Welcome to Axis Pro Rada, where we take just 10 minutes to get you smarter on the collision of tech, business, and politics.

I'm Dan for Mac. On today's show, Facebook blocks COVID-truther protests and the next big problem with health care.

But first, oil breaks the internet. So if you were brave enough yesterday to venture onto social media, you probably

saw a bunch of jokes about oil prices, which isn't the sort of thing you usually see on social

media outside of a very small subset of energy reporters and policy wonks. The reason, oil futures

dipped below zero yesterday, $38 below zero, prompting all the jokes, like how people would gladly help out

some Oklahoma wildcatters by storing their oil, you know, for $38 per barrel. Why it matters,

though, is that this is anything but funny to America's massive energy industry, which is simply

creating supply for which there isn't enough demand. We don't really fly or drive much anymore,

and all sorts of

manufacturing is slowed. Plus, the regular season of lessening of heating oil needs is in play,

and oil companies are becoming something akin to makers of VCRs and pagers. Now, for context,

the U.S. energy sector at this moment is the smallest of the S&P 1500's 11 major sectors,

worth less than real estate or utilities.

And the only theoretical silver lining in this, the idea of going to the gas station

and being paid to fill up your tank, well, that's apparently not going to become reality

either due to the other layers of costs that get included like refinement and transportation

and state taxes.

So how did we get here and where do we go next?

For that, I'm pleased to be joined by Axios Energy Reporter Ben Geeman. So, Ben, let's start with

what happened yesterday and help me out here. If oil prices are technically negative, how does

that work practically? I take oil out of the ground and what, pay somebody else to take it from me?

...