China is winning

Summary

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Episode Overview

Podcast: Today, Explained
Episode Title: China is winning
Date: January 12, 2026
Host(s): Myles Bryant (guest host)
Guests: John Zinn (Brookings Institution), Don Weinland (The Economist, Shanghai)

In this episode, Today, Explained explores how, after a tumultuous year in geopolitics and trade, China has emerged stronger economically and culturally on the world stage, particularly in its dynamic with the United States under Trump’s second term. The episode breaks down what “winning” means for China: strategic gains in trade negotiations, increased leverage over the U.S., and the growth of its cultural exports—ranging from collectible toys to hit animated films and globally buzzed-about video games.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Geopolitical Context: Trump’s America vs. the World

• [00:00–02:00]
  • Myles Bryant sets the scene: Trump’s aggressive foreign policy has put nations like Venezuela, Cuba, and Iran on the defensive, while China, having endured a major trade war, has managed not just to weather but to win.
  • China's strategic and cultural confidence are on display: “China went toe to toe with Trump in the trade war over the last year and won. And on top of that, China's culture has been having a moment.” (Myles Bryant, 00:25)
  • Introduction of key guests and their backgrounds.

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2. Under the Hood: How China Played Trump

• [02:04–11:57] (Myles Bryant & John Zinn)
  • Trade Negotiations Reset:
    • John Zinn argues China maneuvered the Trump administration into narrowing the bilateral agenda, focusing mostly on trade imbalances (soybeans, TikTok, etc.), rather than wider security issues:
      “What the Chinese have successfully done... is whittled down the conversation... focused on particular sectors and particular firms... And I think all of that is kind of a win for China.” (John Zinn, 02:33)
  • Status at End of Biden Administration:
    • U.S.-China relations had hit a “relative high point.” Despite competitive undertones, there was cooperation (notably over fentanyl restrictions) and a final tightening of export controls by the U.S.:
      “The Biden administration kind of tying up some loose ends and tightening some of the export controls and technology controls on China...” (John Zinn, 04:09)
  • China Preparing for Trump 2.0:
    • Chinese government and officials responded proactively to U.S. moves, anticipating Trump’s election and “gearing up” for another round of confrontation.
  • The Big Tariff Drama of 2025:
    • Trump imposes sweeping tariffs on “nearly every country,” kick-starting what seemed to be a new economic cold war (05:31). China, however, felt ready; leaders displayed “no anger or anxiety” (06:00).
    • China retaliated with rare earth export controls, wielding a key advantage: “These are basically elements that go in everything... So these are a loose thread in the supply chain. If you start to pull on it, it can unravel a lot of different industries.” (John Zinn, 07:05)
    • The U.S. escalated tariffs to 145% before rolling back to a 47% framework deal (07:55), effectively relaxing some export controls—a tangible win for China.
  • Trump’s Approach: From Decoupling to Deal-Making:
    • Trump’s administration ended up seeking negotiation: “Ultimately he wants some kind of deal. And I think it is a core part of his political persona...” (John Zinn, 09:01)
    • This evolution is described as “a departure, but in some ways... back to the future,” echoing past administrations’ approaches to China.
  • China’s Long Game and Accrued Leverage:
    • Xi Jinping, in contrast to Trump, plays for strategic advantage:
      “He’s not really interested in making a deal. He is kind of playing the longer game... they have in fact accrued a lot of leverage.” (John Zinn, 10:43)
    • China is “mindful of the upcoming midterm elections” and could exploit Trump’s desire for a “big deal” closer to the cycle (11:57).

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3. Cultural Soft Power: China’s Breakout Year

• [16:05–27:36] (Myles Bryant & Don Weinland)

3.1 The Soft Power Gap & New Momentum

• “China massively under punches on its cultural exports... Second biggest economy... an incredible manufacturing power... yet on cultural exports, it’s really not doing very well.” (Don Weinland, 16:30)
• 2025 marked a shift, as several Chinese cultural products broke into the global mainstream.

3.2 Labubu & Pop Mart: "Ugly Cute" Goes Global

• Segment: [17:10–19:17]
  • The Labubu collectible doll, made by Pop Mart, became an international craze beginning in 2024 and exploded in 2025.
  • “They’re often described as being ugly, cute... collector’s items... kind of like baseball cards in a way.” (Don Weinland, 18:50)
  • Blind-box purchases and collectible culture fueled the trend.

3.3 Film: "Najatu" Shakes Up the Market

• Segment: [19:38–21:03]
  • “Nutja 2,” an animated film based on a traditional Chinese myth, became the highest grossing animated film ever—primarily in China, but with noticeable reach abroad.
  • Chinese leaders publicly cited the film as a cultural success:
    “They were pointing to what they see as a success, a cultural success. So that kind of tells you something about how important this movie was.” (Don Weinland, 20:35)
  • Notable Quote: “The animation in 'Najatu 2' should make Hollywood sweat.” (John Zinn, 20:26)

3.4 Video Games: "Black Myth Wukong" Goes Viral

• Segment: [21:03–22:07]
  • “Incredibly popular within China, but also overseas... So cinematic... The areas in China that it takes place in started getting a bunch of tourists visiting them. So this type of cultural product can generate economic growth... in areas like tourism.” (Don Weinland, 21:23)
  • A sign of the ripple effect cultural exports can have.

3.5 Why Now? Who’s Behind the Boom?

• Segment: [22:07–25:12]
  • Creators are mostly in their late 30s and 40s, educated when China’s internet was open to foreign ideas.
    • “A group of people that had access to a lot of foreign ideas. I think they absorbed a lot of foreign culture. That’s one thing.” (Don Weinland, 22:18)
  • Increased funding and shifting government priorities have supported more ambitious projects.
  • Persistent regulatory barriers limit the edginess of cultural content (no “raunchy” themes, haunted houses, etc.), making risk-averse creators.
    • Example: "State canceled" pop star edited out with a puff of fog on stage (25:14).

3.6 What’s Next for Chinese Soft Power?

• Segment: [25:45–27:36]
  • More everyday Chinese goods (like tea and bubble tea brands) could enter the U.S. market, shifting perceptions:
    “If you start buying well-made Chinese products, it could change your mind about China.” (Don Weinland, 26:12)
  • Youth-oriented products in film and toys are likely to expand further internationally.
  • “I don't think Labubu is going away anytime soon. Pop Mart is going to keep cranking out these strange, ugly, cute dolls.” (Don Weinland, 25:53)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On China’s strategic win:
  “We are narrowly scoped... on particular sectors and... products like soybeans. And I think all of that is kind of a win for China.” — John Zinn (02:33)
• On Trump’s tariffs and their reversal:
  “You may be confused about what the tariff rates are and if you are, then you’re certainly not alone.” — John Zinn (07:05)
• On contrasting negotiation styles:
  “Dealmaking is such an important part of Trump’s political persona... Xi’s not really interested in making a deal.” — John Zinn (10:21)
• On soft power and cultural exports:
  “The animation in Najatu 2 should make Hollywood sweat.” — John Zinn (20:26)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:00] – Scene-setting: Trump’s foreign policy and Chinese confidence
• [02:33] – John Zinn explains China’s strategic trade posture under Trump
• [06:00] – Reaction inside China to U.S. tariffs; rare earth retaliation
• [09:01] – Trump’s real motivation: The dealmaker, not the decoupler
• [10:21] – Xi Jinping’s negotiation style and long-term leverage
• [16:30] – Don Weinland on China’s culture export challenges
• [18:19] – Labubu: How a Chinese toy became a global craze
• [19:38] – Nutja 2: Animated myth, domestic and international hit
• [21:03] – Black Myth Wukong: Video games driving economic growth and soft power
• [22:18] – Who’s making China’s new cultural wave, and why now?
• [25:12] – Chinese censorship and its effect on pop culture
• [26:12] – Predicting the next wave: Tea brands and child-oriented exports

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Conclusion

“China is winning” examines how, in a year of economic brinkmanship and cultural shifts, China succeeded in shaping both the agenda and the outcomes of its engagement with the United States, while making real strides in exporting its culture globally. With a long game mentality, newfound cultural momentum, and keen awareness of U.S. political cycles, China is not just surviving U.S. pressure—it’s thriving.

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Transcript

[Myles Bryant]

It's 2026 and Trump's got a lot of America's traditional adversaries on the ropes. Venezuela isn't in a position to demand much of anything right now. Cuba's trying to figure out if it's going to get Maduroed. And now Trump's threatening to bomb Iran, where massive protests have the regime teetering on the brink. The leaders of Iran called. They want to negotiate. I think they're tired of being beat up by the United States. But you know who's on their front foot? China. China went toe to toe with Trump in the trade war over the last year and won. And on top of that, China's culture has been having a moment. Maybe you gifted a Labubu last year.

[Don Weinland]

I don't think Labubu is going away anytime soon. Pop Mart is going to keep cranking out these strange, ugly cute dolls.

[Myles Bryant]

China's surprisingly good 2025 and what it means for the Future Coming up on Today Explained from.

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[John Zinn]

This is TODAY Explained.

[Myles Bryant]

I'm Myles Bryant, guest hosting Today Explained. John Zinn has been studying China for close to 20 years. He's with the Brookings Institution now, but he started out working for the CIA under George W. Bush and was the China director at the National Security Council for a few years in the Biden administration. Recently, John wrote a piece for Foreign affairs called How Xi, as in Xi Jinping, China's leader, played Trump. I started by asking him for his elevator pitch.

[John Zinn]

We've basically come full circle at the end of this, this trade war. Right. We are back to status quo ante. We're basically in the same position more or less where we were with China a year ago. And I think what the Chinese have successfully done over time is whittled down the conversation with the Trump administration. So we are talking instead about the trade imbalances instead of over China's overcapacity. Never mind a suite, a whole suite of security issues like South China Sea and Taiwan. We are narrowly scoped and focused on particular sectors and particular firms like TikTok or particular products like soybeans. And I think all of that is kind of a win for China. That puts them in a comfortable place right now in their discussions with the Trump administration.

[Myles Bryant]

Okay, spicy. So if the first year of Trump, too, in China ends with China getting a lot of what it wants and the US Getting some soybean sales and maybe not much else, where does the story start? Like, what did our relationship with China look like at the end of Biden's term?

[John Zinn]

The relationship was at a relative high point for this period over the last 10 years or so of more overt and intense competition. Right. The two presidents met in Peru.

[Myles Bryant]

And so, you know, our two countries cannot let any of this competition veer into conflict.

[John Zinn]

There was, you know, some limited cooperation underway on issues like fentanyl, which of course is a concern of the Trump administration.

[Myles Bryant]

We agreed that fentanyl as precursors will be curbed substantially and the pill presses. That's a big, that's a big movement.

[John Zinn]

I think the big picture here is that it shows there are areas where the US And China can agree with. And then what we saw as we got past election Day and rounding the corner into, into the inauguration was the Biden administration kind of tying up some loose ends and tightening some of the export controls and technology controls on China that were, and these were pretty significant muscle movements.

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[John Zinn]

And what we saw from the Chinese side was not just responding, I think more briskly than they had responded earlier in the administration, but more substantively as well. And I think what they were trying to do was gear up for the return of the Trump administration and for Trump 2.0.

[Myles Bryant]

And what do you think China wanted out of their first year with Trump, too? You know, how. What were their goals and how do those fit into their Bigger plans.

[John Zinn]

Yeah. I think their primary objective was to get the Trump administration to back off. And I think what China really wants from us is, is for us to get out of their way and to not slow down their own growth and development.

[Myles Bryant]

So then Trump takes office again and this comes back onto my radar as a general interest journalist. Really Last April, on Liberation Day, I mean, I'm sure you remember, everybody remembers. I always say tariffs is the most.

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[Myles Bryant]

Trump slapped tariffs on nearly every country. It was this huge economic maelstrom. And I remember at the time, in that spring, you know, doing research for Today explained and just reading because I was curious and thinking like, okay, this is going to be another economic cold war. It's going to change everything. And now, you know, fast forward eight months and doesn't feel like that much changed. Like I'm still buying my daughter a lot of cheap toys from China. What happened?

[John Zinn]

Yeah, and Liberation Day was very striking. I actually was in China when the tariffs dropped for Liberation Day. And what was really striking to me talking to both, you know, senior Chinese officials and to the business community across China is that they seemed emotionally prepared for this. There wasn't really kind of the anger or anxiety that I had expected to see and feel. And we were there just as, you know, as things were ratcheting up and we ended up in a place where there was a de facto embargo on Chinese goods. Cuz the tariffs were so high. I think what's interesting about the Trump approach is that they started off really trying to clobber China, right, with these, with these tariffs and this period of escalation.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

These numbers just keep changing, as you know. And what we've just confirmed from the White House is that the new total rate against China is now 145% tariffs so far this term that's added to anything that was in place before President Trump took office. President Trump threatening a 100% tariff on China over and above any tariff that they are currently paying starting November 1st.

[John Zinn]

Now you may be confused about what.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

The tariff rates are and if you are, then you're certainly not alone.

[John Zinn]

And I think what happened in, especially once China started to impose control export controls on rare earth elements, right? Which is kind of this esoteric wonky thing that we've all had to become experts on now, right. These are basically elements that go in everything from some high end military kit to your automobile to basic consumer electronics, right. So these are a loose thread in the supply chain. If you start to pull on it, it can unrival a lot of different industries all at once. And this reflects what the Chinese had did in the previous five years as they were going back to the gym and preparing for a second trade war, trying identify tools and countermeasures they could use. And I think they proved to be more effective than Beijing realized. So you kind of had the seesaw effect from the Trump administration. They came in wanting to clobber China and then I think they had to back down. Right. In the wake of that.

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Today, Treasury Secretary Scott Benson says the US has reached a substantial framework of a trade deal with China. Trump said US tariffs on China would be lowered to 47% from 57%.

[John Zinn]

So the Trump administration had walked back its own export controls on China, which I think many in the national security community and I think many across both parties and especially, you know, alumni from the Biden administration saw as really consequential to our long term competition with China. Right. Basically keeping our most advanced technologies out of the hands of China. And that has, that has gradually been whittled away by the Trump administration. I think that is, that is a huge win for China.

[Myles Bryant]

One thing I thought about Trump and his administration coming in in 2025 is that they were really serious about decoupling economically from China. This felt like the culmination of a swell of intellectual sentiment and debate that had been building for a long time. Did they have a change of heart? What do you think?

[John Zinn]

I think what Trump really wanted, even with all the sturm and drang and hostility in the bilateral relationship, I think he ult ultimately he wants some kind of deal. Right. This is what animates him. And I think it is a core part of his political Persona is that he's a deal maker. And I think the kind of ultimate concretization of that in this administration was the line that they had in the national security strategy that said they want to get to a mutually beneficial relationship with China.

[Myles Bryant]

Wow. Would you have expected to see that when you were working for Biden or President George W. Bush?

[John Zinn]

Well, so that's what's interesting is that in some ways it's a departure, but in some ways it feels like back to the future. This is something that could have been said in the Clinton administration, frankly, before China was joining the WTO or in the Bush administration or even for large swaths of the Obama administration, that there are challenges in the relationship, but that there is mutual benefit in these economic engagements. And so we need to find ways to figure those out and resolve them.

[Myles Bryant]

You pointed out earlier, China's oriented towards the long game. They think big. One lesson it seems like China has taken out of the last year is that being aggressive and sticking to its guns is a smart strategy against the Trump administration. How do you think that's going to play out over the next year? Couple of years, longer?

[John Zinn]

Yeah, I think that's right. And I think, you know, just as a starting point, too, you know, I noted that dealmaking is such an important part of Trump's political Persona. But as somebody who's followed Xi Jinping for a long time, it's occurred to me it's not an important part of Xi's political Persona, but he's a very tough negotiator.

[Myles Bryant]

That's not good.

[John Zinn]

Right. He's not really interested in making a deal. He is kind of playing the longer game.

[Myles Bryant]

Right.

[John Zinn]

And thinking about how do they accrue advantage over time. And I think what they've learned from the past year, and I think it's really unfortunate from a US Perspective, is that they have in fact accrued a lot of leverage. And so I find that really worrisome as we go into 2026, because if you look at what a lot of Chinese commentators and analysts are saying, they not only feel that they had a lot of leverage this past year and they exercised it to tremendous effect, I think better than they had expected, but that their position is actually improving this year. They are very much mindful of the upcoming midterm elections. And so my theory about this for a while has been that they are working backwards from that. What they want to do is keep Trump invested in the diplomatic process. I think on the premise that the closer we get to to the midterm elections, the more leverage the Chinese side is going to have because Trump is going to want some kind of bigger deal. He's going to want something to show for all of his efforts. So it's not that the Chinese think in terms of centuries or imperial cycles. They just pulled up Outlook calendar, I think, and realized one year from now is going to be the midterm election and Trump's not going to want to have this fall apart.

[Myles Bryant]

They're just like us, brain poisoned journalists in America thinking about the two year cycle.

[John Zinn]

That's fine. Exactly what am I going to be doing from one, one year from now?

[Myles Bryant]

John Zinn, China analyst at Brookings Coming up, China's soft power is on the rise, too.

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[Myles Bryant]

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[Don Weinland]

You're listening to Today Explained. I'm Don Weinland. I'm the Economist China Business and Finance editor. I'm based in Shanghai.

[Myles Bryant]

Okay, Don, in the first half of the show we talked about China's hard power. Over the last year, you wrote for the Economist about China seeing an uptick in its cultural exports and growing soft power. How would you define that soft power?

[Don Weinland]

Well, I mean, the first thing to say is that China massively under punches on its cultural exports. Right? I mean, this is the world's second biggest economy, an incredible manufacturing power unparalleled elsewhere. And yet on cultural exports, it's really not doing very well. On that front, I would say, you know, I could read a list of Chinese films that came out this year. And I mean, the vast majority of them, you would, you would not know the names of them if I, if I read them to you. Have you ever heard of the movie Detective Chinatown 1900?

[Myles Bryant]

No, I have not.

[Don Weinland]

Or Dead to Rights. And there are a couple other things that happened in 2025 that may have caught your attention. So have you heard of Lebooboo before? Or Popmart?

[Myles Bryant]

I have heard of Leboo.

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[Don Weinland]

Yeah. So this is something that's actually changing, you know, for many years I don't think you would have known most of the sitcoms or movies or video games or, or toys that are being made in China, especially not by name. But China did much better on cultural exports in 2025 than it has in previous years.

[Myles Bryant]

Okay, so China's Cultural exports are breaking through a little bit. Maybe we can run through the areas that that's happening. I feel like we should start with Le. I don't. I don't have any Labubus. To be honest. I'm not super Labubu curious, but I do see them everywhere. And I was surprised to learn in researching for this story that they originated in China. Are you a Labubu guy?

[Don Weinland]

I'm not really a Labubu guy per se, but I am very interested in Palmate, or Pop Mart, the company that makes Labubus. So, yeah, we can start with Labubu. It. It really started getting a lot of attention in 2024, and then in 25, it just. It just blew up. All right, there are three of the.

[Myles Bryant]

Hot, hottest dolls right now that are attached to purses. Labubus. Yes.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Yes.

[John Zinn]

Kenny.

[Myles Bryant]

You guys, girls with Labubus.

[Don Weinland]

If you haven't seen one, they're often described as being ugly, cute, and they come in these things called blind boxes. So it's a. It's a box. You don't know what Labubu you're going to get.24 karat gold, and when you open it up, you can discover, you know, which one it is. They're collector's items. It's kind of like baseball cards in a way. You don't know what baseball cards you're getting. And, you know, you might get like a rare card or something like that. Right.

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[Don Weinland]

She got the secret.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

I told a Foo Foul.

[Myles Bryant]

So what else you mentioned movies. Yeah.

[Don Weinland]

Nutja 2 really blew up at the beginning of 2025. It's an animated film. It tells a traditional Chinese myth story.

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[Don Weinland]

It's the highest grossing animated film ever. So, I mean, that's quite amazing in itself, and most of that happened domestically, but I know people in the US that have seen it as well. Chinese films don't get a lot of screen time in the US traditionally, but this one seems like it did break through in some places.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

Absolutely, yes. Go see it. It is undoubtedly one of the best films of the year.

[John Zinn]

The animation in the genre 2 should make Hollywood sweat.

[Don Weinland]

The origin country and where it comes.

[Myles Bryant]

From just kind of falls away and.

[Don Weinland]

It becomes really pure cinema. You know what was really fascinating to me about this is last year you would hear senior leaders citing Najatu, which is very odd, you know, to hear them referencing this. This animated film. And, you know, they're really. They were pointing to what they see as a success, a cultural success. So that kind of tells you something about how important this movie was.

[Myles Bryant]

You also mentioned video games. I was looking into one game that looks like it broke through Black Myth Wukong. I don't get a chance to play video games much anymore, but I used to, and it looked like it got a lot of hype online. Can you tell me a bit about that?

[Don Weinland]

Yeah. Also incredibly popular within China, but also overseas. I think it's one of the most popular video games of this style ever. This is so cinematic, dude.

[Myles Bryant]

Wow.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

It looks so good.

[Don Weinland]

It's also based on a traditional Chinese myth. Massively popular. Starting at the end of 2024, it was so popular that the. The areas in China that it takes place in started getting a bunch of tourists visiting them. So this type of cultural product can generate economic growth, not just in the selling of the product itself, but also, you know, in areas like tourism.

[Myles Bryant]

So what do these products have in common that contributed to their breaking out of China as cultural exports in the last year? You know, what do you. What do you think is happening here that's different?

[Don Weinland]

So I've kind of narrowed it down to two really important things. One is that a lot of the creators behind these things are in their late 30s or early 40s, and they're people that went to university in China. Just as the education system was changing, a lot more students were going to school at the time. And crucially, it's a time when the Internet was relatively free. It was quite easy to get online and look at foreign websites. So it's a group of people that had access to a lot of foreign ideas. I think they absorbed a lot of foreign culture. That's one thing. Another thing is that these types of products are being funded quite a bit better than in the past. So the Communist Party has its priorities. You know, it wants to be strong in manufacturing. It wants to be strong in areas like electric vehicles and batteries, solar power. It hasn't really focused that much on its cultural products and its soft power. And we can kind of see that changing in areas like animated film or video games. So it's. It's a lot easier for these types of companies to get funding now. And that just means that, you know, it's going to reach a lot more people in China, but also overseas. But I mean, I think there's another factor that. That has really held back cultural exports in China, and that's just rules and regulations. Here that make it very, very difficult to make raunchy, sexy entertainment. You know, the type of stuff that we're used to in the U.S. you know, sometimes even, you know, broaching the topic of divorce is difficult. In sitcoms, the regulations are very, very strict. You can't even really have like haunted houses in Chinese entertainment because the Communist Party doesn't like superstition and they, they view this as kind of a form of superstition. So it's very, very strict in. So there's this one really striking example of this pop band where one of the, one of the band members had a public breakup with his girlfriend and he got a lot of bad press. And if you watch the videos of this band now, you can see, you can see the, you know, the band playing and everything looks normal except when it, when the camera gets to this one specific member, he's been fogged out. So he's just kind of this puff of fog on stage. He's literally been kind of erased from the video. You can see his hands playing the piano, but you can't see the rest of his body. It's very, very odd.

[Myles Bryant]

Who disappeared him?

[Don Weinland]

Well, basically he was, he was kind of state canceled and I think the companies that host the, these videos were required to basically erase him. So there's a of companies that just don't want to take risks on culture because you know, pop artists can get scrubbed from videos or dramas can get outright canceled if one of the actors does something bad in real life.

[Myles Bryant]

What's your bet on the next big Chinese cultural export? You think we're getting a Leboo 2.0 in 2026?

[Don Weinland]

I don't think Labubu is going away anytime soon. Leboo Boo Pop Mart is going to keep cranking out these strange, ugly, cute dolls. But I would say one area that American consumers might see in 2026 is they might see more Chinese products, well made products popping up in America. There are a lot of Chinese tea brands like bubble tea chains that are setting up in America right now. You know, we've been talking about entertainment, but products have a big impact on soft power as well. Right. So if you start buying well made Chinese products, it could change your mind about China. It does seem like China's making progress on entertainment and cultural products that are more geared towards children. So Najatu is an animated film. Adults love it, but you know, it's definitely something that kids can watch. Labubu is also not just for kids, but it's, you know, kids seem to be buying a lot of these. I think that's kind of a safe space for Chinese cultural exports. You know, you don't need things like violence and sex and you know, the kind of the raunchier bits of entertainment in this space, obviously. And yeah, that might make it easier, easier for more of these types of kind of youth focused things to reach people outside of China.

[Myles Bryant]

Don Weiland, Economist Magazine Not a Labubu guy Our show today was produced by Ariana Espuru, edited by Jolie Myers and engineered by David Tadashore and Patrick Boyd and fact checked by Andrea Lopez. Crusado. I'm Miles Bryant. It's Today explained.