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Hosted by The Washington Post · 🇺🇸 US · EN-US · 170 episodes
Established thought leaders with verified media credentials.
Enough with the doom and gloom — we’re ready to talk about how America can thrive. Hosted by Washington Post Opinion columnist Megan McArdle, “Reasonably Optimistic” is your weekly conversation about how America can get unstuck and build a better future. Stop feeding your rage and start embracing our possibilities. Episodes drop Wednesdays.
The Washington Post hosts Reasonably Optimistic, a news show with 170 episodes published.
America is becoming less religious — but the story is more complicated than empty pews. Host Megan McArdle is joined by political scientist and former pastor Ryan Burge to talk about the shifts taking place in America's
America’s colleges have spent years at the center of the culture wars. But some of the sharpest critics of higher education are people who once believed deeply in its mission — and changed their minds after seeing it fro
From the housing shortage to rising electricity costs, many of America’s biggest affordability problems come back to the same question: Why can’t we build more? Host Megan McArdle is joined by political commentator Josh
As students head back to school, families and educators are facing a growing question: What should they do about smartphones? Host Megan McArdle is joined by social psychologist Jonathan Haidt to talk about how TikTok, s
Dinner shouldn’t be stressful. But after a long day, even deciding what to cook can feel like one more exhausting task. Add the pressure to make meals healthy, affordable, interesting and Instagram-worthy, and home cooki
Public confidence in higher education has been eroding for years. Rising costs, uncertain job prospects and political conflict have led many people to question whether colleges still serve the public. But trying to fix t
Relationships have always required compromise and patience. But dating apps, social media and therapy-speak can make ordinary human flaws feel like reasons to walk away. So, when is it right to leave and when are we givi
For generations, owning a home was seen as the first real step into adulthood: a place to raise a family, build wealth and claim a piece of the American Dream. But for Gen Z, soaring prices, high mortgage rates and a sho
The drug crisis in the United States did not begin with fentanyl. It began with a series of choices that seemed compassionate at the time — prescribing opioids for people in pain, scaling back punishment and trying to ma
Gen Z has been told a lot of things about loneliness: that it’s caused by phones, social media, remote work, dating apps, the pandemic, the decline of third places and a culture that makes staying home easier than ever.
For a lot of men, friendship doesn’t disappear all at once. It fades slowly: a missed call here, a canceled plan there, a few busy years that become a decade. Before you know it, the relationship has moved to the backgro
A trillion dollars seems like enough money to solve almost anything. We could end world hunger, wipe out medical debt, shrink the federal deficit and still have plenty left over. So when people talk about Elon Musk’s pot
Populist candidates have a way of making politics feel simple. They tell voters that the problem is obvious, the villains are known and the solution is to break through corrupt institutions standing in the way. That mess
As European tourists travel across the United States for World Cup matches, many are discovering an America they didn’t expect: vast landscapes, friendly strangers, huge portions, small-town surprises and a sense of abun
There was a time when shopping for clothes meant walking into a department store and hoping the limited sizes and styles available at that exact moment might fit. Then, the internet changed everything. Online shopping di
Millions of Americans have moved to the South in recent years. The usual explanations — lower taxes, cheaper housing and warmer weather — are only part of the story. Host Megan McArdle explores the economic and historica
Host Megan McArdle talks with culture writer Kat Rosenfield about how dating apps, therapy-speak and online gender wars have changed romance — making flirtation feel risky, rejection feel catastrophic and desire feel sus
Political parties keep asking voters to overlook scandals, bad judgment and unstable behavior because the other side is worse. Senate candidates Graham Platner and Ken Paxton are only the latest examples. Host Megan McAr
Is empathy destroying the West? That's the provocative claim at the center of Gad Saad's new book, "Suicidal Empathy." Host Megan McArdle is joined by Saad, a professor at the University of Mississippi, to discuss the tr
Eating food cooked at home has traditionally been considered a cheaper option to ordering takeout. So why are so many in Gen Z choosing food away from home? Host Megan McArdle explores how convenience, changing expectati
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Reasonably Optimistic is hosted by The Washington Post. The show is categorised under news (technology) and has published 170 episodes.
Reasonably Optimistic has published 170 episodes.
Reasonably Optimistic regularly covers news, technology. It sits in the news category, with a technology focus.
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