Next Question with Katie Couric

With less than 50 days until the midterm elections, major battles are already underway over voting rights, election rules, redistricting, and how Americans vote.Katie Couric sits down with Marc Elias, a leading election lawyer, founder of Democracy Docket, and founder of Elias Law Group, to discuss the legal fights shaping the 2026 midterms.They discuss the Supreme Court’s recent rulings on mail-in voting, rapidly changing congressional maps, voter rolls, election security, and what could happen if election results are challenged after Election Day.

In 2016, NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick made global headlines when he decided to take a knee during the National Anthem in response to a spate of killings of young Black men by police in a number of cities across the country: Baltimore, Baton Rouge, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Now, 10 years after he first refused to stand during the Star-Spangled Banner, he’s written a memoir called The Perilous Fight. 

Katie sits down with Dr. Sharon Malone at the Aspen Institute to talk about why women's health has been under-researched and under-funded for centuries -- which also happens to be the subject of Katie's new documentary, HORMONAL!. The numbers are staggering: PMS affects 90% of women but gets a fraction of the funding erectile dysfunction research receives. The NIH didn't require women to be included in clinical trials until 1993. Katie also shares how her own breast cancer diagnosis has shaped her relationship to hormone therapy. It's a candid, infuriating, ultimately hopeful conversation about what it will take to close the gender gap in medicine.

Rob Lowe is best known for his decades in Hollywood, from The West Wing to Parks and Recreation and beyond. In this episode of Next Question, I spoke with him about his career, his long marriage, and his family’s experience with cancer — including how a clinical trial helped extend his grandmother’s life after her breast cancer diagnosis. We also discussed why he’s become an advocate for helping people better understand what cancer clinical trials are and how they work in cancer care.Presented in partnership with @EliLillyandCompany  #LillyPartner#sponsored

The Trump administration is testing the boundaries of presidential power in ways that are reshaping American politics and raising profound questions about the future of this country's democratic institutions. From a war with Iran with no clear end in sight to growing concerns about the use of public office for private gain, the stakes are higher than ever. In this episode, Katie speaks with historian and authoritarianism expert Timothy Snyder to examine why this moment matters, what historical patterns Americans should recognize, and how the choices made in the months ahead could shape not only the outcome of the midterm elections, but the future of American democracy itself.

Public health remains one of this country’s most politically charged issues. Six years after the COVID pandemic upended everyday life, Americans are still divided over vaccines, scientific expertise, and the role of our nation's top health agencies. Meanwhile, the U.S. is experiencing its worst measles outbreak in decades, underscoring just how high the stakes remain. Few senators have spent more time thinking about these issues than Bill Cassidy. The Louisiana Republican is not only a physician, but has spent much of his life improving public health for the residents of his state. He is chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, and one of the key lawmakers overseeing the nation's health agencies during this particularly turbulent time. In this wide ranging conversation, Katie speaks with him about the measles outbreak, the challenge of rebuilding trust in public health, his ideas for lowering healthcare costs, and why he believes Congress still has time to save Social Security.

Senator Mark Kelly has had an extraordinary career—as a Navy combat pilot, NASA astronaut, and now Arizona's senior U.S. senator. Today, he's also one of the Trump administration's most outspoken critics and a name that's increasingly being mentioned as a possible 2028 presidential candidate. Katie talks with Kelly about the latest developments in Iran, his clashes with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and what he believes is happening inside today's military. They also discuss why he thinks more men should become teachers and mentors and the partnership he shares with his wife, former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, whose survival after a 2011 assassination attempt reshaped both of their lives.

What does it mean to age well? Few people have explored that question with more wisdom, humor, and grace than Roger Rosenblatt. In his new book, More Rules for Aging, Roger returns to the subject he first tackled 25 years ago, this time with even more perspective and hard-earned insight. In this conversation with Katie, Roger reflects on the loss of his daughter Amy, the years he and his wife spent helping raise their grandchildren, and the clarity that can come from surviving life's hardest moments. Along the way, they also discuss why family and friends are the only things that really matter, the importance of maintaining a sense of wonder, and why everyone should spend an hour a week with a peony. It's a funny, moving, and deeply thoughtful conversation about growing older, living with loss, and what it means to live a good life.