Sabrina Tavernisi
Appearances
The Daily
Syria Unearths Years of Atrocities
From The New York Times, I'm Sabrina Tavernisi, and this is The Daily. After the fall of Bashar al-Assad and the opening up of Syria, tens of thousands of people were released from prisons across the country. Many had been locked away for years. Today, my colleague Christina Goldbaum takes us inside one of those prisons and tells us the story of a man who made it out. It's Tuesday, December 17th.
The Daily
Syria Unearths Years of Atrocities
How does Bilal describe his mental state through all of this?
The Daily
Syria Unearths Years of Atrocities
Christina, what was it like when you first got to Syria?
The Daily
Syria Unearths Years of Atrocities
So they got one answer, but still don't have the other. Exactly. When you talked to Bilal's father, how was he feeling about this?
The Daily
Syria Unearths Years of Atrocities
Christina, do they plan on continuing their search in the coming days?
The Daily
Syria Unearths Years of Atrocities
Christina, thank you. Thanks for having me. We'll be right back. On Monday, the German government collapsed after Chancellor Olaf Scholz lost a no confidence vote in the country's parliament. Schultz was forced to take the unusual step of calling for the vote because his three-party coalition splintered last month, leaving him without a parliamentary majority to pass laws or a budget.
The Daily
Syria Unearths Years of Atrocities
New elections are slated for late February. And a judge has rejected the argument made by President-elect Donald Trump that he is protected by presidential immunity when it comes to his conviction in the state of New York. Judge Juan Merchan said on Monday that the immunity argument does not apply because the case involves unofficial and personal acts that preceded Trump's first term.
The Daily
Syria Unearths Years of Atrocities
If the decision withstands the expected appeal, he could become the first felon to serve as president. Today's episode was produced by Rochelle Bonja, Claire Tennesketter, Lindsay Garrison, and Stella Tan, with help from Eric Krupke. It was edited by Patricia Willans, with help from Lindsay Garrison.
The Daily
Syria Unearths Years of Atrocities
Contains original music by Dan Powell, Marion Lozano, and Rowan Nemisto, and was engineered by Chris Wood. Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Lansford of Wonderly. Special thanks to Huayra Saad and Raham Roshed. That's it for The Daily. I'm Sabrina Tavernisi. See you tomorrow.
The Daily
Syria Unearths Years of Atrocities
We'll be right back. So, Christina, this man you met, Bilal, told you about how he got arrested and sent to Sidneya Prison. What did he say about what life was like inside the prison?
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
From The New York Times, I'm Sabrina Tavernisi, and this is The Daily. Since the election of Donald Trump, cryptocurrency has surged to its highest level ever.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
And of course, we know the end of this story, which is that Trump wins the election.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
We'll be right back. Okay, so crypto now has this new level of influence in Washington, as you say. What does that look like exactly?
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
Incredibly powerful role because in government, personnel is policy. So this is a big deal.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
What do we know about Paul Atkins? My understanding is he did serve at the SEC before. He's well known in Wall Street. He's well known in Republican political circles.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
Okay, so not only can crypto count on all of these new people coming into Congress, but they actually have these two incredibly important positions in the highest level of government. What is the effect of that likely to be for the industry, David? It feels almost like kind of crypto cabinet, right? Yeah.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
And can Atkins just do that? Like say these cases are now canceled?
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
So in other words, they want to take power away from this quite powerful agency that had been going after them and give it to a much less powerful agency and presumably less resourced.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
But what justification does the crypto industry give for this? Presumably they're not saying, hey, U.S. government, invest in this thing so that my assets can go up. Like, why do they say it's good for the U.S. ?
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
Right. If the world is not running on the U.S. dollar, the U.S. has a lot bigger problems than cryptocurrency, I suppose. But let's just kind of carry this pipe dream out here. What would be in it for the U.S.? Like, why would the U.S. ever want to do something like this?
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
Okay, so in sum, it's possible that these crypto companies are actually going to get their entire wish list for Christmas. What might that mean for the rest of the U.S. economy?
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
But I guess, David, one man's shackles is another man's safety valve, right? I mean, fundamentally, this is a very risky asset for all of the reasons we've discussed. And it does seem like watching these new government officials come in and understanding how friendly they are to the industry is
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
For me, it feels a bit like we might be witnessing the architecture of the next financial crisis being built before our eyes.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
We'll be right back. Here's what else you should know today. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve made their third and final rate cut of the year, lowering rates to about 4.4%. Jerome Powell, the Fed chairman, said the cuts mark a new phase in the Fed's plan to engineer a so-called soft landing for the economy.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
The Fed also forecast that there would be fewer rate reductions next year than previously expected, as it continues to try to strike a balance between controlling inflation and preventing job loss. And the stopgap spending bill that Republicans and Democrats agreed to to prevent a government shutdown is in jeopardy after President-elect Donald Trump condemned it.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
Trump's move comes just days before a Saturday morning deadline to fund the government and underscored the extraordinarily fraught position that Republican leaders will have to manage in the new Congress when they face a president with a penchant for blowing up politically fraught compromises. Today's episode was produced by Mary Wilson, Michael Simon Johnson, Rochelle Bonja, and Will Reed.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
It was edited by Liz O'Balin, fact-checked by Susan Lee, contains original music by Marion Lozano and Dan Powell, and was engineered by Chris Wood. Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsberg of Wonderly. That's it for The Daily. I'm Sabrina Tavernisi. See you tomorrow.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
Okay, so feels potentially very real. Why has crypto been having this resurgence?
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
Got it. So that's part of the explanation, this kind of opening up of the mainstream economy to this pretty rarefied, kind of weird, formerly on the fringes financial instrument. But I also remember at that point, David, because you and I, of course, did an episode about this. I remember that the federal government and the regulators did not like that so much.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
There was kind of a frenzy of concern among the federal government.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
And just remind us, David, what was Gensler's kind of thrust here? What was he trying to do?
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
Today, my colleague David Yaffe-Bellini on how a small renegade industry that began as a challenge to the financial system ended up on top of it. It's Thursday, December 19th. So, David, you and I have been talking for years now about the ups and downs and ups again of this thing that never really seems quite real or solid, and that is crypto. And now crypto has exploded in value.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
He was basically trying to make sure that crypto, which really is this pretty risky thing, that if it were to go belly up, it would not infect the broader economy.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
So, David, how did the crypto industry respond to that, to all of this that Gensler was doing?
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
Is this just another twist in the roller coaster or is it something bigger? Is this a pivotal moment?
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
OK, so they dump all of this money into these congressional races, which, as you and I both know, is the oldest way and the most tried and true way of, you know, shaping political outcomes in the United States is putting money into politics.
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
Okay, so they're at the big boy's table. What else do they do in this strategy to influence politics?
The Daily
Crypto’s Big Bet Is Paying Off
And David, tell me the deal with Trump and crypto, because my sense from reading your coverage and our colleagues' coverage is that he likes it, but I don't remember anything in his first term about crypto or his relationship with crypto. So tell me about Trump and crypto.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
From The New York Times, I'm Sabrina Tavernisi, and this is The Daily. An alarming new hack by China has penetrated the nerve center of the United States, our phone network. Today, my colleague David Sanger on what the scope of this new attack tells us about the growing power of one of America's biggest adversaries. It's Thursday, December 12th. David Sanger, you're back.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
And what does it mean that it goes from the Army to the Ministry of State Security? Why is that important?
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
David, what's an example of the Chinese getting better? If you think back to the turning points in surveillance in China, what's an example?
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
Okay, so China is getting much better at all of this. That extra funding and people and focus is really starting to pay off. But big picture here, David, what is China trying to do with all of this? Like, what's it really up to here?
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
So that's a huge step up, right? It's not just surveillance in this case. It's actually disrupting critical processes that are required for defense.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
Okay, so that brings us to today and to this salt typhoon hack, which you say is still a problem because it's still lurking in our phone systems.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
It's not an easy engineering problem. So, David, just stepping back here for a second and thinking about this big picture, this all comes at quite a moment of potential change. We're just weeks away from President-elect Trump's inauguration with all of the potential kind of change and chaos he might bring with him on China, on a lot of these issues.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
And I'm wondering how you see it right now, what all of this means.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
Well, David, it sounds like we're going to have you on for more episodes about hacking in the future.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
We'll be right back. Here's what else you should know today.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
On Wednesday, FBI Director Christopher Wray said he'll step down from his role in the new year.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
His decision comes after President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to replace Wray with longtime loyalist Kash Patel.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
Under Wray, the FBI repeatedly investigated Trump, including by searching his Mar-a-Lago estate for classified documents. And more details have emerged about Luigi Mangione, the man charged with killing the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, Brian Thompson.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
In a series of social media posts, Mangione described health problems, saying back pain that had once been a minor issue got worse before having surgery last year. Mangione stopped communicating with friends and family about six months ago. His mother filed a missing person report last month. Mangione, who was arrested on Monday in Pennsylvania, now faces a murder charge and has been denied bail.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
He's fighting extradition to New York. Today's episode was produced by Stella Tan and Mary Wilson. It was edited by Maria Byrne and Paige Cowett, contains original music by Dan Powell, and was engineered by Chris Wood. Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Lansford of Wonderly. That's it for The Daily. I'm Sabrina Tavernisi. See you tomorrow.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
So this hack really shook Washington, and also it shook a number of important American companies, these telecoms, as you're saying. Tell me, David, what we know about it.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
Wow. Were they actually listening to Trump and Vance's phone calls?
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
That's amazing. I mean, that is really a violation of American security.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
Basically, the way that the U.S. government phone taps people it thinks are spying for other countries.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
Wow. So the Chinese actually saw with this kind of, you know, see-through glasses they got in this hack who the U.S. suspected was a Chinese spy.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
Interesting. But to what extent does it affect everyday Americans? Like, should I be worried about it?
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
Interesting. So if I'm doing a WhatsApp call, then that is off limits because that's encrypted.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
Exactly. It needed access to people's phones to be able to see what the conversations had been.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
So, David, you are here today to talk about a hack. And close listeners of the show will know that this is a topic you do sometimes talk about on The Daily. We counted. You have done three shows on hacking in recent years. But this particular hack, this one you're looking into right now, this one is different, you say.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
So basically, these hackers kind of tried every door, found one that was open, and then was never challenged once they got inside that door.
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
Okay, David, so you've explained how this hack was really the biggest anyone in Washington and you had ever seen. It compromised really vital stuff. I understand all that, but haven't the U.S. and China been spying on each other for a long time? Like, is there a reason for us to think that this is actually worse than those other times?
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
We'll be right back. So, David, how did we get to the point where China got so good at hacking?
The Daily
How China Hacked America’s Phone Network
So where was China in terms of its ability in surveillance when he came in?
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
From The New York Times, I'm Sabrina Tavernisi, and this is The Daily. A new study has found that nearly three-quarters of American adults are now obese or overweight. And there's been growing concern among politicians, scientists, and consumers about one potential culprit. Are ultra-processed foods to blame for addiction to sugar and ultra-processed foods? ultra-processed food.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
Okay, so in a controlled environment, in the perfect scenario, which Kevin Hall created, it is true that people do eat more calories and do gain weight from these ultra-processed foods. But do we know exactly why they do, Alice?
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
These foods are being designed to make us want to eat them and want to eat more of them.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
Okay. You should have told me that before the ring ding.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
Okay, so we know that ultra-processed foods can cause weight gain, at least according to this small study, and we're starting to get more research to understand why that happens. But why has it taken so long to get to this point?
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
What does that growing recognition look like? What's happening?
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
Okay, Alice, here's the part in the podcast where I ask you how you think about these foods, because you're the expert. I want to probably try to avoid a lot of these foods, and I want to know how you think about doing that, given that they're kind of everywhere.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
And tell me about this category. What are ultra-processed foods exactly?
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
Thinking about the future of this problem, Alice, I wonder if an analogy is the tobacco companies in the beginning of the conversation and the cigarette industry, right? That back in the beginning, the industry was incredibly well-funded. It was very difficult for scientists to prove that cigarettes were, in fact, bad for you. But eventually they did, and eventually they were regulated.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
And I wonder in some way if ultra-processed food might also follow that same trajectory but just kind of be at the beginning of it right now.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
Here's what else you should know today. On Thursday, President Biden said that he was commuting the sentences of nearly 1,500 people and pardoning 39 people in a sweeping act of clemency during his final weeks in office. The White House said that it was the largest number of commutations by an American president in a single day.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
Okay, so these are foods that have really long lists of ingredients, the names of which you kind of don't understand what they are, right? Yeah. That's right. Okay, Alice, I went to the grocery store this morning knowing that you were going to come in and be recording with us. And we have some items here. Okay. I don't know if you can see this here. Do you see? Ringdings? Ringdings.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
The commutations affect those who have been released from prison and placed in home confinement during the coronavirus pandemic. The pardons are for people who were convicted of nonviolent crimes, including drug offenses. As a senator, Biden had championed a 1994 crime bill that many experts say fueled mass incarceration.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
He has since expressed regret for supporting that legislation, and he committed during the 2020 campaign to addressing the long drug sentences that resulted. The announcement came two weeks after Biden issued a pardon for his son, Hunter, a decision that was harshly criticized by both Republicans and Democrats. A quick reminder to catch a new episode of The Interview right here tomorrow.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
This week, Lulu Garcia Navarro talks with travel guru Rick Steves about why he spent his life encouraging Americans to get outside their comfort zones.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
Today's episode was produced by Alex Stern, Sydney Harper, and Ricky Nowitzki, with help from Olivia Natt and Michael Simon-Johnson. It was edited by Lisa Chow and Chris Haxel, contains original music by Dan Powell and Marion Lozano, and was engineered by Chris Wood. Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Lansford of Wonderland. That's it for The Daily. I'm Sabrina Tavernisi.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
Just a few ingredients. High fructose corn syrup, sodium aluminum phosphate, monocalcium phosphate, preservative sorbic acid, sodium cassonate, polysorbate 60, and dried eggs. Oh my goodness.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
I did. You're right. That's why I pulled it off the shelf. I'm just going to show you. Here is Wonder Bread monoglycerin. Let's see. Hold on a second. Sugar. Calcium peroxide? That sounds ultra-processed to me, Sabrina. Okay. Here's one. Looked healthy to me, and I often eat these things. Yoplait Original Made with Real Fruit Mountain Blueberry Yogurt. Okay.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
It has blueberries, milk, sugar, gelatin, cornstarch, pectin, natural flavor, vitamin A, acetate, and modified food starch.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
That is ultra processed. Okay. So everything in my grocery cart is ultra processed, even the yogurt. Pretty much.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
And Alice, what's the universe here? Like how much of our food is ultra-processed here in America?
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
Okay, so here's my question for you. Most people, I think, would acknowledge that ultra-processed foods are kind of bad. Now, of course, you make the point that it's a huge category, but lots of what's in ultra-processed foods isn't really something that we think generally we should be putting a lot of into our bodies. But it's everywhere.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
So why have these foods been allowed to proliferate like this? What is driving this kind of expansion of these foods?
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
Today, my colleague, nutrition writer Alice Callahan, on how these foods came to be such a big part of what we eat and why that's so hard to change. It's Friday, December 13th.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
So tobacco companies kind of originally were the pioneers here, bringing us, it sounds like, highly addictive food, kind of like cigarettes.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
So you cover nutrition for The Times, and you, as I understand, are uniquely qualified to have this conversation about ultra-processed foods because you literally have a PhD in nutrition.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
It is hyper palatable, like uber hyper. We'll be right back. So, Alice, what do you mean when you said it was harder than you'd think to prove that ultra-processed foods cause obesity and other health problems?
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
In other words, just because people are becoming more obese over time and as a result suffering from diseases like type 2 diabetes, that doesn't necessarily mean that it's the ultra-processed foods that's causing that obesity rise.
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
So, Alice, how do you isolate the driver of worse health then? How do you go about doing that?
The Daily
A Turning Point for Ultraprocessed Foods
Right. You're not really going to say, hey, 10,000 people, come live in my lab for 10 years and I'm going to control everything and you're going to eat exactly the same thing as that guy.