What the End of Spirit Airlines Means for the Future of Flying

What the End of Spirit Airlines Means for the Future of Flying

When Spirit Airlines shut down over the weekend, it brought an end to a company that had revolutionized air travel in the United States with its ultra-low-cost approach. Niraj Chokshi, who covers aviation for The New York Times, discussed why the company unraveled and whether those problems could spread to other airlines. And Lynsea Garrison, a producer for “The Daily,” spoke to a Spirit flight attendant about what the airline represented. Guest: * Niraj Chokshi [https://www.nytimes.com/by/niraj-chokshi], a reporter at The New York Times covering aviation, rail and other transportation industries. * Colleen Burns, a flight attendant for Spirit Airlines. Background reading:  * Spirit Airlines shuts down [https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/02/business/spirit-airlines-shutdown.html] after years of struggle. * Here’s how the demise of Spirit could help other airlines [https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/03/business/spirit-airlines-shutdown-fares-industry-impact.html]. Photo: Tom Brenner for The New York Times For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily [http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily]. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts [http://nytimes.com/podcasts] or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher [https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher]. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Your Kids Asked the Artemis Astronauts Questions. They Answered.

Last month, the astronauts of NASA’s Artemis II mission splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, bringing their journey around the moon to a close. “The Daily” asked children to send in questions for the crew. The astronauts — three Americans and one Canadian — sat down with Rachel Abrams to answer them. Guest: The Artemis II astronauts: Victor Glover, Jeremy Hansen, Christina Koch and Reid Wiseman. Background reading:  * The mission took the astronauts farther than any human has ever traveled in history and reminded us how small we are [https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/11/us/artemis-landing-splashdown-moon.html]. * The Artemis II splashdown gave NASA momentum in a renewed moon race [https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/10/science/moon-astronauts-success.html]. Photo: The New York Times For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily [http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily]. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts [http://nytimes.com/podcasts] or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher [https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher]. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Democratic Anger and Republican Revenge: Welcome to the Primaries

In primary elections across the United States, the Republican Party will test its voters appetite for revenge, and the Democratic Party will test its voters appetite for change. The New York Times journalists Shane Goldmacher, Lisa Lerer and Reid Epstein sat down with Michael Barbaro to explain which key elections to watch. Guest: * Shane Goldmacher [https://www.nytimes.com/by/shane-goldmacher], a national political correspondent for The New York Times. * Lisa Lerer [https://www.nytimes.com/by/lisa-lerer], a national political correspondent for The New York Times. * Reid J. Epstein [https://www.nytimes.com/by/reid-j-epstein], a New York Times reporter covering politics. Background reading:  * These seven elections on Tuesday [https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/05/us/indiana-legistature-election-trump.html] will test President Trump’s power. * Mr. Trump’s push for electoral retribution [https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/02/us/politics/trump-republican-primaries-candidates.html] is heading to the ballot box. * See a calendar of primary elections [https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/us/elections/2026-election-calendar.html] and read about some of the year’s most competitive races. Photo: Michelle Pemberton/IndyStar/USA TODAY Network For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily [http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily]. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts [http://nytimes.com/podcasts] or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher [https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher]. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What Drives Political Violence in America

In the midst of a cascade of violent acts against political figures in the United States, a few questions keep coming up — how did we get here, and how much worse could it really get? Robert Pape, a professor at the University of Chicago and one of the country’s leading voices on political violence, discusses why violence is on the rise and what it would take to stop it. Guest: Robert Pape, a professor of political science at the University of Chicago. Background reading:  * Is the United States in a politically violent age [https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/28/us/politics/political-violence-data-trump-dinner-shooting.html]? This is what the data and history say. * Here’s how to understand claims about U.S. political violence and threats to presidents [https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/01/us/trump-shooting-political-violence-us.html]. Photo: Doug Mills/The New York Times, Kenny Holston for The New York Times and Adriana Zehbrauskas for The New York Times For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily [http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily]. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts [http://nytimes.com/podcasts] or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher [https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher]. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The 30 Greatest Living American Songwriters

Roughly a year ago, a team at The New York Times Magazine set about tackling a nearly impossible task: creating a list of the greatest living American songwriters. But how to take the tens of thousands of songwriters working in this country and narrow them down to a digestible list? The answer involved thousands of voting ballots, hundreds of music industry insiders and a series of closed-door meetings among a small group of music experts. The result, The Times’s list of the 30 greatest living American songwriters, was published this week. Today, Michael Barbaro talks with Sasha Weiss, a deputy editor of The Times Magazine, who oversaw the project, as well as Joe Coscarelli and Jody Rosen, two members of the cadre of critics assigned with compiling the final list. They discuss the list-making process, what defines a great songwriter and why Billy Joel didn’t make the final cut. We also hear from some of the songwriters featured on the list, including Taylor Swift, Nile Rodgers and the songwriting team of Brandy Clark, Shane McAnally and Josh Osborne.   On Today's Episode: Sasha Weiss [https://www.nytimes.com/by/sasha-weiss] is a deputy editor of The New York Times Magazine. Joe Coscarelli [https://www.nytimes.com/by/joe-coscarelli] is a culture reporter for The Times. He is a co-host of “Popcast,” a producer of the “Song of the Week” video series and the author of “Rap Capital: An Atlanta Story.” Jody Rosen [https://www.nytimes.com/by/jody-rosen] is a contributing writer for the magazine and the author of “Two Wheels Good: The History and Mystery of the Bicycle.”   Background Reading: The 30 Greatest Living American Songwriters [https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/magazine/greatest-american-songwriters-alive.html] Cast Your Vote for the Greatest Living American Songwriters [https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/04/27/magazine/greatest-american-songwriters-vote.html]   Photo credit: Stefan Ruiz for The New York Times Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts [http://nytimes.com/podcasts] or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher [https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher]. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.