The Daily

What exactly happened near an air base in Britain used by the United States?

Eric Schmitt, a national security correspondent for The New York Times, discusses what he’s learned about the mysterious events around the base, including the abrupt withdrawal of U.S. Air Force bombers.

Guest: Eric Schmitt, a national security correspondent for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• A mysterious call near a military base used by the United States set in motion a huge counterterrorism response and days of uncertainty in Britain.
• The United States withdrew 12 bombers from the base after information emerged about a potential Iranian drone attack, U.S. and British officials said.

Photo: Getty Images

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Over the past few weeks, millions of people have rushed to download a new type of artificial intelligence app — agents. They are useful, kind of cute and need your most sensitive personal information to work.

Eli Tan, a reporter who covers technology for The New York Times, opened up his life to Muse, Meta’s A.I. agent. He explained what happened next.

Guest: Eli Tan, a reporter covering the technology industry for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• Muse, Meta’s new A.I. agent, can send your emails and book your travel.
• Eli Tan said he “was blown away” by Muse after using it to perform dozens of day-to-day tasks.

Photo: Gabriela Bhaskar/The New York Times

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

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A new set of polls from The New York Times finds that Democratic candidates are doing remarkably well in the Republican-leaning states that they need to win to gain control of the U.S. Senate in next month’s midterm elections.

They are doing less well in the blue states that, in theory, should be easier to win.

Nate Cohn, the chief political analyst for The Times, offers his idea of what is behind the numbers.

Guest: Nate Cohn, The New York Times’s chief political analyst.

Background reading: 

• Polls suggested that Hispanic voters, whose support helped propel President Trump to the White House in 2024, would largely support the Democratic Party this time.
• Senator Susan Collins of Maine led polls for the first time since Graham Platner dropped out of the race in July.

Photo: Ash Adams for The New York Times

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

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If you dine out regularly, you might have noticed some changes in restaurants over the past few years. Perhaps you’ve found yourself ordering at a counter, scanning a QR code to see the menu, or eating … a lot more soft serve.

These changes aren’t just trends. Brett Anderson, a New York Times food reporter, says they are restaurant owners’ desperate attempts to stay afloat in an industry in crisis. According to a report from the National Restaurant Association, 42 percent of restaurant owners said they weren’t profitable in 2025. Many of them were at serious risk of closing.

In this episode of “The Sunday Daily,” Brett talks with our host Michael Barbaro about the economic realities that are forcing businesses to rethink the entire concept of a restaurant, including a radical experiment at one Minneapolis diner that stopped charging for food entirely.

On Today’s Episode:

• Brett Anderson, a reporter for the Food section of The New York Times.

Background Reading:

• This Restaurant Stopped Charging for Food. And Profits Are Up.

• The Restaurant List 2026

  Photo credit: Caroline Yang for The New York Times. 

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

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The comedian and filmmaker on what real friendship looks like, what keeps him up at night and his new movie, "Misty Green."

• Thoughts? Email us at [email protected]
• Watch our show on YouTube: youtube.com/@TheInterviewPodcast
• For transcripts and more, visit: nytimes.com/theinterview

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

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An alleged campus sexual assault at Cornell University has gripped the country and ignited a national debate over consent.

Debra Kamin, an investigative reporter for The New York Times, explains what we know about what happened.

Guest: Debra Kamin, an investigative reporter for the The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• Documents reviewed by The Times reveal how a Cornell student went from shame to action.
• A Cornell police report omitted the student’s claim that she was raped.

Photo: Heather Ainsworth for The New York Times

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

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In the five years since student athletes have been allowed to earn money, college sports have become a chaotic and murky marketplace where players can move from team to team chasing a payday.

Stewart Mandel of The Athletic explains why, this week, Washington decided to step in.

Guest: Stewart Mandel, the editor in chief of college football for The Athletic and a host of its college football podcast “The Audible.”

Background reading: 

• The Protect College Sports Act wants to fix college sports. Here’s what it actually targets.
• Does your college football roster cost $8 million or $50 million? Read The Athletic’s report on 68 teams.
• Here’s how the football programs blow past limits on what they can pay players.

Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

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A little over a decade ago, after hackers broke into the U.S. government and stole the personnel records of millions of federal workers, officials vowed that it would never happen again. Something similar recently did — to the F.B.I.

Dustin Volz, who covers cybersecurity for The New York Times, tells the story of the attack, the group behind it and what could happen to the stolen data.

Guest: Dustin Volz, a cybersecurity and intelligence reporter for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• The hackers said they had stolen thousands of sensitive F.B.I. personnel records.
• The embarrassing breach at the F.B.I. has fueled fears of harm to its employees.

Photo: Julia Demaree Nikhinson/Associated Press

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

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Prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket have gained huge popularity over the past year. These marketplaces allow you to wager on just about anything — whether it’s who will win a football game or the weather in New York City.

David Yaffe-Bellany, a technology reporter for The New York Times, discusses the legal challenge these platforms now face and how it could determine their future.

Guest: David Yaffe-Bellany, a technology reporter for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• A clash between prediction markets and states has set off a furious political battle.
• Donald Trump Jr.’s firm led a $1 billion funding round for Polymarket.

Photo: Eric Helgas for The New York Times

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

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In its efforts to deport as many undocumented immigrants as possible, the Trump administration has increasingly relied on a highly controversial strategy: deporting people to countries they have no connection to.

Last week, a federal court ruled the practice to be illegal because it violated people’s right to due process. The administration challenged that ruling, and now it is in front of the Supreme Court.

Nicholas Casey tells the story of Roberto Mosquera, who moved to the United States from Cuba as a child. He has been held in the small country of Eswatini since July 2025.

Guest: Nicholas Casey, a staff writer at The New York Times Magazine who writes about geopolitics.

Background reading: 

• He was deported to a country he’d never heard of. He may never go free.
• How do you interview a deportee being held inside a maximum-security prison?

Photo: Moises Saman/Magnum, for The New York Times

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

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