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High mortgage rates and a low supply of homes for sale has made homeownership feel out of reach for many Americans. And yet it remains an important way for Americans to build wealth.

We speak with Chris Herbert, with the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University, about how homeownership became such an important part of the American Dream, and about other ways to build wealth.

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

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Although not widely known, 37-year-old Tobias Jesso Jr.’s name pops up on the credits of some of today’s biggest musical hits. He’s written for Adele, Harry Styles and FKA twigs among many others.

Jesso Jr.’s body of work as a songwriter has earned him a Grammy nomination in the brand-new category Songwriter of the Year. And although he got his start in the music industry as a solo artist, he says he feels more at home behind the scenes.

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

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

It’s that time of year – the ball has dropped, the champagne bottles are empty and you have a list of resolutions to start living your best life in 2023.

There’s plenty of expert advice to help us succeed at making a budget or running a 5K. But research and polling show that many people fail to reach their goals. If you routinely give up your resolutions by February, maybe the key to succeeding is rethinking the whole idea of what a resolution is.

NPR’s Elissa Nadworny talks with Marielle Segarra, host of Life Kit about why focusing less on goals and more on intentions may be a better approach to making resolutions. And Faith Hill of The Atlantic shares why she decided to stop making New Year’s resolutions.

The United Kingdom is, for many, synonymous with stability. But 2022 has been a year of turbulence and change for the U.K.

In one, chaotic four-month stretch, the U.K. went through major transitions involving three prime ministers and two monarchs.

We look back at what this turbulence meant for the United Kingdom, and ahead to what new leadership could bring, with NPR’s London Correspondent Frank Langfitt.

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

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Artificial intelligence is now so much a part of our lives that it seems almost mundane. So is that something to be excited about? Or is the world a scarier place because of it?
NPR’s Bobby Allyn reports on how some new AI advances showcase both the power and the peril of the technology.
And NPR’s Ari Shapiro talks to Brian Christian, author of the book “The Alignment Problem: Machine Learning and Human Values”, about what we might see in field of artificial intelligence in the year to come.

In participating regions, you’ll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what’s going on in your community.
Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

You’ve heard the saying, ‘Blood is thicker than water,’ right? Yet for many people, family is not just about blood or DNA — it’s about deep connections .

For those people, chosen family could be close friends, people who share similar identities, people who went through similar experiences, or something else that forms a bond.

We hear stories from people about their chosen families.

We also speak with marriage and family therapist and sexologist Dr. Lexx Brown-James, about why chosen families are vital in people’s lives.

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

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Rep. Kevin McCarthy is the GOP leader in the House of Representatives and he’s campaigning to become Speaker in the next Congress. But a handful of House Republicans say they won’t support him.

Associated Press’ chief congressional correspondent Lisa Mascaro talks about McCarthy’s strategy.

And NPR’s Elena Moore reports on what young conservatives want from their party.

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

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Malcolm Alexander and Frederick Clay both spent decades in prison for crimes they didn’t commit. Both were eventually exonerated and released.

Clay has received compensation from the state of Massachusetts, but Alexander is still battling the state of Louisiana in court.

We hear from the two men about what it’s like to fight for compensation for their wrongful convictions — and why that fight is about more than just the money.

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

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Even if you don’t follow gossip sites, it was almost impossible this year to ignore the scandals, missteps, and legal woes of celebrities.

Gossip has been a part of the media landscape almost since the advent of newspapers, gaining popularity throughout the 20th century and expanding across new media platforms.

But this year, stories that might have once been relegated to sites like TMZ or Gawker became part of the mainstream news feed.

NPR’s Andrew Limbong speaks with media critic Eric Deggans, and Constance Grady of VOX, on the thin line between news and gossip.

Trauma is an inherent part of intelligence work. Think of undercover operatives deployed in dangerous places or investigating gruesome crimes. But getting help to process that trauma can be difficult.

We speak with Heather Williams, a former U.S. intelligence officer, about her own experience with trauma and what she learned about how best to cope with it.

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

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.