Vox

The credit card crisis - April 15, 2026 - Vox

Americans are carrying more than $1.2 trillion in credit card debt, and for a lot of people, it’s not from splurging. It’s everyday stuff: car repairs, medical bills, groceries. And if you only make the minimum payment, that debt can grow exponentially, sticking around for years.

The average credit card interest rate today is close to 20%, nearly doubling since 2010. So what’s driving these high rates?

Part of it is the broader economy. When the Federal Reserve raises rates to fight inflation, credit card APRs usually go up too. But that’s not the whole story.

Credit cards are unsecured loans, meaning there’s no house or car to repossess if you don’t pay. And Americans have become more and more reliant on credit cards as wages stagnate and health care costs continue to rise.

Read more about how credit card interest rates are impacting everyone:

Why did my interest rate go up on my credit card? | Bankrate https://www.bankrate.com/credit-cards/news/what-to-do-after-card-apr-increase/

Why are credit card interest rates so high? | Nerd Wallet https://www.nerdwallet.com/credit-cards/learn/credit-card-interest-rates-high

Why is your credit card rate so high? | Wharton https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/why-is-your-credit-card-rate-so-high/

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The contradictions of wokeness - April 13, 2026 - Vox

What does it mean to be “woke”? It's become a catch-all term to smear or dismiss anything that has any vague association with progressive politics. So anytime you venture into an argument about “wokeness,” it becomes hopelessly entangled in a broader cultural battle.

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Today’s guest, journalist and professor Musa al-Gharbi, helps us untangle “wokeness” from its fraught political context. The author of the book, We Have Never Been Woke: The Cultural Contradictions of a New Elite, al-Gharbi discusses what effects the movement is and isn’t having on our society.

This episode originally aired in November 2024.

Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling)

Guest: Musa al-Gharbi (@Musa_alGharbi)

6:11 What is wokeness?

18:48 Why George Floyd only mattered to the public after his death

20:32 How elites navigate the tension between their status and their values

28:43 How culturally significant is “wokeness”?

32:21 Do social movements produce change?

42:22 Will our politics remain polarized?

We would love to hear from you. To tell us what you thought of this episode, email us at [email protected] or leave us a voicemail at 1-800-214-5749. Your comments and questions help us make a better show.

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What comes after Donald Trump? | America, Actually - April 11, 2026 - Vox

What does US politics look like when Donald Trump is no longer at the center of it? In 2028, voters will get to decide.

For this first episode of America, Actually, host and editorial director Astead Herndon sits down with data scientist Nate Silver and culture critic Hunter Harris to explore the major policies, issues, groups, and people that will guide the United States into a post-Trump future. Is the country headed toward a return to civility or total fragmentation?

00:00 Intro

00:41 This is America, Actually

01:11 Can politics be Trump-free?

04:10 Who leads a post-Trump America?

11:47 Lessons from 2016

14:02 Affordability, foreign policy, and culture

16:21 Manosphere and loneliness

20:11 Kitchen table issues

24:41 The US and Israel

26:21 America’s global standing

27:21 What brings us hope

America, Actually publishes video episodes every Saturday tackling key issues in politics, culture, and the economy. Subscribe to Vox’s YouTube channel to get them. Listen to episodes of America, Actually on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite app.

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Iran's strongest weapon - April 10, 2026 - Vox

In 2019, Vox produced an explainer video on the Strait of Hormuz that ended with this line: “Without the direct diplomatic contact between the US and Iran, each run-in has the risk of escalating into war one that could disrupt the jugular of the global economy in the process.”

That war is now here.

Since the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran in February, the Strait of Hormuz has become the flashpoint of the regional conflict in the Middle East. Thousands have been killed and millions of lives disrupted as violence has exploded across the region. Iran has responded by wielding the Strait of Hormuz as an economic weapon by restricting access to the Strait.

The result has been global inflation and supply disruption as scarcity drives up the price of oil, gas, and other products that the global economy desperately needs. Iran seems intent on continuing to use the Strait of Hormuz as a high-value bargaining chip, as the country sustains military, civilian, and infrastructure losses.

But the longer the US and Israel struggle to make a deal to permanently reopen the Strait, the longer they will shoulder the blame for starving the world of essential items.

If you want to read more about the Strait of Hormuz, here are some sources that contributed to our reporting:

Vox’s ongoing coverage of the US-Iran war: https://www.vox.com/politics/481087/us-iran-trump-war-israel-politics-explainer

Vox’s 2019 video explainer on the Strait of Hormuz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUBg6Qp_N98

The UN’s breakdown of global trade and development disruptions caused by the Strait of Hormuz: https://unctad.org/publication/strait-hormuz-disruptions-implications-global-trade-and-development

Brookings Institution’s commentary on Iran’s disruption of the Strait of Hormuz: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/why-irans-disruption-of-the-strait-of-hormuz-matters/

The Independent’s analysis of the war by the numbers: https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/middle-east/iran-israel-us-war-death-toll-b2953551.html

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How to forgive yourself - April 10, 2026 - Vox

It’s easy to forgive other people because you don’t have to live inside their head. Forgiving yourself is different and much, much harder.

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Sean Illing is joined by philosopher Myisha Cherry to talk about what it actually means to forgive yourself without letting yourself off the hook. They discuss the difference between guilt and shame (one can push you to repair, while the other just makes you want to hide), why even small screwups can leave a lingering moral aftertaste, and how regret can either trap you in self-reproach or become fuel for doing better.

Host: Sean Illing (@SeanIlling)

Guest: Myisha Cherry (@myishacherry)

1:53 The value of forgiveness

5:18 The differences between forgiveness and self-forgiveness

7:32 What gives you the right to forgive yourself?

11:02 We're hard on ourselves because we have standards for ourselves

14:50 Guilt vs. shame

16:00 A horrible person vs. someone who does horrible things

28:43 Is anything unforgivable?

35:11 What does your life look like if you cannot forgive yourself?

35:50 Forgiving yourself vs. letting yourself off the hook

Vox.com is a news website that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Check out http://www.vox.com.

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