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On Point was born in the immediate aftermath of the attacks of 9/11, when the country was looking for answers and impatient with old certitudes. We still carry that urgency today: to test, challenge and probe. 

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Episodes

  • caption: John, left, Jenny and Lila, right, Mackenzie walk around their flood-damaged property in Peachman, Vt. on Sept. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Dmitri Beliakov)

    The Jackpod: Action Completed This Day

    On Point news analyst Jack Beatty on the Federal Emergency Management Agency as a model of government inefficiency and the prospects for FEMA reform.
  • caption: Christopher Rufo, a conservative activist. (Thomas Simonetti for The Washington Post via Getty Images)

    The Jackpod: Culture warrior

    On Point news analyst Jack Beatty on how political activist Christopher Rufo became one of the most influential voices in conservative politics today.
  • caption: Eliot House at Harvard University, Tuesday, April 15, 2025, in Cambridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

    Trump v. higher education

    Harvard University is suing the White House. What the university’s clash with the Trump Administration means for the rest of higher education.
  • caption: FILE - In this Sept. 6, 2013, file photo, Ingrid Forsmark kayaks on Kintla Lake in Glacier National Park, Mont. Public access to Glacier National Park's east entrances has been prohibited since March 2020, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, creating worries for businesses that rely on tourism. (AP Photo/Matt Volz, File)

    The wonder of Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park

    Alaska’s Glacier Bay National Park was first designated a national monument a century ago. Even with climate change, Glacier Bay has a surprising story to tell about nature’s resilience.
  • caption: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., center, is joined from left by Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii and Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, as they speak about the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, during a news conference at the Capitol in Washington, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

    The Jackpod: Off the mat

    On Point news analyst Jack Beatty on how the Democrats could take a leaf from the British parliamentary system to break out of their opinion poll slump.
  • caption: Tesla CEO Elon Musk speaks before unveiling the Model Y at the company's design studio in Hawthorne, Calif. (Jae C. Hong/AP)

    The Jackpod: The child is father of the man

    On Point news analyst Jack Beatty looks back at Elon Musk's traumatic childhood as a lens through which to understand the world view of the planet’s richest man.
  • caption: FILE - Special counsel Jack Smith speaks to the media about an indictment of former President Donald Trump, Aug. 1, 2023, at an office of the Department of Justice in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

    The Jackpod: Throughline

    On Point news analyst Jack Beatty on Special Counsel Jack Smith’s report on federal charges against Donald Trump for election interference in 2020; what has changed since then and what has not.
  • caption: Adam Nimoy gives the Vulcan salute at the "NASA: Turning Science Fiction into Science Fact" panel on day 1 of Comic-Con International on Thursday, July 9, 2015, in San Diego, Calif. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

    Adam Nimoy on growing up the son of Spock

    Adam Nimoy's father, Leonard Nimoy, played Star Trek's Mr. Spock, the most famous alien in television history. In reality, he was a tough, uncompromising father. In a conversation live from CitySpace, Nimoy discusses his book “The Most Human: Reconciling with My Father, Leonard Nimoy."
  • caption: Trump and his running mate Sen. JD Vance stand on stage at an election night watch party at the Palm Beach Convention Center. (Evan Vucci/AP)

    The Jackpod: We're going back

    On Point news analyst Jack Beatty on the historic eras the U.S. could return to if Donald Trump’s various campaign policies are enacted.