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Top 5 most-downloaded episodes of the New York Times' "The Daily" podcast

Mike Allen, author of AM

Michael Barbaro at N.Y. Times HQ. Now, he has a home studio. Photo: Damon Winter/The New York Times

In an exclusive for Axios readers, here are this year's five most downloaded episodes of the N.Y. Times' Michael Barbaro's four-year-old "The Daily" podcast, which in September crossed two billion total downloads:

  1. "Bernie's Big Bet" (Jan. 17)
  2. "The Woman Defending Harvey Weinstein" (Feb. 7)
  3. "The Coronavirus Goes Global" (Feb. 27) 
  4. "The Next Year (or Two) of the Pandemic" (April 20)
  5. "The Field: Biden’s Last Hope" (Feb. 28)
Subscribe to Axios AM/PM for a daily rundown of what's new and why it matters, directly from Mike Allen.
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Go deeper

Alayna Treene, author of Sneak Peek
16 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Read: Pete Buttigieg's opening statement ahead of confirmation hearing

Pete Buttigieg, President Biden's nominee to be secretary of transportation, in December. Photo: Kevin Lamarque/AFP via Getty Images

Pete Buttigieg, President Biden's nominee to lead the Transportation Department, will tell senators he plans to prioritize the health and safety of public transportation systems during the pandemic — and look to infrastructure projects to rebuild the economy — according to a copy of his prepared remarks obtained by Axios.

Driving the news: Buttigieg will testify at 10 a.m. ET before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. He is expected to face a relatively smooth confirmation process, though GOP lawmakers may press him on "green" elements of Biden's transportation proposals.

Go deeper (1 min. read)Arrow
Jonathan Swan, Zachary Basu
31 mins ago - Politics & Policy
Off the Rails

Episode 8: The siege

Photo illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios. Photos: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

Beginning on election night 2020 and continuing through his final days in office, Donald Trump unraveled and dragged America with him, to the point that his followers sacked the U.S. Capitol with two weeks left in his term. Axios takes you inside the collapse of a president with a special series.

Episode 8: The siege. An inside account of the deadly insurrection at the Capitol on Jan. 6 that ultimately failed to block the certification of the Electoral College. And, finally, Trump's concession.

On Jan. 6, White House deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger entered the West Wing in the mid-afternoon, shortly after his colleagues' phones had lit up with an emergency curfew alert from D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser.

Go deeper (11 min. read)Arrow
Ashley Gold
46 mins ago - Technology

Tech companies worry about becoming targets

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

Tech employees are on high alert about their own personal safety as their employers roll out policies to ban or limit the reach of far-right extremists angry over former President Donald Trump's defeat.

Why it matters: As tech companies impose aggressive policies after the Capitol riot, employees will be the target of vitriol from aggrieved people who think tech and the media are conspiring to silence Trump and conservatives more broadly.

Go deeper (2 min. read)Arrow