Episódios
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Last night’s debacle of a presidential debate raised a huge question: Why did Democratic Party powerbrokers prevent a serious, contested presidential primary against Joe Biden?
It’s a question that our podcast Lever Time dared to explore a while ago when it was a taboo topic. At the time, we were criticized for even discussing it — even though this morning, it seems everyone in America is now finally asking the question we had the temerity to ask.
So today we’re re-releasing that original episode of Lever Time here — but with a new updated discussion about what happened at last night’s debate, and why it’s so important.
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Today on Lever Time, David Sirota sits down with Semafor co-founder and editor-in-chief Ben Smith to grapple with journalism’s industry-wide reckoning — and explore why independent news might come out on top.
There’s a crisis in journalism. Major media outlets like The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, NPR, and NBC News have laid off hundreds of staff this year, while other publications like Vice and Pitchfork have shut down their flagship websites.
In January alone, one report estimated that more than 500 journalists lost their jobs — with local news outlets especially hard hit. One study found that more than half of U.S. counties have limited or no access to reporting about their communities.
And yet amid the destruction, independent news outlets are emerging from the rubble. Can these digital media start-ups, subscriber-funded newsletters, and independent journalists fill the hole left behind by corporate media?
In an in-depth, no-holds-barred conversation, Sirota and Smith seek to answer these questions, among other media matters. Smith is the co-founder and editor-in-chief of the digital start-up Semafor, and co-host of the podcast Mixed Signals. He also worked as the editor-in-chief of Buzzfeed News and covered the media industry for The New York Times.
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The National Basketball Association wants you to gamble. Since 2014, the league has championed the legalization of sports betting nationwide, partially due to its own business interests in gambling. But the emergence of online gambling has coincided with a rise in troubling health outcomes like increased rates of depression and substance abuse. Today on Lever Time, we explore the recent growth of online gambling, sitting down with sports writers and an addiction expert to learn how it’s impacted society and changed the very nature of sports and fandom.
Sports fans are familiar with the companies DraftKings and FanDuel. In the NBA, their commercials are now as synonymous with the game as slam dunks — and both have transformed how viewers watch the game. In 2018, the Supreme Court struck down a federal law prohibiting gambling in most states — within the same year several states swiftly moved to legalize sports gambling, leading to more widespread usage of online sportsbooks.
Today, millions of fans include betting as part of their viewing experience, but it’s a trend that worries public health experts, athletes, and longtime fans, who believe the NBA’s promotion of gambling will have long-term negative consequences.
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Yesterday, the government introduced a new rule to remove $49 billion in medical debt that’s currently listed on Americans’ credit reports. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) wants to go even further by establishing a grant program to actually cancel the $220 billion in medical debt that Americans owe. If signed into law, the program could relieve the debt burden for more than 100 million people.
Today on Lever Time, Khanna sits down with senior podcast producer Arjun Singh to discuss the bill he’s cosponsoring with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), the chances of the legislation making it through the Republican-controlled House, and his thoughts on the upcoming presidential election.
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Today, we're excited to share the first episode of a new series from our friends over at the podcast City Cast Denver. City Cast Denver is a daily news podcast that connects listeners with what's happening in and around Denver. In their first spinoff series, "Lauren Boebert Can't Lose," the team at City Cast Denver look at key moments from Congresswoman Lauren Boebert's life just ahead of Colorado's June 25th Republican primary, where Boebert's congressional career could come to an end.
You can find the rest of the series here.
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Is the TurboTax era over? Recently, the IRS announced they plan to roll out a free program that will let Americans directly file their taxes online without using expensive tax-assistance programs. The move could have happened more than two decades ago, if not for corporate lobbyists. Today on Lever Time, we look at the 20-year war waged by tax-prep companies like Intuit and H&R Block to stop the government from letting people file online for free.
In the early 2000s, alarmed by calls from the George W. Bush White House to create a public tax filing platform, Intuit, the parent company of TurboTax, went on a lobbying blitz. The government agreed to back down, but only if tax-prep companies allowed low-income taxpayers to file for free. On paper, the tax-prep firms agreed — but in reality, they used deceptive tactics to manipulate taxpayers into paying for their software.
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Behind nearly every hamburger or chicken nugget handed out in a school cafeteria is JBS Foods, a multi-billion dollar conglomerate run by a billionaire butcher family who bribed their way to become the world’s largest meat processor. Today on Lever Time, we look at how JBS captured the meat market, harmed workers, pulverized the environment, and generally tainted all your lunch meats with a hefty dose of corporate corruption.
Every year, the U.S. government gives JBS Foods millions of dollars in subsidies, on top of the millions more it pays the company to supply meat for school lunches and the military. Despite JBS’ long history of illegal behavior, its market dominance has made it impossible for the government to avoid working with them, according to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. JBS isn’t an outlier; today, a handful of companies control most of the country’s agricultural supply.
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Is Ticketmaster too big to fail? It’s the question some musicians and small venue owners are asking in the wake of the Justice Department’s decision to sue Ticketmaster and its parent company Live Nation Entertainment over its alleged monopoly in the music industry. Today on Lever Time, Morgan Harper, an antitrust expert, and Greg Saunier, founder of the indie band Deerhoof, debate the strength of the Justice Department’s case, and whether a win in court would meaningfully benefit musicians, independent music venues, and fans themselves.
Ticketmaster has drawn the ire of musicians for decades. In 1994, members of the rock band Pearl Jam went to Congress alleging Ticketmaster was engaged in price gouging — but nothing happened. Instead, the government allowed Ticketmaster to grow even bigger, giving it massive influence over most of the music industry, gouging customers, and strong-arming musicians into signing away the rights for their tours.
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Today on Lever Time, we dive into the heart of Capital One and hear from a former employee about the credit card titan’s tactics to keep customers forever submerged in debt.
When President Joe Biden moved to cap credit card late fees in March, the financial industry revolted — filing multiple lawsuits against the administration of a man once dubbed one of the banking industry’s favorite senators.
Why are the credit card giants so threatened by losing their junk fees? How exactly have they assumed so much control of our financial lives?
In today’s episode of Lever Time, David Sirota and Arjun Singh go deep into the heart of the credit card industry and its lobbying army to hear how the industry has muscled its way into people’s wallets.
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Today on Lever Time, David Sirota sits down with Jerusalem-based journalist Nathan Thrall to discuss what life has been like in both Gaza and the West Bank since the Oct. 7 attack in Israel. The pair also explores what is motivating Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to continue the war, and why Netanyahu’s iron-fisted approach to the Palestinian territories may be the norm, not an outlier, in Israeli politics.
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For months, Joe Biden has struck a defiant tone in his support of Israel despite the concerns of allies and nationwide protests. Biden has been a fervent supporter of Israel throughout his political career, but his current moves appear to be driven by three close advisors who have consolidated control over the administration’s Israel policy.
Today on Lever Time, David Sirota and Arjun Singh look at the people shaping Biden’s Israel decisions and get an on-the-ground report on how the war has played out in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank.
The Lever is subscriber supported. To become a subscriber, and get access to exclusive bonus content, head here: https://www.levernews.com/
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Since 2021, economists and pundits have tried to blame inflation on workers and rising wages. But a new bombshell exposé spotlights a different cause: oil companies engaging in an alleged price-fixing scheme with Saudi Arabia and other countries that may have fueled roughly one-third of all U.S. inflation in 2021.
A recent Federal Trade Commission case uncovered text messages and documents suggesting the founder of a big oil company colluded with the Saudi government and other oil-producing countries to keep energy prices high. Another lawsuit alleges multiple American oil companies were engaged in a price-fixing scheme.
Today on Lever Time, Matt Stoller of the American Economic Liberties Project discusses his groundbreaking reporting on the matter — and explains how this alleged collusion could have played a major role in the country’s inflation crisis.
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As colleges and police departments crack down on campus protests, law enforcement are using tools borrowed from corporate America’s ballooning surveillance regime to spy on students — and anyone else they deem a threat.
When New York City police raided Columbia University on Tuesday to remove student protesters from a building they’d occupied, Mayor Eric Adams justified the move by claiming “outside agitators” had infiltrated the group. If the claim was even true, how did authorities get that information? What sort of technologies are authorities using to monitor the protesters — and where did these spy tools come from?
This week on Lever Time, David Sirota and producer Arjun Singh look at college protests in the age of total surveillance. They talk with Alistair Kitchen, a student journalist who’s been reporting from Columbia’s campus, and explore how corporate America has taught the intelligence community new ways to use consumer data to spy on people everywhere
If you’d like to follow Alistair Kitchen’s reporting, subscribe to his newsletter here: https://substack.com/@alistair
Our work is subscriber supported. If you want to support us, and hear exclusive podcast content, head to levernews.com
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After years of pressure, the Department of Transportation announced it would require airlines to automatically refund flyers the cost of canceled or significantly delayed flights. Days later, a bipartisan group of senators — who also happen to be some of the largest recipients of campaign cash from the airline industry — unveiled new legislation that could undermine that rule.
In this episode of Lever Time, Lever reporter Katya Schwenk unpacks how a small line in a massive bill could quietly kill a consumer protection rule that was years in the making.
Our work is subscriber supported. If you want to become a subscriber, and get access to exclusive podcast content and articles, sign up here at levernews.com -
Thirty years ago, Amazon was a quirky internet bookseller. But even back then, founder Jeff Bezos wanted to build an empire. Today, Amazon has inserted itself into almost every facet of daily life, and it’s done so by ruthlessly muscling out competition — likely using illegal market tactics.
For years, regulators watched Amazon’s growth and failed to investigate claims that the company violated federal law by engaging in predatory pricing. That changed last year when Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan announced she and 17 state attorneys general were suing Amazon and charging it with being an illegal monopoly. The thing is, Amazon probably could have been sued a long time ago.
On this week’s Lever Time, David Sirota and Arjun Singh unpack how an ideological movement successfully suppressed efforts to challenge corporate monopolies in the United States for nearly half a century and enabled Amazon’s unprecedented rise.
To become a Lever premium member and get access to exclusive bonus podcast content and more, head to levernews.com to subscribe.
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Today, we’re excited to announce the relaunch of The Lever’s flagship podcast Lever Time. In this week’s episode, David Sirota and Senior Podcast Producer Arjun Singh discuss the 2024 presidential election and the Democratic Party’s efforts to prevent a real primary challenge to President Joe Biden.
Since 2008, the Democratic Party leadership has worked to suppress primary challengers and support incumbent politicians. That approach was on full display during the 2024 Democratic primaries, where the DNC worked with state affiliates to ensure that, in some cases, Biden’s two primary challengers didn’t even appear on the ballot.
Given Biden’s consistently low approval ratings and palpable anger over his handling of the war on Gaza, the matter raises troubling questions: Did the party prevent a proper primary because they were afraid of what it could do to Biden? And if so, could their plan to suppress a primary contest backfire and end up hurting Biden in November?
This week on Lever Time, David Sirota and Senior Podcast Producer Arjun Singh unpack Biden’s popularity and look to the 1980 Democratic primary, when Democratic senator Ted Kennedy challenged incumbent president Jimmy Carter.
Our work is subscriber supported. If you'd like to become a Lever subscriber, and get access to our original reporting and bonus podcast episodes, head here: https://www.levernews.com/
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On this week’s episode of Lever Time, David Sirota introduces the Lever’s brand new podcast, Master Plan, which tells the gripping inside story of how extremists and tycoons orchestrated a system of legalized corruption in America. Hosted by David Sirota, the first season of this investigative series traces the untold history of how a small group of operatives and oligarchs used vast wealth to manipulate key U.S. government policies for personal gain at the expense of everyone else.
A transcript of this episode is available here.
Master Plan will be released in the summer of 2024. The Lever’s paid supporters will get first, exclusive access to the entire series. Click here to become a paid supporter.
If you’d like to subscribe to the free version of Master Plan, click here to find it on your preferred podcast player. Or simply search for “Master Plan” in your podcast app and hit subscribe.
Additionally, Lever Time will be taking a short hiatus to accommodate production needs. But stay tuned to this feed for more exciting Lever podcasts coming soon!
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On this week’s episode of Lever Time, producer Frank Cappello and reporter Amos Barshad are joined by union organizers Griffin Ritze and Fatou Souare, who are both involved in a current union drive at an Amazon warehouse in Kentucky. Griffin, an Amazon employee who was recently fired as alleged retaliation, and Fatou, a local community leader with the Kentucky African Women’s Association, speak to The Lever about the unique challenges of organizing a large, diverse workforce in one of Amazon’s largest locations — and what their efforts mean for the larger fight ahead against Amazon.
In 2022, workers at Amazon’s KCVG air hub kicked off their union drive, seeking increased pay, inclusionary policies for non-Native English speakers, and stronger workplace protections. Due to the size and diversity of KCVG’s workforce, local community groups have also gotten involved. In response, Amazon is apparently doing everything in their power to crush the union effort, including hiring union-busting law firms to hold “captive audience” meetings.
In today’s interview, Frank and Amos speak with Griffin and Fatou about the unique challenges of organizing the Amazon hub, the different union-busting tactics the company employs, and how groups like the Kentucky African Women’s Association are working to educate and empower the community.
A transcript of this episode is available here.
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Amazon Labor Union, Northern Kentucky KCVGBONUS: Last week’s bonus episode of Lever Time Premium, exclusively for The Lever’s supporting subscribers, featured David Sirota’s conversation with media strategist Jason Kint about how Facebook’s parent company Meta is trying to protect the money it makes from harvesting kids’ user data.
If you'd like access to Lever Time Premium, which includes extended interviews and bonus content, head over to LeverNews.com to become a supporting subscriber.
If you’d like to leave a tip for The Lever, click the following link. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. levernews.com/tipjar
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On this week’s episode of Lever Time, David Sirota is joined by scientist Zach Rausch, lead researcher for social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, author of the new book The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness.
According to new research, children in the U.S. are producing lower test scores, becoming more easily distracted, growing less sociable, and are generally feeling more anxious than they were several years ago. Now, researchers are drawing a connection between these detrimental effects on childhood development and modern technology like smartphones.
In today’s interview, David and Zach discuss the modern trend of parents “overprotecting kids in the real world, while under-protecting them online.” Zach also explains the unique technological challenges facing young girls in particular, as well as what schools and parents can do to mitigate some of the damage.
A transcript of this episode is available here.
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The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness (Penguin Press, 2024)BONUS: Last week’s bonus episode of Lever Time Premium, exclusively for The Lever’s supporting subscribers, featured David Sirota’s conversation with media strategist Jason Kint about how Facebook’s parent company Meta is trying to protect the money it makes from harvesting kids’ user data.
If you’d like access to Lever Time Premium, which includes extended interviews and bonus content, head over to LeverNews.com to become a supporting subscriber.
If you’d like to leave a tip for The Lever, click the following link. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. levernews.com/tipjar
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On this week’s episode of Lever Time, David Sirota is joined by Oren Cass, executive director of the conservative economics think tank American Compass, for a long-form discussion about Oren’s new brand of conservative economic policy — one that calls for empowering workers and labor unions, rather than crushing them into dust. According to American Compass’ website, their work focuses on “developing the conservative economic agenda to supplant blind faith in free markets with a focus on workers.”
In today’s episode, David interviews Oren about his new vision for Republican economics, which includes the idea that the labor movement is one of the best mechanisms for delivering material gains to working families. They also get into a friendly debate over the effectiveness of the social safety net, the best policy prescriptions to combat climate change, and the culture war around identity politics.
A transcript of this episode is available here.Links:
American CompassBONUS: On Monday's bonus episode of Lever Time Premium, exclusively for The Lever’s supporting subscribers, we shared David Sirota’s conversation with media strategist Jason Kint about how Facebook’s parent company Meta is trying to protect the money it makes from harvesting kids’ user data.
If you'd like access to Lever Time Premium, which includes extended interviews and bonus content, head over to LeverNews.com to become a supporting subscriber.
If you’d like to leave a tip for The Lever, click the following link. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. levernews.com/tipjar
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