nearly four years after the start of the coronavirus pandemic, and years after school reopenings, schools still face a major challenge: Students aren’...
Can Black churches lead the way on teen mental health?
06 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
It’s hard to get Americans to agree on any topic these days, but a majority of them do agree on one thing: The country is in a mental health crisis....
The Devil wears fast fashion
29 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Most of us love a bargain, but when it comes to our wardrobe, there’s a high cost for those cheap clothes. Fast fashion has taken the world by storm...
Barack Obama on AI, free speech, and the future of the internet
22 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode of Decoder with Nilay Patel originally ran in early November. Patel and former President Barack Obama discuss AI and the future of the in...
Why everything is (still) so expensive
15 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If you are frustrated with how expensive everything feels right now, you’re not alone. Inflation has fallen from last year’s high, but prices have...
BDS and the history of the boycott
08 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
If you turn on the news, or scroll through your social media feed of choice, there’s a good chance you’ll see the latest on the Israel-Hamas war —...
Will school choice change the future of education?
01 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The school choice movement is having a moment again. Charter schools and voucher programs have been around for decades, but the Covid-19 pandemic has ...
The sandwich generation: Caring for kids and seniors
25 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The struggles of caretaking are nothing new, but there’s a trend emerging as baby boomers get older: More and more younger adults are becoming part ...
Why your health insurance is tied to work
18 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Open enrollment is around the corner, which means soon it will be time to pick your health insurance again. And you may ask yourself: Why do we do it ...
Conservative socialism?
11 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What will American politics look like after Trump? Sean Illing is joined by Sohrab Ahmari to discuss his new book, Tyranny, Inc. Ahmari is one of the ...
How (not) to budget
04 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Congress narrowly avoided a government shutdown when it passed a bill funding the government for the next 45 days. And while keeping the government op...
NYC’s not-so-sudden migrant surge
27 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Earlier this month, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the current migrant crisis would “destroy the city.” Since April 2022, more than 115,000 m...
What’s up, doc(ket)?
20 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Summer is over, school is back, and the Supreme Court is getting ready for a new term. The term starts in early October, and the docket is stacked. Ho...
Who protects workers from extreme heat?
13 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
No matter where you live in the US, this summer was hot. Extremely hot. Temperatures soared all over the country, breaking records almost daily. Even ...