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Apple News In Conversation

Apple News

Apple News In Conversation with Shumita Basu brings you interviews with some of the world’s best journalists and experts about the stories that impact our lives. Join us every week as we go behind the headlines.

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Episodes to Learn English 242

The signs that you’re ready to retire

Jan 7, 2023 30 min

When longtime LA Times columnist Steve Lopez reached his mid-60s, he started to think about retiring. But he wasn’t sure how to go about it — or if he should do it all. He gave himself one year to decide and spoke with many different people — Norman Lear and Mel Brooks, among others — about their thoughts on retirement. He wrote a book about his journey, called <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/independence-day/id1599215168" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Independence Day: What I Learned About Retirement From Some Who’ve Done It and Some Who Never Will</a>. He spoke with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu about how to emotionally and mentally prepare for retirement.
Rebroadcast: The health and wellness myths almost everyone falls for

Dec 31, 2022 29 min

This is an interview from our archives. It was part of a series called Think Again — a guide to reimagining work, home, relationships, and more. In this episode, <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw?subscribe=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu talks with Aubrey Gordon and Michael Hobbes, hosts of the <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/maintenance-phase/id1535408667" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Maintenance Phase</a> podcast, about how to outsmart the wellness industry, spot junk health science, and find information that will actually help you live healthier. Below are excerpts from the interview.
Rebroadcast: She teaches Yale’s famous class about the science of happiness. Here’s what she’s learned.

Dec 24, 2022 29 min

This is an episode from our archives. At Yale University, psychology professor Laurie Santos saw firsthand how so many college students were anxious or depressed. So she decided to teach a class on the science of happiness — and how to apply it in real life. It became the school’s most popular course ever. <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu spoke with Santos about her podcast, <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-happiness-lab-with-dr-laurie-santos/id1474245040" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Happiness Lab</a>, and the evidence-based strategies that can help us improve our lives and outlook. Below are excerpts from the interview.
Microplastics are everywhere. Here’s what that means for your health.

Dec 17, 2022 22 min

Microplastics cover every inch of our world, from the rain forest to Mount Everest — they’re even in our lungs. Much remains unknown about their impact on our health, but so far the research paints a bleak picture. In his new book, <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/a-poison-like-no-other/id6444221373" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">A Poison Like No Other</a>, science journalist Matt Simon breaks down some big and small changes we can all make to mitigate our exposure to microplastics and reduce their spread. Below are excerpts from his interview with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu.
Nobel Peace Prize–winning journalist Maria Ressa on how to stand up to a dictator

Dec 10, 2022 28 min

Nobel Peace Prize–winning journalist Maria Ressa has a warning for the world. In her new book, <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/how-to-stand-up-to-a-dictator/id1607828539" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">How to Stand Up to a Dictator</a>, Ressa lays out how social media has been weaponized to support the rise of authoritarianism in the Philippines — and why the rest of the world needs to pay attention. She spoke with <a href="http://www.apple.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu about the urgent actions needed to safeguard democracy today.
A growing scientific field saves lives. It’s also rife with controversy.

Dec 3, 2022 20 min

Cellular biology has already transformed medicine. It’s the science behind treatments like blood transfusions, in vitro fertilization (IVF), and chemotherapy. But as the field continues to develop, it keeps pushing up against one question: What’s a disease — and what’s a desire? In his new book, <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-song-of-the-cell/id1609265177" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> The Song of the Cell: An Exploration of Medicine and the New Human</a>, Pulitzer Prize–winning author and cancer researcher Siddhartha Mukherjee takes a deep dive into the perils and potential of advancing cellular science. Below are excerpts from his interview with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu.
Traveling for the holidays? Here’s what to know before your next flight

Nov 22, 2022 27 min

This is an episode from our archives. Scott McCartney has been covering the airline industry for more than two decades. He spoke with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu about why air travel is such a mess — and what can we do about it.
Introducing ‘After the Whistle,’ a podcast all about the World Cup

Nov 19, 2022 29 min

We’ve got something special for you this weekend. Apple News is launching a new World Cup podcast — hosted by Brendan Hunt (who plays Coach Beard on ‘Ted Lasso’) and Rebecca Lowe (who covers the English Premier League for NBC Sports). We’re bringing you the podcast’s first episode. In this inaugural episode, Brendan Hunt and Rebecca Lowe gear up for the World Cup. Hear them battle out their national allegiances to the U.S. and England, reflect on the human-rights abuses taking place in Qatar, and share the story of how ‘Ted Lasso’ brought them together eight years ago.  ‘After the Whistle with Brendan Hunt and Rebecca Lowe’ is an Apple News Original podcast produced by Meadowlark Media. For around-the-clock World Cup news, plus live scores and standings, follow along on the Apple News app in My Sports, where available. <a href="https://apple.co/afterthewhistle">https://apple.co/afterthewhistle</a>
What the lottery reveals about the American dream

Nov 12, 2022 27 min

This week, the Powerball topped $2 billion, making it the biggest jackpot ever. Historian Jonathan D. Cohen is the author of the book <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/for-a-dollar-and-a-dream/id6443192743">For a Dollar and a Dream: State Lotteries in Modern America</a>. He spoke with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu about our enduring obsession with the lottery — and the industry’s most troubling problems.
Which party will control Congress? Three experts weigh in.

Nov 5, 2022 30 min

This episode is part of a special series from <a href="https://apple.news/TteGvEYvpSiyvqUON1PSdHg?subscribe=1">Apple News Today</a> exploring the lead-up to the 2022 midterm elections. Which party will control Congress? What are the most crucial races to watch? What do voters say they want? Apple News editor Gideon Resnick put these questions and more to a panel of election watchers: Amy Walter, the editor-in-chief of the Cook Political Report, Errin Haines, the editor-at-large for the 19th, and Mike Madrid, a GOP consultant and co-host of the Latino Vote podcast.
Something is deeply broken in American news. Can it be fixed?

Oct 29, 2022 27 min

A recent study by the Reuters Institute found that only 29% of Americans say they trust the news most of the time. Where has the press gone wrong — and how can it change to better serve the public? Longtime media critic Margaret Sullivan explores these questions in her new book, <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/audiobook/newsroom-confidential/id1608915488" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Newsroom Confidential: Lessons (and Worries) From an Ink-Stained Life</a>. Below are excerpts from her interview with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu.
What happened to Mahsa Amini: Inside Iran’s extraordinary uprising

Oct 22, 2022 33 min

In September, 22-year-old Mahsa Amini was visiting Tehran when she was arrested by the country’s morality police for improperly wearing her hijab. She died while in custody. Since then, anti-government demonstrators — many of them women — have taken to the streets in cities across the country and around the world to demand more freedom and civil liberties in Iran. Pardis Mahdavi is a scholar of feminist movements in the country. In her interview with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu, she provides context for these demonstrations and the possible changes they could bring. Below are excerpts from the episode.
What will happen if Trump returns to the White House? This book offers clues.

Oct 15, 2022 33 min

Many books have been written about Donald Trump’s presidency. But one stands out from the rest. It’s called <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-divider/id1601350040">The Divider: Trump in the White House, 2017–2021</a>, and it’s by New York Times journalist Peter Baker and New Yorker writer Susan Glasser. The husband-and-wife coauthors exhaustively cataloged Trump’s four years in office and interviewed more than 300 people, including Trump, for the book. They spoke with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu about their reporting.
Does the TSA actually keep anyone safe?

Oct 8, 2022 28 min

After 9/11, the U.S. spent billions of dollars establishing the Transportation Security Administration. After more than 20 years of pat-downs, barefoot X-rays, and so-called random screenings, evidence shows that the TSA has played almost no role in foiling terrorist plots. Journalist Darryl Campbell recently wrote for <a href="https://apple.news/Ay41pxH6-TDyDfwJPG3_Xzw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Verge</a> about the agency’s history. He spoke with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu about the state of airport security today and what a better system could look like.
Inside Nina Totenberg’s Supreme Court career — and powerful friendship with RBG

Oct 1, 2022 29 min

During her long career covering the Supreme Court, journalist Nina Totenberg cultivated friendships with many justices, including Ruth Bader Ginsberg and Antonin Scalia. Totenberg spoke with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw'">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu about how she maintained journalistic integrity while cultivating those relationships, what she thinks about the court today, and her new book, <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/dinners-with-ruth/id1609976626">Dinners With Ruth: A Memoir on the Power of Friendships</a>.
How the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders transformed sports

Sep 24, 2022 32 min

The Dallas Cowboys may be “America’s Team,” but the hundreds of women behind the Cowboys Cheerleaders deserve a lot of credit for its success. Journalist Sarah Hepola tells their story in an article for Texas Monthly, <a href="https://apple.news/Acp1O0Z1FQ-ilYuX4TLXlaw">“Sex, Scandal, and Sisterhood: Fifty Years of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders,”</a> and in the podcast <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/americas-girls/id1597678826">America’s Girls</a>. Hepola spoke with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw?subscribe=1">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu about how the squad’s choreography, costumes, and controversial codes of conduct have changed with American society.
How America bungled COVID school closures — and failed to put children first

Sep 17, 2022 24 min

Schools across the U.S. closed their doors for 58 weeks during the pandemic. Journalist Anya Kamenetz writes about the ripple effects of school closures in her new book, <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-stolen-year/id1598860475" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Stolen Year: How COVID Changed Children’s Lives, and Where We Go Now</a>. Kamenetz spoke with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu about the consequences of our failure to prioritize kids.
Think Again: How to master the art of doing nothing

Sep 10, 2022 19 min

This interview is part of a new series from <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw?subscribe=1">Apple News In Conversation</a> called Think Again — a guide to reimagining work, home, relationships, and more.  In this episode, In Conversation host Shumita Basu talks with Jenny Odell, an artist and the author of the book <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/how-to-do-nothing/id1412494317">How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy</a>. Odell provides strategies for training our attention away from devices and toward the world.
Think Again: Why Americans are so burned out — and how to fix your work-life balance

Sep 3, 2022 25 min

This is an episode from our archives. It’s re-airing as part of our new series, Think Again, a guide to reimagining work, home, relationships, and more. How’s your relationship to your job? For a lot of people, work-life balance has felt far from perfect for a while. <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu speaks with Anne Helen Petersen about her book <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/out-of-office/id1542798259" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Out of Office: The Big Problem and Bigger Promise of Working From Home</a>, coauthored with Charlie Warzel. It’s all about how we can adjust the role our jobs play in our lives and focus more time and energy on the things we care about the most. Below are excerpts from the interview.
Think Again: The health and wellness myths almost everyone falls for

Aug 27, 2022 29 min

This interview is part of a new series from <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw?subscribe=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple News In Conversation</a> called Think Again — a guide to reimagining work, home, relationships, and more. In this episode, In Conversation host Shumita Basu talks with Aubrey Gordon and Michael Hobbes, hosts of the <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/maintenance-phase/id1535408667" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Maintenance Phase</a> podcast, about how to outsmart the wellness industry, spot junk health science, and find information that will actually help you live healthier. Below are excerpts from the interview.
Think Again: Why relationships fall apart over dirty dishes — and how to avoid the trap

Aug 20, 2022 35 min

This interview is part of a new series from <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw?subscribe=1">Apple News In Conversation</a> called Think Again — a guide to reimagining work, home, relationships, and more.  In this episode, In Conversation host Shumita Basu talks with Kate Mangino, a gender expert and the author of the book <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/equal-partners/id1584661471">Equal Partners: Improving Gender Equality at Home</a>. Mangino points to research that shows women still take on the majority of household responsibilities in different-sex relationships — and she argues there’s a better way for partners to balance the mental and physical labor of running a home. Mangino offers strategies to bring more equity and fairness into our partnerships. Below are excerpts from the interview.
Think Again: Malcolm Gladwell’s tips for changing a stubborn mind

Aug 13, 2022 26 min

Think Again is a new series from <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw?subscribe=1">Apple News In Conversation</a>. It’s a guide to reimagining work, home, relationships, and more. In the first episode, In Conversation host Shumita Basu talks with Malcolm Gladwell about how to be more open-minded and rethink old ideas.
What it took to bring down R. Kelly

Aug 6, 2022 20 min

For decades, R. Kelly’s career flourished despite disturbing rumors of sexual assault. Now the singer is finally being held accountable. He was sentenced in June to 30 years in prison for sex trafficking and racketeering, and a second federal trial starts August 15. <a href="https://apple.news/AZ6oAY0TcTdmHhmO48cUCVQ" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu spoke with journalist Jim DeRogatis, who broke the allegations against R. Kelly in 2000.
Inside the dark corners of the internet that breed mass shooters

Jul 30, 2022 25 min

There’s a common thread between the suspects behind the killing of 23 people at a Walmart in El Paso in 2019, the mass shooting in Buffalo in May, and the attack on a crowd in Highland Park on Independence Day: They were all radicalized online and left behind a trail of digital activity. NBC News reporter Ben Collins spoke with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu about how online spaces are leading to extremism and producing a generation of mass shooters. Below are excerpts from the interview.
Why air travel is such a mess — and what to know before your next flight

Jul 23, 2022 26 min

This was supposed to be the summer of revenge travel. Instead, air travelers have faced long lines, lost bags, and canceled flights. Scott McCartney has been covering the airline industry for more than two decades. He spoke with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu about how things got so bad — and what can we do about it. Below are excerpts from the interview.
Her son was briefly out of sight during a picnic. She was arrested for child abuse

Jul 16, 2022 22 min

Every year, hundreds of thousands of children in the U.S. are removed from their homes and placed in foster care by child-protective services. But is this the best way to protect our kids? <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu spoke with Dorothy Roberts, author of the book ‘<a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/torn-apart/id1579280807">Torn Apart</a>,’ who argues that America’s child-welfare system does more harm than good — and needs to be abolished.
Why the news is so broken, according to one of the first journalists to cover Trump’s campaign

Jul 9, 2022 27 min

Katy Tur’s parents were trailblazers in the journalism world. In the ’80s and ’90s, they revolutionized the breaking-news model, literally flying over the competition in their own chopper to capture Los Angeles’s biggest stories — from Madonna and Sean Penn’s wedding to the 1992 L.A. riots. Katy Tur grew up to be a journalist herself — she’s now an anchor on MSNBC — and she writes about her life in her new memoir, <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/rough-draft/id1551656569">Rough Draft</a>. In an interview with <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw">Apple New In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu, Tur discusses her unusual childhood and the direct line from the model of journalism her parents created to the rise of Donald Trump.
Rebroadcast: Nikole Hannah-Jones on the 1619 Project and how the legacy of slavery shapes America

Jul 2, 2022 25 min

This is an episode from our archives. Nikole Hannah-Jones is a Pulitzer Prize–winning reporter for the New York Times Magazine and the creator of the 1619 Project. The initiative reframes America’s past around an important date that isn’t mentioned in many history books: 1619, the beginning of slavery in the U.S. Hannah-Jones has expanded on the idea and turned it into a book called <a href="https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-1619-project/id1556566008">The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story</a>. Below are excerpts from <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu’s interview with Hannah-Jones about the project.
She had an illegal abortion in 1970 — and was charged with manslaughter

Jun 25, 2022 24 min

In 1971, Shirley Wheeler became the first woman to be criminally charged for having an abortion. She was convicted of manslaughter and faced up to 20 years in prison. In the latest season of the podcast <a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/slow-burn/id1315040130?i=1000564733822" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/slow-burn/id1315040130?i=1000564733822" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">Slow Burn</a>, host Susan Matthews explores what happened to Wheeler in the years leading up to the Roe v. Wade decision. <a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/apple-news-in-conversation/id1577591053" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/apple-news-in-conversation/id1577591053" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu spoke with Matthews about Wheeler’s story — and why Wheeler’s case is a warning of what’s to come after the recent overturning of Roe.
There’s a science to happiness. This Ivy League professor has cracked the code.

Jun 18, 2022 28 min

At Yale University, psychology professor Laurie Santos saw firsthand how so many college students were anxious or depressed. So she decided to teach a class on the science of happiness — and how to apply it in real life. It became the school’s most popular course ever. <a href="https://apple.news/T9rjlxm95TtTn3RWUl4SFiw">Apple News In Conversation</a> host Shumita Basu spoke with Santos about her podcast, <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-happiness-lab-with-dr-laurie-santos/id1474245040">The Happiness Lab</a>, and the evidence-based strategies that can help us improve our lives and outlook.