Boston Public Radio

As the novel coronavirus responsible for the outbreak of COVID-19 continues to spread, there is a growing chorus of people calling for the release of prisoners who either no longer pose a threat to society or committed nonviolent offenses and are vulnerable to fatally contracting the disease

Members of the House are expected to vote Thursday on a $2.2 trillion economic relief bill to mitigate financial effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

The "Meet the Press" moderator also defended former Vice President Joe Biden's limited public response to the pandemic.

Sports reporter Trenni Kusnierek says that Brady is promoting dangerous advertising during the coronavirus pandemic.

Former education secretary says state education officials need to make determinations about learning requirements as school shifts online.

In response to the outbreak, MassInc conducted a tracking poll, sponsored by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, to gauge public sentiment about COVID-19 within Massachusetts.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Senator Elizabeth Warren takes questions from callers about the upcoming Senate vote on capping the price of insulin at $35 and on sanctions against Russian Oligarchs. Warren is Senator of Massachusetts. The Lorelei Ensemble sings parts from their upcoming show. Corrine Byrne, Dianna Grabowski, Stephanie Kacoyanis, Michele Kennedy, Sophie Michaux, Arwen Myers, Clara Osowski and Sonja Tengblad are singers in the Cambridge-based Lorelei Ensemble. Beth Willer is the group’s artist director, and Kevin Payne is the group’s lute player. The full ensemble’s tour titled “This Tyrant, Love,” will perform Friday night at the Longy School of Music of Bard College in Cambridge. Callie Crossley talks about the House passing the CROWN Act, which would ban race-based hair discrimination, and why people procrastinate by scrolling on Zillow. Crossley hosts GBH’s Under the Radar and Basic Black. Lisa Fischer previews her upcoming shows in Boston this weekend, and discusses the legacy of her career. Fischer is a vocalist who has sung background for Mick Jagger, Tina Turner, Luther Vandross and more. She is performing Friday and Saturday at Scullers Jazz Club in Allston. Andy Ihnatko explains the effect of sanctions on Russia’s digital infrastructure and why DuckDuckGo is becoming the search engine for weirdos and conspiracy theorists. Ihnatko is a tech writer and blogger, posting at Ihnatko.com. Sue O’Connell weighs in on Arnold Schwarzenegger’s plea to Russian citizens to resist misinformation, Chris Cuomo’s $125 million lawsuit against CNN and employee walkouts over Disney’s lack of response to Florida’s proposed “Don’t Say Gay” bill. O’Connell is the co-publisher of Bay Windows and South End News, and contributor to Current, on NBC L-X and NECN. We end the show by asking listeners their thoughts on cold showers for health benefits.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Chuck Todd reacts to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s address to Congress yesterday and other political news. Todd is the moderator of “Meet The Press” on NBC, host of “Meet The Press Daily” on MSNBC and the political director for NBC News. Then, we ask listeners whether they think the 9-5 schedule should end as the pandemic forces shifts in the future of work. Andrea Cabral weighs in on fraud charges against the Violence in Boston Founder and CEO Monica Cannon Grant and a federal investigation into former Methuen Police Chief Joseph Solomon. Cabral is the former Suffolk County sheriff and Massachusetts secretary of public safety. She’s currently the CEO of the cannabis company Ascend. Jared Bowen previews the newest in the arts, including the work of South African artist Zanele Muholi and photography by painter Barkley H. Hendricks at the Rose Art Museum in Waltham. Bowen is GBH’s executive arts editor and the host of Open Studio. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse discusses dark-money issues in the Supreme Court and what he expects for the confirmation hearings next week for Supreme Court nominee Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson. Whitehouse is a Senator from Rhode Island and a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Brooke Harrington explains the world of oligarchy, and the role the mega-rich play in the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Brooke is a sociology professor at Dartmouth College, and an expert on oligarchs. She’s also the author of “Pop Finance and Capital Without Borders: Wealth Management and the One Percent.” We end the show by asking listeners for their takes on the Irish Goodbye.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Congressman Seth Moulton calls on the U.S. to do more to support Ukraine, short of a U.S. enforced no-fly zone, and shares other reactions to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky’s address to Congress this morning. Moulton represents Massachusetts’ 6th Congressional district. Then, we ask listeners their thoughts on Zelensky’s speech and U.S. actions in Ukraine. Art Caplan weighs in on the ethics of the West refraining from direct involvement in Ukraine and the 988 mental health crisis helpline. Caplan is the Drs. William F. and Virginia Connolly Mitty Professor and founding head of the Division of Medical Ethics at NYU School of Medicine in New York City. Juliette Kayyem talks about the Russian anti-war protester who waved a sign on Russian TV and UPS failing to make ferry reservations for its trucks on Nantucket. Kayyem was formerly an assistant secretary for homeland security under President Barack Obama, now the faculty chair of the homeland security program at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. Her forthcoming book is “The Devil Never Sleeps: Learning to Live in an Age of Disasters.” Superintendent Brenda Cassellius updates listeners on the status of the two people shot outside TechBoston in Dorchester, calls for more measures to promote school staffing growth and retention and gives advice to those thinking of applying for her job as she leaves the role of Superintendent in June. Cassellius is the Superintendent of Boston Public Schools. Jonathan Van Ness previews their newest Netflix show “Getting Curious,” as well as their upcoming comedy performances in Boston. Van Ness is best known for their role as Expert of Grooming on Netflix’s reboot of Queer Eye. They also host the Getting Curious podcast, and is performing at the Chevalier Theatre this week as part of their comedy tour: “Imaginary Living Room Olympian” Sy Montgomery dissuades fears about the Joro Spider coming to the Northeast and talks about the creatures found on the recently discovered 1915 shipwreck of “Endurance.” Montgomery is a journalist, naturalist and a Boston Public Radio contributor. Her latest book is “The Hummingbirds’ Gift: Wonder, Beauty, and Renewal on Wings.” We end the show by asking listeners whether they’re afraid of spiders, and other fears they have.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin the show by asking listeners for their thoughts on whether they support a no-fly zone over Ukraine as Russia continues its invasion. Trenni Kusnierek discusses Naomi Osaka battling hecklers at Indian Wells last weekend and the latest on basketball player Brittney Griner detained in Russia. Kusnierek is an anchor and reporter for NBC Sports Boston. She's also a Boston Public Radio contributor. Dr. Katherine Gergen Barnett answers listener calls on the threat of long COVID, the difference between natural immunity and vaccine immunity to the virus and the 988 mental health hotline. Gergen Barnett teaches in the family medicine department at Boston Medical Center and Boston University Medical School. Mayor Michelle Wu takes audience questions on her climate change agenda, the state of Boston Public Schools, the need for mental health resources and funding and more. Wu is Mayor of Boston.

The seaweed and kelp farm industry could become one of the largest sustainable maritime food industries — provided that enough people buy in. Award-winning food writer Corby Kummer joined Boston Public Radio on Monday to weigh in on the future of seaweed and kelp farms. “There are so many advocates for it who say you don't need any additional resources,” Kummer said. “It doesn’t cause pollution like fish farms in the open water do, from excrement from fish that are all penned up. You can farm seaweed [and] kelp.” Kummer noted that Alaska already has “a strong cultural tradition of eating” seaweed. The Alaska Sea Grant, a federal-state program that funds marine and coastal research at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, has recipes for bull kelp salsa and kelp seasoning. But it might be harder to convince the rest of the nation to make seaweed and kelp a regular part of their diet. “The question is getting people to buy it and need it,” Kummer noted. “It's going to take a lot longer for the U.S. to want to have seaweed or seaweed burgers in their Impossible Burger — which is actually not impossible. It's a good texture builder and it can be incorporated.” Corby Kummer is 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.