99% Invisible

How did millions of Americans end up living in neighborhoods where finding fresh food is harder than ever, and why is the problem by design, not accident?

Transcribed - Published: 8 July 2025

An immigration reporter’s chance encounter in the desert reveals how borders shape our actions, our beliefs, and the way we see the world around us.

Transcribed - Published: 1 July 2025

A century-old shipwreck, a sea of glass, and the lifeboats that were never meant to save you.

Transcribed - Published: 24 June 2025

The Red, Black, and Green flag was invented to unite Black people all over the world living under racial repression.

Transcribed - Published: 17 June 2025

Announcing The 99% Invisible Breakdown: The Constitution and the return of What Trump Can Teach Us About Con Law.

Transcribed - Published: 10 June 2025

A debilitating injury forces 99PI's Kurt Kohlstedt to confront new everyday challenges and seek out accessible design solutions for one-handed living.

Transcribed - Published: 3 June 2025

Why is it so hard to build anything in America?

Transcribed - Published: 27 May 2025

A dusty surveillance file uncovers the story of love, betrayal, and the fight for Puerto Rico’s freedom.

Transcribed - Published: 20 May 2025

Shortwave radio opened a portal to the world—then became a weapon in a high-stakes war of propaganda and power.

Transcribed - Published: 13 May 2025

A single 👍 emoji sent over text was meant to say “got it”—but instead, it kicked off a $62,000 legal battle and raised the question: can an emoji seal a contract?

Transcribed - Published: 6 May 2025

At the January 6th Capitol insurrection, rioters waved Confederate, MAGA, and Trump-as-Rambo flags. Easy to miss without knowing the design was a bright yellow flag with three red stripes — the flag of South Vietnam.

Transcribed - Published: 29 April 2025

A goofy Shakira remix, a nervy penalty kick, and 60,000 fans turning banter into legend—welcome to the world of football chants.

Transcribed - Published: 22 April 2025

How did our tax system become so complicated?

Transcribed - Published: 15 April 2025

John Green uncovers how the world’s deadliest curable disease still thrives—and why everything, from cowboy hats to colonial borders, traces back to tuberculosis.

Transcribed - Published: 8 April 2025

Take a whirlwind tour of Memphis with the city’s most enthusiastic historian, uncovering duck parades, telecom turf wars, and a street named after a single day in 1934.

Transcribed - Published: 4 April 2025

In 1991, one of the strangest buildings in America opened — a 32-storey, stainless steel pyramid in Memphis, Tennessee.

Transcribed - Published: 1 April 2025

A group of artists explored the back hallways of a mall in Providence, RI, and found the perfect place to build a private hangout. Plus, mall history with Alexandra Lange.

Transcribed - Published: 25 March 2025

When global trade reshapes a city, who pays the price—and who fights back?

Transcribed - Published: 18 March 2025

What the 99PI team is currently reading.

Transcribed - Published: 11 March 2025

A tiny, unremarkable beetle hiding in the caves of Slovenia has an infamously unfortunate name—one that has sparked heated debates in the scientific world.

Transcribed - Published: 4 March 2025

A film about a struggling architect, a style the world loves to hate—The Brutalist and Brutalism itself share more than just a name. Is it bold vision or concrete failure?

Transcribed - Published: 25 February 2025

One of the Third Reich’s most colossal architectural failures.

Transcribed - Published: 18 February 2025

Join Roman and Elliott one last time as they reflect on their journey with you all through "The Power Broker," exploring their favorite moments and answering listener questions in this bonus episode.

Transcribed - Published: 14 February 2025

How did a simple painting transform into the world's most recognized depiction of Jesus?

Transcribed - Published: 11 February 2025

In the 1970s, the fight to save a tiny fish called the snail darter turned the Endangered Species Act from a minor bit of federal law into the most powerful and controversial piece of environmental legislation of the past 50 years.

Transcribed - Published: 4 February 2025

What went wrong in Kingston, Tennessee, and what does it reveal about the messy legacy of public utilities turned corporate giants?

Transcribed - Published: 28 January 2025

The Power Broker Breakdown may have concluded, but if you're just tuning in (or if you just want a quick refresher), this episode is a compilation of the summary portions of the The Power Broker Breakdown series.

Transcribed - Published: 24 January 2025

A deadly desert crossing leaves survivors seeking refuge—and sparks a movement that defied the law and redefined the idea of sanctuary in America. This is the story of how faith, courage, and resistance collided with one of the biggest immigration battles in modern history.

Transcribed - Published: 21 January 2025

The story of an 2700 year old archive, its accidental preservation, and the unprecedented—and often funny—glimpse it gives us into the daily life of an ancient king.

Transcribed - Published: 14 January 2025

Happy New Year! We're starting 2025 with four more mini stories about a sleepy button, electric signs, a very important sticker, and video you can smell.

Transcribed - Published: 7 January 2025

Featuring Hyperfixed by former Reply All co-host, Alex Goldman.

Transcribed - Published: 31 December 2024

The story of New Year's Eve in Times Square.

Transcribed - Published: 24 December 2024

Featuring our hero, Robert Caro, and covering the final section of Part 7, chapters 47-50.

Transcribed - Published: 20 December 2024

Cheeky highway signs, Jane Fonda’s surprising side hustle, a dynamite twist on legacy, and the Greeks’ ideal foot obsession—expect the unexpected.

Transcribed - Published: 17 December 2024

Roman Mars and the Flop House team dive into Francis Ford Coppola's intriguing and controversial film, Megalopolis, exploring its chaotic narrative, ambitious ideas, and perplexing execution.

Transcribed - Published: 10 December 2024

How did the “15 Minute City,” a simple urban planning idea, spark protests, conspiracy theories, and death threats? This week, we unravel how a concept for livable cities became a global flashpoint.

Transcribed - Published: 3 December 2024

After Toronto unveiled its "raccoon-resistant" compost bins in 2016, some people feared the animals would be starved but many more celebrated the innovative design. Rolling out this novel locked bin opened a new battlefront in city's ongoing "war on raccoons."

Transcribed - Published: 26 November 2024

What makes The Power Broker endure 50 years on? Roman Mars and Elliott Kalan sit down with legendary author Robert Caro to explore the humanity, drama, and untold stories behind his iconic book. Recorded live from the New York Historical Society.

Transcribed - Published: 19 November 2024

Featuring Brennan Lee Mulligan, a comedian and host with Dropout TV, and covering the second section of Part 7, chapters 42-46.

Transcribed - Published: 15 November 2024

Roman talks with The Memory Palace creator Nate DiMeo, whose new book brings his poetic history podcast to life on the page.

Transcribed - Published: 12 November 2024

As the last warmth of summer fades, Riis Beach—a hidden queer oasis behind a decaying hospital—faces a new reality.

Transcribed - Published: 5 November 2024

Remember when grocery shelves went bare and cargo ships clogged the California coast? That chaos wasn’t just a pandemic hiccup—it was a symptom of a supply chain stretched to its limits.

Transcribed - Published: 29 October 2024

Spirit Halloween takes over empty stores every fall—explore the eerie allure behind these spooky pop-ups and what they say about the decline of retail.

Transcribed - Published: 22 October 2024

Featuring Clara Jeffery, the editor-in-chief of Mother Jones and the Center for Investigative Reporting, and covering the last section of Part 6 and the first section of Part 7, chapters 39-41.

Transcribed - Published: 18 October 2024

Three stories about designs meant to fool you.

Transcribed - Published: 15 October 2024

In this bonus episode, Roman unearths the surprising story behind the 99% Invisible's name and delves into the unnoticed brilliance of everyday design—from the origins of reinforced concrete to the artistry of Japan’s manhole covers.

Transcribed - Published: 11 October 2024

In Copenhagen, Christiania—a commune born from rebellion—now faces mounting pressures that could force it to choose between its radical ideals and survival.

Transcribed - Published: 8 October 2024

The unexpected story of how Alfred Nobel’s invention of dynamite—designed to build the world—was co-opted by anarchists to bring about its destruction.

Transcribed - Published: 1 October 2024

The decades-long creation of possibly the most controversial form of entertainment: reality television. How does it shape our world and why–love it or hate it–you should probably understand it.

Transcribed - Published: 24 September 2024

Featuring Majora Carter, an urban revitalization strategist and real estate developer from the South Bronx, and covering the third section of Part 6, chapters 35-38.

Transcribed - Published: 20 September 2024