Boston Public Radio

What would the former Patriots player and convicted murderer have been like without football brain injuries?

Yes, we should be focusing on the flu, but we should also be wary of just how unprepared we are for an outbreak in America.

On Tuesday, US Attorney for Massachusetts Andrew Lelling charged the chairman of Harvard University’s department of chemistry and chemical biology, Charles Lieber, with lying about his connections to a Chinese university.

Epic is being critiqued for not making its medical data easier to be shared between doctors and patients.

After more than a year since the first marijuana shops in the state opened their doors, however, many minority business owners say they’ve been locked out of the marijuana industry.

Fine dining restaurants are serving up climate-minded meals.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Sen. Ed Markey discusses the future of climate legislation in Congress, and calls for reforming the Supreme Court and abolishing the filibuster. Then, we open the phone lines, asking listeners if it’s time to expand the Supreme Court. Prof. Julia Hopkins explains the focus of her “Emerald Tutu” project, which would create a skirt of floating greenery along the most vulnerable parts of Boston’s shore. Hopkins is an assistant professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Northeastern University, and on a team of researchers hoping to install an “Emerald Tutu” along the city’s coast. Ryan Landry shares his current projects, from recent paintings to upcoming performances. Landry is a playwright, actor, songwriter, painter and canned tomato influencer. Adam Conover joins us ahead of his upcoming performances at Laugh Boston to talk about his new Netflix show “The G Word with Adam Conover” and reflect on the end of “Adam Ruins Everything.” Conover is a self-described investigative comedian. Sue O’Connell talks about obstacles to gender equity in the workplace. 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 if they’ve ever napped at work.

Westford-based group Mocha Connection is partnering with farmers in Yemen to bring back the country’s status as a significant global supplier of coffee beans. Yemen, which has been engaged in a civil war for nearly a decade, is known for its distinct, chocolatey coffee beans that grow well in the country’s rich soil. In fact, mocha gets its name from Yemen’s port city Mocha, which is widely regarded as the birthplace of the coffee trade. “Four locally-based Yemeni natives are managing to get [coffee beans] out of Yemen, and are exporting coffee right here,” award-winning food writer Corby Kummer told Boston Public Radio. “I am so excited about it — I'm immediately going to mail order it.” 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.

Today on Boston Public Radio: EJ Dionne talks about Democrats’ recent legislative struggles in Congress including Sen. Joe Manchin’s refusal to support climate change plans, codifying Roe v. Wade, the plausibility of removing the filibuster, and the upcoming Jan. 6 hearings. Dionne is a senior fellow at The Brookings Institution. His latest book is “Code Red: How Progressives and Moderates Can Unite to Save Our Country.” Then, we ask listeners how they’re feeling about the state of the climate inaction. Michael Curry shares dispatches from the NAACP annual convention, including the way that communities of color are responding to President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’ performances so far. He also shares his thoughts on Boston’s response to the new COVID-19 variant. Curry is chair of the NAACP Advocacy and Policy Committee, and is president and CEO of the Mass League of Community Health Centers. Revs. Irene Monroe and Emmett G. Price III discuss Pope Francis’ recent visit to Canada to apologize for abuse against Indigenous people in residential schools, the general opinions of the Dobbs decision in church communities of color, and the history of Negro Election Day, which may soon become a state holiday in Mass. 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 GBH's “All Rev’d Up” podcast. Christopher Wilkins talks about the Boston Landmarks Orchestra’s upcoming Summer series, as well as the importance of accessibility in their performances, and diversity in their composers. Wilkins is the Boston Landmarks Orchestra’s music director. Corby Kummer discusses Belmont’s Cafe Vanak being named one of the premier cafes in the world, the closure of Rep. Lauren Boebert’s gun-themed restaurant, a movie theater coming to Boston which serves full meals to its patrons, and the difficulties of patronizing Russian themed restaurants. 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. We end the show by talking about the heatwave coming to Boston.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin the show by asking listeners their thoughts on the push to switch to electric cars. Then, we re-air a segment with environmentalist Bill McKibben about the United States’ lack of action on climate policy. Callie Crossley discusses the 10-year-old rape victim in Ohio who went to Indiana for an abortion, and the launch of 988, a new suicide and crisis hotline. Crossley hosts GBH’s Under the Radar and Basic Black. Sue O’Connell reflects on the life and legacy of Ivana Trump, former President Donald Trump’s first wife, and West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin sinking President Joe Biden’s climate legislation. 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. Tamar Haspel previews her book on growing food, and tells stories from a year spent foraging. Haspel is a James Beard Award–winning columnist for the Washington Post and author of the new book “To Boldly Grow: Finding Joy, Adventure, and Dinner in Your Own Backyard.” Catie Curtis plays a few of her songs, including “Dad's Yard,” “April in Boston” and “Kiss That Counted.” Curtis is a singer and songwriter. She’ll be playing alongside Maya Sharp at the Ground Floor in Freeport Maine on July 22, and on Saturday July 23rd at the Natick Center for the Arts. Then, we talk with listeners about their efforts to grow their own food.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Jon Gruber discusses the latest on inflation, including the potential strategies of the Federal Reserve Bank and why the middle class is being left behind. He also explains the economic impacts of government failure and whether the US is heading in that direction. Gruber is the Ford Professor of Economics at MIT. His latest book is “Jump-Starting America How Breakthrough Science Can Revive Economic Growth and the American Dream.” Then, we ask listeners how they’re dealing with rising inflation. Stephanie Leydon and Sarah Betancourt talk about their reporting on housing inflation and scarcity in Massachusetts from their new series “Priced Out,” and share about some of the stories they’ve looked into so far. Leydon is the Director of Special Projects at GBH. Betancourt is a reporter for GBH News. Then, we take listener calls responding to the housing crisis in Massachusetts. Jared Bowen shares the latest in the Boston arts scene, including Neil Diamond's 'Beautiful Noise' at the Colonial, Michael R. Jackson’s “A Strange Loop,” which just premiered on Broadway, the immersive show “Beyond King Tut” at the SoWa Power Station and ProBlak Gibbs’ new mural on the Greenway “Breathe Life Together.” Bowen is GBH’s executive arts editor and the host of Open Studio. Matt Gertz talks about the link between right-wing media and today’s politics, including Fox News’ response to the Jan 6th hearings, its relationship to former President Donald Trump and criticism of Pete Buttigieg’s recent interview. Gertz is a senior fellow for Media Matters for America, which reports on news from the conservative media landscape. Mitra Kaboli and Ben Riskin preview their new podcast, “Welcome to Provincetown.” They share their inspiration for creating the podcast, and reflect on the stories they tell in it and their own experiences in the town. Kaboli is an audio documentarian, sound designer & artist, who hosts and co-created Welcome to Provincetown. Riskin is the principal of Room Tone, an audio advisory providing strategy consulting, business development, and management services to enterprise and independent podcasters, he co-created Welcome to Provincetown. We end the show by asking listeners what makes summer in New England great.