Boston Public Radio

As Anand Giridharadas sees it, billionaires have spent decades carving out public policy that benefits only them, and hollowing out safety nets for ordinary Americans.

The COVID-19 pandemic appears to be disproportionately impacting communities of color, according to limited national data that has been released.

The inaugurial poet read some of his own work, along with pieces by Bill Collins, James Tate, and Naomi Shihab Nye.

Farmers are experiencing an abundance problem that's leading to waste.

Pollution in New Delhi, India is at the lowest levels it's been in years.

The TV expert commended the show’s creators for pulling off the new format.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin the show by asking listeners for their thoughts on the state of ‘Jeopardy!’ after Amy Schneider continued her streak to become the second-place record holder for consecutive game wins. Trenni Kusnierek talks about the athletes taking extreme caution around COVID-19 before the Beijing Olympics, and the Kansas City Chiefs’ victory over the Buffalo Bills this past weekend. Kusnierek is a reporter and anchor for NBC Sports Boston and a weekly Boston Public Radio contributor. Massachusetts Senate President Karen Spilka discusses the Mass. legislature moving forward with a $55 million COVID-19 response bill, and the possibility of passing same-day voter registration in the state. Spilka is president of the State Senate. Billy Baker shares the challenges of making friends in adulthood, especially for men. Baker is a Boston Globe reporter. His memoir, “We Need To Hang Out,” is out today in paperback. Bob Luz talks about how the restaurant industry has been impacted by Mayor Michelle Wu’s indoor vaccine mandate. Luz is President and CEO of the Massachusetts Restaurant Association. We then open the phone lines, asking listeners about their experiences with the indoor vaccine mandate. John King updates us on the latest political headlines, from rising tension between Russia and Ukraine to former Attorney General Bill Barr cooperation with the Jan. 6 committee. King is CNN’s Chief National Correspondent and anchor of “Inside Politics,” which airs weekdays and Sunday mornings at 8 a.m. We end the show by talking with listeners about the challenges of making and keeping friends as an adult.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin the show by asking listeners about their marijuana habits, after a report showed cannabis tax revenue has surpassed alcohol revenue in the state. Lylah Alphonse updates listeners on the latest news from Rhode Island, including the status of marijuana legalization and the state of hospitals amid the Omicron surge. Alphonse is the Rhode Island editor for The Boston Globe. Charlie Sennott weighs in on growing tensions between Russia and Ukraine, and the Biden Administration’s foreign policy decisions. Sennott is a GBH News analyst and the founder and CEO of The GroundTruth Project. Edgar B. Herwick III looks back on this season of the Curiosity Desk, including answering questions about fruit flies, right-on-red rules and unwritten rules of Boston. Edgar B Herwick III is host of the Curiosity Desk at GBH, which just wrapped up season one of its YouTube show. The Revs. Irene Monroe and Emmett G. Price III discusses Dorothy Day’s legacy after the Archdiocese of New York asked the Vatican to make her a saint. Monroe is a syndicated religion columnist and the Boston voice for Detour’s African American Heritage Trail. Price is founding pastor of Community of Love Christian Fellowship in Allston and the inaugural dean of Africana studies at Berklee College of Music. Together, they host the “All Rev’d Up” podcast at GBH. Corby Kummer talks about the growth of quality restaurants in suburbs and vodka infused oysters. Kummer is the executive director of the food and society policy program at the Aspen Institute, a senior editor at The Atlantic and a senior lecturer at the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. We end the show by asking listeners what items they have not been able to find at the grocery store, and Americans’ allegiances to particular food brands.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin the show by asking listeners what parts of pre-pandemic life they have left behind as we enter year three of COVID-19. LaTosha Brown weighs in on what the fight for voting rights and recent legislative failure means for the country’s Black community. LaTosha Brown is the co-founder of Black Voters Matter. Callie Crossley talks about the death of fashion journalist and Vogue editor André Leon Talley, and where to find the best comfort food in Boston. Crossley hosts GBH’s Under the Radar and Basic Black. Andy Ihnatko updates listeners on all things tech, including a study by the Fed into whether the U.S. should create a “digital dollar” and debates over the effect of 5G on airports. Ihnatko is a tech writer and blogger, posting at Ihnatko.com. Sue O’Connell discusses a viral clip of a TV reporter getting hit by a car while on live air, the death of Meat Loaf and controversial updates to the M&M characters. O’Connell is the co-publisher of Bay Windows and the South End News, as well as NECN's political commentator and explainer-in-chief. Eliza Parad critiques the state of bike safety in Boston, and what the city should do to improve biking in the city. Parad is the Director of Organizing for the Boston Cyclists Union. We end the show by asking listeners for their favorite comfort foods.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Chuck Todd updates listeners on all things politics, including the failure of Democrats to pass voting rights legislation and the state of President Joe Biden’s term. Todd is the moderator of “Meet the Press,” host of “Meet the Press Daily” on MSNBC and the political director for NBC News. Then, we ask listeners their thoughts on Attorney General Maura Healey’s announcement that she is running for governor. Andrea Cabral tells the story of a con artist from Rhode Island arrested after faking his own death, and discusses debates over the efficacy of road tests for driving while high. Cabral is the former Suffolk County sheriff and the former Massachusetts secretary of public safety. She is currently the CEO of the cannabis company Ascend. Paul Reville explains how things are going in schools amid the Omicron surge and mental health crisis. Reville is the former Massachusetts secretary of education and a professor at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, where he also heads the Education Redesign Lab. His latest book, co-authored with Lynne Sacks, is “Collaborative Action for Equity and Opportunity: A Practical Guide for School and Community Leaders.” Shirley Leung discusses the state overpaying unemployment and asking for money back, and the latest news from Mass. and Cass. Leung is a business columnist for The Boston Globe and a Boston Public Radio contributor. Tom Nichols shares tips on competing in Jeopardy and why he thinks long running winning streaks are antithetical to the show’s character. Nichols is a Contributing Writer and proprietor of “Peacefield” newsletter at The Atlantic, a professor of national security affairs at the US Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island and a five-time Jeopardy winner. We end the show by asking listeners for stories of grudges they still hold.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Art Caplan weighs in on the CDC’s messaging around Omicron, and threats to trans healthcare in Arkansas. Caplan is director of the division of medical ethics at the New York University School of Medicine. Then, we ask listeners their thoughts on the U.S. sending citizens free at-home tests and masks. Juliette Kayyem talks about the unique challenges of protecting synagogues following the hostage standoff at Congregation Beth Israel in Texas. Kayyem is an analyst for CNN, former assistant secretary at the Department of Homeland Security and faculty chair of the homeland security program at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. Blair Miller and Elizabeth Bartholet discuss the state of adoption laws and child welfare amid the disappearance of Harmony Montgomery. Miller is a Boston Channel 25 reporter and the adoptive father of Harmony Montgomery’s brother. Bartholet is the Morris Wasserstein Professor of Law, Emeritus, at Harvard Law School, and Faculty Director of the Child Advocacy Program. Nia Grace and Gabriel O’Malley share their experiences running restaurants in one of the toughest winters for the industry, and their reactions to Mayor Michelle Wu’s vaccine mandate. Grace is owner of soul food restaurant Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen in Roxbury and the recently opened The Underground Café + Lounge, and co-founder of the Boston Black Hospitality Coalition. O’Malley is co-owner of The Plough and Stars in Cambridge. Matt Gilbert recommends the best of TV from 2021, including “Succession” and “The White Lotus,” and what he’s looking forward to in 2022, including “All Creatures Great and Small” and “The Gilded Age.” Gilbert is the TV critic for The Boston Globe. We end the show by asking listeners their opinions on letting hair go gray and the sexism in cultural norms around gray hair.