Writer Ross Barkan says young men's voices have vanished from literary fiction. Economist Joel Waldfogel offers a reality check from the world of publishing.
This episode was produced by Miles Bryan, edited by Amina Al-Sadi, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Andrea Kristinsdottir and Patrick Boyd, and hosted by Noel King.
Listen to Today, Explained ad-free by becoming a Vox Member: vox.com/members. Transcript at vox.com/today-explained-podcast.
A reader by the book wall at the 2025 Turin Book Fair. Photo by Stefano Guidi/Getty Images.
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27:27
Should women be in combat?
Combat roles have been open to women for a decade, but President Donald Trump's Pentagon still questions whether women can be lethal. Army veteran Emelie Vanasse says the debate over women's battlefield fitness is long settled.
This episode was produced by Victoria Chamberlin with help from Denise Guerra, edited by Miranda Kennedy, fact checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Andrea Kristinsdottir and Patrick Boyd and hosted by Noel King.
Listen to Today, Explained ad-free by becoming a Vox Member: vox.com/members. Transcript at vox.com/today-explained-podcast.
Army veteran Emilie Vanass outside Army Ranger School at Camp Rogers in Fort Benning, GA. Image courtesy Emilie Vanass.
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27:58
Donald Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill”
“You are tearing me apart, Congress.”
This episode was produced by Devan Schwartz with help from Hady Mawajdeh, edited by Amina Al-Sadi, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Andrea Kristinsdottir and Patrick Boyd, and hosted by Seam Rameswaram.
Listen to Today, Explained ad-free by becoming a Vox Member: vox.com/members. Transcript at vox.com/today-explained-podcast.
President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson ahead of a House Republican meeting at the U.S. Capitol. Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images.
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24:55
White genocide Grok
When the Twitter/X chatbot, Grok, started glitching with responses about white genocide to unrelated questions, it pulled back the curtain on the people behind the AI machine.
This episode was made in partnership with Vox’s Future Perfect team. It was produced by Miles Bryan and Denise Guerra, edited by Miranda Kennedy, fact checked by Laura Bullard, and engineered by Andrea Kristinsdottir and Patrick Boyd. Disclosures: Vox Media has a partnership with OpenAI. Future Perfect is funded in part by the BEMC Foundation, whose major funder was also an early investor in Anthropic.
Listen to Today, Explained ad-free by becoming a Vox Member: vox.com/members. Transcript at vox.com/today-explained-podcast.
Photo by VINCENT FEURAY/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images.
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27:42
My colleague, the scammer
North Korea has been sending young, tech-savvy operatives to pose as ordinary American job seekers. Tech reporter Bobbie Johnson investigates the scam.
This episode was produced by Gabrielle Berbey, edited by Amina Al-Sadi, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Patrick Boyd, and hosted by Noel King.
Further reading: North Korea stole your job by Bobbie Johnson. Listen to Today, Explained ad-free by becoming a Vox Member: vox.com/members. Transcript at vox.com/today-explained-podcast.
Photo of North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un by Contributor/Getty Images.
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Today, Explained is Vox's daily news explainer podcast. Hosts Sean Rameswaram and Noel King will guide you through the most important stories of the day.
Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
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