Don't have time to follow every twist and turn of the week's biggest stories?
Veteran journalist Jon Leiberman ("Howard Stern" and "America's Most Wanted") breaks down what happened so you are in the know on the most important, compelling, underreported and craziest stories of the week.
Stream new episodes of "Catch Me Up" every Friday at 7 p.m. ET.
Text the word Scripps to (202)-968-2449 to comment or join the panel discussion for upcoming episodes!
Oct. 7 Three Years Later, Cornell & the Search for the Missing
Three years after October 7, Gaza still isn't at peace, and the fighting has spread into a wider war with Iran. Scripps News Chief International Correspondent Jason Bellini has covered the story since the first days. He joins Jon Leiberman to talk about where things stand and where they could go next.
That's just the start. Alex Miller has the latest on the ongoing situation at Cornell. A new Gallup report says only 31% of Americans think a college education is "very important," so we ask Stacey Cohen, Fordham adjunct professor, TEDx speaker and CEO of Co-Communications, whether college is still worth it. Food Babe founder Vani Hari was at the White House Make America Healthy summit with Vice President Vance and Secretary Kennedy, and she explains why even some MAHA loyalists aren't on board. Monica Caison, founder of the CUE Center for Missing Persons, explains how to keep a case from disappearing along with the person, and how you can help.
Our panel also weighs in on the week's biggest stories. In our hidden headlines, Flock Safety CEO Garrett Langley is facing online backlash after his property was marked as a public toilet on Google Maps, as scrutiny of the company's surveillance cameras grows. It writes itself.
Everyone has an opinion and we want to hear yours. Text Jon at 202-968-2449, and subscribe so you stay caught up.
2 Oct 2026
Big Tech's Thirst, AI's Hidden Job Risk & a Drunk Driver's Shocking Sentence
A Google data center used more than a billion gallons of water in a single year, more than the town next door. So who pays when Big Tech gets thirsty? News 5 Cleveland reporter Michelle Jarboe went through public records to find out how much water data centers really use, and how much communities can afford to give.
Plus, forget the robot takeover. Marcus Mossberger, chief market strategy officer at LYTIQS, says the real risk of AI isn't losing your job. It's keeping it with fewer hours and no health insurance. Scripps News correspondent Maura Barrett also explains what to expect from your health care premiums as open enrollment nears, and it's not pretty.
In October 2024, Mark Palumbo was driving home from work on I-95 in Westbrook, Connecticut, when a wrong-way drunk driver three times the legal limit hit him head-on. His wife, Amanda, joins Jon to share Mark's story, talk about a sentencing that left her family questioning what justice looks like, and explain her fight to make sure no other family goes through this.
Stephanie Alston and Teddy "The Tax Man" go side by side on the week's biggest stories. In the Hidden Headlines, the dad whose son put $118,000 of Minecraft YouTube ads on a company credit card has lost his job, and he's now selling $100 AI-generated shirts to pay back the debt. And it's Fat Bear Week in Alaska, where reigning champ Chunk is defending his crown.
Everyone has an opinion, and we want to hear yours. Text Jon at 202-968-2449.
25 Sept 2026
Ballroom Bonanza
Trump's AI Empire, a Ballroom Under Scrutiny, a 9-Year-Old's $118,000 Mistake & a 9/11 Survivor's 'Never Forget' Mission | Catch Me Up"
No, this isn't your typical news show. Jon Leiberman digs into a new Washington Post analysis tying the Trump family's business empire to the AI boom and the possible conflicts between the president's personal investments and his administration's AI policy. Plus: CNN, MS NOW and Politico sue after their White House badges are pulled while the White House launches its own 24/7 "Trump TV"; Trump and Mayor Mamdani meet at Gracie Mansion; and Converse yanks a campaign over alleged KKK imagery. Scripps News White House Correspondent Jacob Gardenswartz on the ballroom questions no one is answering, Achievement Network CEO Michelle Odemwingie on AI alarm bells in the classroom, and 9/11 survivor Christina Ray Stanton on teaching history to kids who never lived it. Then Hidden Headlines — including the 9-year-old who spent $118,000 of his dad's company credit card on YouTube ads for his own Minecraft videos. Text Jon with your take: 202-968-2449.
18 Sept 2026
Climate in Crisis?
"EPA's Climate Rollback: Gov. Christine Todd Whitman Reacts | Catch Me Up with Jon Leiberman"
Show Summary
The Supreme Court just handed Trump a "Supreme No" on his mail-ballot overhaul, and that's only the opening act. Jon Leiberman catches you up on the GOP's first-ever midterm convention with Scripps News' Jay Gray - including that $5K check promise everyone's still talking about before turning to the EPA's stunning rollback of power plant climate limits with the woman who used to run the agency, former New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman. Then it's a game-changer for women's sports: 2025 NFL FLAG Player of the Year Ava Rotondi on flag football's meteoric rise toward NCAA varsity status and its 2028 LA Olympics debut. The panel weighs in on everything from AI "extinction" fears to what's buzzing nationwide, and the Hidden Headline delivers the ultimate feel-good ending - Oklahoma City firefighters who saved a man's life, then finished mowing his lawn before they left. It's news, but not like you've seen it before.
11 Sept 2026
9/11: 25 Years Later
A special 25th anniversary edition of Catch Me Up, marking one quarter-century since 9/11 changed everything.
This week: a powerful interview with a woman who lost her husband on 9/11 and then survived a stroke right before the 20th anniversary of the terror attacks. Today Beth Murphy is a fierce advocate for terror victims and people living with neurological disorders. Plus, Jon's own personal story covering 9/11 and the Iraq War, alongside Jason Bellini's firsthand account. Kadia Tubman catches you up on the ongoing fight for health benefits for 9/11 survivors and first responders. And the head of a leading Middle East think tank answers the hard question: are we actually safer 25 years later? All of that and the panel weighs in on the amazing fact that 100 million Americans alive today - were not alive on 9/11.
4 Sept 2026
The War on Public Health
Clancy Jury Deadlocks, Epstein Fallout, Rising Prices, and America's "War on Public Health" | Catch Me Up with Jon Leiberman
Jon Leiberman catches you up on a chaotic week: a deadlocked jury in the Lindsay Clancy case, escalating US-Iran strikes near the Strait of Hormuz, a deadly Himalayan glacier collapse burying villages in Nepal and Tibet, a flash flood tearing through the Grand Canyon, and Nicolas Maduro flashing peace signs from a Brooklyn jail cell.
Scripps News' Alex Miller breaks down where the Epstein files fight stands heading into a contentious post-Labor Day fall. Then Jon sits down with Dr. Peter Hotez, dean of Baylor's National School of Tropical Medicine, on measles hitting an all-time high and the growing war on public health — before the panel sounds off on soaring gas prices, a new NY Times survey showing health premiums about to skyrocket, NYC's AI ban in elementary and middle schools, and their own frustration over sky-high travel prices heading into Labor Day weekend.
Jon closes it out lighter with a Georgia teacher's classroom "gas station" — the only gas station in town where prices are down and emissions are up.
Text Jon your take: 202-968-2449
28 Aug 2026
AI vs. THE CLASSROOM
Baltimore's murder rate is in freefall and Jon breaks down why. Plus: AI just became the biggest fight in American classrooms, and coffee drinkers want to know when prices will finally drop.
21 Aug 2026
Exclusive Interview with Former Presidential Candidate Andrew Yang
Catch Me Up with Jon Leiberman: Why the Midterms Actually Matter, Andrew Yang Goes One-on-One, and Penn State's Cocaine Scandal Gets the Panel Treatment
14 Aug 2026
Mangione Murder Madness
Jon Leiberman catches you up! The latest on Flock Cameras. Plus, Mangione pleads guilty in Federal court and we are there. Then, Kinsey Schofield weighs in on everything going on in the world of the Royals. And don't miss our panel debate; Marc's Minute, and the hidden headlines!
10 Aug 2026
CJ Beatty On Going VIRAL in Youth Sports
On Episode 3 of Catch Me Up with Jon Leiberman. Is ICE using private contractors as "bounty hunters" to track down undocumented children? Investigation uncovers troubling questions about who is showing up at families' doors. Then, former pro baseball player CJ Batty joins Jon to discuss going viral with dugout anthems like "Row My Boat," empowering young female athletes, and helping save youth sports culture. Plus, our panel weighs in on the Michigan primary shaker, cyberattacks targeting US water facilities, and prescription-delivering drones, before Marc cooks up some therapeutic homemade pasta!
Don't have time to follow every twist and turn of the week's biggest stories?
Veteran journalist Jon Leiberman ("Howard Stern" and "America's Most Wanted") breaks down what happened so you are in the know on the most important, compelling, underreported and craziest stories of the week.
Stream new episodes of "Catch Me Up" every Friday at 7 p.m. ET.
3 Aug 2026
Why Isn't Anyone Talking About Ebola? Catch Me Up with Jon Leiberman
One of the world's deadliest outbreaks is accelerating—but why isn't it leading the news?
This week on Catch Me Up, we speak with journalist Chris Ocamringa from the Democratic Republic of Congo about the rapidly growing Ebola outbreak, the conspiracy theories slowing response efforts, and why many believe the crisis isn't getting the global attention it deserves.
Then, Sydney Leathers—the woman thrust into the Anthony Weiner scandal more than a decade ago—shares how she rebuilt her life, found healing, and why she believes in second chances.
Also in this episode:
The latest on the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Measles cases hit their highest level in decades
Is AI really replacing jobs—or changing the workforce?
Democratic Party fundraising struggles ahead of the midterms
Remote work, disability rights, and the camera-on workplace debate
Hidden headlines you probably missed this week
Chapters
00:00 This Week on Catch Me Up
02:22 Ebola Crisis in Congo
09:19 Sydney Leathers: A Second Act
15:22 Panel: Measles, AI & Politics
22:25 Mark's Minute: AI Through a Kid's Eyes
23:12 Hidden Headlines
Subscribe for weekly conversations that go beyond the headlines and help you understand the stories shaping the world.
30 Jul 2026
How Drones Are Changing War in Ukraine
War is changing faster than most people realize.
This week on Catch Me Up, Senior International Correspondent Jason Bellini joins us from Kyiv to explain how drones are transforming the battlefield—and why the conflict increasingly resembles something out of a video game.
Plus, former WWE Superstar and Florida Commissioner Matt Morgan weighs in on politics, rising grocery and gas prices, and what he thinks happens in the next midterm elections.
Also in this episode:
Ukraine's rapidly evolving drone warfare
Iran conflict update and U.S. military involvement
Cyclospora lettuce outbreak: Should you actually be worried?
Why groceries and gas remain major concerns for Americans
Hidden headlines you probably missed this week
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