Here & Now Anytime

President Trump was scheduled to go to China for a summit in Beijing at the end of the month, but he has postponed the trip to focus on the Middle East. Professor David Lampton explains China’s interests in the conflict and the significance of a U.S.-China meeting.

Then, Joe Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, resigned on Tuesday in protest of the war in Iran, saying the country posed “no imminent threat to the U.S.” Retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey explains the significance of the departure.

And, the Wall Street Journal reports Amazon plans to cut back on how many packages it sends through the U.S. Postal Service. Roben Farzad of the Full Disclosure podcast explains what this could mean for the Postal Service’s already fragile financial situation.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Israel says it killed two of Iran’s highest-ranking leaders in an airstrike on Monday night. And President Trump is bashing allies for declining to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has effectively closed. Jon Finer, former principal deputy national security advisor to former President Joe Biden, joins us to discuss what this means for potential diplomacy in this war. 

Then, artificial intelligence is playing an important role in the war in Iran. We look at how it's being used and how it is changing warfare with Paul Scharre of the Center for a New American Security. 

And, the internet is full of memes around the ongoing war, many made and posted by the White House account on X. Nottingham Trent University's Tine Munk weighs in on the objective of these memes.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

As the war in Iran enters its third week, the Straight of Hormuz remains effectively closed, with Iran blocking oil tankers from moving through. This has caused oil and gas prices to skyrocket. Now, President Trump is demanding U.S. allies help reopen it. Journalist Negar Mortazavi details the latest in the war.

Then, new artificial intelligence-powered headsets will give Burger King workers a "friendliness score" based on their customer interactions. Law professor Ifeoma Ajunwa unpacks the ethical questions surrounding this type of workplace surveillance.

And, the Irish music scene in Japan is growing, and O'Jizo is one of the bands driving it. WBUR's Amelia Mason reports on the band’s contemporary grooves and inventive arrangements.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

"Sinners”, the horror film that blends blues music, history and vampires, is up for a record-breaking 16 Academy Awards. One of those nominations is for the new Best Casting category. Casting director Francine Maisler joins us.

Then, the Norwegian film “Sentimental Value” is up for nine Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. Co-writer and director Joachim Trier joins us to discuss the film.

And, “Hamnet,” based on Maggie O’Farrell’s acclaimed novel of the same name, is nominated for eight awards. Director Chloe Zhao, who co-wrote the screenplay with O’Farrell, and Jessie Buckley, who stars as William Shakespeare’s wife Agnes, join us.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Radin Yad was born in Iran and now lives in Europe. He shares what he's hearing from his family in Tehran and how he views the U.S. and Israeli war against his country. 

Then, we hear about how swing voters in Michigan are viewing the war in Iran from Rich Thau, who runs the firm Engagious, which hosts focus groups for the Swing Voter Project. 

And, singer-songwriter David Archuleta joins us to discuss his new memoir, “Devout: Losing My Faith to Find Myself.” Archuleta first rose to fame as a teenager when he came in second place on the seventh season of "American Idol." In his new memoir, he writes about coming to terms with his sexuality and leaving the Mormon church.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

President Trump said he is still considering sending U.S. troops into Iran to secure its hidden stockpile of highly enriched uranium, the key building block of a nuclear weapon. Weapons expert David Albright explains what that would take.

Then, the United Nations said that Israeli strikes have displaced nearly 700,000 people have been displaced from their homes in Lebanon. Professor Fawaz Gerges details how violence is harming the region.

And, CBC Sports digital host and Paralympian Allison Lang breaks down the winners and medal count on day five of the 2026 Milan Cortina Paralympics.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

As the war with Iran continues, we look at the potential risks of an attack by Iran on U.S. soil. Phil Mudd, former deputy director of the CIA’s Counterterrorist Center and the FBI's National Security Branch, joins us. 

Then, Republican foreign policy and politics expert Colin Dueck talks about why many of President Trump's Make America Great Again supporters back the war in Iran. 

And, this weekend, two desalination plants came under attack in Iran and Bahrain. Georgetown University professor Marcus King explains why this technology is so vital for the arid Middle East and the precedent these attacks set in future conflicts.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Mojtaba Khamenei, the 56-year-old son of former leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was named as Iran's next supreme leader. Retired Army Gen. David Petraeus offers his thoughts on the latest news out of Iran.

Then, Negar Mortazavi, senior fellow at the Center for International Policy, unpacks how the Iranian public is responding to the new leader and why his selection is a signal that Iran's leadership is digging in against the Trump administration's campaign against it.

And, defense spending expert Mark Cancian estimates the war is costing the U.S. nearly $1 billion each day. He talks about how expensive it could get.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Even when it's freezing and covered in snow, Minnesota's Sax Zim Bog attracts birders from around the world. They flock there hoping to spot owls, hawks and rare songbirds that spend most of their time in northern Canada. Many of those birds are feeling the pressure of the warming climate, however, so local scientists and wildlife enthusiasts are working to conserve their habitat, which also happens to be a peatland adept at storing carbon. Here & Now's Chris Bentley reports. Then, volunteer naturalist Rich Hoeg recently installed listening devices across northern Minnesota to record elusive species of birds. Some of his recordings are informing scientific studies of owls, and surprising even lifelong birders.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

The United States does not have a rich diamond mining history. But an exhibit at the Smithsonian proves that some of the world’s most dazzling gems are homegrown. We speak with Gabriela Farfan, curator of gems and minerals at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, about two of their best American gems on display. And, voting by mail became a major political flashpoint during the COVID-19 pandemic, but controversies over voting remotely aren't new. During the Civil War, tens of thousands of soldiers used a simple envelope to cast their ballot from the battlefield. Dan Piazza from the Smithsonian National Postal Museum tells the story of one of those envelopes.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy