Episode

How the government wastes our time

Podcast: Fresh Air
Published: Aug 31, 2026
Duration seconds: 2747
Processing state: not_requested
Canonical source: https://www.npr.org/2026/08/31/nx-s1-5950414/how-the-government-wastes-our-time
Audio: https://prfx.byspotify.com/e/play.podtrac.com/npr-381444908/npr.simplecastaudio.com/49850946-31c1-4953-8129-0d718420c400/episodes/be466c35-6b30-4d55-a767-3f3dc91dadfa/audio/128/default.mp3?awCollectionId=49850946-31c1-4953-8129-0d718420c400&awEpisodeId=be466c35-6b30-4d55-a767-3f3dc91dadfa&feed=jBsBZBHh&t=podcast&e=nx-s1-5950414&p=381444908&d=2747&size=43960198
JSON: /v1/public/podcasts/fresh-air-214340/episodes/how-the-government-wastes-our-time
Markdown: /podcast/fresh-air-214340/how-the-government-wastes-our-time.md

Actions

POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/fresh-air-214340/episodes/how-the-government-wastes-our-time/transcription-requests
Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/fresh-air-214340/how-the-government-wastes-our-time.md
Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

Summary

Atlantic journalist Annie Lowrey explores the administrative burdens people face applying for government benefits like unemployment and food assistance. It's not just about wasted time: "When the government treats us like this, we don't trust it," she says. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about her book, The Time Tax: How the Government Wastes Our Time—and How to Fix It . Ken Tucker reviews a new album by the trio The Womack Sisters, nieces of R&B great Bobby Womack. Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter Follow us on Instagram Subscribe to our YouTube channel Check out the Fresh Air Archives See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy