Boston Public Radio Podcast

Today on Boston Public Radio: Judge Nancy Gertner shares her thoughts on the Jan. 6 hearings so far, including Ginni Thomas’ emails, and the possibility of former President Donald Trump being indicted. Gertner is a retired federal judge, and is now a senior lecturer at Harvard Law School. Then, we ask listeners if they’re struggling to give the Jan. 6 hearings adequate attention given the overwhelming state of the news. Andrea Cabral talks about the Jan. 6 hearings, a the thwarted white supremacist riot plot on a pride event in Idaho, and the ruling that a Bronx Zoo elephant named Happy is not a legal person. Cabral is the former Suffolk County sheriff and secretary of public safety, and former CEO of the cannabis company Ascend. Judd Legum discusses his reporting on the pledges corporations made about not funding politicians who voted to overturn the 2020 election. Legum writes the newsletter Popular Information. He was the founder and editor of ThinkProgress, Hillary Clinton’s Research Director for her 2008 presidential campaign and a Democratic nominee for State Delegate in Maryland in 2010. We then carry live coverage of the Jan. 6 hearings.

During a segment of Tuesday’s Boston Public Radio, award-winning food writer Corby Kummer chimed in on hosts Jim Braude and Margery Eagan’s debate over eating alone. “Eating alone at a bar is one of life's most satisfying occupations,” Kummer told Boston Public Radio. “I was in a lot of Boston restaurants over the weekend, and the number of people I saw either happily with a book or sitting at a bar alone and looking like there was nothing else they would rather be doing I found really striking.” “[There was a] level of contentment — not artificially looking up as if they have a friend coming — there was none of that,” Kummer added. “There was ‘I'm happy to be here by myself.’ This is a great thing.” 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: We begin the show by talking with listeners about rising costs amid inflation. Art Caplan discusses the World Health Organization’s (WHO) upcoming assessment of monkeypox as a potential global health emergency. 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. Shirley Leung talks about efforts to build greenspace in Boston’s Seaport neighborhood, and the potential for safe consumption sites in Mass. Leung is a business columnist for the Boston Globe. Miles Howard shares his 25-mile Boston trail map, which connects green spaces across more than a dozen neighborhoods. Howard is a Boston-based journalist and author of the “Mind the Moss,” a newsletter about hiking. Then, we talk with listeners about their favorite hiking trails in the Boston area. Mitra Kalita discusses the role of the diversity officer in corporate spaces, and the transition of diversity, equity, and inclusion from human resources to the C-suite. Kalita is the co-founder and CEO of URL Media, a network of Black and Brown news and information outlets. Andy Ihnatko updates us on the latest tech headlines, focusing on the Google engineer claiming that Google’s AI language model is sentient. Ihnatko is a tech writer and blogger, posting at Ihnatko.com. We wrap up the show by asking listeners about the regional fascination with Market Basket.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin the show by asking listeners if they’re feeling positive about the state of current events. Trenni Kusnierek talks about last night’s Celtics loss, the suspension of several players from the PGA and Amy Schneider throwing the first pitch at the Giants-Dodgers game. Kusnierek is a reporter and anchor for NBC Sports Boston, and a weekly Boston Public Radio contributor. Juliette Kayyem reacts to the Jan. 6 hearings and the Senate’s potential gun deal. 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. Quincy Roberts Sr. explains his new role as Executive Director of LGBTQ+ Advancement, and his past experiences and advocacy in Boston. Roberts is is the inaugural Executive Director for the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ+ Advancement in Boston and co-founder of the Hispanic Black Gay Coalition. Then, we ask listeners to debate the merits of eating alone. Corby Kummer discusses the James Beard awards and their efforts to diversify, obstacles facing young farmers and Rhode Island becoming a restaurant hotspot. 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. John King shares his insights about the Jan. 6 hearings and Joe Biden’s potential 2024 run. King is CNN’s chief national correspondent and anchor of "Inside Politics,” which airs weekdays and Sunday mornings at 8 a.m. We end the show by continuing the conversation about eating alone.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Juliette Kayyem previews day two of the January 6 hearings. 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. Then, we air the House Select Committee Hearings on the Jan. 6 insurrection. Andrea Cabral shares her reactions to the proceedings. Cabral is the former Suffolk County sheriff and secretary of public safety, and former CEO of the cannabis company Ascend. Michael Curry discusses whether he thinks former president Donald Trump will be prosecuted, and how he thinks Trump supporters will react to the hearings. Curry is chair of the NAACP Advocacy and Policy Committee, and is president and CEO of the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers. We end the show by taking calls from listeners on their reactions to the hearings.

Pandemic-era federal waivers that expanded children’s access to food through year-round, free school lunches are set to expire this month, after Congress failed to extend the waivers past their June 30 deadline. A cumulative 4.3 billion meals were distributed through the program over the last two summers. “Now parents have to go back to filling in humiliating applications saying, ‘Here's what money we make and why we need help from the school lunch,’” Kummer told Boston Public Radio on Friday. “What parent has time to do that, let alone wants the stigma of their kid asking for this kind of assistance?” 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.

John Rosenthal, co-founder of the Boston-based nonprofit Stop Handgun Violence, joined Boston Public Radio live at the Boston Public Library on Friday to share his thoughts on America’s inaction on gun violence.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin the show by talking with listeners about the first night of the Jan. 6 committee hearings. DA Kevin Hayden discusses Mayor Michelle Wu’s release of the complete file on former Boston Police Patrolman’s Association union chief and convicted child-sex abuser Patrick Rose, Sr. He also talks about concerns over illegal guns in Mass. Hayden is the interim District Attorney for Suffolk County, and he’s running for election for a full term as DA this fall.  David Gergen shares his thoughts on the future of youth leaders in politics, and the potential for mandatory community service. Gergen is a Senior Political Analyst for CNN, the Founding Director of the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard and a professor at the Kennedy School. He was a presidential advisor to four administrations. His new book is “Hearts Touched with Fire: How Great Leaders are Made.” Corby Kummer talks about the upcoming expiration of universal free school lunches, and updated us on the latest news from the baby formula shortage. 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. John Rosenthal discusses the state of gun reform in Mass., and updated us on upcoming March for Our Lives gatherings. Rosenthal is a longtime gun control advocate, and the founder of the group Stop Handgun Violence. Red Shaydez talks about her work in Boston’s music scene. She also performed her songs “I’m Not the Victim,” “I Like Dreamin’”, and “Catch a Vibe” live at the Boston Public Library. Red Shaydez is a rapper, entrepreneur, and youth mentor. She’s also the Vice Chair of Events for the group Women in Music, and the host of the Boston Public Library’s second annual Teen Music Maker Showdown. We end the show by asking listeners about their experiences with Boston’s Open Streets initiative, which creates car-free spaces on select roads in Boston during the summer.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin the show by asking listeners how they feel going into the Jan. 6 hearings. Paul Reville shares his thoughts about Mayor Michelle Wu’s role in education, and the lifting of Boston Public Schools' mask mandate. Reville is the former secretary of education and a professor at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education, where he also runs 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.” Andrea Cabral weighs in on what we can expect from the Jan. 6 committee hearings, the state of gun control in America post-Uvalde, and the women suing the F.B.I. for early investigative failures in the Larry Nassar case. Cabral is the former Suffolk County sheriff and secretary of public safety, and former CEO of the cannabis company Ascend. Sue O’Connell discusses media coverage of the upcoming Jan. 6 trials, and updates us on the Pride Month events happening around Mass. O’Connell is the co-publisher of Bay Windows and South End News, and contributor to Current, on NBC LX and NECN. Revs. Irene Monroe and Emmett G. Price III comments on Southern Baptist Leaders releasing a sex abuser database, the labor activists pushing for a White House meeting on poverty, and Pope Francis’ future in the papacy. 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 the All Rev’d Up podcast. David Abel discusses his reporting on a water-pollution crisis in New Hampshire, and his upcoming documentary about future sea level rise in Boston. Abel is a Boston Globe reporter, where he covers the environment. He was part of the Globe’s team that won the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News. We end the show by talking with listeners about the catharsis of swearing.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We begin the show by talking with listeners about the incoming results from California’s primary election. Shirley Leung talks about her recent piece featuring women whose decisions to have abortions changed their lives, and shares her thoughts on the potential for a 4-day work week. Leung is a business columnist for the Boston Globe. Juliette Kayyem shares what people can expect from the upcoming Jan. 6 committee hearings. She also talks about Uvalde native Matthew McConaughey calling for gun control in the wake of the Robb Elementary School shooting. 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. Amy O’Leary talks about the push for accessible childcare in Mass. amid rising costs. O’Leary is the Executive Director of Strategies for Children, an advocacy and policy group aimed at ensuring access to childcare and early education in Mass. We then open the phone lines to ask listeners for their experiences with trying to find affordable childcare in Mass. Matthew Gilbert weighs in on Apple TV’s “Severance,” HBO’s “Somebody Somewhere,” and ABC’s “Abbott Elementary.” Gilbert is the TV critic for The Boston Globe. Billy Collins shares some of his poetry ahead of his June 16 appearance at 2Life Communities’ annual gala. Collins was appointed U.S. Poet Laureate from 2001-2003, and New York State Poet Laureate from 2004-2006. His numerous collections include “Nine Horses: Poems, The Trouble with Poetry,” “Ballistics,” “Horoscopes for the Dead,” “Aimless Love,” and “The Rain in Portugal.” We end the show by talking with listeners about their indoor plant obsessions.