Post Reports

This week, the FBI raided the home of a Washington Post journalist, sparking First Amendment fears. At the same time, the Justice Department has opened an investigation into Fed Chair Jerome Powell, drawing concerns from bigwigs on Wall Street and questions as to how the administration treats its perceived political enemies.  Colby speaks with Dan Merica, co-anchor of our politics newsletter The Early Brief, and Matt Viser, White House bureau chief, about President Donald Trump’s playbook for intimidating his critics, the chilling effects of his administration’s probes and why his coarse response to a heckling auto worker has drawn both criticism and praise.Today’s show was produced by Thomas Lu and Josh Carroll. It was edited by Martine Powers and mixed by Sean Carter. Subscribe to The Washington Post here. And watch us on YouTube here.

Early Wednesday, FBI agents raided the home of a Washington Post reporter as part of an investigation of a government contractor accused of illegally retaining classified government materials. The reporter – Hannah Natanson – was at her home in Virginia at the time of the search. She covers the federal government for The Post and spent the past year connecting with sources while reporting on the Trump administration’s efforts to fire federal workers. Investigators said neither Natanson nor The Post are the focus of the probe, but many saw the search as a jarring new step aimed at limiting news organizations’ ability to gather information. Today on “Post Reports,” democracy reporter Sarah Ellison joins host Elahe Izadi to discuss the unusual move by federal law enforcement and the lengths journalists go to to keep sources safe. And, in the second half of the show, we bring you an excerpt from an April 2025 conversation with Natanson – about how she became The Post’s “federal government whisperer.”Today’s show was produced by Rennie Svirnovskiy with help from Sabby Robinson. It was edited by Dennis Funk and mixed by Sam Bair.The April 23 episode was produced and mixed by Ted Muldoon and edited by Peter Bresnan.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

For years, President Donald Trump has complained about Federal Reserve Board Chair Jerome H. Powell. He’s called him names, said he should be fired and has tried to pressure the Fed leader into lowering interest rates.Trump’s feud against Powell escalated over the weekend, when Powell revealed that the Justice Department launched a criminal inquiry against him, alleging that Powell lied about the cost of renovations to the Federal Reserve buildings.Host Elahe Izadi speaks to banking reporter Andrew Ackerman about what this probe could mean for Powell, the Fed and whether Trump’s consistent pressure on Powell could undermine America’s central bank forever.Today’s show was produced by Emma Talkoff. It was edited by Ariel Plotnick and mixed by Sean Carter. Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Conflicting narratives of Renée Good’s killing in Minneapolis have quickly emerged – federal officials claim the ICE officer who shot her was acting in self-defense, while others believe her death was easily avoidable and that ICE’s tactics are overly aggressive. Host Martine Powers speaks with immigration reporter Maria Sacchetti about how law enforcement officials are scrutinizing the shooting and what accountability in this case could look like.

The turmoil started in late December, when some Tehran merchants closed up shop to protest the free fall of Iran’s currency. That initial outcry sparked a wave of protests across the country. Demonstrators demanded not just economic reform, but a total overhaul of Iran’s government and an end to repression. Some called for the ouster of the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.Now the government has cracked down, and there are reports that hundreds of protesters have been killed. The country has been under a communications blackout since Thursday, making it nearly impossible to assess the extent of the bloodshed.Elahe Izadi speaks with Iran correspondent Yeganeh Torbati about how things boiled over - and what might be happening inside the country.Today’s show was produced by Emma Talkoff with help from Sabby Robinson. It was edited by Ariel Plotnick and mixed by Sean Carter. You can learn more about Torbati's forthcoming book on Iran here. Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Decades after a brazen art theft drove Merry White’s father to despair, federal agents closed in on the missing work. For White, the search is personal.Read more:Merry White is the daughter of a Harvard professor who was close friends with painter Jackson Pollock. White’s parents came to own several of the painter’s artworks, and one hung over White’s bed when she was a child. It was stolen in 1973, along with two other paintings by Pollock. The theft destroyed White’s father's peace of mind, and left White with complicated feelings.On this weekend episode of “Post Reports,” art critic Sebastian Smee reconstructs the provenance and theft of these precious works of art. Audio production and original music by Bishop Sand, with help from Sean Carter.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

This week, the shooting of 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Minneapolis has drawn new scrutiny of President Donald Trump’s aggressive immigration enforcement push, and reactions have become something of a political Rorschach test. Meanwhile, Democrats such as Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Sen. Mark Kelly (Arizona) are facing new challenges as they navigate attacks from Republican leaders. And the Trump administration continues to project defiance in the aftermath of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s removal.“This is just one expression of raw American power after another,” says White House reporter Michael Birnbaum on this week’s “Post Reports” politics roundtable.Michael spoke with host Colby Itkowitz and Dan Merica, co-anchor of the Early Brief newsletter, to unpack a jam-packed week of political news. Today’s show was produced by Thomas Lu and Josh Carroll. It was edited by Martine Powers with help from Reena Flores and mixed by Sean Carter. Subscribe to The Washington Post here. And watch us on YouTube here.

Go to sleep earlier. Read more books. Eat better. Exercise. Changing our behavior is hard, but what if some simple – and dare we say fun – tricks could help us keep our resolutions for the new year?From temptation bundling to buddying up, Optimist reporter Maggie Penman shares the science on how to make your New Year’s resolutions, whatever they are, stick in 2026. Plus, on the eve of national “Quitters Day,” we explore why making resolutions can actually be beneficial – even if you don’t stick to them perfectly. Today’s show was produced by Elana Gordon. It was edited by Dennis Funk and mixed by Sam Bair. Thanks to Allison Klein and Theresa Tamkins.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Just hours before U.S. aircraft surged into Caracas as part of an operation to capture Nicolás Maduro, an anonymous person placed a final online bet that the Venezuelan president would soon be ousted. The mystery gambler netted more than $400,000 on that long-shot bet – raising questions about whether they had inside knowledge of the operation. The payout has drawn attention to the growing world of prediction markets, online bets on real-world scenarios that some critics warn could have unintended negative effects. Today, Martine Powers talks with banking reporter Andrew Ackerman about the loosely regulated prediction market industry and what we know about the mystery gambler who won big on the Maduro ouster.Today’s show was produced by Emma Talkoff. It was edited by Ariel Plotnick with help from Dennis Funk and mixed by Sean Carter. Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has held many titles during Donald Trump’s presidency. He may have just acquired his most challenging one yet: viceroy of Venezuela.The national security adviser, acting archivist and administrator of the now-defunct U.S. Agency for International Development was central to masterminding the ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Saturday. And with no immediate successor to govern the country of roughly 29 million, Trump is leaning on Rubio to help “run” Venezuela, divvy up its oil assets and usher in a new government, a fraught and daunting task for someone with so many other responsibilities.Today on “Post Reports,” State Department reporter John Hudson explains how Rubio has become so influential, and what that could mean for Venezuela’s future. Today’s show was produced by Rennie Svirnovskiy, with help from Emma Talkoff. It was edited by Reena Flores and mixed by Sam Bair.

After U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, President Donald Trump declared: “American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again.”The world is still digesting the consequences of the intervention, which the Trump administration has characterized as a law enforcement mission against Maduro rather than a military operation in a foreign country. Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been charged with narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy and machine gun possession.White House reporter Michael Birnbaum joins host Martine Powers to explain the political ramifications of Maduro’s arrest, the next steps of the Trump administration and the reactions of Venezuelans. We also hear from Ana Vanessa Herrero, The Post’s reporter in Caracas. Today’s show was produced by Emma Talkoff, with help from Rennie Svirnovskiy and Reena Flores. It was edited by Ariel Plotnick and mixed by Sean Carter. Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Today we share one of our favorite episodes, from Optimist reporter Maggie Penman about the new science of aging, and a hopeful research finding that getting stronger and healthier in old age is possible for many of us – even after a health setback. If you want to hear more stories like this, please let us know. You can reach the whole team at podcasts@washpost.com or email Maggie at maggie.penman@washpost.com.Today’s episode was reported and produced by Maggie Penman. It was edited by Allison Klein and Ted Muldoon who also mixed the show.The Optimist has a newsletter! Subscribe here.And, subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Today, we revisit one of our favorite episodes from this past year, about super agers: people who continue to thrive into their 80s and 90s. One of them lives just down my block.Ednajane Truax, who is known to friends and neighbors as “E.J.,” can often be found on her hands and knees in the dirt, working in the garden at the Sherwood Recreation Center in Northeast Washington. She also has an impressive garden of her own and helps out with other neighbors’ gardens. She works out several times a week, sometimes while wearing a shirt that says, “You don’t stop lifting when you get old — you get old when you stop lifting.” She can bench press 55 pounds and leg press 250.Truax has never married — “just lucky, I guess,” she jokes when I ask her about that — but she has remained social her entire life. She volunteers, goes to the gym, throws parties, knows her neighbors and their children by name. Truax says her secret to thriving as she ages is simple: Be active.It turns out that research backs her up.If you’re looking for more surprising, delightful stories about the best of humanity, check out The Optimist from The Washington Post. We also have a newsletter: Subscribe to get stories from The Optimist in your inbox every Sunday morning.Today’s show was produced by Maggie Penman with help from Ted Muldoon, who also mixed the show. The Optimist’s editor is Allison Klein. If you liked hearing this story on “Post Reports,” send us an email at podcasts@washpost.com. You can email Maggie directly at maggie.penman@washpost.com.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Once a month for 15 years, David Weiner has hosted a jazz party, inviting everyone he knows and many people he’s never met over to his D.C. rowhouse. Today, we revisit one of our favorite episodes of the year and go inside the wildly welcoming ritual to understand how he’s built this community — and kept it going.You can read more about Wiener’s jazz party here.If you’re looking for more surprising, delightful stories about the best of humanity, check out The Optimist from The Washington Post. We also have a newsletter: Subscribe to get stories from The Optimist in your inbox every Sunday morning.Today’s show was reported and produced by Maggie Penman and Ted Muldoon, who also mixed the show. The Optimist’s editor is Allison Klein. If you liked hearing this story on “Post Reports,” send us an email at podcasts@washpost.com. You can email Maggie directly at maggie.penman@washpost.com.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

In one of our favorite episodes of the year, a group of self-proclaimed “old ladies” dive for garbage — and unexpectedly find joy. This is a story from The Optimist, The Washington Post’s section about the best of humanity. If you want more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter. If you love hearing these stories on “Post Reports,” please send us an email at podcasts@washpost.com. You can reach Maggie Penman directly at maggie.penman@washpost.com.Today’s show was produced by Maggie Penman. It was edited and mixed by Ted Muldoon. Thank you to Allison Klein. Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Fartlek is a Swedish term for “speed play.” This informal version of interval training is simple, effective and dare we say … enjoyable? And not just because fartlek is fun to say. Exercise columnist Gretchen Reynolds is here to vouch for this often-overlooked, decades-old practice. Reynolds, who helped popularize the 7-minute workout, has found that a growing body of research points to the benefits of this approach, even in small doses. According to exercise scientists, it can improve strength, endurance and longevity and may even lower the risk of dementia.Today’s show was produced by Elana Gordon. It was edited by Maggie Penman. Thanks to Anjuman Ali.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Today, we revisit one of our favorite episodes from the past year: about the science of how dogs make us calmer, happier — and maybe even more trusting.If you want more optimistic content on the weekends, let us know at podcasts@washpost.com and maggie.penman@washpost.com – and check out our newsletter.Today’s show was produced and hosted by Maggie Penman and reported by Kyle Melnick. It was edited by Allison Klein and mixed by Ted Muldoon.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

The cafeteria at Ballard High School during lunch is a loud place. Students are talking and laughing, playing card games and going out to the courtyard for an informal recess. On Fridays, students have started playing bingo.It’s a big change from the past couple of years — and it’s not the only one. In the first month of school this year, students took out 67 percent more books from the school library than the same month last year.Today on the show, we interview psychologist Jean Twenge, author of the new book “10 Rules for Raising Kids in a High-Tech World.” Listen to our episode about the young people giving up their smartphones.Today’s show was produced by Maggie Penman and Rennie Svirnovskiy, who also mixed the show. It was edited by Allison Klein.Subscribe to The Optimist here. And if you want more optimistic stories in your podcast feed, write to us at podcasts@washpost.com. Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Schools and community programs in Washington, D.C., are teaching students to play go-go music to help extend the legacy of the official music of the District.Producer Sabby Robinson spoke with enterprise reporter Marissa Lang about the history that these students are keeping alive and the impact the programs are having. Today’s show was produced by Sabby Robinson. It was edited by Maggie Penman and mixed by Sean Carter. Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

Carolyn Hax has been an advice columnist for The Washington Post for over 25 years. So, she’s seen, heard and read it all. There’s no family drama and no question too bizarre for the seasoned columnist. That’s especially true during the holiday season, when some relationships get tested more than usual.Today on the show, host Elahe Izadi brings Carolyn into the studio to answer some reader questions, putting her to the test on some tough holiday scenarios.Today's episode was produced by Sabby Robinson and Josh Carroll. It was mixed by Sam Bair. It was edited by Reena Flores and Haben Kelati.Subscribe to The Washington Post here.