Boston Public Radio

CNN’s chief national correspondent said the president is likely looking to stoke his base ahead of the November elections.

The world that we reopen into will be "180 degrees different" from our previous idea of normal, Kayyem says.

The medical ethicist said activists should take more responsibility for putting others' lives at risk.

The one-time $1,200 stimulus check just won't be enough for Americans to survive a long economic recovery, Gruber says.

Spring SAT and ACT tests were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Will the tests revive?

The attorney general is looking to "keep the pressure on as we go forward" in regards to worker safety.

This is the podcast for BPR’s show on Thursday, September 15, 2022. We started the show with NBC Political Director and moderator of Meet The Press, Chuck Todd. We then turned to Eve Zuckoff, reporter for WCAI, who was on the ground in Martha’s Vineyard, reporting on the dozens of migrants sent to the island by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Andrea Cabral, former Massachusetts Secretary of Public Safety and Sheriff of Suffolk County. We wrapped the live portion of our show with incoming Boston Public Schools Superintendent Mary Skipper. The remainder of the show was on tape, featuring Boston Globe reporter Billy Baker on his book “We Need to Hang Out: A Memoir of Making Friends” and Harvard Business School’s Michael Norton on the importance of widening your circle of friends.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We opened the show with a conversation with NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg on her new book "Dinners with Ruth: A Memoir on the Power of Friendships." Then, we opened the lines to hear from listeners about making friends: at the office, in person and online. For the remainder of the show, we re-aired some of our favorite conversations, including: Charlie Warzel on his book “Out of Office,” coauthored with Anne Helen Peterson, reporter Spencer Buell and noise researcher Erica Walker, about health concerns over rising noise levels in the city, the New Yorker's Malcolm Gladwell about his book, “Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know About the People We Don’t Know," writer Lindy West about her book, “The Witches Are Coming." and Lizzie Post, great-great-granddaughter of etiquette expert Emily Post, about her book “Higher Etiquette: A Guide to the World of Cannabis, from Dispensaries to Dinner Parties.”

Today on Boston Public Radio: We opened the show by talking with listeners about autumn, and the dread that comes with transitioning from summer to fall. Trenni Casey talked about the Patriots’ flop of an opening game against the Miami Dolphins and what the loss says about Patriots coach Bill Belichick’s ability, winners from this year’s U.S. open, plus new rules for Major League Baseball. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu returned for an hour of “Ask the Mayor,” discussing decision to challenge Boston’s 2020 census results, ongoing MBTA shutdowns and workaround shuttles, and her choice to vote for Suffolk County D.A. candidate Ricardo Arroyo in the September primaries. She also responded to questions from listeners. Michael Kirk discussed his latest “Frontline” documentary, “Lies, Politics & Democracy,” which delves into former President Trump’s relationship with the GOP and how Republicans enabled anti-democratic efforts after his 2020 election loss. John King weighed in on an August inflation report and discussed how it stands to impact voter’s views on the economy. He also spoke on a forthcoming Senate vote to protecting same-sex marriage, and other national headlines. We closed out the show by turning to listeners for their thoughts on growing acceptance of anti-democratic politicians in the U.S., off of Michael Kirk’s new film for “Frontline.”

We began the show by talking with listeners on the war in Ukraine and media coverage. Kate Bronfenbrenner and Rafi, a Starbucks barista and active member of Starbucks Workers United, talked about the wave of unionization efforts, what workers are fighting for and the struggles ahead. Bronfenbrenner is the director of Labor Education Research and a senior lecturer at Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations, and the co-director of the Worker Empowerment Research Project. Ken Burns and Lynn Novick talked about their latest documentary, “The U.S. and the Holocaust,” which examines the country’s unwillingness to accept refugees during World War II and American public figures who espoused antisemitic and anti-immigrant views. Burns is an award-winning documentarian. Novick is an acclaimed director and producer of documentary films. “The U.S. and the Holocaust” airs on GBH 2 on Sept. 18-20, starting at 8 p.m. Andrea Campbell joined us to discuss her Democratic primary win in the race for Massachusetts Attorney General, how she could be the first woman of color to hold the office, controversy over endorsements and her motivation behind running. Campbell formerly represented District 4 in Boston City Council. We ended the show by returning to some of our favorite conversations, including: Jelani Cobb on his book "The Essential Kerner Commission Report," filmmaker Ken Burns on his PBS documentary "Benjamin Franklin" and an edition of The Afternoon Zoo with naturalist and author Sy Montgomery.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley talked about her push to secure abortion care, gave thoughts on this week’s primaries and the big wins for women in Mass. politics and spoke on the strategy for Democrats headed into the midterms. Pressley is the U.S. representative for Massachusetts 7th District. Then, we asked listeners about the recent trend of “quiet quitting.” Shirley Leung talked about the excess of money on Beacon Hill, the fallout of the Orange Line shutdown, John Hancock stepping back from its role at the Boston Marathon, and the editor and chief of the Boston Globe stepping down. Leung is a business columnist for the Boston Globe. Sue O’Connell talked about the passing of Queen Elizabeth and Bernard Shaw, an upcoming same-sex marriage vote in Congress, and the controversy surrounding the upcoming movie: “Don’t Worry Darling.” O’Connell is the co-publisher of Bay Windows and South End News, and contributor to Current, on NBC L-X and NECN. Jared Bowen gave an arts rundown, including his take on the changing role of artificial intelligence in art, the newly unveiled portraits of the Obamas, and their original portraits being displayed at the MFA, and the Huntington Theater’s new musical “Sing Street.” Bowen is GBH’s executive arts editor and the host of Open Studio. The Multiverse Players joined us for an installment of live music Friday ahead of their performance “The Art of Polymers.” We heard music from robots and humans alike, and a few humans told us about the ethos behind their unique combination of science and music, David Ibbett, Clara Troyano, and Scott Barton. Dilshod Narzillaev joined on cello. Ibbett is the co-composer of “The Art of Polymers” and director of the Multiverse Concert Series. Clara Troyano is a researcher at M.I.T., and a PHd student in the Olsen Lab. We ended the show by asking listeners about their bad tattoos.