Explain It to Me

Do Montanans have a constitutional right to a clean and healthy environment? According to the state constitution they do. And a group of young people are using that language to sue the state over its energy policies. The case is called Held v. Montana, and the plaintiffs want to prove the state’s energy policies directly harm the Montana environment. In today’s episode of The Weeds, we’ll dig into the case with Amanda Eggert (@amandaleggert), environmental reporter at the Montana Free Press, and also hear from a plaintiff about why she decided to join the lawsuit. You can read more reporting from Amanda on the Montana legislature, state energy policy, and the environment at MontanaFreePress.orgWe reached out to the Montana attorney general’s office for comment. Here is the full statement below: “Following the legislative session, there are no existing laws or policies for the district court to rule on. A show trial on laws that do not exist, as the district court seems intent on holding, would be a colossal waste of taxpayer resources. This same lawsuit has been thrown out of federal court and courts in a dozen other states — and it should be dismissed here in Montana as well.” —Emily Flower, spokeswoman for Attorney General Austin Knudsen“This entire lawsuit is a meritless publicity stunt to increase fundraising for their political activism at the expense of Montana taxpayers. Our Children’s Trust is a special-interest group that is exploiting well-intentioned Montana kids — including a 4-year-old and an 8-year-old — to achieve its goal of shutting down responsible energy development in our state. Unable to implement their policies through the normal processes of representative government, these out-of-state climate activists are trying to use liberal courts to impose their authoritarian climate agenda on Montanans.” —Kyler Nerison, communications director for Attorney General Austin KnudsenCredits:Jonquilyn Hill, hostSofi LaLonde, producerCristian Ayala, engineerA.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcastsWant to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Summer is around the corner, which means the latest rulings from this Supreme Court are as well. Two cases will take on affirmative action. In this episode of The Weeds we go on a deep dive with Vox reporters Fabiola Cineas and Ian Millhiser and look at the man behind both cases, the current state of affirmative action, and what a future without this policy would look like.Read More:Everything you need to know about the Supreme Court affirmative action cases - VoxThe Supreme Court discovers that ending affirmative action is hard in the Harvard and UNC cases - Vox Reflections of an Affirmative Action Baby, by Stephen L. CarterCredits:Jonquilyn Hill, hostSofi LaLonde, producerCristian Ayala, engineerA.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcastsWant to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The first child labor law in America went on the books almost 200 years ago, and federal labor protections were enshrined in the Fair Labor Standards Act nearly 100 years later in 1938. So almost a century after the passage of the FLSA, why are we seeing reports of children working in factories, slaughterhouses, and even at McDonald’s? Meanwhile, state legislators are introducing bills across the country that further weaken child labor protections. Historian Beth English and Vox senior policy reporter Rachel Cohen explain.References:The Republican push to weaken child labor laws, explained | VoxAlone and Exploited, Migrant Children Work Brutal Jobs Across the U.S. | The New York Times10-year-olds among hundreds of children found working at McDonald's restaurants | NBC News Credits:Jonquilyn Hill, hostSofi LaLonde, producerBrandon McFarland, engineerA.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcastsWant to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In recent years, there’s been a dramatic increase in the number of anti-LGBTQ bills introduced in state legislatures across the country. The ACLU is currently tracking 474 such bills, the majority of which target transgender rights. Meanwhile, trans people are over four times more likely than cisgender people to be the victims of violent crime. And according to a 2022 report from the Trevor Project, 45 percent of LGBTQ youth seriously considered suicide in the past year, including more than half of transgender and nonbinary youth. In this live taping of The Weeds, host Jonquilyn Hill sits down with Danni Askini, co-executive director of national programs for the Gender Justice League. The two examine the history of gender-affirming care, discuss how changes in health policy and advancements in marriage equality have led to this backlash, and explore how advocates are responding. Credits:Jonquilyn Hill, hostSofi LaLonde, producerCristian Ayala, engineerA.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcastsWant to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Question: What is the world’s largest habitat? Here’s a hint: It also takes up about half of the Earth’s surface. Any guesses? It’s the high seas, the parts of the open ocean outside any single country’s jurisdiction. And for the first time ever, there is a plan to protect it. Read More:The largest habitat on Earth is finally getting protection | VoxThe High Seas Treaty, Explained | ReutersThe BBNJ agreement and liability | ScienceDirect Journal  Credits:Jonquilyn Hill, hostSofi LaLonde, producerCristian Ayala, engineerA.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcastsWant to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On this week’s episode of The Weeds, we sit down with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to talk about transportation policy in America. From subways and buses to cars and safer roads, listen for more about the future of public transportation and the policies that can curb traffic deaths. Plus, more from Vox’s Marin Cogan and her reporting on the deadliest road in America. Related Reading:How a stretch of US-19 in Florida became the deadliest road for pedestrians - VoxCars transformed America. They also made people more vulnerable to the police.A driver killed her daughter. She won't let the world forget.  Credits:Jonquilyn Hill, hostSofi LaLonde, producerCristian Ayala, engineerA.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcastsWant to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s been 10 days since a federal judge in Texas issued an unprecedented ruling that nullified the 2000 Food and Drug Administration approval of mifepristone, the first medication in a two-pill combination for medication abortion. A confusing legal battle ensued, and now we are waiting to hear from the Supreme Court. But we still want to know: What does this mean for the future of FDA drug approval? Vox’s Keren Landman (@landmanspeaking) explains.References:Abortion pill ruling: Why mifepristone is safe abortion medication - Vox Credits:Jonquilyn Hill, hostSofi LaLonde, producerCristian Ayala, engineerA.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcastsWant to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sean Illing speaks with Matthew Jones, historian of science and technology, and co-author (with data scientist Chris Wiggins) of the new book How Data Happened. They discuss the surprisingly long history of data from the 18th century to today, in service of explaining how we wound up in a world where our personal information is mined by giant corporations for profit. They talk about how the allure of measurement and precision spread from astronomy to the social sciences, why advertising became so bound to the operation of the internet, and how we can imagine a more democratic future for us and our data, given the unprecedented power of today's tech companies.Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling), host, The Gray AreaGuest: Matthew L. Jones (@nescioquid), author; James R. Barker Professor of Contemporary Civilization, Columbia UniversityReferences:  How Data Happened: A History from the Age of Reason to the Age of Algorithms by Chris Wiggins and Matthew L. Jones (W.W. Norton; 2023) "How Alan Turing Cracked The Enigma Code" (Imperial War Museum) Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass media by Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky (1988) "The manipulation of the American mind: Edward Bernays and the birth of public relations" by Richard Gunderman (The Conversation; July 9, 2015) On Herbert Simon (The Economist; Mar. 20, 2009) The Age of Surveillance Capitalism by Shoshana Zuboff (Profile; 2019) Jeffrey Hammerbacher quoted in "This Tech Bubble Is Different" by Ashlee Vance (Bloomberg Businessweek; Apr. 14, 2011)  Enjoyed this episode? Rate The Gray Area ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts.Subscribe for free. Be the first to hear the next episode of The Gray Area. Subscribe in your favorite podcast app.Help keep this show and all of Vox's journalism free by making a gift to Vox today: bit.ly/givepodcastsThis episode was made by:  Producer: Erikk Geannikis Engineers: Patrick Boyd & Brandon McFarland Editorial Director, Vox Talk: A.M. Hall Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After the shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville in late March, President Biden once again called for reinstating the federal assault weapons ban. The United States banned new sales of assault weapons from 1994 to 2004, but the law was easy to skirt, and the data we do have about its effectiveness is complicated. Is an assault weapons ban where advocates should spend their political capital? References:America's unique, enduring gun problem, explained The Secret History of GunsGun Policy in America | RAND Credits:Jonquilyn Hill, hostSofi LaLonde, producerCristian Ayala, engineerA.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcastsHelp keep this show and all of Vox's journalism free by making a gift to Vox today: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On April 1, 2023, a Covid-era Medicaid policy called continuous enrollment will end. The policy allowed recipients to retain their benefits, even if they were no longer eligible, throughout the federal public health emergency and prevented lapses in coverage. Now that that’s coming to an end, state Medicaid offices need to audit their enrollees. But that process isn’t so simple, and millions are expected to slip through the cracks. Vox senior correspondent Dylan Scott (@dylanlscott) explains.References:Millions of people are about to get kicked off Medicaid Our Welfare Puritanism : Democracy Journal Subscribe to the VoxCare newsletterCredits:Jonquilyn Hill, hostSofi LaLonde, producerCristian Ayala, engineerA.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcastsWant to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices