First: Some of the biggest protests in decades broke out in China last weekend over the country’s strict COVID guidelines and – in some cases – over the Chinese Communist Party’s leadership. We call an expert to explain the historic protests and their impacts worldwide.  

Then: Democrats in Congress only have a few weeks to pass some major legislation before a new group of lawmakers heads to DC in January. We're breaking down why this “lame duck" session might be anything but lame...in 60 seconds.

Next: Roadway deaths have been rising – and apparently, it's a uniquely American problem. New reporting shows us why we've seen an increase in roadway deaths in the US and what we can learn from other countries about how to prevent them. 

Finally: Merriam Webster declared “gaslighting” as its word of the year. We break out our dictionaries to break down the word’s definition – and why it gets misused.  

On this episode, you’ll hear from: 

Sue-Lin Wong, correspondent, The Economist

Emily Badger, cities and urban policy writer, The Upshot, The New York Times

Dr. Ramani Durvasula, clinical psychologist

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Skimm'd by Alex Carr, Will Livingston, and Blake Lew-Merwin. We had additional help from Sarah Collins. Engineered by Andrew Callaway and Elie McAfee-Hahn. TheSkimm’s head of audio is Graelyn Brashear.