The Daily

Of all the dozens of suspected thieves questioned by the detectives of the Train Burglary Task Force at the Los Angeles Police Department during the months they spent investigating the rise in theft from the city’s freight trains, one man stood out. What made him memorable wasn’t his criminality so much as his giddy enthusiasm for trespassing. That man, Victor Llamas, was a self-taught expert of the supply chain, a connoisseur of shipping containers. Even in custody, as the detectives interrogated him numerous times, after multiple arrests, in a windowless room in a police station in spring 2022, a kind of nostalgia would sweep over the man. “He said that was the best feeling he’d ever had, jumping on the train while it was moving,” Joe Chavez, who supervised the task force’s detectives, said. “It was euphoric for him.”Some 20 million containers move through the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach every year, including about 35 percent of all the imports into the United States from Asia. Once these steel boxe

The Democratic presidential nomination process begins tomorrow in South Carolina, and President Biden is running largely uncontested. But his campaign is expending significant resources in the race to try to reach a crucial part of his base: Black voters.Maya King, a politics reporter at The Times, explains.Guest: Maya King, a politics reporter for The New York Times.Background reading: In South Carolina, Mr. Biden is trying to persuade Black voters to reject Trump.South Carolina was the home of Mr. Biden’s political resurrection in the primaries four years ago, and it is reaping the rewards.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

For the past few weeks, Democrats and Republicans were closing in on a game-changing deal to secure the U.S.-Mexico border: a bipartisan compromise that’s unheard-of in contemporary Washington.Karoun Demirjian, who covers Congress for The Times, explains why that deal is now falling apart.Guest: Karoun Demirjian, a congressional correspondent for The New York Times.Background reading: Divided Republicans coalesced behind a bit of legislative extortion: No Ukraine aid without a border crackdown. Then they split over how large a price to demand, imperiling both initiatives.Republicans and Democrats have agreed to try to reduce the number of migrants granted parole to stay in the United States, but cementing the compromise will take money and persuasion on both sides.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

In a major advance in science, DNA from Bronze Age skeletons is providing clues to modern medical mysteries.Carl Zimmer, who covers life sciences for The Times, explains how a new field of study is changing the way we think about treatments for devastating diseases.Guest: Carl Zimmer, a science correspondent who writes the Origins column for The New York Times.Background reading: Ancient Skeletons Give Clues to Modern Medical MysteriesMorning Person? You Might Have Neanderthal Genes to Thank.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Inside the Republican Party, a class war is playing out between the pro-Trump base, which is ready for the nomination fight to be over, and the anti-Trump donor class, which thinks it’s just getting started.Astead Herndon, a political correspondent for The Times and the host of “The Run-Up,” explains the clash.Guest: Astead W. Herndon, a political correspondent and host of The Run-Up for The New York Times.Background: Listen to “The Run-Up” on tensions between big Republican donors and the party base.Former President Donald J. Trump said donors to Nikki Haley, his remaining Republican rival, would be “barred from the MAGA camp.”For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

This episode contains strong language and audio excerpts of violence.About a decade ago, police departments across the United States began equipping their officers with body cameras. The technology was meant to serve as a window into potential police misconduct, but that transparency has often remained elusive.Eric Umansky, an editor at large at ProPublica, explains why body cameras haven’t been the fix that many hoped they would be.Guest: Eric Umansky, an editor at large at ProPublica.Background reading: The Failed Promise of Police Body CamerasFrom ProPublica: 21 Bodycam Videos Caught the NYPD Wrongly Arresting Black Kids on Halloween. Why Can’t the Public See the Footage?For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

On April 26, 2019, a beluga whale appeared near Tufjord, a village in northern Norway, immediately alarming fishermen in the area. Belugas in that part of the world typically inhabit the remote Arctic and are rarely spotted as far south as the Norwegian mainland. Although they occasionally travel solo, they tend to live and move in groups. This particular whale was entirely alone and unusually comfortable around humans, trailing boats and opening his mouth as though expecting to be fed.News of the friendly white whale spread quickly. In early May, a video of the beluga went viral, eventually earning a spot on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.” By midsummer, he had become an international celebrity, drawing large groups of tourists. All the while, marine experts had been speculating about the whale’s origin. Clearly this animal had spent time in captivity — but where?In the years since the whale, publicly named Hvaldimir, first entered the global spotlight, the very qualities that make him so endearing — his intellig

Across the United States, millions of families are confronting a seemingly impossible question: When dementia changes a relative, how much should they accommodate their new personality and desires?Katie Engelhart, a writer for The New York Times Magazine, tells the story of one family’s experience.Guest: Katie Engelhart, a writer for The New York Times Magazine.Background reading: The Mother Who Changed: A Story of DementiaKatie Englehart has reported on dementia for years, and one image of a prisoner haunts her.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

The era of hybrid work has spawned a new kind of office culture — one that has left many workers less connected and less happy than they have ever been.Emma Goldberg, a business reporter covering workplace culture for The Times, explains how mixing remote and office work has created a malaise, as workers confront new challenges and navigate uncertainty, and employers engage in a wave of experiments.Guest: Emma Goldberg, a business reporter for The New York Times.Background reading: Emma Goldberg reflects on her evolving beat as tens of thousands of employees return to the office.From March: Office Mandates. Pickleball. Beer. What will make hybrid work stick?For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

On Tuesday, Donald J. Trump beat Nikki Haley in New Hampshire. His win accelerated a push for the party to coalesce behind him and deepened questions about the path forward for Ms. Haley, his lone remaining rival.Jonathan Weisman, a political correspondent for The Times, discusses the real meaning of the former president's victory.Guest: Jonathan Weisman, a political correspondent for The New York Times.Background reading: Donald Trump’s win in New Hampshire added to an air of inevitability, even as Nikki Haley sharpened the edge of her rhetoric.Here are five takeaways from the New Hampshire primary.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

Nominations for the Oscars are announced on Tuesday and “Oppenheimer,” a film about the father of the atomic bomb, is expected to be among the front-runners. Catie Edmondson, a congressional correspondent for The Times, explains how the film sent her on a quest to find the secret story of how Congress paid for the bomb, and what it reveals about the inner workings of Washington.  Guest: Catie Edmondson, a congressional correspondent for The New York Times.Background reading: Watching “Oppenheimer,” a journalist wondered: How did the president get the $2 billion secret project past Congress?What to expect from the Oscar nominations.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

 In the International Court of Justice, South Africa is accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza.Amanda Taub, a human rights lawyer-turned-journalist at The Times, walks through the arguments of the case, and the power that the rules of war have beyond any verdict in court.Guest: Amanda Taub, writer of The Interpreter for The New York Times.Background reading: What might happen next in the genocide case against Israel.With its accusations against Israel, South Africa is challenging the Western-led order.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

Liz Flatt drove to Austin, Texas, mostly out of desperation. She had tried talking with the police. She had tried working with a former F.B.I. profiler who ran a nonprofit dedicated to solving unsolved murders. She had been interviewed by journalists and at least one podcaster. She had been featured on a Netflix documentary series about a man who falsely confessed to hundreds of killings.Although she didn’t know it at the time, Flatt was at a crossroads in what she had taken to calling her journey, a path embarked on after a prayer-born decision five years earlier to try to find who killed her sister, Deborah Sue Williamson, or Debbie, in 1975. It was now 2021.She had come to Austin for a conference, CrimeCon, which formed around the same time that Flatt began her quest, at a moment now seen as an inflection point in the long history of true crime, a genre as old as storytelling but one that adapts quickly to new technologies, from the printing press to social media. Flatt met a woman who would later put her

On its surface, the case before the Supreme Court — a dispute brought by fishing crews objecting to a government fee — appears to be routine.But, as Adam Liptak, who covers the court for The Times explains, the decision could transform how every industry in the United States is regulated.Guest: Adam Liptak, a Supreme Court correspondent for The New York Times.Background reading: How a fight over a fishing regulation could help tear down the administrative state.The case is part of a long-game effort to sap regulation of business.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Attacks by Houthi militants on shipping in the Red Sea, a crucial global trade route, once seemed like a dangerous sideshow to the war in Gaza. But as the attacks have continued, the sideshow has turned into a full-blown crisis.Vivian Nereim, the Gulf bureau chief for The Times, explains what cause is served by the Houthis’ campaign.Guest: Vivian Nereim, the Gulf bureau chief for The New York Times.Background reading: Undeterred by strikes by American and British forces, the Houthis targeted more ships in the Red Sea.Washington is grappling with how to stop a battle-hardened foe from disrupting shipping lanes critical for global trade.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Concerned about the effect on diversity, many colleges have stopped requiring standardized tests. New research suggests that might be a mistake.David Leonhardt, a senior writer for The Times, discusses the future of SATs and why colleges remain reluctant to bring them back.Guest: David Leonhardt, a senior writer for The New York Times.Background reading: The misguided war on the SATFrom Opinion: Can the meritocracy survive without the SAT?For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

At the Iowa Republican caucuses on Monday night, Donald J. Trump secured a runaway victory. The only real drama was the fight for second place.Reid Epstein, who covers politics for The Times, takes us inside one of the caucuses, and Shane Goldmacher, a national political reporter, walks us through the final results.Guest: Reid J. Epstein, a politics correspondent for The New York Times, andShane Goldmacher, a national political reporter for The New York Times.Background reading: A letdown for Ron DeSantis: His campaign is running low on cash and faces tough tests ahead.Why coming in second can be a win in early-state contests.Here are five takeaways from Trump’s crushing victory.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

Arrowhead Stadium, the home of the Kansas City Chiefs, the N.F.L.’s defending champions, is a very loud place. During a 2014 game, a sound meter captured a decibel reading equivalent to a jet’s taking off, earning a Guinness World Record for “Loudest crowd roar at a sports stadium.”Around 11 a.m. on Thursday, Sept. 7, Brian Melillo, an audio engineer for NBC Sports’ flagship N.F.L. telecast, “Sunday Night Football,” arrived at Arrowhead to prepare for that evening’s game against the Detroit Lions. It was a big occasion: the annual season opener, the N.F.L. Kickoff game, traditionally hosted by the winner of last season’s Super Bowl. There would be speeches, fireworks, a military flyover, the unfurling of a championship banner. A crowd of more than 73,000 was expected. “Arrowhead is a pretty rowdy setting,” Melillo said. “It can present some problems.”Broadcasting a football game on live television is one of the most complex technical and logistical challenges in entertainment. Jody Rosen went behind the scene

On Monday, Iowa holds the first contest in the Republican presidential nominating process and nobody will have more on the line than Ron DeSantis. The Florida governor staked his candidacy on a victory in Iowa, a victory that now seems increasingly remote.Shane Goldmacher, a national political reporter for The Times, and the Daily producers Rob Szypko and Carlos Prieto explain what Mr. DeSantis’s challenge has looked like on the ground in Iowa.Guest: Shane Goldmacher, a national political correspondent for The New York Times.Background reading: A weak night for Donald Trump? A Ron DeSantis flop? Gaming out Iowa.From December: Mr. Trump was gaining in Iowa polling, and Mr. DeSantis was holding off Nikki Haley for a distant second.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

A recent string of attacks across the Middle East has raised concerns that the war between Hamas and Israel is spreading, and might put pressure on other countries like Iran and the United States to get more involved.Eric Schmitt, who covers national security for The Times, discusses the risk that the conflict is becoming an even wider war, and explains the efforts underway to prevent that.Guest: Eric Schmitt, a national security correspondent for The New York Times.Background reading: Attacks have heightened fears of a wider war for the Middle East and U.S.After a Red Sea barrage by the Houthis, a militant group in Yemen, the U.S. and its allies are considering how to retaliate.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.