Vox Quick Hits

One of the biggest pop stars in the world is rerecording her first six albums at the artistic peak of her career. The Atlantic’s Shirley Li explains Swift’s gambit to reclaim her catalog.

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This is The Best Money I Ever Spent, a series of personal essays about the purchases we make – big and small — that make an impact on our lives.

When Max Ufberg and his girlfriend left New York for Pennsylvania at the beginning of the pandemic, they assumed it would be a quick trip. But as weeks became months, they splurged on a kayak and began to spend their downtime ambling through the very landscapes Max had once been so eager to leave behind. And he started to realize just how wrong he was about this place. 

Read his essay here.

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Writer and Vox contributor Anne Helen Petersen talks with poet and novelist Patricia Lockwood about the experience of being extremely online. They discuss Lockwood's book No One Is Talking About This, writing and religious upbringing, the parts of life perfectly suited to the internet, and the human experiences that glitch the system.

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A group of students in Topeka, Kansas, discovered their high school was named after an exalted cyclops of the Ku Klux Klan. Then they tried to change it.

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One of the most famous moral panics in history, the Satanic Panic, may have been at its peak in the 80s, but did it ever really go away? Vox culture writer Aja Romano walks up through the history of this fear of the occult from the Mason family to Lil Nas X.

Read Aja Romano’s full story at Vox.com

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Matt and Dara are joined by Vox's Dylan Scott to examine the portion of Biden's infrastructure plan designated for the "caretaking economy."

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On Monday night, the Senate parliamentarian gave Democrats an unprecedented blessing. Vox’s Ella Nilsen and Li Zhou explain what they might do with it.

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One way that America can get “back to normal” is through what's called a digital vaccine passport. America is well underway with its covid vaccination rollout and while we still have a long way to go, more and more people are getting vaccinated. But while carrying a digital vaccine record sounds like a useful idea, experts warn of privacy issues and serious ethical concerns. Vox’s Rebecca Heilweil explains.

References:

Read Rebecca’s story here

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President Joe Biden has a decision to make by May 1: whether to pull troops from Afghanistan or have them stay. There is no easy answer; both options could have serious consequences. But a decision has to be made. President Donald Trump made a deal with the Taliban that troops would leave by May 1, but in the end, Biden has to make the call. What would happen if the troops stay, and what would happen if they leave? Vox’s Alex Ward is here to discuss. He’s a White House reporter and a co-host of the Worldly podcast. 

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Alex recently talked to two experts who argued both sides of the decision. You can read those arguments here: staying in Afghanistan or leaving Afghanistan.

Tell Me More is hosted by Emily Stewart. Let us know what you want to learn more about! Send us an email at [email protected]

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Major League Baseball, Delta, and Coke are calling out Georgia for its new voting reforms, but some of these corporations were involved in crafting the legislation. WABE’s Emma Hurt explains.

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