The Daily

by The New York Times
This is what the news should sound like. The biggest stories of our time, told by the best journalists in the world. Hosted by Michael Barbaro, Rachel Abrams and Natalie Kitroeff. Twenty minutes a day, five days a week, ready by 6 a.m. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher.
Episodes

'The Interview': Kristen Stewart Wants to Show Us a Different Kind of Sex
The actress and director says the world of filmmaking needs a “full system break.”

The Lonely Work of a Free-Speech Defender
Warning: This episode contains strong language and mentions of suicide. Over the past year, the federal government has taken a series of actions widely seen as attacks on the First Amendment. Greg Lukianoff, the head of a legal defense group called the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, speaks to Natalie Kitroeff about what free speech really means and why both the left and the right end up betraying it.

Is There an A.I. Bubble? And What if It Pops?
After years of soaring optimism and colossal investment, Wall Street has begun to seriously question whether the frenzy for A.I. is justified. Cade Metz, who covers technology for The New York Times, explains why Silicon Valley companies believe so fervently in A.I. and why they’re willing to take enormous risks to deliver on its promise.

Congress Orders Trump to Release the Epstein Files
Congressional Republicans on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a bill to release all of the files related to the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — a bill that President Trump spent months trying to kill. The Times correspondents Anni Karni and Carl Hulse explain how a rebellion started by a handful of Republican lawmakers became a partywide mutiny, and Representative Thomas Massie talks about his role in bringing about the vote.

The Future of Energy Has Arrived — Just Not in the U.S.
For the first time in 30 years, the annual U.N. conference on climate change is taking place without top government representation from the United States. China has emerged as the top dog at the summit and is poised to become the world’s supplier of green energy technology. David Gelles and Brad Plumer explain the growing showdown between global superpowers over the future of energy.

Unpacking Trump’s 50-Year Mortgage Proposal
When President Trump proposed the introduction of a 50-year mortgage, he challenged a bedrock of the American housing market and financial system. He also revealed how desperate the administration is to lower prices for consumers. Conor Dougherty, who covers housing and development, explains what’s attractive about the idea and its potential drawbacks — and why housing affordability is such an intractable problem.

Sunday Special: A Sea of Streaming Docs
There was once a time when documentaries could be found only on public television or in art-house cinemas. But today, documentaries are more popular and accessible than ever, with streaming services serving up true crime, celebrity documentaries, music documentaries and so much more. On today’s Sunday Special, Gilbert is joined by The New York Times’s chief television critic, James Poniewozik, and Alissa Wilkinson, a Times film critic, to talk about the documentaries that are worth your viewing time. Discussed on this episode: “The American Revolution,” 2025, directed by Ken Burns “The Alabama Solution,” 2025, directed by Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman “The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst,” 2015, directed by Andrew Jarecki “Making a Murderer,” 2015, directed by Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos “The Yogurt Shop Murders,” 2025, directed by Margaret Brown “The Perfect Neighbor,” 2025, directed by Beet Gandbhir “The Last Dance,” 2020, directed by Jason Hehir “Copa 71,” 2023, directed by Rachel Ramsay and James Erkine “Cheer,” 2020, created by Greg Whiteley “Last Chance U,” 2016, directed by Greg Whiteley, Adam Ridley and Luke Lorentzen “Pee-wee as Himself,” 2025, directed by Matt Wolf “The Remarkable Life of Ibelin,” 2024, directed by Benjamin Ree “Ladies & Gentlemen … 50 Years of SNL Music,” 2025, directed by Questlove “Cameraperson,” 2016, directed by Kirsten Johnson “An American Family,” 1973, created by Craig Gilbert “Look Into My Eyes,” 2024, directed by Lana Wilson “When We Were Kings,” 1996, directed by Leon Gast

'The Interview': Tina Brown on Epstein, the Über-Rich and Her Most Burning Resentments
The longtime editor and chronicler of the elite says she’s liberated and is letting it rip.

‘He Knew’: What Epstein Said About Trump in New Emails
Thousands of pages of newly released emails between Jeffrey Epstein and his associates have put the convicted sex offender’s relationship with President Trump back in the spotlight. David Enrich and Michael Gold, who have been covering the story, explain what the new documents tell us and discuss whether they could prompt the release of the rest of the Epstein files.

How Trump Got Israel and Hamas to a Truce
On Thursday, a potentially historic agreement between Israel and Hamas began to take shape. The deal, which was brokered by President Trump, secures the exchange of all remaining Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners. Leaders on both sides, and Mr. Trump himself, signaled that this was a decisive step toward the end of the two-year war in Gaza. Mark Mazzetti, who covers national security for The New York Times, discusses the deal making that got us to this point and whether it really will bring peace.

A Consequential Supreme Court Term Begins With a Conversion Therapy Case
Warning: this episode contains mentions of suicide. In one of the first cases of the Supreme Court’s new term, the justices considered whether to strike down a ban on conversion therapy, the contentious practice that aims to change a young person’s sexual orientation. Ann E. Marimow, Supreme Court correspondent for The New York Times, talks us through the case.

Marriage and Sex in the Age of Ozempic
In the last few years, GLP-1 weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Zepbound have been radically reshaping the people’s lives, changing appetites and health. But the drugs also have the power to affect other parts of consumers’ lives, including their romantic relationships. Lisa Miller, who writes about health for The New York Times, tells the story of how these drugs upended one couple’s marriage.