The Stakes is your look at the week's news, without the filler of talking heads and clickbait. Every week, MTV’s Holly Anderson and her team of writers — including Ana Marie Cox and Jamil Smith — guide you through the week’s news, social justice issues, and culture stories through a mix interviews, essays, special reporting, and poetry. The Stakes is investigative, thoughtful, and BS-free.
Revisiting the heart of the uprising.
31 Min
Jun 29, 2017
Let America Vote's founder on fighting voter suppression: "Rather than be polite about it, I'm just going to be real."
28 Min
May 18, 2017
Welcome back to “The Stakes.” In honor of MTV's Earth Week coverage, we're revisiting our episode recorded at Standing Rock, North Dakota, last year, and updating you on the indigenous environmental movement.
42 Min
Apr 28, 2017
Producer Mukta Mohan brings us to the only place on the border for people from the US and Mexico to talk face to face.
Jamil Smith speaks to the siblings of Kalief Browder, who spent three years in Rikers Island without a trial.
Doreen St. Félix talks to the legendary artist about what has (and has not) changed in his 35-year career.
"I Am Not Your Negro" director Raoul Peck on James Baldwin, and the Bronx Documentary Center's photojournalism exhibit on protest.
Our podcast looks at revolutions new and old with stories on a women's march in Seneca Falls, a DIY space in LA, and more.
We dive into what happens now with stories on HB2, how the news affects anxiety, and the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund.
The WNYC producer discusses her contribution to She Loves Herself When She Is Laughing, a collection of essays on Michelle Obama.
This week we say hello to 2017 with humanitarian drones, synthesizers at your public library, and a pilgrimage to the White Witch of the West.
The fight's not over at Standing Rock. Plus: Museum Mammy advocates for black contemporary artists, ultra-chic Muslim "modestwear," and a few words on Aleppo.
What's next for Standing Rock, radical insta art, and what was lost in the Oakland fire.
Writer Marcus Ellsworth and Producer Kasia Mychajlowycz travel to the site of the #nodapl protests in North Dakota.
An Uber ride leads to a history lesson; digital resources in the new Trump reality; an undocumented community organizer speaks out; and a call to move forward.
Toward a more just world: Assata's Daughters, Pussy Riot, and Brett Story's Prison Landscapes
There's only one day left to go, and our MTV News political team has assembled to talk it through.
Stories on DAPL protests, HB2, Emily Witt's Future Sex, and the continued importance of Planned Parenthood.
This week: Ansley Calandra, Yusef Salaam of the Central Park Five, and Rosalind Wiseman's Queen Bees and Wannabes 15 years later.
Anti-Trump protests in NYC, Las Vegas and Chicago; rape allegations and the difficult legacy of Swans; plus The Blow's Womanproducer archive.
Ana Marie Cox and Jamil Smith on what to look out for during tonight's presidential debate.
This week: The Sexual Abuse Survivor's Rights Act, the fight against wage discrimination, strategic socialism, and (sadly, always, of course) Trump.
A poem by Marcus Ellsworth entitled "The Man In The Red Sweater: An Outpouring Of Love For Ken Bone."
Another week, another depressing presidential debate. SAD is here to help you through it. #kenbone2020
Ava DuVernay on her new documentary, 13th; Jessica Luther's book on sexual assault and college athletics; and a look back at the presidential primaries.