120 episodes

Every Monday on The Assignment, host Audie Cornish explores the animating forces of American politics. It’s not about the horserace, it’s about the larger cultural ideas driving the American electorate. Audie draws on the deep well of CNN reporters, editors, and contributors to examine topics like the nuances of building electoral coalitions, and the role the media plays in modern elections. 
Every Thursday, Audie pulls listeners out of their digital echo chambers to hear from the people whose lives intersect with the news cycle, as well as deep conversations with people driving the headlines. From astrology’s modern renaissance to the free speech wars on campus, no topic is off the table.

The Assignment with Audie Cornish CNN

    • News

Every Monday on The Assignment, host Audie Cornish explores the animating forces of American politics. It’s not about the horserace, it’s about the larger cultural ideas driving the American electorate. Audie draws on the deep well of CNN reporters, editors, and contributors to examine topics like the nuances of building electoral coalitions, and the role the media plays in modern elections. 
Every Thursday, Audie pulls listeners out of their digital echo chambers to hear from the people whose lives intersect with the news cycle, as well as deep conversations with people driving the headlines. From astrology’s modern renaissance to the free speech wars on campus, no topic is off the table.

    Documenting the Golden Age of Hip-Hop

    Documenting the Golden Age of Hip-Hop

    Filmmaker and journalist dream hampton’s new documentary, “It Was All a Dream,” chronicles the “the golden age of Hip-Hop" in the early 1990’s. She talks with Audie about the film, which is made up of footage she shot in the 90’s that’s been in storage for 30 years: hanging out with Biggie Smalls in the studio, Lil’ Kim in the neighborhood, and interviews with a before-he-was famous Snoop Dog. Through her writing at publications like The Source, Vibe, Essence, and The Village Voice, dream became a critical activist voice — committed to the music and to the artists that she was constantly demanding more of. 
    Learn more about “It Was All a Dream” and watch the trailer. 
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    • 34 min
    Steve Bannon is Heading to Prison

    Steve Bannon is Heading to Prison

    Steve Bannon, the standard-bearer of “MAGA media,” is set to report to federal prison on July 1st for refusing to comply with January 6 Committee subpoenas. He’s the latest in a growing list of Trump allies to face legal prosecution in defense of the former president. Bannon used the moment to paint himself as a martyr, a strategy which CNN Political Reporter Sara Murray says is in line with Donald Trump’s own plans to foment a wave of grievance through his sentencing in the Manhattan “hush money” trial. 
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    • 28 min
    Preparing for a Water Crisis

    Preparing for a Water Crisis

    Each of the last 12 months has become the hottest ever on record and the UN Secretary General has warned that countries must act on the climate crisis within the next year and a half. This week Audie talks to Bill Weir, CNN’s Chief Climate Correspondent, about how the climate crisis will affect water supply, and why we should all be thinking about what the future of sustainable water usage looks like. Then, Audie chats with two water experts: Fabiola Sosa Rodriguez, Head of Economic Growth and Environment at the Metropolitan Autonomous University in Mexico City, where they could run out of water this month. And Christine Colvin, Water Policy Lead at the World Wildlife Fund, she was in Cape Town during a water crisis that almost turned off the taps.  
    For more on Mexico City’s water crisis check out this story by Laura Paddison: https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/25/climate/mexico-city-water-crisis-climate-intl   
    Bill Weir’s book, “Life as We Know It (Can Be): Stories of People, Climate, and Hope in a Changing World” is available now.  
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    • 31 min
    What Polls Do (And Don’t) Tell Us

    What Polls Do (And Don’t) Tell Us

    How will the trial of Donald Trump affect voters? There’s been a lot of partisan messaging from all sides about the numbers and what – if any effect – that’s going to have in November. How do we make sense of all of this? CNN polling and analytics editor Ariel Edwards-Levy joins Audie to discuss the power – and limitations – of surveys and polls. 
    Read Ariel’s latest: What the polls can’t tell us about the Trump verdict’s effect on the election 
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    • 27 min
    The Economy’s Bad Vibes

    The Economy’s Bad Vibes

    We’re seeing conflicting messages about the state of the economy, especially from political leaders. And we’re getting truly mixed message about what – if anything – can be done, at least in the short term. A listener from L.A. understands this first-hand, and calls in with an assignment. Audie brings in Dr. Gary Hoover, Executive Director of The Murphy Institute and Professor of Economics at Tulane University, to talk about the economy’s bad vibes, and what hope – if any – lies ahead. Audie also dives into the mailbag and gets an unusual email from a special listener. 
    Call or text us at (202) 854-8802 
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    • 22 min
    Where Trump’s Trials Go Now

    Where Trump’s Trials Go Now

    With Donald Trump’s “hush money” trial heading into final arguments, it’s the perfect time to have Katelyn Polantz, CNN’s Senior Reporter for Crime and Justice, give a full review of the many trials of the former president.
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    • 31 min

Top Podcasts In News

The Beat with Ari Melber
Ari Melber, MSNBC
Westminster Insider
POLITICO
Morning Joe
Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, MSNBC
The Rest Is Politics
Goalhanger Podcasts
The Daily
The New York Times
Global News Podcast
BBC World Service

You Might Also Like

Fresh Air
NPR
The Axe Files with David Axelrod
The Institute of Politics & CNN
The Daily
The New York Times
Chasing Life
CNN
The New Yorker Radio Hour
WNYC Studios and The New Yorker
Post Reports
The Washington Post