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
February 26, 2026 • 30 mins
Actor Ken Leung is no stranger to the toxic male archetype. He embodies it as Eric Tao, the ruthless baseball-bat-carrying trading floor bully he plays on HBO’s “Industry.” Leung talks with Audie about what pushes characters like Eric—on screen and in real life—over the edge from family man to a name you could see in the Epstein files. They also discuss why women of color don’t get the “anti-hero” treatment, and how “Industry” has...
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February 19, 2026 • 28 mins
Let’s talk about professional sex. Audie sits down with Yehuda Duenyas, a SAG-AFTRA Hollywood intimacy coordinator, to go behind the scenes of how physical romance is choreographed, why stars like Gwyneth Paltrow and Sean Bean are skeptical of the position, and what depictions of sex on screen reveal about our culture.
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This episode was produced by Sofía Sanchez.
Senior Producer: Matt Martinez
Technical Director: Dan Dzula...
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February 12, 2026 • 25 mins
Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl LX halftime show is still resonating as fans celebrate his history-making rise from Puerto Rico to global dominance. Audie is joined by journalist Suzy Exposito to talk about the power of Benito's unique brand of authenticity--and how he's wielding it in the culture war. Exposito has covered Bad Bunny from the beginning. She is an editor at De Los, the Latin culture wing of the LA Times.
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This episode ...
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February 5, 2026 • 26 mins
The fashion season is officially underway. Celebrities are strolling the award show red carpets and models are strutting the runways in Paris and Milan. CNN Senior Style Reporter Rachel Tashjian joins Audie to talk about the complicated politics in the fashion world, fashion vs style, and which designers are getting the most notice for dressing celebrities.
Producer: Lori Galarreta
Senior Producer: Matt Martinez
Techincal Direct...
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January 29, 2026 • 26 mins
This year marks a milestone for Millennials: the youngest of the cohort finally turns 30. So what comes next for the first generation of true digital natives now that they have achieved “unc” status? Audie talks with Sam Sanders, host of KCRW’s The Sam Sanders Show, about the generation that watched media transform from Buzzfeed quizzes into AI slop. They also discuss Millennial activism taking over the generation’s Instagram feed ...
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January 22, 2026 • 22 mins
The Winter Olympics kick off Feb. 6 in Northern Italy—and the politics may steal the show. The U.S. may face boos, especially as it squares off with Denmark in hockey amid Trump’s Greenland threats. But there’s joy, too: Lindsey Vonn is back, and the U.S. figure skating team is stacked. New York Magazine’s Will Leitch breaks down the geopolitics and must-watch storylines from Milan and Cortina.
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January 17, 2026 • 26 mins
Audie is joined by longtime friend and former NPR colleague Ari Shapiro for a special episode they’re calling Engagement Party – a chance to finally talk on-mic about the culture stories they’ve been obsessing over. They kick things off with the question of the moment: Can the Heated Rivalry boys, Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams, turn their meteoric rise into lasting careers like other breakout stars from the past? They also unp...
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January 15, 2026 • 24 mins
Arguably the first viral moment of 2026 is an essay about a “toxic” group of mom friends. Actor and singer Ashley Tisdale French wrote an essay for New York Magazine’s The Cut about being iced out of her circle of fellow moms and – celebrity intrigue aside – it struck a nerve. Dr. Noelle Santorelli is a mom and a clinical psychologist who tells Audie there’s deep suffering wrapped up in establishing community around your family. Sh...
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January 8, 2026 • 24 mins
It may be a new year, but one of 2025's most unexpected hits isn’t done with us yet. Heated Rivalry, the TV adaptation of a spicy romance novel about two hockey players, has turned two unknown actors into overnight stars and sparked outsized conversations about sex on screen, queer representation, and masculinity in sports. Writer and culture critic Ira Madison III joins Audie to talk about how a low-budget Canadian series became a...
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January 1, 2026 • 35 mins
After a head-spinning year in the worlds of health and technology, Audie invited Dr. Sanjay Gupta, the host of Chasing Life, and Clare Duffy from Terms of Service, to break down the stories that ended up on all their podcasts this year.
Producer: Dan Bloom
Technical Director: Dan Dzula
Executive Producer: Steve Lickteig
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December 18, 2025 • 23 mins
As families gather for the holidays and political differences resurface, we revisit Audie's conversation with psychologist Joshua Coleman, who breaks down why partisan divides are driving family estrangement, how generational dynamics intensify the conflict, and what it looks like to navigate, or repair, these fractures from either side.
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This episode was produced by Lori Galarreta.
Senior Producer: Matt Martinez
Technica...
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December 11, 2025 • 20 mins
What was this year in pop culture like? A scrappy Canadian gay hockey romance becomes the internet’s obsession while big-budget, star-packed shows are dwindling. AI rage-bait memes (some from government accounts) keep hijacking the national conversation. These are just some of the pop culture moments that defined 2025. Audie and New York Magazine staff writer Rebecca Alter break it down.
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This episode was produced by Madelein...
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December 4, 2025 • 27 mins
Audie talks with CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan about how people are reshaping their spiritual lives -- from Wicca to aliens -- and searching for new sources of meaning. Donie is exploring all of this in a new docuseries called “Devoted.” It’s available on CNN All Access.
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This episode was produced by Lori Galarreta.
Senior Producer: Matt Martinez Technical Director: Dan Dzula Executive Producer: Steve Lickteig
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November 27, 2025 • 17 mins
Will an uncertain economy lead to less charitable giving this holiday season? And what if you want to give back but don’t have a lot of money? Audie talks with Sara Herschander, who covers philanthropy for Vox’s Future Perfect, about all the ways you can help.
Producer: Madeleine Thompson
Senior Producer: Matt Martinez
Technical Director: Dan Dzula
Executive Producer: Steve Lickteig
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November 20, 2025 • 24 mins
Missed car payments, crowdfunding for groceries, prices rising on everything from rent to hummus — everyday signs that something in the economy feels...tense. But the official numbers, and even the White House, keep insisting things are steady. Audie unpacks the strange gap between how the economy looks and how it feels with CNN Business’s Senior Writer, Allison Morrow.
This episode was produced by Lori Galarreta
Senior Producer:...
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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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November 6, 2025 • 63 mins
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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October 30, 2025 • 24 mins
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.
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October 23, 2025 • 27 mins
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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October 16, 2025 • 25 mins
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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