Consider This from NPR

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The hosts of NPR's All Things Considered help you make sense of a major news story and what it means for you, in 15 minutes. New episodes six days a week, Sunday through Friday.

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March 23 · 6 min
The Trump gold coin is not normal
The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts has voted to approve the design for a new commemorative gold coin. On one side, an eagle in flight – on the other, a portrait of President Trump, staring directly at the viewer. Federal law prohibits living people from being featured on U.S. coins – though the Trump administration believes the Treasury Department has authority here. Moreover, it breaks a norm that dates to the beginning of the country. Caroline Turco, a curator at the Money Museum of the American Numismatic Association, explains. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Karen Zamora and Connor Donevan, with audio engineering by Ted Mebane. It was edited by Patrick Jarenwattananon. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 22 · 9 min
Why Israeli assassinations aren't working the way they hope
The Israeli government has said it has the ability to find and assassinate top leaders in the Iranian government. But that strategy may end up hurting any effort to actually end the war, says Yossi Melman, co-author of the book “Spies Against Armageddon.” For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Henry Larson and Daniel Ofman. It was edited by Tinbete Ermyas and Sarah Robbins. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 21 · 8 min
Some countries have bet big on EVs
Emily Kwong talks with Camila Domonoske, who covers cars and energy for NPR, about how countries and companies that have bet big on electric vehicles are facing new, quickly moving variables in the market and the world. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Linah Mohammad and Gabriel Sanchez. It was edited by Sarah Robbins. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 20 · 11 min
'It was my cross to bear.' Reconciling with Cesar Chavez's abuse
Dolores Huerta built a lasting movement with Cesar Chavez. And after waiting decades, she has decided to share the story of how Chavez abused her. Dolores Huerta told the New York Times that she felt pressured to have sex with Cesar Chavez, while on a work trip in 1960. Six years later — after they had founded the union for farmworkers– she says Chavez raped her. Shortly after the Times story came out, Huerta spoke to Latino USA host Maria Hinojosa. Hinojosa shared what she learned with NPR's Ailsa Chang. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Alejandra Marquez Janse, with audio engineering by Ted Mebane. It was edited by Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 19 · 9 min
Why ending the war in Iran is getting harder
Three weeks into the US and Israel's war with Iran, the tensions continue to escalate. On Thursday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed that the Pentagon would seek additional funding for the war -- to the tune of $200 billion. Despite mixed messaging on the aims of the war, President Trump says he will decide when the conflict is over. But not everyone thinks it will be that easy. Thomas Wright served as senior director for strategic planning at the National Security Council under President Biden. In a recent article in The Atlantic, he argues that any off-ramp in Iran is disappearing, and increases the risk that the US will be involved in a prolonged conflict. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Connor Donevan with audio engineering by Ted Mebane and Tiffany Vera Castro. It was edited by Tinbete Ermyas. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 18 · 10 min
ICE wants more detention centers. These towns don't
In red states and blue states, in suburbs and cities and in rural communities, officials from the Department of Homeland Security are scouting out real estate. Immigration and Customs Enforcement wants to significantly expand its detention capacity, to help support President Trump’s mass deportation agenda. NPR’s Jasmine Garsd and Kate Dario of New Hampshire Public Radio have been talking with people in communities slated to host mass detention facilities. They’ve found fierce, bipartisan opposition to the plans. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Connor Donevan, with audio engineering by Ted Mebane. It was edited by Eric Westervelt and Sarah Handel. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 17 · 9 min
Anti-Muslim rhetoric rises as Zohran Mamdani embraces his Muslim faith
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has brought his Muslim faith to the center of his political life, but his effort has faced a backlash. During this Ramadan he’s hosted half a dozen public prayers and celebrations, the latest Monday night when he broke fast with incarcerated men at Rikers Island. NPR’s Brian Mann reports on how Mamdani’s efforts to celebrate his Muslim faith and the backlash that has accompanied those efforts. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Jason Fuller, Sarah Ventre and Karen Zamora, with audio engineering by Ted Mebane. It was edited by Jason DeRose, Andrea de Leon, Daniel Burke and Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 16 · 7 min
The U.S. went to war without its allies. Now it wants their help
President Trump launched the war against Iran without building a coalition of U.S. allies. Only now is the president trying to enlist allies to help end Iran’s effective shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz. And many of the countries he’s asked – are rejecting Trump’s request. Can the U.S. get its allies to help after going to war with Iran, and if they do, can the Strait of Hormuz really be secured? For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Jeffrey Pierre and Karen Zamora, with audio engineering by Ted Mebane. It was edited by Andrew Sussman, Rebekah Metzler and Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 15 · 12 min
For Iranian-Americans, the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran evokes complex emotions
For many Iranians living in the U.S., the war against Iran was initially greeted with hope. Hope that the current regime might fall. But as the war stretches on, the uncertainty around it has also given way to another feeling: fear. In a recent essay for the Wall Street Journal, Iranian-American writer Nick Mafi wrote about the myriad of emotions that he and millions of others in the Iranian diaspora are feeling as the war continues. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Daniel Ofman and Michael Levitt. It was edited by William Troop and Christopher Intagliata. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 13 · 9 min
Is the war with Iran making the homefront less safe?
Experts say foreign conflict and online radicalization are accelerating threats of terrorism. Can anything slow it down? Even before the war in Iran, the terrorism threat in the U.S. has been evolving. So how do the attacks of the past week fit into that picture? Host Scott Detrow speaks with Domestic Extremism Correspondent Odette Yousef, who is tracking all of this closely. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Connor Donevan and Marc Rivers, with audio engineering by Ted Mebane. It was edited by Andrew Sussman, Courtney Dorning and John Ketchum. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 12 · 7 min
Should the U.S. be in business of assassinating foreign leaders?
In the opening strike of their war on Iran, the US and Israel killed the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. It is an exceedingly rare instance of democracies killing a foreign head of state. It’s not the first time the United States has been involved in the killing of a foreign leader, but it’s something U.S. leaders and the American public have long wrestled with. NPR’s Ryan Lucas reports. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Mallory Yu and Erika Ryan, with audio engineering by Jay Czys. It was edited by John Ketchum and Anna Yukhanov. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 11 · 7 min
The Trump administration wants to increase apprenticeships
The Trump administration wants to increase domestic manufacturing. And in addition to tariffs, tax cuts and deregulation, it wants to increase the supply of skilled labor through apprenticeships – to train up workers on the job. The goal is to reach one million active apprentices. Are the programs in place now doing enough to make that happen? NPR’s Andrea Hsu reports. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Connor Donevan and Mia Venkat. It was edited by Patrick Jarenwattananon and Emily Kopp. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 10 · 11 min
Four years in, war in Ukraine grinds on. Is that what Russians want?
Russian planners and Western intelligence predicted the invasion of Ukraine would be quick and decisive. Of course, Kyiv did not fall quickly - and still hasn’t. In the four years since Russia first invaded, the Kremlin’s so-called “special military operation” has evolved into the deadliest conflict on the European continent since World War II. According to Western governments and think tanks, more than 1.5 million people are dead. And throughout the war, one of the biggest questions has been, is this what Russian people want? For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Christine Arrasmith, Mia Venkat and Connor Donevan, with audio engineering by Stacey Abbott. It was edited by Nick Spicer and Sarah Handel. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 9 · 8 min
What's the war in Iran costing American consumers?
Americans are paying more for gas than they were a week ago. On Sunday, the price of oil hit $118 a barrel. It's since come down from those highs, but remains up sharply from the pre-war price of $70. The price is being pushed up by disruption to oil supply out of the Persian Gulf – The Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, typically handles around 20 million barrels of oil a day – close to a fifth of global oil consumption. But the war has brought tanker traffic in the Strait to basically a standstill. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Mia Venkat. It was edited by Courtney Dorning, Kara Platoni and Luis Clemens. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 8 · 9 min
New front in Lebanon as Iran war reshapes Middle East
The repercussions of the U.S. and Israel's war with Iran continue to be felt across the Middle East. However, Lebanon has become the most active second front in the continued conflict between the US, Israel and Iran. Israel began its military assault on Lebanon after the Iran-backed militia Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel as a show of solidarity with Iran. The U.S. and Israel's war in Iran is not just a regional crisis. It’s reshaping political dynamics across the Middle East, with global repercussions. Kim Ghattas, journalist and author of Black Wave: Saudi Arabia, Iran, and the Forty-Year Rivalry That Unraveled Culture, Religion, and Collective Memory in the Middle East, offers her view from inside Lebanon, and the changing dynamics across the region. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. Reporting from NPR’s Hadeel Al-Shalchi contributed to this story. This episode was produced by Daniel Ofman. It was edited by Michael Levitt, Sarah Robbins and Hannah Bloch. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 8 · 10 min
Epstein used an art camp to prey on girls. An NPR team learned how it worked.
Reporters here at NPR noticed the name of a highly respected youth camp popping up repeatedly in the Epstein Files - Interlochen Center for the Arts. When intern Ava Berger and other reporters started combing through the documents, they learned how Jeffrey Epstein used his wealth to gain access to the campus and prey on girls. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Gabriel Sanchez. It was edited by Tinbete Ermyas and Adam Raney. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 6 · 12 min
How is the Iran war reshaping the world and politics here at home?
For the last week, Israeli and US bombs have devastated Iran. And the conflict has widened to include multiple countries in the Gulf. How is the conflict reshaping the world order and impacting Trump’s popularity here in the United States? For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Connor Donevan, Elena Burnett, Alejandra Marquez Janse and Erika Ryan. It was edited by Barrie Hardymon, Tara Neill, Dana Farrington, Jeanette Woods and Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 5 · 8 min
What it’s like to get caught in ICE’s surveillance web
Immigration and Customs Enforcement is using a variety of tools to surveil folks they want to intimidate and apprehend. That web helps federal agents find people to deport. But it also allows them to identify U.S. citizens who criticize the federal government and its policies. NPR has compiled dozens of stories of people caught up in the surveillance web. Some were monitoring ICE activities and found themselves in interactions with agents who identify them by their names and home addresses. NPR’s Scott Detrow talks with Meg Anderson and Jude Joffe-Block who have been collecting the stories, and tracking ICE’s surveillance tactics. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. Reporting from NPR’s Kat Lonsdorf contributed to this story. This episode was produced by Gabriel Sanchez and Karen Zamora, with audio engineering by Ted Mebane. It was edited by Alina Hartounian, John Ketchum and Sarah Handel. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 4 · 7 min
In Trump’s U.S., are there any presidential norms anymore?
This past weekend, the United States went to war. The president didn’t present his case in a primetime speech from the Oval Office or the White House’s East Room, but rather, in an edited video posted at 2:30 a.m. on the social media platform he owns. And that video post came between others where President Trump has falsely claimed that elections were rigged and stolen, called for the prosecution of people who have opposed him, and lobbied to put his face on U.S. currency. The New Yorker’s Susan Glasser has been tracking it all, week by week, since 2018. She talks about the myriad ways the presidency, and the norms surrounding it, continue to change under Trump. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode was produced by Erika Ryan, with audio engineering by Becky Brown and Damian Herring. It was edited by Courtney Dorning and Sarah Handel. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
March 3 · 10 min
Who will be Iran's next leader?
The future of Iran hangs on an important question: Who will be its next leader? We'll look at how succession could unfold. For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org. This episode contained reporting from NPR’s Ruth Sherlock. It was produced by Connor Donevan, with audio engineering by Becky Brown. It was edited by Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

Consider This from NPR

Support the show

The Trump gold coin is not normal

Why Israeli assassinations aren't working the way they hope

Some countries have bet big on EVs

'It was my cross to bear.' Reconciling with Cesar Chavez's abuse

Why ending the war in Iran is getting harder

ICE wants more detention centers. These towns don't

Anti-Muslim rhetoric rises as Zohran Mamdani embraces his Muslim faith

The U.S. went to war without its allies. Now it wants their help

For Iranian-Americans, the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran evokes complex emotions

Is the war with Iran making the homefront less safe?

Should the U.S. be in business of assassinating foreign leaders?

The Trump administration wants to increase apprenticeships

Four years in, war in Ukraine grinds on. Is that what Russians want?

What's the war in Iran costing American consumers?

New front in Lebanon as Iran war reshapes Middle East

Epstein used an art camp to prey on girls. An NPR team learned how it worked.

How is the Iran war reshaping the world and politics here at home?

What it’s like to get caught in ICE’s surveillance web

In Trump’s U.S., are there any presidential norms anymore?

Who will be Iran's next leader?