In 2013, Meghna Chakrabarti spoke with Salman Rushdie, on the tail end of his book tour for Joseph Anton.

Today, in this podcast special, we're resurfacing the 2013 Radio Boston interview with Rushdie.

Author Salman Rushdie remains in critical condition after a brutal knife attack last week. We'll look at the long history of the price people pay to defend free speech. Jacob Mchangama joins Meghna Chakrabarti.

Why are wages what they are? We talk about the myths that help set wages in the modern economy. Jake Rosenfeld and Larry Mishel join Meghna Chakrabarti.

We look closely at swing state Ohio, and what the midterms Senate race there says about the appeal of Trumpism nationwide. Gary Abernathy, Haley BeMiller and Jack Beatty join Meghna Chakrabarti. 

A new study finds that the standard recommendation of two-and-a-half hours a week of exercise may not be enough. You might need twice as much exercise to live a long, healthy life. NiCole Keith and Dr. Eddie Phillips join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Zac Zaki and Tom Schueman join Meghna Chakrabarti to talk about the friendship they forged in Afghanistan, and what it took to get Zaki out of Kabul.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley had written a letter of resignation. In it, he accused former President Donald Trump of betraying the country. But Milley never sent the letter. That's according to a stunning report in the New Yorker magazine. Susan Glasser and Peter Baker join Meghna Chakrabarti.

The nation's meatpacking companies skirted COVID safety regulations. And they did it with the White House's help, according to a little known Congressional report. So how?d they get away with it? Michael Grabell and Debbie Berkowitz join Meghna Chakrabarti.

1996. The last Taiwan Straights crisis. China's was badly outmatched by the U.S. So what's the Chinese military capable of now? Oriana Skylar Mastro and Bonny Lin join Meghna Chakrabarti.

The federal government is spending big to usher in an electric vehicle future.

What ideas can make sure the money is well spent? Samantha Houston and Alexander Laska join Meghna Chakrabarti.

From the deck of the Starship Enterprise, to the storied parquet of the NBA -- Nichelle Nichols and Bill Russell changed how the world saw Black Americans. We remember the legacies of these two pioneers. Angelique Fawcette and Marc J. Spears join Meghna Chakrabarti.

In a truly open society, all ideas can flourish -- even those that tear down democracies. New technologies help those ideas spread. So, are fragile democracies the norm? Zac Gershberg, Sean Illing and Jack Beatty join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Youth suicide has been on the rise across the United States. And for young people between the ages of 5 and 12, the suicide rate for Black children is nearly double that of white children. Tami Charles and Kevin Simon join Meghna Chakrabarti.

The typical teen body clock and the typical school start time are out of synch. California is pushing back the start of the high school day. Other districts already have. Did it work? Lisa L. Lewis joins Meghna Chakrabarti.

First person: Jose Luis Alvarez, co-founder of Forests for Monarchs, and Martha Askins, a retired lawyer, discuss the beauty of the monarch butterfly and conservation efforts to save them. 

Every year, migratory monarch butterflies travel thousands of miles.

But for decades, their population has been declining. Now, the monarchs are endangered.

We discuss how to save the endangered monarch butterfly. Orley ?Chip? Taylor and Wendy Caldwell join Meghna Chakrabarti.

You?ve seen the pharma ads saying depression may be caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain. But for years, doctors have known that's not entirely true. A big new study confirms that, and it?s come as a shock to patients. Daniel Carlat joins us.

Franklin Leonard is founder of The Black List, a company and production studio that searches for the best screenplays that aren't getting attention from Hollywood execs.

In a pod exclusive, Leonard joins Meghna Chakrabarti for a special live event at KPCC's Public Radio Palooza series in Pasadena, California.

A new bill proposes critical updates to the Electoral Count Act of 1887, but is it enough to prevent another Jan. 6th? Matthew Seligman, Derek Muller and Jack Beatty join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Monkeypox is spreading across the country, with numbers rising. COVID was supposed to be a wake up call for American public health. So how did this happen? Aaron Gettinger and Dr. Ali Khan join Meghna Chakrabarti.

There were more than 560 homicides in Philadelphia last year. Now, some elected officials are calling for the return of a controversial policing tactic: stop-and-frisk. Sammy Caiola, Shira Scheindlin and Councilman Isaiah Thomas join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Amanda Ripley is a journalist, and even she, like millions of Americans, decided to turn off the news. So what needs to change? Ripley has an answer, and it begins with giving people hope.

Joe Segal, Amanda Ripley and David Bornstein join Meghna Chakrabarti.

The James Webb Space Telescope has sent back its first images. We'll discuss the deepest glimpse into the story of the universe human kind has ever had.

Catherine Espaillat and Steve Finkelstein join Meghna Chakrabarti.

As its series of hearings wraps up, what has the January 6 committee revealed about Donald Trump and the attack on the Capitol?

Rep. Jamie Raskin, Rosalind Helderman and Jack Beatty join Kimberly Atkins Stohr.

During the 2020 Presidential campaign, Joe Biden called himself a ?transition candidate.? But transition to bring America where?

Mike Lux, Jonathan Lemire and Jack Beatty join Kimberly Atkins Stohr.

In several countries, elected politicians are making deals with violent militias. Is America next?

Rachel Kleinfeld and Bill Kristol join Kimberly Atkins Stohr.

In decisions involving state funding for religious schools and prayer on a high school football field the conservative majority on the Supreme Court says it is defending religious liberty. But for some, that seems more like an attack.

Linda Greenhouse and Michael McConnell join Kimberly Atkins Stohr.

Omicron BA.5 is the new dominant COVID strain in the U.S. New mutations. A new set of questions.

Dr. Ashish Jha, Professor Marlene Wolfe and Dr. Amesh Adalja join Kimberly Atkins Stohr.

The banality of evil. Hannah Arendt's famous observation during the trial of Adolf Eichmann, the ?architect of the Holocaust.? There's new evidence that Eichmann's evil was anything but banal. Yariv Mozer and Bettina Stangneth join Meghna Chakrabarti.

?America never would have gotten into this mess if it weren?t for me and my friends.?

That's how Tim Miller begins his new book "Why We Did It."

Tim Miller and Sarah Isgur join Meghna Chakrabarti to discuss how ?normal? Republican staffers paved the road to Trump.

Decades before QAnon, far-right conspiracists were already pushing a conservative political agenda. We discuss the history of far-right populism ? from the John Birch Society to Trumpism. Edward Miller and Jack Beatty join Anthony Brooks.

Some Republicans say state legislatures should have the power to override federal elections. The Supreme Court is taking up a case that could make that the law of the land. We hear why some say that would imperil our democracy. Bertrall Ross, Dan Vicuña and Dallas Woodhouse join Anthony Brooks.

Analysts studying recent mass shootings say there's a previously unrecognized pattern. It begins in the darkest corners of the internet.

We discuss the online training ground for mass shooters. Alex Newhouse and Emmi Conley join Meghna Chakrabarti.

The crypto market is in meltdown, with $2 trillion lost so far. Could it pave the way to new regulations? Hester Peirce and Molly White join Meghna Chakrabarti.

A pandemic program that worked, but was eliminated anyway. We hear what's behind the end of the universal free school meals program. Lisa Davis, Teresa Brown and Krista Ruffini join Meghna Chakrabarti.

On Point senior editor speaks with Democratic Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg about the actions the federal government could take to improve the airline industry.

A pilot shortage exacerbated by pandemic staff cuts and a mandatory retirement age has led to thousands of flight delays and cancellations. After a $50-plus billion bailout during the pandemic, why does airline service seem even worse?

William J. McGee joins Meghna Chakrabarti.

The Supreme Court upended 40 years of deference to agencies like the EPA. They've ruled that the EPA can't aggressively regulate carbon emissions. But the ruling could curb the reach of almost every regulatory agency in the country.

Christine Todd Whitman, Lisa Graves, Paul DeCamp and Christopher Wright join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Rebroadcast: Historian Jon Grinspan says Americans in the past fought to fix democracy. But what does that mean for Americans today?

"Many of our problems have, if not identical moments in the past, parallels and similar tendencies in our democracy across time.? Jon Grinspan and Jack Beatty joined Meghna Chakrabarti.

Who's to blame for America's polarized politics? The government? The media? Special interests? Tom Nichols says the problem is 'all of us.'

Tom Nichols and Jack Beatty join Meghna Chakrabarti.

As January 6th rioters closed in on the Capitol, the Trump White House did nothing. Cassidy Hutchinson, former senior aide to then White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows went to Meadows' office and found him scrolling on his phone. Chris Whipple, Alan Rozenshtein and Jack Beatty join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Unlike when Roe was first decided in the 1970s, women needing abortions now are more likely to be women of color who are already mothers. How will losing access to abortions alter their lives? Kwajelyn Jackson, Fatima Goss Graves and Janai Nelson join Meghna Chakrabarti.

What if you could taste the world?s electrical fields? Hear vibrations in a leaf? Or see magnetic currents guiding you home? Science writer Ed Yong helps us perceive the world the way animals do ? through eyes, ears, antennae and more.

Record-high gas prices. Interest rate hikes. A tight jobs market. Inflation at a 40-year high. We discuss the confusing state of the American economy. Rana Foroohar joins Meghna Chakrabarti.

The January 6th select committee is continuing to pick apart the events and forces that led up to the attack on the Capitol. After weeks two of hearings, what have we learned about Donald Trump?s efforts to overturn the 2020 election? Andrea Bernstein, Ilya Marritz and Jack Beatty join Kimberly Atkins Stohr.

50 years ago, Title IX outlawed sex-based discrimination at federally funded schools. But in collegiate level sports, you?d be pushed to know it. Donna Lopiano and Lori Bullock join Kimberly Atkins Stohr.

COVID reinfections were considered rare in 2020, but emerging variants have now made them increasingly likely. We discuss what we now know about COVID-19. Akiko Iwasaki and Dr. H. Cody Meissner join Kimberly Atkins Stohr.

U.S. aid is helping Ukraine in its ongoing battle with Russian invaders. But ongoing conflict comes with a risk. As war drags on ... is it time to talk compromise? Anne Applebaum, Steven Simon and Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze join Kimberly Atkins Stohr.

Despite their differences of opinion, the nine justices of the U.S. Supreme Court have always regarded mutual trust as a pillar of their establishment.

But the leak of a draft ruling has rocked that. So is the court forever changed? Dahlia Lithwick, Amy Howe and Carolyn Shapiro join Kimberly Atkins Stohr.

Summer 2020. The worldwide COVID death toll had hit half a million. And the Greek government had a decision to make.

How could the nation open up to tourists while also keeping COVID under control in Greece?

In this podcast extra, On Point senior editor Dorey Scheimer talks with professor Hamsa Bastani. Bastani helped develop 'Eva,' an AI algorithm that helped Greece curb COVID.