Hidden Brain

Look down at what you're wearing. You picked out that blue shirt, right? And those boots — you decided on those because they're warm, didn't you? Well, maybe not. Researcher Jonah Berger says, we tend to be pretty good at recognizing how influences like product placement and peer pressure affect other people's choices... but we're not so good at recognizing those forces in our own decision-making.

As news surfaces of a reported CIA assessment that Russia acted to help Donald Trump with the Presidency, the President-elect may nominate a Secretary of State with ties to Russia. This episode: host/White House correspondent Tamara Keith, congressional correspondent Susan Davis, editor/correspondent Ron Elving, and NPR national security correspondent Mary Louise Kelly.

President-elect Trump, on Twitter, picks winners and losers in business, plus his latest cabinet picks and the real-world fallout of fake news. This episode: host/White House correspondent Tamara Keith, congressional correspondent Scott Detrow, political reporter Danielle Kurtzleben, and White House correspondent Scott Horsley. More coverage at nprpolitics.org. Email the show at nprpolitics@npr.org. Find and support your local public radio station at npr.org/stations.

Reporter Asma Khalid reflects on covering the 2016 election as a Muslim woman. With host/campaign reporter Sam Sanders, campaign reporter Sarah McCammon, and editor/correspondent Ron Elving. More coverage at nprpolitics.org. Email the show at nprpolitics@npr.org. Find and support your local public radio station at npr.org/stations.

It sounds like the plot of a movie: police discover the body of a young man who's been murdered. The body tests positive for a deadly infectious disease. Authorities trace the killing to a gang. They race to find gang members linked to the murder... who may also be incubating the virus. This week on Hidden Brain... disease, panic, and how a public health team used psychology to confront an epidemic.

This episode was recorded in front of a live audience in Cambridge, Massachusetts in conjunction with the Harvard Institute of Politics' quadrennial campaign managers conference. This episode: host/campaign reporter Sam Sanders, host/White House correspondent Tamara Keith, campaign reporter Asma Khalid, and political editor Domenico Montanaro. Plus a special announcement about the future of the podcast. More coverage at nprpolitics.org. Email the show at nprpolitics@npr.org...

Many of us spend lots of time and energy trying to get organized. We KonMari our closets, we strive for inbox zero, we tell our kids to clean their rooms, and our politicians to clean up Washington. But Economist Tim Harford says, maybe we should embrace the chaos. His new book is Messy: The Power of Disorder to Transform Our Lives.

Catching up on post-Thanksgiving news, including Trump's false voter fraud allegations and his latest cabinet appointees, plus the death of Fidel Castro. This episode: host/campaign reporter Sam Sanders, White House correspondent Tamara Keith, White House correspondent Scott Horsley, and editor/correspondent Ron Elving. More coverage at nprpolitics.org. Email the show at nprpolitics@npr.org.

We'll be recording the podcast live in Cambridge, MA on Thursday, December 1 at 6:00 PM. Join us! Go to nprpresents.org for tickets and information.

An early Thanksgiving-week roundup. Trump's business entanglements, latest cabinet appointments, and tips for talking politics during the holidays. This episode: host/campaign reporter Tamara Keith, reporter Asma Khalid, White House correspondent Scott Horsley, and editor/correspondent Ron Elving. More coverage at nprpolitics.org. Email the show at nprpolitics@npr.org. Find and support your local public radio station at npr.org/stations.