Apple News In Conversation

Brian Goldstone, a journalist and anthropologist who wrote There Is No Place For Us, explores working homelessness in America. He discusses hidden scales of homelessness, how rents outpace wages, and eviction schemes. He describes extended-stay hotels, private equity landlord tactics, and practical policy fixes alongside social housing ideas.

Jordan Ritter-Kahn, a journalist and author who spent years reporting on men’s lives, shares intimate portraits of four men. He explores masculinity, feelings of inadequacy, and how isolation and shifting jobs reshape identity. The conversation looks at queer and trans perspectives, compensatory toughness, and why honest conversation and community matter more than self-help.

Scott Detrow, NPR host and reporter who covers politics and religion, discusses Pope Leo XIV, the first American pope. He explores Leo’s clash with President Trump over the Iran war, the pope’s deliberate media style and relatable habits, how Leo mixes tradition with progressive priorities, and the potential political impact on voters and global church strategy.

Clay Routledge, psychologist and author of Past Forward, explores nostalgia as a psychological resource. He explains why Gen Z is drawn to 1990s culture, how nostalgia comforts loneliness and motivates connection, and when romanticizing the past can be harmful. The conversation also covers retro tech, political misuse of nostalgia, and using memory to fuel a more balanced future.

A medieval-monster slayer. A tiny alien named Roscoe. A talking plate of spaghetti. These are just a few of the customizable companions available through AI-chatbot apps like Kindroid, Tolan, and Character.AI. In her latest piece for the New Yorker, journalist Anna Wiener explores the rapidly expanding world of these products and the people who use them. She joins Apple News In Conversation guest host Sam Sanders to talk about the users she met who are in relationships with AI chatbots, the Silicon Valley creators building them, and the risks of forming emotional bonds with technology.

Andy Greenberg, senior Wired reporter known for deep cybersecurity investigations, walks through a clandestine scam compound and the trove of materials smuggled out. He outlines how victims are recruited with fake IT jobs, trained to run pig-butchering crypto scams, and brutalized into compliance. He also shares the tense choices he faced while helping a source try to escape.

Samantha King, a health scholar who studies how culture shapes diets, and Gavin Weedon, a sociologist tracing nutrition trends, unpack the protein boom. They explore protein’s historical rise, marketing and industry forces behind protein products, and how protein culture serves big business and status-seeking consumers.

Kate Conger, NYT technology reporter who covered Twitter’s turmoil. Ryan Mac, NYT technology reporter and co-author tracking Twitter’s transformation. They unpack Musk’s takeover, mass layoffs, major product and moderation shifts, the rise of Grok AI, and how platform choices reshaped who stays and how online conversations unfold.

Katey Rich, awards editor and entertainment journalist who covers the Oscars and awards strategy, pulls back the curtain on big-budget campaigning. She discusses how campaigns can dwarf production costs. She explains who votes, how targeted outreach and screenings sway nominations, and why awards season still boosts small films and L.A. workers.

Susan Glasser, New Yorker staff writer and coauthor of The Divider, breaks down Trump's foreign policy instincts and presidential power. She discusses the Iran strikes as a risky, map-driven push for legacy and territory. Conversation covers mixed messaging from officials, Israel's role, constraints on presidential action, and the conflict's immediate domestic and credibility consequences.