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Master Plan: Daily Summaries Delivered
by The Lever & David Sirota
Master Plan, the award-winning investigative podcast series from The Lever, reveals the hidden forces behind today’s biggest problems — and how small groups of powerful people engineered those problems to serve their own interests. We are exposing their schemes. Narrated by David Sirota, an award-winning investigative journalist and Oscar nominee for his work on the film Don’t Look Up. Master Plan has received the 2025 National Press Club Award for Audio Journalism, the New York Festivals Radio Award for Best Investigative Journalism Podcast, multiple Signal Awards for Best News & Politics Podcast and Best Writing. It was an Ambies finalist for Best Politics podcast and was named a Webby Awards Honoree.
Latest Episodes
The most recent episodes — sign up to get AI-powered summaries of each one.
- 6 days ago59 min
ENCORE: How The Powell Memo Changed America
With the 2026 midterms approaching and billions of dollars flooding into American elections, we're revisiting one of our most popular episodes of Master Plan. In 1971, corporate lawyer Lewis Powell wrote a manifesto explaining how corporations and oligarchs could fight back against New Deal-era reforms and use their money to hijack American politics. For decades, the Powell Memo seemed like an urban legend — until our investigation uncovered new details about the people behind it, and how the memo’s author snuck his radical ideology into the Supreme Court. Read the transcript and explore original archival documents from our investigation. Want the full story? Get the book Master Plan: The Hidden Plot to Legalize Corruption in America, featuring additional reporting and material beyond the podcast. Lever subscribers save 20%, and new paid members receive a special offer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- 1 weeks ago36 min
Introducing “The Future of Our Former Democracy: Season 3”
Today, we are sharing the Season 3 premiere of The Future of Our Former Democracy, the Signal Award-winning podcast from More Equitable Democracy and Mori Strategies. The Future of Our Former Democracy has spent two seasons exploring what the U.S. can learn from democracies around the world, most recently Germany and then Ireland. This season, host Colin Cole, Director of Policy, Outreach, and Communications at More Equitable Democracy, is joined by new co-host Ruth Greenwood, Director of Harvard Law School’s Election Law Clinic and proud Australian expat, as the show heads to the other side of the world. Australia built its democracy using America’s blueprint, then kept innovating. Today, its elections are famously “boring, boring, boring,” and voters across the political spectrum trust the results in a way Americans rarely do. With the 2026 midterms approaching and confidence in American democracy continuing to erode, Colin and Ruth explore why, with help from Dr. Marija Taflaga (Australian National University), Professor David Smith (University of Sydney), and Professor Thalia Anthony (University of Technology Sydney). Along the way, they ask a provocative question: if Australia learned from the United States, what can the United States learn from Australia? Follow and listen to more episodes of The Future of Our Former Democracy here: https://play.megaphone.fm/lmfwb0zrqham8b4xmpo43q Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- Oct 1, 202653 min
Introducing “You Might Be Right:” Will Redistricting Shape the Midterms?
This week we’re sharing a special episode from You Might Be Right, the chart-topping politics podcast from the Baker School of Public Policy and Public Affairs at the University of Tennessee. It was recently named a “must-listen” by both NPR and Spotify. The show is hosted by former Tennessee Governors Phil Bredesen and Bill Haslam. Coming from opposite parties, they bring leading experts into substantive conversations about the public-policy questions that affect all of us. Their new season looks at the forces shaping the 2026 midterms, including the topic of redistricting. What does it mean for voters when the politicians get to choose their constituents, instead of the other way around? In this episode, Governors Haslam and Bredesen pull back the curtain on gerrymandering, the once-obscure process now at the center of America’s fiercest political battles. They sit down with Jonathan Rodden, professor of political science at Stanford University, and Sam Wang, founder and director of the Princeton Gerrymandering Project and the Electoral Innovation Lab, about fair maps, how the newly drawn district lines might impact this midterm election and the implications for future elections. It’s a thoughtful conversation about the incentives, institutions, and public pressures that will shape the next election, without the usual cable-news shouting match. For more episodes like this, make sure to follow You Might Be Right on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. And tell them we sent you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- Sep 14, 202657 min
Episode 8: The Inheritance | The Kingmakers
In the season finale of Master Plan: The Kingmakers, we ask Democratic leaders what the next U.S. president should do with the expanded executive powers that Trump will leave behind. Featuring exclusive interviews with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y), Rep. Ro Khanna (Calif.), Sen. Chris Van Hollen (Md.), Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I), Sen. Michael Bennet (Co.), and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro. TRANSCRIPT & BONUS MATERIALS: Click here to read a transcript and to explore bonus archival documents related to the episode. Get Master Plan episodes early and ad-free by becoming a paid subscriber. Enjoy bonus episodes, exclusive content, and support this show. Visit levernews.com/upgrade To leave a tip for The Lever, click here. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- Aug 25, 20261h 3m
Episode 7: The King’s Man | The Kingmakers
A little-known conservative operative spends years figuring out how to bend the machinery of government to a president's will. By the time Donald Trump returns for his second term, a shadow government is ready to seize control. TRANSCRIPT & BONUS MATERIALS: Click here to read a transcript and to explore archival sources related to the episode. Get Master Plan episodes early and ad-free by becoming a paid subscriber. Enjoy bonus episodes, exclusive content, and support this show. Visit levernews.com/upgrade To leave a tip for The Lever, click here. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- Aug 18, 20261h 15m
Episode 6: Obama’s Kill List | The Kingmakers
Obama vowed to restore the rule of law after the War on Terror. But behind closed doors, his administration created a secret system that allowed the president to decide who lived and who died. TRANSCRIPT & BONUS MATERIALS: Click here to read a transcript and to explore bonus archival documents related to the episode. Get Master Plan episodes early and ad-free by becoming a paid subscriber. Enjoy bonus episodes, exclusive content, and support this show. Visit levernews.com/upgrade Want the Master Plan book? Members save 20%, and new Lever Leaders can get a free signed copy while supplies last. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- Aug 11, 20261h 4m
Episode 5: State of Emergency | The Kingmakers
September 11, 2001 brought chaos and terror to the United States. It also brought an unprecedented opportunity. After decades of watching what he felt was the erosion of presidential power, Vice President Dick Cheney leveraged a national emergency to shift the balance of power toward the executive branch. We trace Cheney's evolution — from Gerald Ford's chief of staff to George W. Bush's right-hand man — and how his "monarchical" view of the president laid the groundwork for Donald Trump. TRANSCRIPT & BONUS MATERIALS: Click here to read a transcript and to explore bonus archival documents related to the episode. Get Master Plan episodes early and ad-free by becoming a paid subscriber. Enjoy bonus episodes, exclusive content, and support this show. Visit levernews.com/upgrade To leave a tip for The Lever, click here. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
- Aug 4, 20266 min
Episode 5: State of Emergency (Free Preview)
Season 2 of Master Plan is back, with new episodes available now for paid subscribers. In Episode 5 of The Kingmakers, Vice President Dick Cheney uses a national emergency to shift power toward the executive branch. We trace Cheney's evolution—from Gerald Ford's chief of staff to George W. Bush's right-hand man—and how his "monarchical" view of presidential power helped lay the groundwork for Donald Trump. Episode 5, as well as Episode 6, Obama’s Kill List, are available now exclusively to paid subscribers. Paid subscribers also receive: Ad-free access to both seasons of Master Plan Early access to new episodes Episode transcripts Exclusive bonus content Key documents and companion reporting A big discount on the Master Plan book To listen now, unlock these bonus perks, and directly support our independent journalism, become a paid subscriber with this 50%-off offer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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About Master Plan
Master Plan, the award-winning investigative podcast series from The Lever, reveals the hidden forces behind today’s biggest problems — and how small groups of powerful people engineered those problems to serve their own interests. We are exposing their schemes. Narrated by David Sirota, an award-winning investigative journalist and Oscar nominee for his work on the film Don’t Look Up. Master Plan has received the 2025 National Press Club Award for Audio Journalism, the New York Festivals Radio Award for Best Investigative Journalism Podcast, multiple Signal Awards for Best News & Politics Podcast and Best Writing. It was an Ambies finalist for Best Politics podcast and was named a Webby Awards Honoree.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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It's a free AI-powered email that summarizes new episodes of Master Plan as soon as they're published. You get the key takeaways, notable quotes, and links & mentions — all in a quick read.
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How often does Master Plan release new episodes?
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Master Plan covers topics including News, History, Politics. Our AI identifies the specific themes in each episode and highlights what matters most to you.
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