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Explainers

Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald’s bonkers plot twist, explained

By Aja Romano

Here’s what you need to know about Sri Lanka’s escalating political crisis

By Jen Kirby

Green Book builds a feel-good comedy atop an artifact of shameful segregation. Yikes.

By Alissa Wilkinson

“This will make schools less safe”: why Betsy DeVos’s sexual assault rules have advocates worried

By Anna North

The US economy doesn’t need more Amazon jobs. It needs higher wages.

By Alexia Fernández Campbell

Does cutting carbs really help keep weight off? The big new diet study, explained.

By Julia Belluz

The world just redefined the kilogram

By Brian Resnick

Florida’s high-stakes recounts for governor and Senate, explained

By Tara Golshan

The latest Brexit drama, explained

By Jen Kirby

How Trump-skeptical Republicans swung the 2018 midterms

By Jane Coaston

Why the political fight in Georgia is far from over

By P.R. Lockhart

California’s wildfires are hardly “natural” — humans made them worse at every step

By Umair Irfan

Marijuana legalization, explained

More states and countries are legalizing marijuana. Here’s what you need to know.

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Police shootings and brutality in the US: 9 things you should know

Racial disparities in American policing are under heightened scrutiny. Here’s what you need to know.

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Transgender people: 10 common myths

As transgender issues get more attention, pernicious myths remain. Here’s what you should know.

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Why racist politics appeals to white women, explained by American history

By Anna North

House Democrats have a sweeping plan to protect millions of workers’ legal rights

By Alexia Fernández Campbell

The many scandals of Trump’s new acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker, explained

By Andrew Prokop

Peloton’s $2,000 stationary bike has totally disrupted working out at home

By Cheryl Wischhover

Gerrymandering, explained

How politicians draw the lines to benefit themselves.

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Amazon HQ2: the many layers of backlash against the company’s expansion, explained

By Gaby Del Valle

I looked for a state that’s taking gun violence seriously. I found Massachusetts.

Massachusetts offers a model for dealing with gun violence that the rest of the country could follow.

By German Lopez

The races that still haven’t been called in Florida and Georgia, explained

By Tara Golshan, Li Zhou, and 1 other

The controversies of Trump’s Paris trip, explained

By Jen Kirby

The Trump administration’s anti-birth control agenda, explained

By Anna North

YouTube is full of cringey, clickbait DIY channels. They’re even weirder than you think.

By Rebecca Jennings

The Florida voter fraud allegations, explained

By German Lopez

The asylum ban — Trump’s boldest immigration power grab yet — explained

By Dara Lind

What the new Democratic House majority might actually pass on health care

By Dylan Scott

Ariana Grande’s greatest asset isn’t her amazing voice. It’s her resilience.

By Alex Abad-Santos

The Arizona, Florida, and Georgia election recounts, explained

By Kay Steiger, Li Zhou, and 2 others

Democratic wins in these 9 states will have seismic policy consequences

By Dylan Scott

A new report says Trump was directly involved in campaign finance crimes

By Andrew Prokop

The fight to lead House Republicans now that they’re in the minority, explained

By Tara Golshan

America’s unique gun violence problem, explained in 17 maps and charts

By German Lopez

I’ve covered gun violence for years. The solutions aren’t a big mystery.

By German Lopez

America’s gun problem, explained

The public and research support gun control. Here’s how it could help — and why it doesn’t pass.

By German Lopez

Trump’s bizarre post-election press conference, explained

By Matthew Yglesias

White evangelicals turned out for the GOP in big numbers again

All the policy wins that explain evangelical Christians’ loyalty to Trump — and their role in the 2018 midterm elections.

By Dylan Scott

Why wasn’t the blue wave bigger?

By Tara Golshan

Trump’s free ride from Congress just ended

By Andrew Prokop

Beto O’Rourke could lead a blue wave in Texas — even though he lost his Senate race

By Tara Golshan
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