Boston Public Radio

Nicholas Burns, who now teaches at Harvard, applauded a federal judge’s decision to continue blocking Trump’s ban on international student enrollment.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu questioned Josh Kraft’s fitness to lead Boston.

Assumption University President Greg Weiner said two things can be true: federal government overreach threatens academic freedom and schools must address failings on viewpoint diversity.

Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Doris Kearns Goodwin talks new History Channel docu-series and puts our current political turmoil into historical context.

The Massachusetts congresswoman said cutting people’s wages to pay back student loans is “cruel” — especially at a time of economic uncertainty.

The candidate for mayor of Boston has previously vowed to recuse himself from all family business if elected.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin by talking with listeners about how much you think President Biden ought to negotiate with the GOP on the upcoming COVID-19 stimulus package. NBC Sports Boston reporter and anchor Trenni Kusnierek discusses racial reckoning in the world of sports, touching on former MLB player Tommy Harper’s experience of racial bias in his neighborhood, and the disparity in football coaching opportunities for people of color. She also talks about Red Sox second-baseman Dustin Pedroia’s plans to retire. Carol Rose from the Mass. ACLU talks about the organization’s unprecedented decision to call for the impeachment of former President Trump a second time. She also discusses the potential disbarment of Rudy Giuliani from the New York State Bar Association, and the legal complexities of big tech’s de-platforming of Donald Trump. Filmmaker Jane McMullen discusses the new FRONTLINE/BBC documentary collaboration, China’s COVID Secrets, which looks at the Chinese government’s initial response to COVID-19. Next, we open up phone lines to talk with listeners about Groundhog Day, and how you’re breaking up the monotony of quarantine. CNN’s John King broke down the latest headlines around former President Trump’s Senate impeachment trial, President Biden’s negotiations with the GOP on a forthcoming stimulus package, and whether politicians like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene are the future of the GOP. Boston Globe business columnist Shirley Leung talks about how local companies are investing in COVID-19 tests to get employees back to work, and local restaurants that are creating subscription services to stay afloat through the pandemic.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin Monday's show by opening lines, talking with listeners about your experiences trying to get vaccinated for COVID-19 in Mass. TV expert Bob Thompson commemorated the life and career of groundbreaking actress Cicely Tyson, who died last week. He also reviewed HBO’s “The Little Things,” Netflix's “The Brooklyn Saints," and SyFy’s “Resident Alien.” GBH News analyst and GroundTruth Project CEO Charlie Sennott weighs in on protests in Russia around the detention of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. He also gives a debrief on Monday's coup in Myanmar, vaccine distribution stumbles in the EU, and broader COVID-19 vaccine inequity around the globe. Irene Monroe and Emmett Price, hosts of GBH’s All Rev’d Up, talk about inaugural poet Amanda Gorman's Black Catholic parish in Los Angeles. They also weigh in on the contentious relationship between Reps. Cori Bush and Marjorie Taylor Greene, and discuss news that the Black Lives Matter movement has been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. Dr. Katherine Gergen Barnett talks about Mass. Gov. Charlie Baker’s methodology for the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines in the Commonwealth, and questions around vaccine efficacy. As always, she also responds to questions and comments from listeners. Gergen Barnett is the vice chair of Primary Care Innovation and Transformation and Residency Director in the Department of Family Medicine at Boston Medical Center and Boston University Medical School.

Dr. Katherine Gergen Barnett returned to Boston Public Radio Monday, offering some clarity on why Massachusetts lags behind the rest of the nation when it comes to the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. According to a Washington Post vaccine tracker, the Bay State currently ranks 41st in the nation, with just under seven percent of residents having received their first dose. For comparison, Connecticut has managed to vaccinated almost 10 percent, while West Virginia has managed to get first-doses to close to 11 percent of residents. The Boston Medical Center official blamed a combination of factors for what she described as “several bottlenecks” in the state’s rollout. These issues include supply constraints, smaller-than-anticipated doses of vaccine per vile in the case of the Pfizer vaccine, and a lower-than-expected outtake among staff at long-term care facilities. “I think we are all, even those of us in healthcare, are feeling the effects of the rub here,” she said. Monday’s interview concluded with Gergen Barnett answering listener questions, on topics like vaccine efficacy, the possibility of mobile vaccine clinics, and why you shouldn’t cancel that dentist appointment. Dr. Katherine Gergen Barnett is the vice chair of Primary Care Innovation and Transformation and Residency Director in the Department of Family Medicine at Boston Medical Center and Boston University Medical School.

On Boston Public Radio Friday, Emily Rooney described how a group of people organized by social media used a Wall Street tactic to redistribute millions of dollars away from hedge funds, and into the pockets of amateur traders by buying up stock from a dying retailer, GameStop. “This was an insurrection by a group of people who said we’re mad as hell and we’re not going to take it anymore, and they beat Wall Street at their own game and now Wall Street is really really mad,” she said. How did they do it? BPR producer Zoe Mathews checked in with MIT economist Jon Gruber for a primer, ahead of his definitive explainer next week on the show.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Dr. Howard Koh, former state commissioner of the Department of Public Health, talks about new updates from pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson on their forthcoming COVID-19 vaccine, and the risks posed by the coronavirus variants that are popping up around the world and here in the U.S. He also speaks about President Biden’s handling of the pandemic during his first 10 days in office, and the bumpy vaccine rollout here in Mass. Next, we open lines to talk with listeners about your experiences trying to get the COVID-19 vaccine in Mass. Boston City Councilor At-Large Annissa Essaibi George calls in to talk about her newly-announced mayoral campaign. She speaks on her push to bring more mental-health professionals into Boston schools, offers her take on Boston mayor Marty Walsh’s handling of the pandemic, and talks about what she’d do differently to support struggling businesses. Ali Noorani, CEO of the National Immigrant Forum, talks about President Biden’s reversal of his predecessor's immigration agenda, and the pushback he’s getting from GOP leadership. He also talks about his impressions of Biden’s pick to lead the Department of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas. Beat the Press host Emily Rooney critiques the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines in Mass., recaps recent clean-energy goals set by automaker GM, and does her best to explain what’s going on with GameStop and the stock market. Dr. Deirdre Leigh Barrett, Harvard researcher and author of “Pandemic Dreams,” gives an update on her work studying pandemic-era dreaming, and talks about the apparent impact of factors like gender and occupation on how we're process the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the Radar and Basic Black host Callie Crossley discusses her concerns with members of Congress bringing guns in congressional chambers, President Biden’s plan to move forward with printing Harriet Tubman’s face on $20 bills, and the passing of actress Cicely Tyson. She also defends the barbecue of her hometown, Memphis, Tenn., as the gold-standard.