The Sunday Read: ‘My Miserable Week in the “Happiest Country on Earth’’’

Phil Donahue, the game-changing daytime television host, died last week at 88. Mr. Donahue turned “The Phil Donahue Show” into a participation event, soliciting questions and comments on topics as varied as human rights and orgies.Michael Barbaro explains what Phil Donahue meant to him.Background reading: An obituary for Mr. Donahue, who died last week at 88.Here are 3 episodes that explain Mr. Donahue’s daytime dominance.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

30 Aug 202434min

Tipping, once contained to certain corners of the economy, has exploded, creating confusion and angst. Now, it is even becoming an issue in the U.S. presidential campaign.Ben Casselman, who covers the U.S. economy for The New York Times, cracks open the mystery of this new era of tipping.Guest: Ben Casselman, a reporter covering the U.S. economy for The New York Times.Background reading: How to deal with the many requests for tips.Former President Donald J. Trump called Vice President Kamala Harris a “copycat” over her “no tax on tips” plan.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

29 Aug 202425min

It’s been nearly a year since the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attacks in Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza.Patrick Kingsley, the Jerusalem bureau chief for The New York Times, explains why the war is still going, and what it would take to end it.Guest: Patrick Kingsley, the Jerusalem bureau chief for The New York Times.Background reading: Here’s a look at the twists and turns over months of talks and what the main sticking points have been recently.Cease-fire talks will continue in Cairo, officials said.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

28 Aug 202427min

The U.S. authorities have repeatedly warned that foreign governments would seek to meddle in the upcoming presidential election. It now appears they were right.David E. Sanger, a White House and national security correspondent for The New York Times, tells the story of the first major cyberattack of the 2024 campaign.Guest: David E. Sanger, a White House and national security correspondent for The New York Times.Background reading: The hacking of presidential campaigns has started, with the usual fog of motives.The finding that Iran had breached the campaign of former President Donald J. Trump was widely expected.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

27 Aug 202429min

As the 2024 presidential race enters the homestretch, former President Donald J. Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are putting economic policy at the center of their pitches to voters.Jim Tankersley, who covers economic policy for The New York Times, evaluates both of their plans.Guest: Jim Tankersley, an economic policy reporter for The New York Times.Background reading: Analysis: Both candidates embrace expansions of government power to steer economic outcomes — but in vastly different areas.Analysis: Harris’s price-gouging ban plan does not appear to amount to government price controls. It also might not bring down grocery bills anytime soon.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

26 Aug 202435min

In the very first episode of The Wirecutter Show, which launched on Aug. 21, the team goes deep on laundry—what you’re probably doing wrong, how to actually pretreat stains, and the tips and tricks to make it all easier.Find more episodes wherever you get your podcasts. And follow The Wirecutter Show to get new episodes right away. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

25 Aug 202440min

The actress talks to Lulu Garcia-Navarro about learning to protect herself and the hard lessons of early fame. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

24 Aug 202442min

Last night, at the Democratic National Convention, Vice President Kamala Harris accepted her party’s nomination, becoming the first woman of color in U.S. history to do so.Astead W. Herndon and Reid J. Epstein, who cover politics for The Times, discuss the story this convention told about Ms. Harris — and whether that story could be enough to win the presidential election.Guest: Astead W. Herndon, a national politics reporter and the host of the politics podcast “The Run-Up” for The New York Times.Reid J. Epstein, who covers politics for The New York Times.Background reading: Kamala Harris promised to chart a “new way forward” as she accepted the nomination.“The Run-Up”: It’s her party now. What’s different?For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

23 Aug 202436min