Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues, Ukrainian military officials have set up a hotline for Russian soldiers to call in and surrender. Is it working to end the war?.

Today, we talk to the people behind it. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times global affairs correspondent Laura King

More reading:

Lots of Russian soldiers want to surrender. Ukraine makes it easier with a high-tech hotline

A soldier’s tale: Russian serviceman’s scathing memoir depicts a senseless war

Read the L.A. Times’ full Ukraine coverage

This year’s historic storms have hit communities of color like Pajaro, Calif., especially hard. It’s a recurring problem that could’ve been avoided entirely.

Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times investigative reporter Susanne Rust

More reading:

Residents left in flooded California farm town feel ‘abandoned’ as levees fail

Spring storm sets sights on Southern California with strong wind, heavy rain

How a long history of racism and neglect set the stage for Pajaro flooding

Ariadna López was found murdered on the side of a road in Mexico, one of thousands of women murdered every year in the country. But her death outraged the country like never before.

Today, the problem of femicide in Mexico — and whether Lopez’s death will help change that. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times Mexico City bureau chief Patrick J. McDonnell

More reading:

A single mother in Mexico was blamed for her own death. Now a well-connected playboy has been charged

Femicides in Mexico: Little progress on longstanding issue

In Mexico, a grisly killing inflames debate about femicide

When inflation is high, the Federal Reserve has historically raised interest rates. But the recent failures of banks like Silicon Valley Bank have sparked worries about the stability of our banking system. Now the feds must weigh whether the banking system could withstand the turmoil that raising interest rates could bring. To get inside the mind of Fed chair Jerome Powell, we look to a previous era of high inflation, the late 1970s and early ‘80s, and the decisions of then Fed chairs Arthur Burns and Paul Volcker.

Today, we talk about what's next. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times economics reporter Don Lee

More reading:

Did deregulation lead to Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse?

Federal Reserve officials sound warnings about higher rates

U.S. inflation eases but stays high, putting Fed in tough spot

U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez is known for overturning gun bans. Derided and hailed in equal measures, he’s now presiding over a case with far-reaching consequences.

Today, we talk about his history and impact. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times enterprise reporter Laura J. Nelson

More reading:

The judge upending California’s gun laws: ‘Blessed’ jurist or ‘stone-cold ideologue’?

Thanks to the Supreme Court, California gun cases hinge more on history than modern threats

War on California gun laws revs up after Supreme Court’s ‘right to carry’ decision

Academy Award winner Michelle Yeoh has been a worldwide movie star for decades, known for action-packed roles in films such as “Supercop” and “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” and as a Bond girl in “Tomorrow Never Dies.” But it’s her leading role in “Everything Everywhere All at Once” that Yeoh says finally let her show what she’s capable of.

In this episode of “The Envelope,” Yeoh discusses her first impressions of “Everything Everywhere’s” genre-bending script and bold gags. She reflects on her dangerous early-career stunts and how she was treated when she arrived in Hollywood (she makes a gloriously unimpressed sound while recalling that people were “quite stunned” when they realized she could speak English). Yeoh also goes deep on tokenism, aging, and why she had been praying every night to win an Oscar.  To read a full transcript of this interview, please visit the episode page at latimes.com.

Hosts: Gustavo Arellano and Mark Olsen
Guest: Michelle Yeoh

The recent release of toxic chemicals in East Palestine, Ohio, after a train derailment was a reminder of how devastating such environmental events are for poor communities. Can we prevent the next one?

Today, our Masters of Disasters reconvene to talk toxic contamination and cleanup — and why toxic spills will probably never go away. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times environmental reporter Tony Briscoe, L.A. Times energy reporter Sammy Roth, and L.A. Times reporter Erin B. Logan

More reading:

Essential Politics: Shock waves from East Palestine train derailment reaching beyond Ohio

Do you live near the old Exide lead-acid battery smelter? Check your property’s cleanup status

Boiling Point: Fossil fuel ads galore

Last year, the California State Legislature approved a bill that aimed to improve wages and conditions for fast-food workers, but the fast-food industry raised millions to oppose it. As petitioners collect signatures, voters allege that they were lied to by petitioners.

Today, we get into the food fight — and California’s murky world of signature-gathering. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times reporter Suhauna Hussein

More reading:

‘I feel duped’: Inside the fast-food industry’s push to dismantle a new California labor law

UC Riverside should investigate ‘phony’ economics research center, faculty say

Column: The fast-food industry gears up to kill another pro-worker state law

The Oscars ceremony is a night to celebrate the best the industry has to offer — but the nominated films are rarely box office hits, and viewership of the awards broadcast has declined. Will we see a rebound?

Today, we talk about the future of the Academy Awards, and who might win Sunday. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times film and television reporter Glenn Whipp

More reading:

Oscar voting has begun. Do we have a winner?

Three Oscar voters share their super-secret ballots

‘Everything Everywhere’ won the guild trifecta. Now it’s the Oscars frontrunner

Californians have long moved to Nevada in search of new business and personal opportunities. But a massive business park near Reno is drawing in businesses like never before. Some long-timers aren’t happy.

Today, we visit the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center to learn more. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times national enterprise reporter Noah Bierman

More reading:

Californians are pouring into Nevada. Not everyone is happy about it

‘Don’t move to Texas’: Billboard warns L.A., San Francisco residents about moving to Lone Star State

Nashville’s Southern hospitality — and affordability — beckon Californians