On Point

How does the world see America’s insurrection, the election and lies that preceded it, and the politics that followed it? What do they see, that Americans can’t see ourselves? Indi Samarajiva lives in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He's worried that Americans aren't worried enough about what's happening to U.S. democracy.

The rally before the attack on the Capitol. Who funded it? How much did they spend? Who are they funding now? We talk dark money and the insurrection. Meredith McGehee and Mike Spies join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Social media platforms have immense power, from shutting down voices to amplifying what we see. But is that singular power perilous to democracy? Shoshana Zuboff, Guillaume Chaslot and Ramesh Srinivasan join Meghna Chakrabarti.

What would an anthem for the U.S. Space Force sound like? Well, cue the Voices of Freedom, a Miami, Florida music group. Brothers Miguel and Federico Arango formed Voices of Freedom to sing and play patriotic music for U.S. military veterans. So when the U.S. Space Force was created, Miguel and Federico knew immediately what their next composition had to be.

The U.S. Space Force, a new military branch, celebrated its first birthday last month. But what exactly is its mission? We find out. Todd Harrison and Joan Johnson-Freese join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Redditors banded together to rock the stock market. What does GameStop actually tell us about wealth, power and how Wall Street works? Alexis Goldstein and Jacob Frenkel join Meghna Chakrabarti.

The Senate is split 50-50. The power center of gravity? Democrat Joe Manchin. How will he wield his influence? Professor Robert Rupp, Belinda Biafore, Jack Beatty and Sahil Kapur join Meghna Chakrabarti.

President Joe Biden's new bar for the COVID vaccine rollout: 200 million doses by summer. But what about people who hope to get the vaccine now? What can the government really do to speed up distribution? Dr. Julie Morita and Dr. Ashish Jha join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Online school. Virtual playdates. Video games. What does it mean for children that more and more of their world is now mediated through a screen? After the pandemic, how will they transition back? Anya Kamenetz and Natasha Burgert join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Avril Haines, the director of National Intelligence, says the DNI must work in a way that is "ethical, is wise, is lawful and effective." What does her work supporting the Obama administration's drone program say about what she thinks is ethical and effective? Rita Siemion and Chris Whipple join Meghna Chakrabarti.

In 1995, three white soldiers shot and killed a Black couple in Fayetteville, North Carolina. George Reed was an Army CID supervisor assigned to the case. Over 25 years later, the details are still fresh in his mind.

Nearly 20% of people charged in connection with the Capitol attack have some sort of military background. How far-reaching is extremism in the United States military? Col. Jeff McCausland and Heidi Beirich join Meghna Chakrabarti.

President Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID economic relief plan is on the table. We talk about President Biden's first big legislative push. Erica Werner, Lily Roberts, Kevin Mumford and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries join Meghna Chakrabarti.

The transition in the White House has taken place. Is the nation capable of change? How do historians look upon this moment? We hear their long view of this extraordinary month. Lisa Tetrault, Peniel Joseph and John McWhorter join Meghna Chakrabarti.

President Joe Biden signs 17 executive orders in his first hours in office. We dig into what they say, where Biden might succeed and what policies will meet resistance. Barbara Perry, Kimberly Atkins and Matt Viser join Meghna Chakrabarti.

President Joe Biden carries a rosary in his pocket and attends Mass regularly. How does his faith inform his politics? And where does Biden's Catholicism land in the spectrum of American Catholic belief? Massimo Faggioli and Jack Beatty join Meghna Chakrabarti.

On election night 2008, photojournalist Matt Mendelsohn went to the Lincoln Memorial and took a picture of the people gathered there -- the quiet moment the photograph captures is almost impossible to imagine now, given the nation’s current politics. Mendelsohn’s photograph eventually came into the hands of Congressman John Lewis, who gave a copy of it to President Obama as an inauguration present. The picture hung outside Obama’s White House office for the next eight years. In this radio diary, Mendelsohn tells us how this photo came to be.

In its final days of power, the Trump administration is making last minute policy changes on the environment, foreign policy and national security. How will these moves influence the first weeks of the Biden administration? Karen DeYoung and Leon Panetta join Meghna Chakrabarti.

Los Angeles is experiencing a devastating coronavirus surge. On Saturday, LA County became the first county to reach 1 million cases since the start of the pandemic.  The pandemic is having an economic impact, too. On Monday's show, we turn back to Sean Knibb, owner of Knibb Design interiors and Flowerboy Project, a cafe and flower shop in Venice, California. Knibb says the cafe has become a comforting community hub, even as the coronavirus spreads, touching his employees lives, his family’s life and the neighborhood itself.

Los Angeles county is one of the hottest COVID hotspots in the U.S. right now. Every minute, on average, 10 more people test positive. Can Los Angeles get control of the surge? Dr. Elaine Batchlor and Anne Rimoin join Meghna Chakrabarti.