How did an attempt to simplify a tedious student-aid form turn into a full-on debacle that has some high school seniors wondering if they will have to delay starting college? 

Guest: Danielle Douglas-Gabriel, national higher education reporter for the Washington Post.

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Why scam obituaries are edging out earnest ones, with the help of artificial intelligence and an adept Google game.

Guest: Mia Sato, reporter for The Verge.

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Podcast production by Evan Campbell, Patrick Fort, and Anna Phillips.

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The demand for electricity is surging in the U.S. With increasing amounts of power going towards artificial intelligence, manufacturing and electric vehicles, can the grid keep up?

Guest: Evan Halper, business reporter covering the energy transition for the Washington Post

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This week: Americans are less revved up about EVs. Felix Salmon, Emily Peck, and Elizabeth Spiers discuss if Elon Musk’s mischief has played a role in slowing sales. Also: the crisis in the wine industry, and how a combination investigative publication/hedge fund wants to blow the lid off corporations — while shorting their stock. In the Plus segment: the proxy battle for the future of Disney. 

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Podcast production by Jared Downing and Cheyna Roth.

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Donald Trump got a huge financial boost when Truth Social went public last week—or did he?

Guest: Nitish Pahwa, associate writer on business and tech for Slate.

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On today’s Internet Diary, Rachelle is joined by Rebecca Jennings, Vox’s senior correspondent covering social platforms and the creator economy. The two discuss Jennings’ recent pieces on why everyone loves NYT Connections and how self-promotion became the internet’s lingua franca.

This podcast is produced by Se’era Spragley Ricks, Daisy Rosario, Candice Lim and Rachelle Hampton.

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For this edition of Money Talks: Are you feeling trapped in Zoom/Teams/Slack purgatory? Author Cal Newport’s book Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout has a way forward. Host Emily Peck speaks with him about how the digital office became an “invisible factory” and how you can take back control of your working life.

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Podcast production by Jared Downing and Cheyna Roth.

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From science fiction writers to American presidents to Elon Musk, everyone’s eager to send people to Mars. But, even if you could nail the physical aspects, are Earthlings cut out for life on Mars mentally? 

Guest: Nathaniel Rich, contributing writer for New York Times magazine. 

Kate Greene, author and poet

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Rachelle Hampton and Candice Lim ask their most pressing questions about the bipartisan bill that would require TikTok’s parent company to sell the app or face a ban on all devices in the U.S. While the bill is not expected to become law anytime soon, it’s led to children crying on voicemails to their senators and TikTok creators preparing for the loss of their businesses, communities and collective internet histories.

This podcast is produced by Se’era Spragley Ricks, Daisy Rosario, Candice Lim and Rachelle Hampton.

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How supply chains, the pandemic, and a steady stream of Wall Street money led to a crisis at Boeing.

Guest: Jon Ostrower, editor-in-chief of the website the Air Current.

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