Press Play with Madeleine Brand
What are U.S. troops doing in Niger?
The controversy over President Trump calling the relatives of the four soldiers who recently died in Niger raises the question: What is the U.S. doing there?
By Madeleine Brand • • 47m ListenPhoto: Defense Secretary James Mattis (R) delivers remarks to reporters about recent U.S. troops killed in Niger as he welcomes Israel's Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman and his delegation for meetings at the Pentagon in Washington, U.S. October 19, 2017. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)
In this episode
5 storiesCan Congress prevent election interference by regulating social media?
Some members of Congress are trying to prevent foreign interference in American elections by making online ads more transparent. A new bipartisan bill would regulate them the same way as TV and radio ads.
Read the story7 minWho bought the LA Weekly?
The group Semanal is buying the LA Weekly. There’s not much known about Semanal -- what it is, who’s behind it, and what it plans to do with the Weekly. The Weekly is already a much thinner version of its old self. But it used to be the go-to independent paper for Angelenos.
Read the story7 minWhat has the U.S. been doing in Niger?
The controversy over whether or not President Trump called the relatives of the four soldiers who were recently killed in Niger obscured the bigger questions: What are we doing in Niger? Are we at war there? And who are we fighting?
Read the story8 minAi Weiwei on the global refugee crisis
Chinese artist Ai Weiwei is known for works that challenge repressive regimes and government censorship. In 2011, he was arrested by the Chinese government, beaten by police, and surveilled. He now lives in Berlin.
Read the story10 minLiving with mental illness and the history of Lithium
Jaime Lowe grew up in Los Angeles. She first lost her mind, as she describes it, when she was in high school. But she says lithium saved her. She’s out with a new book about being bipolar.
Read the story14 min
