The Assignment with Audie Cornish

Audie is joined by longtime friend and former NPR colleague Ari Shapiro for a special episode they’re calling Engagement Party – a chance to finally talk on-mic about the culture stories they’ve been obsessing over. They kick things off with the question of the moment: Can the Heated Rivalry boys, Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams, turn their meteoric rise into lasting careers like other breakout stars from the past? They also unpack why the internet has committed to “frictionmaxxing” in 2026, quiz each other on the year in pop culture so far, and share what they’ve been loving off-line lately. 
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Arguably the first viral moment of 2026 is an essay about a “toxic” group of mom friends. Actor and singer Ashley Tisdale French wrote an essay for New York Magazine’s The Cut about being iced out of her circle of fellow moms and – celebrity intrigue aside – it struck a nerve. Dr. Noelle Santorelli is a mom and a clinical psychologist who tells Audie there’s deep suffering wrapped up in establishing community around your family. She and Audie discuss the vulnerability of needing support, making friends for yourself and your kid, and the dysfunction of group dynamics.

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This episode was produced by Lori Galarreta. 

Senior Producer: Matt Martinez  

Technical Director: Dan Dzula   

Executive Producer:  Steve Lickteig 
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It may be a new year, but one of 2025's most unexpected hits isn’t done with us yet. Heated Rivalry, the TV adaptation of a spicy romance novel about two hockey players, has turned two unknown actors into overnight stars and sparked outsized conversations about sex on screen, queer representation, and masculinity in sports. Writer and culture critic Ira Madison III joins Audie to talk about how a low-budget Canadian series became a cultural flashpoint—and what its popularity reveals about the moment we’re in. 

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This episode was produced by Madeleine Thompson. 

Senior Producer: Matt Martinez  

Technical Director: Dan Dzula   

Executive Producer:  Steve Lickteig 
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After a head-spinning year in the worlds of health and technology, Audie invited Dr. Sanjay Gupta, the host of Chasing Life, and Clare Duffy from Terms of Service, to break down the stories that ended up on all their podcasts this year.

Producer: Dan Bloom

Technical Director: Dan Dzula

Executive Producer: Steve Lickteig
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As families gather for the holidays and political differences resurface, we revisit Audie's conversation with psychologist Joshua Coleman, who breaks down why partisan divides are driving family estrangement, how generational dynamics intensify the conflict, and what it looks like to navigate, or repair, these fractures from either side.

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This episode was produced by Lori Galarreta. 

Senior Producer: Matt Martinez  

Technical Director: Dan Dzula   

Executive Producer:  Steve Lickteig 
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