CNN 5 Things

Latest episodes

Showing 20 · updated from the feed

New House GOP Leader Elected

Republican leadership in the House is working furiously behind the scenes to kill an effort to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Meanwhile, House Republicans picked

Nov 10
7 min

Hegseth’s Impeachment Pushback

With an impeachment vote looming, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth addresses reporters. Some Republicans are trying to postpone congressional leadership elections in the

Nov 10
7 min

Ohio State Temporarily Suspends Fraternity After Viral Video

#19 trending · Daily News

President Trump stands by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as GOP Rep. Massie introduces 8 articles of impeachment. Conservative firebrand Lauren Boebert loses her re-elect

Nov 10
8 min

Articles of Impeachment Introduced Against Hegseth

House lawmakers are expected to vote this week on a GOP congressman’s effort to remove Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. President Donald Trump questions the outcome of the

Nov 9
7 min

Lame-Duck Congress Prepares Vote to Impeach Hegseth

Congress is back in session for the first time since the midterms with an impeachment vote against Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth looming. President Donald Trump says

Nov 9
8 min

NVIDIA CEO Admits Affair As Company Launches Internal Probe

Stephen Miller's first day as White House Chief of Staff. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang admits affair as company launches investigation into whether he was the target of a fore

Nov 9
8 min

NVIDIA CEO Admits Affair as Company Launches Internal Probe

Stephen Miller's first day as White House Chief of Staff. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang admits affair as company launches investigation into whether he was the target of a fore

Nov 9
9 min

Where Does MAGA Go from Here?

The GOP is doing some serious soul-searching after a midterm wipeout which saw the Democrats retake the House and Senate. With some fingers pointing at President Donald T

Nov 8
24 min

'Wellness Darties': Gen Z is Reinventing the Frat Party

Forget the midterms — the votes are in for the new voice of Boston’s Logan Airport. Find out why college students across the country are partying with self-care in mind.

Nov 7
18 min

Trump Replaces WH Chief of Staff

President Donald Trump announces a seismic shakeup after GOP midterm losses. There’s good news on the economy, but it comes with a major asterisk. Trump's new security pr

Nov 6
7 min

What Democrats Plan to Do with Their Power in Congress

Once Democrats take control in the House and Senate in January, what will they do with it? We examine why House leadership battles could become contentious and why an imp

Nov 6
14 min

Judge Blocks Construction of Trump's Arch

Hegseth defiant in face of impeachment. Mississippi GOP raises prospect of legal action in senate vote count. Judge blocks construction of Trump's arch. Newsom commutes a

Nov 6
8 min

Dems Ride Blue Wave to Historic Heights

Democrats are projected to win their largest House majority since 2008, as some Republicans turn against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Bomb threats disrupt more flights

Nov 5
7 min

Deep in the Heart of an Upset: How Texas Turned Blue

The stunning Senate and gubernatorial victories for Democrats in deep-red Texas were among the highlights of a historic Election Night for the party. But is it a flash in

Nov 5
14 min

Security Guard Stops Gunman At Office Complex

Dems look to deliver on affordability. GOP looks for new leadership as Vance blames the Iran war for election losses. Security guard stops gunman who drove into office co

Nov 5
8 min

Trump Reacts to Massive GOP Election Defeat

President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance share what they thought attributed to Republican midterm losses. House Speaker Mike Johnson says he’s stepping aside fr

Nov 4
6 min

What We Can Learn from Democrat's 'Blue-Nami'

Democrats retook both the House and Senate after romping through multiple deep-red states in a historic midterm election. Is this a product of President Donald Trump’s hi

Nov 4
14 min

Key Takeaways From Historic Midterms

Hear from Dems who flipped senate seats. Historic firsts in governor's races. Trump points the blame elsewhere after stunning rebuke from voters. And how voters weighed i

Nov 4
10 min

High-Stakes Fight for Congress Begins

Ballot issues are being reported in some areas with pivotal elections. President Donald Trump says he’s ending billions in US aid to Israel. A nine-day manhunt for a conv

Nov 3
6 min

Split Ticket Voters: The Mood in Michigan

Election Day voting is underway across the country, with control of the House and Senate on the line. We check in on a polling place in Michigan, where some voters are sp

Nov 3
11 min

Chart trend

Position in the Daily News chart (US), last 90 days.

#1#15#29AugSepOctNov

#16

all-time peak

717

days in the top 50 since Nov 2024

Chart positions

Where CNN 5 Things ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Nov 11, 2026).

#20 ▼ 1 Daily News US

#70 ▼ 1 News US

What listeners say

A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.

I have been loving this podcast for years. I love how basic and straightforward the format is and how relatable the hosts have been but today it sounded like we were listening to a video segment on CNN. If I wanted to do that, I'd watch CNN. I hope this isn't the new format. The background music, the rushed pace and a person who sounds like a typical anchor person does not make me want to keep listening. I come to podcasts because I don't care for or trust traditional news anymore. I don't want the music, the sound and visual effects and the anchor people who are more interested in drama than the truth or the context around it. I just want to know what is going on in the world. I feel like the hosts on this podcast give us almost exactly what we need for our day and I greatly appreciate them.

Nerdy Pete · Sep 2026

I don’t listen to CNN 5 Things, but I do tune in for David Rind’s weekly One Thing for a deeper dive into a single current event. If you haven’t listened to it yet, I encourage you to try one episode. You won’t be disappointed. Great objective journalism still exists and is needed now more than ever. Thank you David 🙏

Nikolai88 · Apr 2026

I really like it when Kate delivers the stories of the day. She seems more engaged in what she is delivering and therefore gets me more engaged

TxAg86 · Apr 2026

I’ve listened to CNN 5 Things for a long time because it provided a fast, straightforward list of the day’s top stories. I don’t like the new music or format or new anchor Kate Baldwin. I don’t want to hear about her or have her side commentaries. For listeners like me who rely on it for a neutral news briefing, the other anchors and the earlier format worked much better. I would really appreciate a return to the more direct “just the news” style that made the podcast so useful.

straycat blues · Mar 2026

I had stopped listening to 5 Things here and elsewhere because inserting ads part way through a podcast that is LESS THAN FIVE MINUTES long is just insulting and abusive. To be clear, I am fine with ads to support a program, but only within reason. INTERRUPTING such a short one is the epitome of greed, and is basically a big F-U to the audience. CNN could afford to put out a free five minute microcast that only runs once every three hours if it wanted to do so. Limiting ads to the intro and outro cannot possibly have a material impact on its bottom line. Now, this one is falsely promoted as “ad-free” over on Amz Music. For the past two weeks, CNN has been interrupting every episode to play ads on its supposedly ad-free feed over there. I had only begun listening at Amz because it came without the obnoxious interruption. There are PLENTY of other micro newscasts out there that have figured out ways to support their programs without inserting ads right into the middle of their extremely short podcasts. And several others honor the ad-free format at Amz Music, including NPR, WaPo, Slate, and even Fox and WSJ. So I will, once again, dump CNN. 👎🏻

Miz Luv · Nov 2023

We used to enjoy this podcast. The background music is now mixed so loud that it’s virtually impossible to understand the reporting.

ASchnacks · Aug 2026

We strive to present a balanced view by showing a diverse range of reviews from Apple Podcasts.