podcast
Margins of Error
Look closely at almost anything and you’ll find data—lots of it. But when you push past the calculations, what are all those numbers really saying about who we are and what we believe? CNN’s Harry Enten is on a mission to find out. This season on Margins of Error, Harry teases out big ideas like what accents say about where we live, how much money it takes to be happy, and whether the U.S. should finally switch to the metric system.

More and more of us are in need of glasses these days and luckily, there is now a much more positive perception of people with “four eyes.” However, it wasn’t always that way. So where did the stereotypes come from, and is there a chance that people who wear glasses are smarter than those who don’t? Harry also discovers why eyewear has become defense attorneys’ favorite accessories for clients in the courtroom and visits Dr. Craig Moskowitz of Moskowitz Eye Care.
May 17, 2022
There’s been a lot of debate about how often we need to bathe — and the answer might be less than you think. It turns out we have a complicated history with washing dating back to the baths of Ancient Rome. Harry goes straight to the experts to decode the hygienic necessity of bathing versus our societal norms. Plus, he sees what life is like without deodorant. You’ll have to smell it to believe it.
May 10, 2022
No one thinks they have an accent … but it turns out we all do. However, is it possible our distinct ways of speaking across the U.S. are disappearing? If so, what else is getting lost along the way? Harry Enten goes on a journey to find out if conformity is affecting how we converse. Plus, get ready to hear Harry with an entirely new accent!
May 3, 2022
CNN’s Harry Enten is back with more wild and weird stories behind the stats. This time around, Harry goes on a search for disappearing accents and investigates how much money actually makes us happy. Listen in as Harry wonders if love is really dead, or whether wearing glasses makes you look and feel smarter. The “spectacle” returns on May 3.
Trailer
Let's face it, most of us see ourselves as the underdogs in life. Maybe that's why it's more fun to root for one in sports. In this special episode of CNN's 5 Things, Harry Enten tackles Super Bowl stats and makes the case for why Buffalo wings are the best snack food for the big game.
Feb 13, 2022
Harry’s uncle is singer/songwriter Neil Sedaka. Depending on how old you are, and your knowledge of pop music, you may know Uncle Neil wrote and performed a string of Top 40 hit songs from the 1950s all the way to the 1980s, a feat accomplished by only a few dozen artists. Harry digs into music chart data to find out about the changing nature of mega pop hits, how rare Uncle Neil’s success was compared to today, and if that kind of success will even be possible in the future.
Nov 9, 2021
It's been a year since Americans waited on edge to find out the winner in one of the strangest election of our lifetimes. CNN's Harry Enten revisits that night and gives us a behind-the-scenes look at how election night turned into election week. He'll also explore the repercussions of the delayed count and how we can avoid drawn out results in the future.
Nov 2, 2021
A surprising percentage of people today, including Harry, hate making and receiving phone calls. Our reluctance to dial in, is affecting everything from national polling to workplace relationships to our levels of anxiety. Harry asks why we’re avoiding phone calls and whether we can be coached through our telephone-related nerves.
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We want to know what you think of this show! Go to cnn.com/margins to share your feedback.
Oct 26, 2021
Few rules dominate the dating world as much as “divide by two and add seven.” But where did that rule even come from, and does it hold up today? Harry looks at the history of the age gaps in relationships and tries to find out whether the math actually works out for couples.
We want to know what you think of this show! Go to https://cnn.com/margins to share your feedback.
We want to know what you think of this show! Go to https://cnn.com/margins to share your feedback.
Oct 19, 2021
While we don't have much say about how we come into this world, we can certainly plan for what happens to us after we leave. Turns out death is a big business and there's a trend on the rise: cremation over burial. Harry asks what's behind the shift and the implications for all eternity.
We want to know what you think of this show! Go to https://cnn.com/margins to share your feedback.
We want to know what you think of this show! Go to https://cnn.com/margins to share your feedback.
Oct 12, 2021