The Weeds Vox Media Podcast Network
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Politics is how people achieve power. Policy is what they do with it. Every week on The Weeds, host Jonquilyn Hill and guests break down the policies that shape our lives, from abortion to financial regulations to affirmative action to housing. We dive deep and we get wonky, but we have fun along the way. New episodes drop every Wednesday.
Produced by Vox and the Vox Media Podcast Network.
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Bringing back the SAT
Four years after a pandemic pause, some colleges and universities are again requiring applicants to submit standardized test scores. Inside Higher Ed’s Liam Knox and the University of Delaware’s Dominique Baker explain.
This episode of Today, Explained was produced by Avishay Artsy, edited by Matt Collette, fact-checked by Laura Bullard, engineered by Rob Byers, and guest-hosted by Jonquilyn Hill. It originally ran on March 8th, 2024.
Transcript at vox.com/todayexplained
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The AI election
2024 is a big year for elections, not just in the US but globally: More than 50 countries will be holding elections this year. With rampant disinformation and polarization in politics, fast-moving technologies like AI pose a unique threat to democracy. On a scale from 1–10, how worried should we be about AI and the election? Host Jonquilyn Hill talks to New York Times reporter Tiffany Hsu to find out.
Learn More:
The Black Box: Even AI's creators don't understand it - Unexplainable
Test Yourself: Which Faces Were Made by A.I.? - New York Times
In Big Election Year, A.I.’s Architects Move Against Its Misuse - New York Times
Submit your policy questions!
We want to know what you’re curious about.
Credits:
Jonquilyn Hill, host
Sofi LaLonde, producer
Cristian Ayala, engineer
A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts
Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts
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The case for banning...millionaires?
Political philosopher Ingrid Robeyns believes that there should be a maximum amount of money and resources that one person can have. She tells Sean how much is too much and why limiting personal wealth benefits everyone, including the super rich. This episode of The Grey Area originally aired in January 2024.
Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling), host, The Gray Area
Guest: Ingrid Robeyns. Her book is Limitarianism: The Case Against Extreme Wealth.
Enjoyed this episode? Rate The Gray Area ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.
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Support The Gray Area by making a financial contribution to Vox! bit.ly/givepodcasts
This episode was made by:
Producer: Jon Ehrens
Engineer: Cristian Ayala
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How racism ages Black people
There are a host of health disparities across the racial divide. Black people are more likely to develop chronic diseases like diabetes and heart disease. Black people are also more likely to be diagnosed with fibroids or die from pregnancy complications. One of the factors in these disparities could be a phenomenon known as weathering — the stress of racism literally aging Black people’s bodies at a faster rate. Host Jonquilyn Hill discusses this with Dr. Uché Blackstock, the founder and CEO of Advancing Health Equity and the author of Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine.
Read More:
Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine by Uché Blackstock
Weathering: The Extraordinary Stress of Ordinary Life in an Unjust Society by Arline T. Geronimus
Health in Her HUE
Irth App
Advancing Health Equity
Submit your policy questions!
We want to know what you’re curious about.
Credits:
Jonquilyn Hill, host
Sofi LaLonde, producer
Cristian Ayala, engineer
A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts
Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts
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Skipping the broom
Romantic relationships are in a weird place right now. Statistically things are shifting, but the numbers are particularly stark for Black Americans. In the last 50 years, the percentage of Black women who have yet to walk down the aisle has more than doubled; now 48 percent haven’t jumped the broom. Professor and author Dianne M. Stewart argues that there are policies in place keeping Black women from partnering, resulting in what she calls forbidden Black love. Could policy shifts have a major impact on the marriage rate? And why does marriage even matter in the first place?
Read More:
Black Women, Black Love: America's War on African American Marriage
Submit your policy questions!
We want to know what you’re curious about.
Credits:
Jonquilyn Hill, host
Sofi LaLonde, producer
Cristian Ayala, engineer
A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts
Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts
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Eviction: the scarlet E
According to the Eviction Lab, about 7.6 million Americans every year face the threat of eviction, and a disproportionate number of those threatened are Black women. This week, host Jonquilyn Hill sits down with New America senior writer and editor Julia Craven to discuss why this disparity exists and what policies could help end evictions for everybody. It’s the first of a special series this month entitled “Black women and ...” that examines the ways policy particularly impacts Black women.
Read More:
Eviction Is One Of The Biggest Health Risks Facing Black Children
Eviction Tracking System | Eviction Lab
Evictions: a hidden scourge for black women - Washington Post
TANF Policies Reflect Racist Legacy of Cash Assistance
Evictions and Infant and Child Health Outcomes - PMC
Submit your policy questions!
We want to know what you’re curious about.
Credits:
Jonquilyn Hill, host
Sofi LaLonde, producer
Cristian Ayala, engineer
A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts
Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Customer Reviews
Perfect podcast, except...
I love this podcast, I listen to it every week. The one thing I would change is the verbal skills of the hosts. They are all smart people, saying smart things. If they could just cut the filler words (‘like’) a bit, it would make it INFINITELY more pleasant to listen to. There are parts of the podcast where *literally* 1 in 6 words is ‘like’. Not figuratively, literally. That’s it, other than that I’m a big fan
Thoughtfully detailed
Really good show which explains complex ideas with clarity.
Good content, dreadful voices
Obviously well informed and insightful but, as many reviewers have noted, it’s constantly undercut by that awful American voice. I’m not sure which one he is, but he sounds like a 16-year old Californian girl discovering her surprise birthday party.