Notes from America with Kai Wright

“Notes on a Native Son” is a new, limited audio series about how and why the writer James Baldwin continues to matter. We hear from people who turn to his words again and again for ideas and inspiration, including Ta-Nehisi Coates, Nikki Giovanni, Bryan Stevenson and many more.

Hosted by journalist Razia Iqbal, each episode explores a Baldwin passage chosen and beloved by her guests. Their conversations underline Baldwin's lasting p...

Elie Mystal, justice correspondent and columnist for The Nation, joins host Kai Wright “On the Call” to break down how Vice President Kamala Harris used classic trial lawyer tactics to take apart former president Donald Trump in their ABC News debate.

Perhaps you’ve noticed: the news is newsing in overdrive lately. Notes from America is meeting the moment with an extra podcast drop on Thursdays like this one. It's a pop-up series of...

The election is less than two months away and neither candidate has laid out specific terms or plans for environmental policies if they were to win the election. Here’s what we do know.

The Trump administration was vocally critical of policies meant to protect the environment and pursued policies that would retrace protective measures. Recently, it was reported that former president Donald Trump promised to ease regulations on big o...

The Biden administration says it’s putting forward its best and final proposal to Israel for a ceasefire deal that would pause the violence in Gaza and give regional leaders and global stakeholders the opportunity to work toward a resolution. But the Netanyahu government has not seemed interested in a deal, and it’s likely that the next president-elect of the U.S. will find their leadership and legacy defined by what happens next i...

Dancers and romantic partners Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane stood out in the modern dance movement of the 1970s and 1980s as they explored a new vocabulary of movement that helped redefine the landscape of dance.  Zane died of AIDS-related complications in 1988, and Jones vowed to continue their work with the company they co-founded.

Shortly after, he began convening workshops across America with people who were living with a termina...

In 2021, a trio of retired U.S. military generals co-authored an opinion piece in the Washington Post. It warned that what happened on January 6, 2021, would happen again — that America must prepare for another coup attempt in the aftermath of the 2024 election, one they predicted will have more help and coordination from members of the U.S. military. But how can the nation be prepared for more political violence aided by those who...

The 2024 Democratic National Convention was a spectacle filled with rhetoric around the middle class and the goal of creating an “opportunity economy.” But what does that actually mean for millions of Americans concerned about the cost of housing, childcare, gas and groceries in their communities?

Host Kai Wright is joined by Today, Explained co-host Noel King to talk through her reporting on the DNC and how it was received by resid...

Everything about the dynamic of the 2024 election changed when Joe Biden ended his re-election campaign and endorsed Kamala Harris to take his place on the Democratic Party ticket. But are the polls looking much different now that there’s a new match-up? 

This week, host Kai Wright gets Patrick Toomey on the call to talk about some of the latest survey data in critical parts of the country. Toomey is a partner at BSG, a consulting a...

The Vice President came of age inside collegiate institutions that have shaped Black, middle-class culture for generations. She says they imprinted deeply upon her as well. 

Kamala Harris's story is remarkable in numerous ways. If elected president, she’ll be the first coming from several life experiences, including one that many Black commentators have noticed: She’d be the first president who’s a graduate of an HBCU, and a member ...

Slate staff writer Aymann Ismail gets “On the Call” with host Kai Wright to share his reporting on the “uncommitted” Democrats pushing Kamala Harris for an arms embargo on Israel — and the awkward scene he found at the Republican National Convention. Plus, they talk about the nominee’s notorious “I’m speaking” moment at a rally in Detroit in response to interruptions from pro-Palestinian protestors, and the work the Harris-Walz cam...

It’s been a turbulent election year so far and artists at the forefront of the conversation match that energy. From Megan Thee Stallion debuting “Hotties for Harris,” to Sexxy Red sporting MAGA red, to Charli XCX declaring “kamala IS brat”, to Kid Rock’s rally cry of “fight, fight” during his performance at the RNC — it’s hard to imagine what song the candidates will be affiliated with next before their campaigns are over.

In this e...

The Harris for President 2024 Campaign made its latest political move by announcing Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as Kamala Harris’ choice for vice president. The selection of Walz signals that, for Democrats, this election is about more than just defeating Donald Trump, says author and political commentator Anand Giridharadas.

He joins host Kai Wright in this episode of “On The Call,” our political pop-up series, to talk about how a ...

Kamala Harris’s nomination for president is historic and unprecedented. But one thing that has followed Harris since her initial campaign for president in 2019 are the many questions around her record as a prosecutor, district attorney and eventually the Attorney General of California. These questions have come to a head through the lens of the brutal, high profile killing of Sonya Massey at the hands of an officer on July 6 just o...

On August 2, 1924, a baby boy was born at Harlem Hospital in New York City — one who would grow up to become one of the most celebrated writers and thinkers of the 20th century. James Baldwin’s novels, essays and ideas were captivating and controversial. They challenged society’s ideas of race, power, sexuality and belonging through politics that were rooted in his personal experiences as a Black, queer man in America, and later as...

President Joe Biden says he has a plan to reform the Supreme Court — one that will keep presidential power in check. Political commentator Elie Mystal says it’s about time. Mystal is the justice correspondent for The Nation magazine and someone who has been advocating (at the top of his lungs) for SCOTUS reform for years. 

In this episode of “On the Call,” our political pop-up series, host Kai Wright talks with Mystal about what Bid...

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netenyahu’s July 24th address to a joint session of the U.S. Congress was skipped by roughly half of the Democratic caucus, including the party's new presidential candidate, Vice President Kamala Harris. This marks a shift in Democratic Party politics around Israel and Palestine after nearly 10 months of mass protests across the country in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. For many, it has been a...

Perhaps you’ve noticed: the news is newsing in overdrive lately. Notes from America is meeting the moment with an extra podcast drop on Thursdays starting today. Welcome to On the Call, a pop-up podcast series of conversations about politics, voters and democracy right now.

While most of America was still processing the news that President Joe Biden would not seek re-election, Black women across the nation were receiving notificatio...

“The call was coming from inside the house,” says Fordham University political scientist Christina Greer about the pressure campaign Democrats applied to President Joe Biden in the weeks since his debate against Republican contender Donald Trump. Biden’s fitness for another four-year term had been called into question, and although he seemed determined to stay in the race, his late-July announcement that he’d suspend his re-electio...

Federal investigators are charged with uncovering how a 20-year-old man was able to use an automatic rifle from a rooftop just outside of a campaign rally for Donald Trump to open fire, killing one attendee and injuring others, including the former president. The horrific images from the rally flooded social media timelines, followed by conspiracy theories, misinformation and more concerning narratives that demonstrate how trust in...