Blog

Student loans can crush an individual. And when a lot of people have more debt than they can handle, the effects ripple into the larger economy.

Judith Scott-Clayton, an associate professor at Columbia University, discusses the economic impact of the $1.6 trillion Americans collectively owe in student debt.

President-elect Joe Biden and some members of Congress have proposed different ways to erase some amount of student debt across the board. NPR’s Anya Kamenetz explains the likelihood of those proposals actually working out.

In participating regions, you’ll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what’s going on in your community.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

What began as a Thanksgiving tradition five years ago for NPR host Ari Shapiro is now a recurring segment on All Things Considered. Play It Forward is a musical chain of gratitude.

Shapiro starts the chain with an artist he’s thankful for, and then that musician chooses someone they’re thankful for, and it continues onward with each artist choosing the next link in the chain.

This episode features interviews with John Mayer, Leikeli47, Indigo Girls and Kae Tempest.

Listen to all the Play It Forward interviews here.

In participating regions, you’ll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what’s going on in your community.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Thanksgiving is going to look different for many Americans this year. As the coronavirus pandemic rages, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning against traveling to see friends or family, or even gathering with people who do not live with you.

But that isn’t a reason to forego a delicious, sit-down meal.

Three chefs share their scaled-down Thanksgiving recipes. These dishes — Anita Lo’s turkey roulade, Aarón Sánchez’s brussels sprouts with roasted jalapeño vinaigrette and Sohla El-Waylly’s apple (hand) pies — are meant to serve up to four people.

Find all three recipes here.

In participating regions, you’ll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what’s going on in your community.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

After an unusually dramatic meeting of the Michigan Board of State Canvassers, the state voted to certify its election results, slamming the door on yet another effort by President Trump to overturn the results of the election.

Hours later, Emily Murphy of the General Services Administration officially authorized the use of federal transition funds by President-elect Biden.

But while the Biden transition picks up speed, Trump is using his remaining time in office to push through last-minute policy changes and staffing appointments that may complicate things once the President-elect takes office.

NPR has a team of reporters following that story: health policy reporter Selena Simmons-Duffin, chief economics correspondent Scott Horsley, and Pentagon reporter Tom Bowman.

NPR political correspondent Asma Khalid reported on what role President-elect Biden may play in negotiations over a coronavirus relief package.

In participating regions, you’ll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what’s going on in your community.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Democrats went into the election expecting to gain seats in the House. Instead, they lost at least eight of them.

Virginia Rep. Abigail Spanberger speculated about why in a Nov. 5 conference call, audio of which was obtained by The Washington Post.

NPR’s Juana Summers reports that the young, activist coalition that voted for Joe Biden plans to pressure his administration to deliver on bold, progressive policies.

Outgoing Democratic Sen. Doug Jones tells NPR that bold action in Washington won’t be possible without appealing to a broad swath of voters.

In participating regions, you’ll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what’s going on in your community.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and President-elect Joe Biden have a long working relationship. And if republicans retain a majority in the senate, McConnell could be a thorn in the side of the Biden administration’s agenda.

In this episode of NPR’s Embedded, host Kelly McEvers talks to Janet Hook and Jackie Calmes, both currently at the Los Angeles Times, about the relationship between these men who will shape the country for the months and years to come.|

Listen to more episodes of Embedded on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Election experts say there is no realistic legal path for President Trump to overturn the results of the 2020 election. But his determination to proceed anyway is doing real damage to the idea of American democracy. A growing number of current and former government officials are speaking out against his efforts.

Sue Gordon, former deputy director of national intelligence, tells NPR if this were happening in another country, “we would say democracy was teetering on the edge.”

And Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, a Republican, tells NPR he was pressured by Trump ally Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., to reject certain absentee ballots.

In participating regions, you’ll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what’s going on in your community.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Distribution of the first doses of a coronavirus vaccine could be mere months away. But how that distribution will work remains a massive logistical puzzle that is still coming together piece by piece.

NPR’s Selena Simmons-Duffin reports on how drug companies and the federal government are planning to ship and store vaccines that must remain frozen, some at temperatures that require special freezers.

NPR’s Dina Temple-Raston outlines the federal government’s $590 million plan to avoid shortages of crucial vials and syringes.

In participating regions, you’ll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what’s going on in your community.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

During President Trump’s first year in office, 42,000 Americans died of drug overdoses linked to heroin, fentanyl and prescription opioids. After a minor decrease in 2018, deaths rose to a record 50,042 in 2019. That number will likely be even worse for 2020.

NPR’s Brian Mann reports on the surge of synthetic fentanyl, especially in the western U.S.

And NPR’s Emily Feng unveils a web of Chinese sellers exporting individual chemical components to produce fentanyl.

In participating regions, you’ll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what’s going on in your community.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Data from two leading COVID-19 vaccine trials indicate they may be between 90 and 95% effective. Dr. Moncef Slaoui, the chief scientist in charge of the U.S. government’s vaccine development program, Operation Warp Speed, tells NPR he’s optimistic there is “a light at the end of the tunnel.“

Dr. Anthony Fauci told NPR the results are worth celebrating — but that they should not be seen as a signal to pull back on public health measures. He also said the first vaccine doses may be available next month.

But it will still be months longer before any vaccine is widely available. Two former government health officials — Scott Gottlieb and Andy Slavitt — tell NPR that in the meantime, the pandemic is could kill 200,000 more Americans.

In participating regions, you’ll also hear a local news segment that will help you make sense of what’s going on in your community.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.