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Activists slammed the TV show “In the Dark” for casting a sighted actress in a blind lead role. But what if blindness is a performance of its own?This story was written and narrated by Andrew Leland. To hear more audio stories from publications like The New York Times, download Audm for iPhone or Android.

You’ve heard the 1619 podcast right here on The Daily. And we’ve covered the backlash to the 1619 Project and the battle over critical race theory that followed. In this interview, Ezra Klein, an Opinion columnist at The New York Times and host of The Ezra Klein Show, speaks with Nikole Hannah-Jones and Ta-Nehisi Coates about these skirmishes, and how they have gripped our national discourse. At the heart of the conversation in this episode is the question: How do we understand American history?Each Tuesday and Friday for New York Times Opinion, Ezra Klein invites you into a conversation on something that matters. Subscribe to the show wherever you listen to podcasts. 

This episode contains mentions of sexual abuse.Simone Biles, 24, showed up on the national stage at 16, when she competed in and won the national championships. She equally impressed at her first Olympics, in 2016 in Rio.Going into the Tokyo Games this year, Ms. Biles — who is considered one of the greatest gymnasts of all time — was expected to win the all-around. So she shocked many this week when she pulled out of the competition.What prompted her decision?Guest: Juliet Macur, a sports reporter for The New York Times. Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Ms. Biles was widely embraced as the latest elite athlete who had the courage to acknowledge her vulnerability. In pulling out of the Olympics, she rejected a long tradition of stoicism in sports.By withdrawing from competition citing concerns over her mental health, Ms. Biles showed that resisting expectations could be more powerful than persisting through them.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

For decades, nuclear weapons did not figure prominently in China’s military planning. However, recent satellite images suggest that the country may be looking to quintuple its nuclear arsenal. Why is China changing strategy now?Guest: David E. Sanger, a White House and national security correspondent for The New York Times.  Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Is China scrapping its “minimum deterrent” strategy and joining an arms race? Or is it merely looking to create a negotiating card?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.The first hearing of the special congressional committee on the Jan. 6 riots was an emotional affair, but it was not quite the investigation that was originally envisaged.In January, lawmakers on both sides spoke of putting aside partisanship and organizing an investigation akin to the 9/11 commission, considered the gold standard of nonpartisan fact-finding.Why did the commission fail and what is taking place instead?Guest: Luke Broadwater, a congressional reporter for The New York Times. Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: “A hit man sent them.” Police officers at the Capitol recounted the horrors of Jan. 6 on the first day of the House committee investigation into the event.In remarks before the hearing, Rep. Kevin McCarthy, the House minority leader, said Republicans wanted the focus of the inquiry to be on the lack of preparation for the violence and ways to prevent future attacks.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 effort to raise America’s vaccination rate, some agencies and private organizations have turned to the last, and most controversial, weapon in the public health arsenal: vaccine mandates.How have the federal government and the White House approached the issue?Guest: Jennifer Steinhauer, a Washington reporter for The New York Times. Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: California and New York City will require vaccinations or tests for their employees, while the Department of Veterans Affairs said frontline health care workers must get vaccinated or face possible termination.With some health care workers still refusing to be immunized, medical centers around the country are requiring shots as cases climb once again.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 couple of weeks, some Americans have reported a curious phenomenon: They have caught the coronavirus despite being vaccinated.Vaccines are still doing their job by protecting against serious illness and hospitalization, but the frequency of so-called breakthrough infections has surprised experts.How do such cases happen, and what risks do they pose?Guest: Apoorva Mandavilli, a science and global health reporter for The New York Times. Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Breakthrough infections are still relatively uncommon, experts said, and those that cause serious illness, hospitalization or death even more so.While being fully inoculated protects against serious illness and hospitalization from Covid-19, no vaccine offers 100 percent protection, and vaccinated people may need to take a few more precautions. Here’s what you need to know.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

An activist investment firm won a shocking victory at Exxon Mobil. But can new directors really put the oil giant on a cleaner path?This story was written by Jessica Camille Aguirre and recorded by Audm. To hear more audio stories from publications like The New York Times, download Audm for iPhone or Android.

Extreme weather across Europe, North America and Asia is highlighting a harsh reality of science and history: The world as a whole is neither prepared to slow down climate change nor live with it.European officials are trying to change that. The European Commission, the E.U.’s executive arm, recently introduced ambitious legislation aimed at sharply cutting emissions to slow down climate change within the next decade, specifically by weaning one of the world’s biggest and most polluting economies off fossil fuels. But can it generate the political will to see it through?Guest: Somini Sengupta, the international climate reporter for The New York Times.Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Our climate correspondent explains what you need to know about the implications of recent extreme weather events for rich countries.Want to learn more about the science behind climate change? Here are some answers to the big questions, like how we know we’re really in a climate crisis.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

A promise of a well-paying assignment abroad for retired Colombian soldiers. A security company in Miami. An evangelical Haitian American pastor with lofty ideas. Trying to join the dots in the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse took us from the Caribbean to South America to Florida — and there are still plenty of questions.Guest: Julie Turkewitz, the Andes bureau chief for The New York Times, and Frances Robles, a national and foreign correspondent for The Times based in Florida.Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Interviews with more than a dozen people suggest that the suspects had been working together for months — but to what end is still mysterious.One suspect was said to have claimed he was “sent by God” to help Haiti.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

The Chinese government’s hacking of Microsoft was bold and brazen.The Biden administration tried to orchestrate a muscular and coordinated response with Western allies. But while the U.S. has responded to cyberattacks from Russia with economic sanctions, when it comes to Beijing, the approach is more complicated.Why does the U.S. take a different course with China?Guest: David E. Sanger, a White House and national security correspondent for The New York Times.Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: The Biden administration organized a broad group of allies to condemn Beijing for cyberattacks around the world but stopped short of taking concrete punitive steps.Over the past decade, China has transformed into a sophisticated and mature cyber threat to the U.S.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

Is misinformation on Facebook an impediment to ending the pandemic?President Biden even said that platforms like Facebook, by harboring skepticism about the shots, were killing people.Facebook immediately rejected the criticism, but who is right?Guest: Cecilia Kang, a correspondent covering technology and regulatory policy for The New York Times. Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Mr. Biden’s blunt statement about Facebook capped weeks of frustration in the White House over the spread of vaccine disinformation on social media.In response, Facebook called on the administration to stop “finger-pointing.”For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

The rise of the Delta variant has prompted a thorny question: Do we need a booster dose of the vaccine for Covid-19? Vaccine makers think so, but regulators are yet to be convinced.Principles are also at stake: Should richer countries be talking about administering extra doses when so many people around the world are yet to receive even a single shot?Guest: Rebecca Robbins, a business reporter covering Covid-19 vaccines for The New York Times. Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Although studies of a third dose are underway, experts agree that the vaccines are still working well. Here’s what to know about the potential booster dose.U.S. officials said that the decision to go ahead with a booster shot would depend partly on how many infections cause serious disease or hospitalization in vaccinated people.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

It made headlines around the world: a New Jersey sandwich shop with a soaring stock price. Was it just speculation, or something stranger?This story was written by Jesse Barron and recorded by Audm. To hear more audio stories from publications like The New York Times, download Audm for iPhone or Android.

This episode contains accounts of physical and sexual abuse.The residential school system was devised by the Canadian government under the auspices of education, but very little education took place. Instead, children were taken from their families in order to wipe out Indigenous languages and culture.In 1959, when Garry Gottfriedson was 5, he was sent to one such school: Kamloops Indian Residential School.On today’s episode, we hear his story and explore how Indigenous activists have agitated for accountability and redress from the federal government.Guest: Ian Austen, a correspondent covering Canada for The New York Times. Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Two gruesome discoveries of what Indigenous groups say are the remains of hundreds of children have strengthened the groups’ resolve to hold Canada accountable for a long-hidden brutal history.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.It was a surprise to many recently when protesters took to the streets in a small town near Havana to express their grievances with Cuba’s authoritarian government. Cubans do not protest in huge numbers.Even more remarkable: The protests spread across the island.Why are Cubans protesting, and what happens next?Guest: Ernesto Londoño, the Brazil bureau chief for The New York Times, covering the southern cone of South America. Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: Thousands of Cubans have taken to the streets in cities around their country to protest food and medicine shortages, in a remarkable eruption of discontent not seen in nearly 30 years.Security forces arrested dozens of protesters after a wave of demonstrations on Sunday. But dissidents expressed hope the protests would lead to lasting change.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

The heat wave that hit the usually cool and rainy American Pacific Northwest was a shock to many — Oregon and Washington were covered by a blanket of heat in the triple digits.After the temperatures soared, a group of scientists quickly came together to answer a crucial question: How much is climate change to blame?Guest: Henry Fountain, a climate change reporter for The New York Times; and Sergio Olmos, a freelancer for The Times. Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: An analysis of the recent record-breaking heat found that it would have been virtually impossible without the influence of human-caused climate change.The extreme temperatures in Oregon, Washington State and Canada were exacerbated by an intense drought. Here is what to know about these heat waves.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

In its investigation of the Trump Organization’s financial affairs, the Manhattan district attorney’s office has zeroed in on Allen Weisselberg, the company’s former finance chief, who spent almost half a century working for the Trump family. Criminal charges have been brought against Mr. Weisselberg in the hopes of getting him to cooperate in an investigation of former President Donald Trump. Will he flip?Guest: Ben Protess, an investigative reporter for The New York Times; and Michael Rothfeld, an investigative reporter for The Times’s Metro Desk. Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: The Trump Organization has been charged with running a 15-year scheme to help its executives evade taxes by compensating them with fringe benefits that were hidden from the authorities.In nearly half a century of service to Mr. Trump’s family businesses, Allen Weisselberg has survived — and thrived — by anticipating and carrying out his boss’s dictates in a zealous mission to protect the bottom line. His fealty has now landed him in serious legal jeopardy. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

For decades, the granting of racial reparations in the United States appeared to be a political nonstarter. But Evanston, Ill., recently became the first city to approve a program of reparations for its Black residents.How did this happen, and can it be replicated in other parts of the country? Guest: Megan Twohey, an investigative reporter for The New York Times.Sign up here to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, subscribe to our newsletter. Background reading: The proposal in Evanston in March was pioneering: a blueprint to begin distributing $10 million in reparations to Black residents of the city in the form of housing grants.For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

For Aleksander Doba, pitting himself against the wide-open sea — storms, sunstroke, monotony, hunger and loneliness — was a way to feel alive in old age. Today, listen to the story of a man who paddled toward the existential crisis that is life and crossed the Atlantic alone in a kayak. Three times.Mr. Doba died on Feb. 22 on the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Africa. He was 74.This story was written by Elizabeth Weil and recorded by Audm. To hear more audio stories from publications like The New York Times, download Audm for iPhone or Android.