Palin, Putin, and protests: 5 news podcast episodes from this week’s headlines

Feeling like way too much happened in the news this week to keep up? We’ve got you. We here at Podsauce have pulled five podcast episodes about the biggest news stories of this week, from Sarah Palin’s libel case against the New York Times to the Los Angeles Rams taking home the Lombardi Trophy. There’s also more news coming from Ukraine’s border, and families of victims from the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012 finally got some good news.

See what else made the cut in these podcasts from this week’s headlines:

The Daily

For three weeks now, a convoy of truckers have occupied Ottawa, Canada’s capital. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has declared a state of emergency. This episode from “The Daily” examines how a country whose measures have received very little pushback or politicization in the face of strict restrictions have somehow ended up here.

What A Day

While Vladimir Putin said that the military has recalled some Russian troops from the borders of Ukraine, the U.S. remains wary of a potential invasion as it has not yet verified that any Russian troops have been removed. Matthew Chance, CNN’s Senior International Correspondent, joins “What A Day” from Kyiv to discuss. Also, Remington Arms has finally settled with families of the women and children killed in Sandy Hook Elementary School, scientists say they’ve cured a woman with HIV, and sea levels are now predicted to rise one foot in just 30 years due to climate change.

Today, Explained

On Monday, Judge Jed S. Rakoff dismissed the defamation case brought by Sarah Pail against the New York Times. The next day, the jury delivered the same verdict, rejecting Palin’s accusations that the New York Times had libeled her in a 2017 editorial. So, we weren’t even all that aware that this was going on, but luckily, “Today, Explained” has got it covered. Erik Wemple, who has been covering the trial for the Washington Post, breaks down the case for us, bringing us all the way back to when it first started on June 14th, 2017, when James Hodgkinson opened fire on Republican lawmakers at a baseball practice in Alexandria, VA. P.S. this episode was recorded/released before the two verdicts.

5 Things

The Los Angeles Rams are Super Bowl Champions, with Super Bowl MVP Cooper Kupp and Matt Stafford (in his first year with Los Angeles) at the helm. Also in this episode, USA TODAY Sports’ reporter Gabe Lacques sits down to talk about the night’s commercials. Plus, reporter Christine Fernanda explores the lack of diversity in courts across the United States, gun violence has continued to worsen since the Parkland shooting on Valentine’s Day in 2018, and a new school is offering money to teenagers to skip college basketball.

TIME’s The Brief

“TIME’s The Brief” reads off the top news stories of today. An article from TIME says that tobacco giant Altria has been quietly funding CU Boulder’s substance-use-prevention program that teaches elementary through high school students to avoid substance abuse and other risky behaviors. But, ample research has shown that industry-sponsored programs like this don’t actually prevent teens from smoking. In fact, it may actually encourage it. Also, recent studies have shown that women who get a COVID-19 vaccine while pregnant cut their baby’s risk of the virus, and experts are casting doubt on claims by Russian skater Kamila Valieva’s team that her drug test was contaminated by her grandfather’s heart medication. Plus, Brazil’s President Bolsonaro has plans to visit Putin despite criticism from the United States, and Alec Baldwin is being sued by the family of Halyna Hutchins, the cinematographer killed on the set of his movie Rust.