The Assignment with Audie Cornish

The Assignment with Audie Cornish

Every Thursday on The Assignment, host Audie Cornish explores the animating forces of this extraordinary American political moment. It’s not about the horse race, it’s about the larger cultural ideas driving the conversation: the role of online influencers on the electorate, the intersection of pop culture and politics, and discussions with primary voices and thinkers who are shaping the political conversation.

Episodes

November 13, 2025 40 mins
Former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern led her country through some of its greatest crises: the Christchurch mass shooting, a deadly volcano eruption, and a global pandemic. A new CNN documentary takes an intimate look at Ardern’s political career, filmed over seven years. Audie met Ardern at Oxford University to talk about the film, parenting in the spotlight, empathetic leadership, and what’s next.   CNN Films will bro...
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This week, Audie sits on the other side of the mic and talks about her favorite show, “Love is Blind.” Her conversation is with Anne Helen Petersen on her podcast “Culture Study.” Yes, “Love Is Blind” is reality television, but it has a lot to say about this moment in history and politics. They talk about what works and doesn't work about these shows, and what they say about us as viewers.  Learn more about Anne Helen Petersen’s C...
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Over the past decade, horror has evolved from cheap thrills to cultural reflection—tackling everything from systemic oppression to collective trauma. Audie talks with writer and filmmaker Tananarive Due, who explains how we got here. And why, in an age defined by fear, horror might just be the healthiest thing to watch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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With New York City’s mayoral election fast approaching, one candidate in particular has managed to break through the noise — even outside the five boroughs. Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic Socialist-backed progressive whose campaign videos have gone viral, has become the face of a growing leftist wave. But is it a one-city phenomenon, or the beginning of something bigger? Audie talks to CNN Contributor Astead Herndon. His story abou...
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The WNBA just wrapped its most-watched season in history, with soaring team valuations and unprecedented public interest. But the league is preparing for possible labor tension as players push for greater revenue sharing and ask who really benefits from its success. Audie turns to CNN contributor and host of Naked Sports, Cari Champion, to talk about what the next era of the WNBA could look like: the economics of the game and how a...
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Film director Raoul Peck grew up in Haiti and the Congo, and is no stranger to authoritarianism. So it was an easy “yes” when he was offered access to author George Orwell’s entire body of work, from the original manuscript of “1984” to letters and journals. The result is “Orwell: 2+2=5,” a documentary about how a man named Eric Arthur Blair became the timeless face of truth. Peck talks to Audie about his take on Orwell’s legacy an...
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This week The Assignment presents the first episode of CNN’s powerful narrative series, Tortured Justice with Omar Jimenez. It’s the story of systemic torture carried out by the Chicago police department over many years starting in the 1980s. The series focuses on James Gibson, who was wrongly convicted and tortured, Andrew Wilson, whose guilt for killing two police officers has not been questioned even as people learned of his to...
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Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel returned to TV after being suspended for his comments on Charlie Kirk's assassination. It was the latest sign of political pressure shaping the media landscape into something that may have been unrecognizable a decade ago. So how did we get here, and where are we headed? Axios media correspondent and CNN contributor Sara Fischer talks about the forces at play and how they’re influencing everything from ...
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September 18, 2025 26 mins
Charlie Kirk’s assassination may be part of a larger “political realignment” in America, that’s according to Rachel Kleinfeld, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a leading scholar on political violence. She explains what it is, why it's violent, how it could get worse, and possible paths out. This episode was Produced by Lori Galarreta and Jesse Remedios Senior Producer: Matt Martinez  Technic...
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September 11, 2025 27 mins
Social media doesn’t just decide what you see — it shapes how you speak. Audie talks to linguist, author and educational influencer, Adam Aleksic to explore how the way we communicate is mutating in the age of TikTok, Trump, and ChatGPT.  Adam’s book is called, “Algospeak: How Social Media Is Transforming the Future of Language.”  --  This episode was Produced by Lori Galarreta  Senior Producer: Matt Martinez  Technical Directo...
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One of the biggest shows of the summer was Netflix’s “Hunting Wives,” a raunchy, soapy thriller about gun-toting Texas housewives. It’s the latest hit in a growing wave of so-called “red state entertainment” finding audiences everywhere. Audie calls up comedian and longtime television producer Larry Wilmore to find out what’s driving Hollywood’s pronounced shift away from the hard lean into wokeness we saw just a few years ago. Is ...
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It’s been 20 years since Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. But for many, the storm is not just a memory, it’s an inheritance. At Be Loud Studios, an after-school program that helps young people tell their stories through radio, educator Alex Owens created Born After the Storm a podcast where local teens reflect on Katrina’s legacy. Audie sits down with high school senior Amari Walton, one of the storytellers, and Alex, who ...
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Dating apps are reporting record breaking numbers. Yet surveys show people across generations and sexualities are partnering less, having less sex, and are feeling increasingly pessimistic about the state of American romance. So what’s going on? Audie sits down with Faith Hill – staff writer at The Atlantic, who closely covers ‘The Slow, Quiet Demise of American Romance’ – for a breakdown of the uniquely modern challenges and conse...
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Audie talks with artist and organizer Kennedy McDaniel about how she, and others in her generation -- Gen Z -- are finding connection and power offline through an old school medium: zines.  This episode was Produced by Lori Galarreta.   Senior Producer: Matt Martinez Technical Director: Dan Dzula   Executive Producer:  Steve Lickteig  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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August 7, 2025 35 mins
Kamala Harris is stepping back. And Jasmine Crockett – the fiery Texas congresswoman known for viral clapbacks – is turning heads. This week, Audie asks: are “respectability politics” still the price of power for Black politicians, or are the rules finally changing in the age of Trump? NOTUS White House Correspondent Jasmine Wright and GOP Strategist Melik Abdul to help her parse it out.  The Assignment is a production of CNN Podc...
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We’re living in a golden age of yachts, bunkers, and ultra-wealth – and social media is eating it up. Audie talks with journalist and author Evan Osnos about what this era reveals about American culture and class. His book is called, “The Haves and Have-Yachts: Dispatches on the Ultrarich.”  The Assignment is a production of CNN Podcasts. This episode was produced by Lori Galarreta and Grace Walker. Our Senior Producer is Matt M...
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In the early 2000s, girlhood became a spectacle. It was sold through reality TV, tabloid scandals, and the early Internet. And it’s still shaping the way we see women today. Audie talks with Sophie Gilbert, culture critic and author of “Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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President Trump's megabill sets Immigration and Customs Enforcement up to be the highest-funded federal law enforcement agency. Journalist Garrett Graff tells Audie how a relatively new federal agency rose to the top and why people should “get used to” seeing ICE agents in their community. Garrett Graff writes the newsletter Doomsday Scenario and hosts the Long Shadow podcast. For more CNN reporting on ICE’s expansion: https://ww...
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These days, the toy industry isn’t all fun and games. Hasbro CEO Chris Cocks sits down with Audie to talk about how trade wars and culture wars are shaping the state of play in America. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Star Trek legend George Takei has spent a lifetime confronting injustice: his family was sent to internment camps during World War II, he fought for civil rights in the 60’s, and later in life he became an activist in the LGBTQ+ community. Takei talks with Audie about his new graphic book, “It Rhymes with Takei,” a story about the experiences that shaped him, and what they say about patriotism, protest, and the state of American de...
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