Radio and PodcastRadio and PodcastLive Radio & Podcasts
Seven-Minute Explainers cover
News & Politics

Seven-Minute Explainers

The Week

Your audio guide to everything you need to know about compelling and complex topics, from a variety of The Week's smart and witty writers, editors, and thinkers. Concise and entertaining, Se...

Episodes

20 of 80 episodes

Ep. 79: Almost every language has a word for 'Christmas.' Few reference Christ.

How’s that for a war on Christmas? For more, visit TheWeek.com/Podcasts

00:05:44Dec 21, 2017

Ep. 78: Why so strangely Yoda speaks?

Hear something odd in his syntax, you do. For more, go the TheWeek.com/podcasts

00:04:40Dec 14, 2017

Ep. 77: A brief timeline of tax reform

How previous reforms led to the system we have today. For more, visit TheWeek.com/Podcasts

00:07:13Dec 7, 2017

Ep. 76: Did God have a wife?

The history and mystery of Asherah. For more, visit TheWeek.com/Podcasts.

00:05:33Nov 30, 2017

Ep. 75: 6 unique Thanksgiving celebrations from around the world

The Macy's Day Parade, football, and Black Friday deals may be uniquely American, but giving thanks for a good harvest is a tradition that c...

00:06:55Nov 23, 2017

Ep. 74: The secret history of cowboy socialism

The American West may fly the flag of individualism, but it was built on a bedrock of Big Government. For more, visit TheWeek.com/Podcasts

00:07:18Nov 16, 2017

Ep. 73: Why Puerto Rico never had a path to statehood

Even as other territories became states, the U.S. kept Puerto Rico's legal status vague. For more, visit TheWeek.com/Podcasts

00:09:21Nov 9, 2017

Ep. 72: The strange, circuitous history of Daylight Saving Time

How war, the golf industry, and Big Candy got (most of) us an extra hour of sleep this weekend. For more, visit TheWeek.com/Podcasts

00:07:06Nov 2, 2017

Ep. 71: Why cheap horror flicks are Hollywood gold

From Night of the Living Dead to Paranormal Activity , low-budget horror movies continue to def Hollywood's box-office expectations. For a s...

00:07:23Oct 26, 2017

Ep. 70: The lessons of the Russian revolution, 100 years later

Is Marxism just a turn-crank formula for purges and dictatorship or was something else to blame? For more, visit TheWeek.com/Podcasts

00:07:12Oct 19, 2017

Ep. 69: The self-aware legacy of 'Friends'

How the end of Matt LeBlanc's Episodes closes the door on the Friends era of gossip, fame, and meta-spinoffs. For more, visit TheWeek.com/Po...

00:07:08Oct 12, 2017

Ep. 68: Why Ronald Reagan enthusiastically signed America's first real gun control law

A lifelong member of the NRA, Reagan might be the most consequential president for gun control legislation in the past century

00:06:38Oct 5, 2017

Ep. 67: Why severe flooding is becoming increasingly common — and more destructive

Storms like Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria, are only going to keep coming. Which parts of the U.S. are most vulnerable? What is the gove...

00:07:05Sep 28, 2017

Ep. 66: The burglars who broke into the FBI and brought down J. Edgar Hoover

In 1971, a group of activists stole thousands of incriminating documents that proved the bureau was spying on Americans. The burglars got aw...

00:31:45Sep 21, 2017

Ep. 65: Why do we have a debt ceiling anyway?

How a legislative fluke turned into a political weapon. Learn more at TheWeek.com/podcasts

00:06:17Sep 14, 2017

Ep. 64: Congressional censure, explained

When elected officials break the rules, this congressional tool puts them in check

00:07:06Sep 7, 2017

Ep.63: How to put your savings on autopilot

Saving is a habit, and like all habits, the best way to make it stick is to do it over, and over, and over again, until it becomes second na...

00:06:53Aug 31, 2017

Ep. 62: Multivitamins are useless. Here's why.

Those daily pills aren't doing you any favors. In fact, they might be doing you some harm. Find more at TheWeek.com/Podcasts

00:06:45Aug 24, 2017

Ep. 61: America's eclipse craze, explained

On Aug. 21, the moon's shadow will roll across the U.S. and, for the first time in decades, tens of millions of Americans will witness a tot...

00:07:00Aug 17, 2017

Ep. 60: The new monopolies

Amazon, Google, and Facebook have enjoyed unstoppable growth, with no end in sight. Such enormous success may be a sign that we're in the se...

00:06:33Aug 10, 2017