Boston Public Radio

Four days ago, in response to the massacre in Charleston, South Carolina that left nine dead, President Obama stood at a podium at the White House and…

Do you have to be the richest kid on the block to enjoy the Happiest Place On Earth? That's the accusation made by a recent article in the Washington…

Pope Francis made headlines this week when the draft of his 192-page encyclical on climate change—due to be officially released this Thursday—leaked…

It's Polka Friday at Boston Public Radio! Master accordionists Marié Abe and Ralph Tufo faced off in honor of this weekend's Squeezebox Slam in Davis…

Eric Casebolt—a police officer in McKinney, Texas—was caught on video earlier this week chasing and waving his gun at a group of young African American…

Last week, a 3 year old colt named American Pharoah leapt across the finish line at Belmont, clinching the win and also, in the process, the elusive…

Subscribers of Amazon Prime — the e-commerce giant’s membership service for discounted shipping rates and streaming video content — will now receive free membership to the company’s on-demand grocery service, AmazonFresh. According to Corby Kummer, a senior lecturer at the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Amazon’s move is the latest part of its growing effort to expand into the grocery business. Kummer said the key to Amazon’s strategy is cutting down on staff at Whole Foods, which the company acquired in 2017, to reduce operating costs and fund the delivery service. “While they chop local jobs of people who are at cash registers or people who smile at you when you go to Whole Foods ... they can lose money hand over fist,” Kummer said. “All of your friends who are smiling at you at Whole Foods are going to be gone, because you’re buying into meal delivery.” According to a February report from Bain & Company done in partnership with Google, 3 percent of US grocery shopping occurs online, but analysts expect the amount of online sales to triple within the next decade. Kummer is executive director of the Food and Society policy program at the Aspen Institute and a senior editor at The Atlantic.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We opened the lines to callers to hear your thoughts on First Lady Melania Trump’s visit to Boston Medical Center. Medical Ethicist Art Caplan discussed concerns over whether law enforcement ought to have access to data from consumer DNA kits. CNN Analyst Juliette Kayyem discussed E.U. Ambassador George Sondland’s revised testimony regarding President Donald Trump's call with the president of Ukraine, lax enforcement of the S.T.O.P. Act, and the future for disaster relief in fire-prone areas of California. WGBH Science Correspondent Heather Goldstone discussed President Donald Trump formalizing his decision to pull the U.S. out of the Paris Climate Accord, and E.P.A. regulators allowing toxic chemicals to be dumped in the Merrimack River. Behavioral Economist Michael Norton discussed the psychology behind “pseudo-secret” menu options. WGBH Arts Editor Jared Bowen reviewed the Polaroid exhibit at the M.I.T. Museum, as well as a production of “X” at the Flat Earth Theater, and Paula Cole’s new album, “Revolution.”

Today on Boston Public Radio: We opened the lines to callers to talk about Tuesday’s elections and the 2020 presidential race. NBC Sports Boston Reporter Trenni Kusnierek discussed the high school referee shortage in Massachusetts, and new Red Sox Chief Officer Chaim Bloom. Carol Rose, executive director of the ACLU, discussed the Press Pause on Face Surveillance Campaign, along with revelations uncovered by the ACLU that Boston Police are collaborating with ICE officials. Food writer Corby Kummer discussed the firing of McDonalds CEO Steve Easterbrook, and Amazon’s latest plan to dominate the food delivery industry. Ali Noorani, Executive Director of the National Immigrant Forum, discussed the Trump administration’s crackdown on refugees in the U.S., and flaws in Democratic Party's appeals to Latinx voters. CNN’s John King talked about the latest headlines surrounding the 2020 election. Playwright Ryan Landry spoke about his recent TEDx talk, titled “Cage of Normalcy,” and previewed a new show from his Gold Dust Orphans production company titled “Christmas on Uranus."

Today on Boston Public Radio: Shannon O’Brien and Charlie Chieppo discussed the latest headlines around the 2020 presidential race and the House impeachment inquiry. Charlie Chieppo is principal of Chieppo Strategies, Senior Fellow at the Pioneer Institute and Adjunct Professor at Suffolk University. Shannon O'Brien is former State Treasurer and Democratic nominee for governor. Charlie Sennott discussed President Trump’s foreign policy in Lebanon, Brexit, and The Authoritarian's Playbook, a new podcast from the GroundTruth Project. Sennott is a WGBH News Analyst and CEO of the GroundTruth Project. We opened the lines to callers to ask: how do you feel about the verbal abuse of high school sports referees? TV critic Bob Thompson discussed Sesame Street’s 50th anniversary special, and reviewed Apple TV’s “The Morning Show” and “Dickinson.” Inaugural poet Richard Blanco discussed the vibrant world of ecopoetry. Director/producer Lynn Novick, producer Sarah Botstein, and Bard Prison Initiative alum Sebastian Yoon of the new PBS documentary College Behind Bars stopped by to discuss the film. We re-opened the lines to ask callers for their thoughts on the prison education system.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Massachusetts Rep. Stephen Lynch called in to discuss Thursday's House vote to formalize the impeachment inquiry, as well as his aspirations to fill the Federal Oversight Committee chair seat left open by the passing of Rep. Elijah Cummings. Boston Globe travel writer Christopher Muther discussed the first week of Logan airport’s new rideshare pickup system, and the bizarre flavors of Kit Kat sold in Japan. Emily Rooney, host of WGBH News' Beat The Press, joined us for her famous list of fixations and fulminations. Mark Volpe from the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Andreas Schultz from Germany's Gewandhaus discussed Leipzig week at the B.S.O. Callie Crossley, host of WGBH’s Crossfire, discussed new bulletproof memorials for Emmett Till, and John Legend’s updated spin on “Baby It’s Cold Outside." CBS Boston anchors Lisa Hughes and David Wade joined us for our weekly news quiz.