The Excerpt

USA TODAY
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Jul 3, 2025 • 10min

Chatbot therapy? Available 24/7 but users beware.

AI chatbots are being used for mental health support — and it’s raising red flags. From offering bad advice to encouraging self-harm, some mental health chatbots are crossing dangerous lines. Vaile Wright, senior director of health care innovation for the American Psychological Association, joins The Excerpt to talk about what’s at stake—and how regulation could protect users.Let us know what you think of this episode by sending an email to podcasts@usatoday.com.Episode transcript available hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Jul 3, 2025 • 13min

House clears key hurdle on tax megabill

The House has cleared a hurdle on President Donald Trump's bill of legislative priorities.USA TODAY National Correspondent Marco della Cava puts Diddy's trial in context after a verdict.A federal judge has blocked President Trump's asylum ban at the U.S.-Mexico border.Kilmar Abrego Garcia experienced "severe beatings" and "psychological torture" at a prison in El Salvador, according to a new court filing.USA TODAY Youth Mental Health Reporting Fellow Rachel Hale discusses why LGBTQ+ youth are twice as likely to be homeless.Clayton Kershaw joins the 3,000 strikeout club.The U.S. men's soccer team advances to the Gold Cup Final to play Mexico.Let us know what you think of this episode by sending an email to podcasts@usatoday.com.Episode transcript available hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Jul 2, 2025 • 13min

Can shared public spaces bridge the American divide?

Walls. We all navigate them whether they be the walls throughout our homes, neighborhoods, and the places we choose to frequent, or the internal walls that allow us to maintain our distance from others. To what extent is divisiveness baked into our infrastructure, politic, and psyche? Anand Pandian, Professor of Anthropology at Johns Hopkins University, joins USA TODAY’s The Excerpt to discuss his new book “Something Between Us.” In it, he explores the walls that divide us as a nation. Let us know what you think of this episode by sending an email to podcasts@usatoday.com.Episode transcript available hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Jul 2, 2025 • 13min

Senate passes Trump's big bill; House battle is next

USA TODAY Chief Political Correspondent Phillip M. Bailey gives some of his biggest takeaways after the Senate's passage of President Donald Trump's bill of legislative priorities.Paramount settles with Trump over a ‘60 Minutes’ interview.The University of Pennsylvania has agreed to prohibit transgender athletes from competing in women's sports and strip the record of former swimmer Lia Thomas.A big summer of soccer rolls on.Let us know what you think of this episode by sending an email to podcasts@usatoday.com.Episode transcript available hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Jul 1, 2025 • 12min

Senate plods along as Republicans negotiate key parts of Trump's bill

The Senate early this morning was still voting and negotiating on President Donald Trump's bill on tax cuts, Medicaid and more.USA TODAY Supreme Court Correspondent Maureen Groppe discusses the court's move to hear a GOP challenge to a campaign spending limit.The Justice Department sues Los Angeles to end 'sanctuary' immigration policies.Trump penned a handwritten note to Fed Chair Jerome Powell demanding lower interest rates.The man accused of killing four University of Idaho students in 2022 has accepted a plea deal in the case.USA TODAY National Correspondent Elizabeth Weise tells us how some plastic bag bans appear to be working.Let us know what you think of this episode by sending an email to podcasts@usatoday.com.Episode transcript available hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Jun 30, 2025 • 13min

Senators to begin morning vote on Trump's major tax, Medicaid, border bill

Senators on Monday will vote on President Donald Trump's legislative priorities.USA TODAY Investigative Reporter Nick Penzenstadler discusses how mentally ill detained immigrants are being forced to fight in solitude.Canada rescinds its digital services tax amid newly stalled U.S. trade talks.A sniper in Idaho started a blaze and killed two responding firefighters in an ambush attack before being found dead hours later, authorities say.USA TODAY Senior Reporter Jessica Guynn tells us why some say there's a double standard around remote work.Let us know what you think of this episode by sending an email to podcasts@usatoday.com.Episode transcript available here. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Jun 29, 2025 • 14min

Victims retraumatized and perpetrators glorified: The ethical reckoning of true crime

True crime is a cultural obsession. But beneath the gripping stories of ghastly crimes and elusive perpetrators are tough questions about ethics, representation and respect. Who gets to tell these stories? Whose voices are amplified and whose are left out? And how can creators avoid retraumatizing victims? Journalism professor and true crime author Kate Winkler Dawson joins The Excerpt to unpack where the genre goes wrong, how it can do better, and why responsible storytelling matters now more than ever.Let us know what you think of this episode by sending an email to podcasts@usatoday.com.Episode Transcript available hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Jun 28, 2025 • 14min

Supreme Court wraps term with decisions on birthright citizenship, Obamacare and more

USA TODAY Supreme Court Correspondent Maureen Groppe recaps the final day of the high court's term. We discuss decisions ranging from birthright citizenship to Obamacare, LGBTQ+ books in public schools and more.Undocumented immigrants face massive fines under a new Trump rule.President Donald Trump says the U.S. will end trade talks with Canada.California Gov. Gavin Newsom sues Fox News for defamation.Let us know what you think of this episode by sending an email to podcasts@usatoday.com.Episode Transcript available hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Jun 27, 2025 • 11min

Supreme Court sides with South Carolina in effort to cut Planned Parenthood funding

USA TODAY Supreme Court Correspondent Maureen Groppe breaks down the implications of the high court's decision siding with South Carolina in its effort to cut Planned Parenthood funding.President Donald Trump's passport policy was lifted. But some Americans are still in the dark.Protests pop up in Venice before the Jeff Bezos-Lauren Sánchez wedding. Why are people upset?USA TODAY National Correspondent Marco della Cava talks about the popularity of Formula One racing and a new Brad Pitt movie - F1 - in theaters today.(Trailer credit: Apple Original Films/Warner Bros. Pictures)Let us know what you think of this episode by sending an email to podcasts@usatoday.com.Episode Transcript available hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Jun 26, 2025 • 10min

SPECIAL | LGBTQ+ pride under pressure: Fighting back, then and now

In 1969, LGBTQ+ patrons at the Stonewall Inn fought back against a violent police raid — and sparked a global movement. More than 50 years later, the fight continues. Under President Donald Trump’s second term, the National Park Service quietly removed “transgender” and “T” and “Q” from the Stonewall National Monument website. USA TODAY National Correspondent Michael Collins joins The Excerpt to share his reporting on Stonewall veterans who fear history is being rewritten.Let us know what you think of this episode by sending an email to podcasts@usatoday.com.Episode Transcript available hereSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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