Boston Public Radio

On Monday, Sen. Cory Booker announced he would be dropping out of the 2020 presidential contest.

Retired Pope Benedict XVI voices support for the Catholic Church's practice of a celibate priesthood, while Pope Francis is considering the possibility of allowing older, married men to be ordained as priests in the Amazon region.

On Friday, the mayor called on the state legislature to "be bold" and act on the state's transportation issues.

Despite low revenues, Leung says the move isn't an indicator of troubles for the casino.

Tom Steyer and Michael Bloomberg are rising in the national polls after spending millions on TV ads.

Two actors spoke about the thematic racial tensions in the play.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin the show by asking listeners their reactions to Mayor Michelle Wu’s announcement yesterday of new vaccine requirements in restaurants, theaters and other venues. Trenni Kusnierek weighs in on Wu’s decision to exempt athletes from her new vaccine mandates, and Patriots Manager Bill Belichick apologizing after a curt post-game press conference Saturday. Kusnierek is a reporter and anchor for NBC Sports Boston, and a weekly Boston Public Radio contributor. Ali Noorani talks about what the first few days of the Remain in Mexico policy resuming means for immigrants and advocates. Noorani is the president and chief executive officer of the National Immigration Forum. His forthcoming book is “Crossing Borders: The Reconciliation of a Nation of Immigrants.” Charlie Warzel explains how the pandemic has affected the state of work, and how to make remote work better in a hybrid world. Charlie Warzel is a contributing writer at the Atlantic and the author of Galaxy Brain, a newsletter about technology, politics and culture. He co-authored ‘Out of Office’ with Anne Helen Petersen. Juliette Kayyem weighs in on President Joe Biden’s pandemic policy as Omicron spreads throughout the country, and the latest in the Jan. 6 investigation. 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. Christopher Muther reviews the Boston hotel scene, tells stories from his latest travels to the Caribbean and shares his favorite and least favorite Christmas songs. Muther is a Boston Globe travel columnist and travel writer. We end the show by hearing stories from listeners of regifting gone wrong.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Michael Curry talks about the status of the pandemic as the Omicron variant spreads throughout the country, and his reactions to West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin rejecting President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better plan. Curry is the president and CEO of the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers and a member of Gov. Charlie Baker’s COVID-19 vaccine advisory group. He’s also a member of the national NAACP board of directors and chair of the board’s advocacy and policy committee. Then, we ask listeners their reactions to Manchin curtailing efforts to pass Build Back Better. Corby Kummer discusses the potential for an egg shortage as regulations for farmers change, and how to best enjoy 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. Jennifer McKim and Philip Martin share insights from their latest investigation into the sex trafficking of young men, and how traffickers prey on those suffering from drug addiction. McKim and Martin are senior investigative reporters at GBH. Together they’ve been working on a months-long series examining those left out of the narrative around sex trafficking: young men. The latest installment of the series, Unseen, is out today. The Revs. Irene Monroe and Emmett G. Price III commemorate bell hooks, the theorist and activist who championed intersectional feminism, who died last week at 69. Monroe is a syndicated religion columnist, the Boston voice for Detour’s African American Heritage Trail and co-host of the All Rev’d Up podcast. Price is the founding pastor of Community of Love Christian Fellowship in Allston, the inaugural dean of Africana studies at Berklee College of Music and co-host of the All Rev’d Up podcast. Jenna Russell and Penelope Overton explain what climate change means for the lobster industry in Maine. Russell is a reporter with the Boston Globe. Overton is a reporter with the Portland Press Herald. Together they wrote this series in the Boston Globe: The Lobster Trap. We end the show by asking listeners if their holiday plans have changed as the Omicron variant spreads across the country.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Arthur Brooks explains the role of charitable giving in finding happiness and other tips on the search for fulfillment. He’s the William Henry Bloomberg professor of the practice of public leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School, a professor of management practice at the Harvard Business School, the happiness correspondent at The Atlantic and host of the podcast series How to Build a Happy Life. Callie Crossley discusses the legacy of feminist theorist and activist bell hooks, who died this week at 69. She also talks about City Councilor Lydia Edwards’ primary win in the special state Senate race, and concerns that former President Barack Obama’s presidential library may gentrify part of Chicago. Crossley hosts GBH’s Under the Radar and Basic Black. Rick Steves shares stories from different Christmas traditions across Europe. Steves is an author, television and radio host and the owner of the Rick Steves’ Europe tour group. You can catch his television show, “Rick Steves’ Europe,” weeknights at 7:30 p.m. on GBH 2 and his radio show, “Travel With Rick Steves,” Sundays at 4 p.m. on GBH. Andy Ihnatko goes over the latest tech headlines, including a new Adobe graphic design tool and Google’s move into augmented reality. Ihnatko is a tech writer and blogger, posting at Ihnatko.com. Sue O’Connell weighs in on the new West Side Story remake, and a controversy in the Sex and the City reboot over a character having a heart attack. 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. Fiona Hill previews her memoir, “There Is Nothing for You Here: Finding Opportunity in the Twenty-First Century,” and weighs in on the similarities and differences between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin. Hill served as deputy assistant to the president and senior director for European and Russian affairs in the Trump administration from 2017 to 2019, and was a witness in Donald Trump’s first impeachment hearing. Dan Adams reflects on five years of marijuana legalization in Massachusetts, and what still needs to happen to make legalization just and equitable. Dan Adams is cannabis reporter for Boston Globe and author of the “This Week in Weed” email newsletter.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Chuck Todd updates listeners on the latest from Washington D.C., including Republicans’ outlook on COVID-19 and the state of voting rights legislation. Todd is the moderator of “Meet the Press,” host of “Meet the Press Daily” on MSNBC and the political director for NBC News. Andrea Cabral discusses an upcoming movie about the Boston strangler, and the state of democracy in the U.S. 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 critiques a South Dakota “dash for cash” event that had teachers on their hands and knees grabbing money for their classrooms. He also talks about parents serving as substitute teachers amid a teacher shortage and the future of learning pods. 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 shares insights from her interview with Mayor Michelle Wu, and discusses the Globe’s picks for Bostonians of the year. Leung is a business columnist for The Boston Globe and a Boston Public Radio contributor. Catherine Peterson weighs in on vaccine requirements at venues in the city, and what she thinks of the amount of American Rescue Plan Act funds directed towards the arts sector. She also talks about a new mentorship program for BIPOC arts leaders. Catherine Peterson is the Executive Director of ArtsBoston. Jon Gruber explains the state of inflation in the U.S., why it’s happening and possible solutions. Gruber was instrumental in creating both the Massachusetts health care reform and the Affordable Care Act, and his latest book is “Jump-Starting America: How Breakthrough Science Can Revive Economic Growth And The American Dream.” Christopher Kimball previews his latest cookbook “Vegetables,” sharing his favorite ways to bring vegetables to the center of the plate. Chris Kimball co-founded America’s Test Kitchen, and now runs Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street in Boston. His latest cookbook is “Vegetables.” Then, we replay our conversation with listeners about whether they would be open to becoming chattier on the T following Wu’s invitation for riders to talk with her.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin the show by asking listeners whether they would be open to becoming chattier on the T, following Mayor Michelle Wu’s invitation for riders to talk with her. Trenni Kusnierek discusses the $380 million settlement reached between USA Gymnastics and the victims of Larry Nassar. Kusnierek is a reporter and anchor for NBC Sports Boston, and a weekly Boston Public Radio contributor. Corby Kummer talks about the latest news on a potential statewide egg shortage, and the fifteen-minute grocery delivery start-ups opening up in downtown Boston. 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. Meredith Goldstein answers listeners’ questions on romance and relationships, and shares advice from her recent columns. Goldstein is an advice columnist and features writer for the Boston Globe. Her advice column, “Love Letters,” is a daily dispatch of wisdom for the lovelorn that has been running for more than a decade. She also hosts the “Love Letters” podcast. John King updates us on the latest political headlines, focusing on the texts from Trump allies to former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows surrounding the Jan. 6 Capitol riots. King is CNN's Chief National Correspondent and anchor of "Inside Politics,” which airs weekdays and Sunday mornings at 8 a.m.