Impromptu

A viral debate over bringing iced coffee to a job interview may seem trivial. But it points to a bigger divide over what employers are looking for when college degrees, cover letters and résumés reveal less than they used to.Host Megan McArdle explains why workplace norms still matter, why an interview can be one of the few ways applicants can stand out and what Gen Z workers miss when they begin their careers remotely. She also makes the case for giving young people a little grace.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Artificial intelligence feels different from previous technological innovations because it can write, reason, analyze and generate ideas. In other words, it can do at least some of the things many white-collar workers thought made them irreplaceable. So, is AI going to eliminate jobs or transform them? And what will it do to the culture of the workplace — and to the way younger workers develop the judgment and expertise they need to build a career?Fabien Curto Millet, Google's chief economist, joins host Megan McArdle to discuss. Google recently examined 15 million interactions with its AI tools to understand how people are actually using this tech at work and in their everyday lives. Millet breaks down what Google's findings could mean for the future of work.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

What do you do when your research leads to a conclusion that challenges conventional wisdom? You can publish it and risk the backlash — or quietly bury the findings and move on to safer work. The Carob Trust Prize, a new $1 million award, aims to change that calculation by rewarding academics whose research challenges prevailing orthodoxies and withstands scrutiny. But can money really make telling the truth less costly?Harvard professor Roland Fryer co-founded the prize after facing that choice himself. He joins host Megan McArdle to discuss the experiences that shaped his work and the pressures that discourage scholars from pursuing unpopular findings. They also examine his research on racial achievement gaps and failing schools, as well as Nikole Hannah-Jones's recent New York Times essay about sending her daughter to a high-poverty, segregated public school.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

In the decades following World War II, the American right coalesced around fusionism — the idea that individual liberty and limited government could coexist with religious faith and traditional morality. Today, that coalition is divided. After a decade of Trump-era politics, can fusionism bring it back together?Host Megan McArdle is joined by Stephanie Slade, senior editor at Reason magazine and author of “Fusionism: Liberty, Virtue, and the Future of the American Right.” They explore how fusionism came to shape modern conservatism, why that consensus faded and how President Donald Trump's rise reveals the coalition's deepest fault lines. They also ask whether fusionism's core values of liberty and virtue can still provide common ground in a very different political era.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

No one likes the idea of being surveilled. That concern is fueling a nationwide backlash against Flock cameras, the automated license plate readers police use to find stolen vehicles, track suspects and locate missing people. Critics see their rapid spread as the beginnings of a mass surveillance network. Supporters say they reduce crime and save lives. So can communities keep the benefits without sacrificing privacy?Host Megan McArdle is joined by Charles Fain Lehman, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and senior editor at City Journal. They examine what Flock cameras actually see, the data behind the headlines and whether safeguards can prevent a useful tool from becoming a threat to civil liberties.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Artificial intelligence is advancing faster than many expected. So much so that some of the experts who understand it best are sounding the alarm. Are their warnings exaggerated, or are we approaching a point of no return? And what can we do now to shape the future of artificial intelligence?Host Megan McArdle is joined by Tim Lee, author of the Understanding AI newsletter, to explore what AI experts fear most, from misinformation and economic disruption to the possibility of losing control of increasingly powerful systems. They break down recent AI controversies and examine why some researchers are calling for slower AI development, what meaningful AI safety could look like, and whether governments and technology companies are moving quickly enough to address the risks.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

More than six centuries ago, the Black Death wiped out nearly half of England's population. Suddenly, workers had more power, wealthy landowners had less, and the old social order began to crack. When the ruling class tried to force that order back into place, anger erupted into the Peasants' Revolt of 1381 — a political crisis that feels startlingly familiar today, dramatized in the new film “The Uprising.”Host Megan McArdle is joined by historian Dan Jones, author of “Summer of Blood,” who was a consultant on the film. They explore how a pandemic transformed England's economy, why legitimate grievances spiraled into violence, the tension between natural justice and written law, and what happens when elites stop listening to the people they govern.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

It doesn't take much to ignite a new wave of alien conspiracy theories on social media. But beyond the internet speculation lies a serious scientific question: If billions of planets could support life, why haven't we found any?Host Megan McArdle revisits her conversation with astrophysicist and author of “The Little Book of Aliens,” Adam Frank, to explore why he thinks extraterrestrial life probably exists — and why UFO sightings offer little evidence. They discuss how scientists are searching for alien life, why microbes may be far more common than intelligent civilizations and what extraterrestrials might look like if we ever find them.This episode was originally published on June 10, 2026.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Shortly before her mother died, Megan McArdle learned a family secret. Decades earlier, her mother had given birth to a son and placed him for adoption. Megan's attempt to find the brother she never knew would force her to reconsider her mother's life—and confront abortion as something more than an abstract political debate.In this deeply personal episode, producer Regina de Heer interviews Megan about the choices her mother faced, the grief she carried and why our arguments about abortion and adoption leave so little room for complexity.This episode includes discussions of death, grief and abortion.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

AI data centers have become America's newest political villain — accused of draining local water supplies, overheating communities and sending electricity bills soaring. But some of the most alarming claims about their environmental impact are based on outdated estimates, missing context or questionable math.Host Megan McArdle is joined by writer and former high school physics teacher Andy Masley to separate the myths from the legitimate concerns and break down why misleading claims spread so easily.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Football season is back, bringing millions of Americans together around one of the country's most beloved sports. But new research on chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, raises an uncomfortable question: What price are players paying for our entertainment?Host Megan McArdle explores the physical and cognitive toll of football and what responsibility fans have when they turn on a game.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Why are Americans having fewer children, even though many say they want larger families? Host Megan McArdle talks with author Tim Carney about how professional ambition, personal autonomy and intensive parenting have made family life more daunting. They discuss why Americans are marrying later, how workplaces and communities could make raising children easier, and whether stronger family norms can be revived without bringing back the inequalities of the past.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

The controversy surrounding Cambridge professor Jason Arday began with questions about his academic record and extraordinary personal story. It ended in tragedy. What can sociology tell us about how a scandal like this escalates once it's forced into public view?Host Megan McArdle talks with UCLA sociologist Gabriel Rossman about scandal, status and public shaming.Content warning: This episode includes discussion of sexual assault and suicide.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

America is becoming less religious — but the story is more complicated than empty pews. Host Megan McArdle is joined by political scientist and former pastor Ryan Burge to talk about the shifts taking place in America's churches. Are congregations shrinking or growing? Why are some religious traditions holding on better than others? And what does the rise of the religiously unaffiliated mean for American life?Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

America's colleges have spent years at the center of the culture wars. But some of the sharpest critics of higher education are people who once believed deeply in its mission — and changed their minds after seeing it from the inside.Host Megan McArdle is joined by Tyler Austin Harper, staff writer at The Atlantic and former professor at Bates College. He breaks down how academia reshaped his views on affirmative action and diversity, and why he came to see some efforts at inclusion as a form of tokenism. They get into race and class, ideological conformity, the decline of tenure, the treatment of adjunct faculty and the gap between universities' social justice rhetoric and their economic incentives.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

From the housing shortage to rising electricity costs, many of America's biggest affordability problems come back to the same question: Why can't we build more?Host Megan McArdle is joined by political commentator Josh Barro to talk about the “abundance” agenda and what it could mean for the cost of living, housing and energy prices, and economic growth. They discuss how both Democrats and Republicans stand in the way of building, whether increasing the supply of housing and energy can make everyday life more affordable, and whether Democrats can turn a wonky policy agenda into a compelling message on affordability.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

As students head back to school, families and educators are facing a growing question: What should they do about smartphones?Host Megan McArdle is joined by social psychologist and author of “The Anxious Generation,” Jonathan Haidt, to talk about how TikTok, social media and constant digital stimulation may be changing the way children pay attention, stay motivated and cope emotionally. They discuss how childhood shifted from play-based to phone-based, how strong the evidence really is that social media is harming kids and whether phone-free schools, age limits and new family norms can help turn things around.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Dinner shouldn't be stressful. But after a long day, even deciding what to cook can feel like one more exhausting task. Add the pressure to make meals healthy, affordable, interesting and Instagram-worthy, and home cooking can start to feel more like performance than pleasure.Host Megan McArdle talks with Caroline Chambers, author of "What to Cook When You Don't Feel Like Cooking: Make It Fast," about how she turned a cookbook idea rejected by publishers into a cooking empire, why dinner has become such a source of stress and what we gain when we stop trying to cook the “right” way.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Public confidence in higher education has been eroding for years. Rising costs, uncertain job prospects and political conflict have led many people to question whether colleges still serve the public. But trying to fix that by slashing research funding or putting campuses under tighter government control could destroy a lot of what makes them valuable.Host Megan McArdle argues that universities must confront their credibility crisis by recruiting a wider range of viewpoints, stepping back from institutional politics and recommitting to open debate. Meanwhile, conservatives must decide whether they want to reform higher education or merely punish it.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Relationships have always required compromise and patience. But dating apps, social media and therapy-speak can make ordinary human flaws feel like reasons to walk away. So, when is it right to leave and when are we giving up on people too quickly?Host Megan McArdle talks with psychotherapist, author and New York Times “Ask the Therapist” columnist Lori Gottlieb about ghosting, going no-contact, unrealistic dating standards and what actually makes relationships last. They also discuss how to tell the difference between settling and choosing wisely, why the perfect partner does not exist and how giving people grace can make us less lonely.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

For generations, owning a home was seen as the first real step into adulthood: a place to raise a family, build wealth and claim a piece of the American Dream. But for Gen Z, soaring prices, high mortgage rates and a shortage of starter homes have pushed even modest houses out of reach.Host Megan McArdle argues that young Americans really have received a worse housing deal than earlier generations. But the era of cheap, abundant homes to buy was shaped by forces we cannot simply recreate, and a good life does not have to begin with buying the perfect house.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

The drug crisis in the United States did not begin with fentanyl. It began with a series of choices that seemed compassionate at the time — prescribing opioids for people in pain, scaling back punishment and trying to make drug use safer. But addiction spread, fentanyl changed the stakes, and the solutions no longer fit the crises unfolding in communities.Host Megan McArdle talks with Keith Humphreys, a Stanford professor and psychologist, about what America got wrong about drug addiction, why overdose deaths are finally falling, where harm reduction lost its way and what a better approach could look like.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Gen Z has been told a lot of things about loneliness: that it's caused by phones, social media, remote work, dating apps, the pandemic, the decline of third places and a culture that makes staying home easier than ever. But what if the more uncomfortable truth is that loneliness is also something people have to actively fight?Host Megan McArdle talks with Wall Street Journal editor Emma Camp about her essay “Loneliness Is for Cowards,” why so many young people seem afraid of embarrassment and rejection, and how to start making real friends again.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

For a lot of men, friendship doesn't disappear all at once. It fades slowly: a missed call here, a canceled plan there, a few busy years that become a decade. Before you know it, the relationship has moved to the background of life, where it can feel easier to assume the bond will survive on memory than to do the awkward work of reaching back out. Andrew McCarthy wanted to understand why that story is so common.Host Megan McArdle is joined by the actor, director and author, whose new book, “Who Needs Friends: An Unscientific Examination of Male Friendship Across America,” follows his 10,000-mile journey to reconnect with old friends and ask men what friendship means to them. For their buy 1 get 1 50% off deal, head to 3DayBlinds.com/OPTIMISTIC. Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

A trillion dollars seems like enough money to solve almost anything. We could end world hunger, wipe out medical debt, shrink the federal deficit and still have plenty left over. So when people talk about Elon Musk's potential trillion-dollar fortune, or the wealth of billionaires more broadly, it's natural to ask: Why don't we simply tax the rich and use the money to fix our country's biggest problems?Host Megan McArdle argues that while taxing billionaires may sound morally obvious, billionaire wealth is often a stock of assets rather than a flow of spendable income — and that distinction makes wealth taxes far more complicated than they appear.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Populist candidates have a way of making politics feel simple. They tell voters that the problem is obvious, the villains are known and the solution is to break through corrupt institutions standing in the way. That message can be emotionally powerful, but what happens after populists win? Why do they so often win the crowd but lose the plot?Host Megan McArdle is joined by Richard Hanania, a political scientist and writer whose ideological journey has taken many turns. His new book, "Kakistocracy," argues that populism tends to produce worse leaders, weaker institutions, more corruption and a politics driven by resentment and conspiratorial thinking. They discuss why populism is so appealing and whether liberal democracy can rebuild trust.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

As European tourists travel across the United States for World Cup matches, many are discovering an America they didn't expect: vast landscapes, friendly strangers, huge portions, small-town surprises and a sense of abundance that Americans often take for granted. Their reactions are going viral, offering a fresh reminder that the United States can look very different from the outside than it does on social media or the news.Host Megan McArdle argues that Americans have become too pessimistic about their own country — and that seeing America through European eyes can help us rediscover what is still dynamic, generous, innovative and worth taking pride in.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

There was a time when shopping for clothes meant walking into a department store and hoping the limited sizes and styles available at that exact moment might fit. Then, the internet changed everything. Online shopping didn't just make fashion more convenient; it expanded what retailers could offer, what customers could demand and who got to dictate trends.Host Megan McArdle is joined by Shawn Grain Carter, a professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology and former Bloomingdale's buyer who helped launch the Macy's website. They discuss the shift from department store floors to the infinite shelves of the internet.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Millions of Americans have moved to the South in recent years. The usual explanations — lower taxes, cheaper housing and warmer weather — are only part of the story. Host Megan McArdle explores the economic and historical forces driving the century-long transformation of America's fastest-growing region.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Host Megan McArdle talks with culture writer Kat Rosenfield about how dating apps, therapy-speak and online gender wars have changed romance — making flirtation feel risky, rejection feel catastrophic and desire feel suspect. They discuss the lost art of approaching people in real life, what older courtship norms got right and Rosenfield's new novel, “How to Survive in the Woods.”Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Political parties keep asking voters to overlook scandals, bad judgment and unstable behavior because the other side is worse. Senate candidates Graham Platner and Ken Paxton are only the latest examples. Host Megan McArdle argues that character still matters in politics — and that voters are not helpless victims of polarization.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Is empathy destroying the West? That's the provocative claim at the center of Gad Saad's new book, "Suicidal Empathy." Host Megan McArdle is joined by Saad, a professor at the University of Mississippi, to discuss the trade-offs societies make in the name of compassion and whether America has the capacity to absorb differences.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Eating food cooked at home has traditionally been considered a cheaper option to ordering takeout. So why are so many in Gen Z choosing food away from home? Host Megan McArdle explores how convenience, changing expectations and the modern economy have transformed the way we eat.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Are humans alone in the universe? The answer is more complicated than science fiction might suggest. Scientists have discovered billions upon billions of potentially habitable planets. But if life is possible elsewhere, why haven't we found it?Host Megan McArdle talks with astrophysicist Adam Frank, author of “The Little Book of Aliens.” They discuss the search for alien life, why intelligent civilizations may be harder to find than microbes and the limits of what UFOs can reveal.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

The average wedding now costs $36,000, and many couples feel like they are being taken for a ride. From weekend bottlenecks and customization to family dynamics and the pressure to get everything right, the answer is more complicated than simple price gouging. Host Megan McArdle explores why modern weddings have become so expensive.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

The average American household is now worth more than $1 million. Yet Gen Z is increasingly pessimistic about its economic future. Why does it feel like so many people are falling behind? Is homeownership out of reach? And how can young people build wealth in an economy that seems both richer and more uncertain than ever? Megan McArdle talks with Ed Elson, co-host of Prof G Markets, about wealth inequality, housing affordability, social media and the frustrations shaping younger generations' outlook.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Peptides are suddenly everywhere — touted by influencers, biohackers and longevity enthusiasts as the next breakthrough in wellness. But what exactly are they, and how much do we actually know about the risks?Host Megan McArdle talks with physician and Washington Post columnist Dr. Leana Wen about the booming peptide economy, the rise of gray-market injections and why so many people are turning to online health communities instead of doctors. As wellness culture pushes further into self-experimentation, how much risk are people willing to take in the pursuit of optimization?Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Trust in public health institutions has fractured since the covid-19 pandemic began, even as the threat of new outbreaks remains. Ebola is spreading in parts of Central Africa. Hantavirus has left some cruise ship passengers under quarantine. Neither is a repeat of covid-19 — and public health officials say the risk to most Americans remains low — but even distant outbreaks now provoke fear, skepticism and debate.Host Megan McArdle talks with physician and Washington Post contributing columnist Leana S. Wen about what we learned from covid-19, why trust in public health infrastructure has become so fragile and whether America is better prepared for the next serious outbreak — or simply more exhausted and distrustful.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Europe promises a life many Americans envy: longer vacations, universal health care, beautiful cities and a slower pace. But those benefits come with trade-offs.Host Megan McArdle looks past the usual America versus Europe arguments to explore what economic indicators reveal about quality of life.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Boys and men are struggling across some of the most important measures: education, employment, family life and mental health. But too often, attempts to talk seriously about these problems get pulled into a culture-war fight. So, what's actually happening, who is struggling and how we can help them without the conversation being framed as men versus women?Host Megan McArdle is joined by Richard Reeves, author of "Of Boys and Men," to break down the reality of the gender divide.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Host Megan McArdle explores the rise of the celebrity candidate, from Ronald Reagan to Arnold Schwarzenegger to Trump himself. She explains how parasocial relationships shape modern elections, and why Trump's success depended on a unique mix of media savviness, outsider status, timing and luck that may be impossible to replicate. And she argues that if America wants a more stable political future, it will need to return to a more normal kind of politics.

Prediction markets are having a moment. But what are they actually good for? Economist Robin Hanson has been thinking about this for decades. Long before betting markets went mainstream, he argued they could do more than forecast the future — they could help us make better decisions.Host Megan McArdle talks with Hanson about how prediction markets work, why they often beat other forms of forecasting and how today's versions could be improved.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.