Episode 8

Why boys and men are struggling in America

Published on: 3rd February, 2026

Why have so many boys and men fallen behind in America?

Boys are behind girls in K-12 education. They are behind girls in getting to college - and staying in college. Millions of prime-age men are missing from the labor force. And men die deaths of despair - suicide and overdoses - at much higher rates than women.

Richard Reeves talks about what has shifted culturally for men.

How do you turn this around? Why do these issues affect even upper-class boys? How has this issue hurt Democrats - and what can they do about it?

Reeves is the author of "Of Boys and Men," the founding president of the American Institute For Boys and Men, and a senior fellow at Brookings.

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About the Podcast

It Turns Out
"It Turns Out" reveals the hidden realities reshaping our world—from how marriage impacts inequality to the way that the tax code has transformed wealth.

Through conversations with experts who challenge conventional wisdom, award-winning journalist Kara Miller focuses each episode on groundbreaking research, changing how listeners see society, economics, technology, and human behavior. “It Turns Out” delves into data that directly impacts your life—whether you know it or not.

You can reach us at info@itturnsoutshow.com

We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. This work was done under Grant No. G-2025-79141.

About your host

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Kara Miller

Kara hosted the nationally-syndicated public radio program Innovation Hub, which she launched. The program won the 2021 Clarion Award for best Radio Talk or Interview Program and aired on more than 100 stations, including in New York, Houston, Philadelphia, Chicago and Washington, D.C. It spotlighted compelling thinkers, including Steve Wozniak, Sherry Turkle, Yo-Yo Ma, Walter Isaacson, and Sal Khan.

She writes “The Big Idea” column for The Boston Globe and is a frequent contributor to The Boston Globe Magazine.

Kara has moderated panels and spoken about innovation and entrepreneurship at events hosted by The International Women’s Forum, PBS Digital Media for STEM, Harvard Medical School, Google, and MIT Sloan.

She has taught at Babson College and at the University of Massachusetts.