Boston Public Radio Podcast

Today on Boston Public Radio: Rep. Ayanna Pressley discusses Gov. Charlie Baker’s decision to send the Mass. police reform bill back to legislators, racial disparities with facial recognition software, and what she’s doing to confront the country’s ongoing eviction crisis. We open our lines to talk with listeners about the recently-approved Pfizer vaccine and ask: are you eager to get one? Beat the Press host Emily Rooney celebrates the (temporary) death of the office party, and reads a monopoly-themed list of fixations and fulminations. CNN analyst Juliette Kayyem gives a reality-check on the rollout timeline for Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, which was approved for distribution on Thursday by the FDA. Media maven Sue O’Connell talks about recent reporting on the cognitive decline of Sen. Dianne Feinstein, and the ensuing questions about aging public officials. Former Suffolk County sheriff and secretary of public safety Andrea Cabral discusses the 106 Congressional Republicans backing a Texas lawsuit to overturn President-elect Biden’s win in the 2020 election, and Gov. Baker’s refusal to sign the Mass. police reform bill. Under the Radar host Callie Crossley weighs in on the police killing of 23 year-old Casey Goodson, a new Ben & Jerry’s ice cream flavor highlighting Colin Kaepernick’s activism, and hints at some of her secrets to making the perfect deviled egg.

Note: Much of Thursday’s show was devoted to GBH’s one-day pledge drive. If you’d like to make a contribution to support the local journalism produced by GBH, you can visit the link here. Today on Boston Public Radio: NBC “Meet the Press” moderator Chuck Todd discusses President Trump’s refusal to concede his election loss to President-elect Joe Biden, stalled COVID stimulus talks out of Washington, and the standing of the four senate candidates ahead of the Georgia’s January runoff election. Next, we turn to listeners, talking about the anticipated FDA approval of Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine, and hearing your takes on whether the government ought to create a vaccine mandate to pull the U.S. out of the pandemic. Then, we keep our lines open, talking with callers about all the things you’re looking forward to returning to in a post-pandemic world. Suffolk County D.A. Rachael Rollins talks about her recently published letter urging Gov. Baker to sign the Mass. police reform bill, and weighs in on a range of other criminal justice issues as part of our monthly series, “Ask the D.A.”

M.I.T. economist Jonathan Gruber discussed his forthcoming editorial on how the U.S. government might want to use a lottery system to incentivize tracking for Americans who get vaccinated from COVID-19, as a way to gain insight on vaccine effectiveness. We turned to listeners to talk about “pandemic stomach,” amid a spike in Americans buying antacids. Brenda Cassellius, Superintendent of Boston Public Schools, called in to talk about the decision making process behind the reopening of 28 public schools in Boston, and evolving attitudes around whether schooling ought to remain open during the pandemic. She also responded to a range of questions and comments from listeners who phoned in. Medical ethicist Art Caplan discussed news on COVID-19 vaccines, from reports of allergic reactions to the Pfizer vaccine in the U.K., updates on a newly-announced treatment out of China, and the expected timeline for FDA approval of vaccines here in the U.S. Tech writer Andy Ihnatko discussed the latest headlines from the world of tech, including Washington Post reporting on a forthcoming antitrust lawsuit against Facebook, news that Samsung will no longer include chargers with their phones, and NordPass' list of the most-used passwords of 2020. We closed out Wednesday’s show by returning to listeners, to talk about finding ways to laugh through the coronavirus pandemic.

The United Kingdom delivered the first shot in its COVID-19 vaccination program on Tuesday, becoming the first Western country to deliver a broadly tested vaccine to the general public. Two people who received the Pfizer and BioNTech shot developed allergic reactions, but recovered. Medical ethicist Art Caplan spoke with Boston Public Radio on Wednesday about what this latest development means for the vaccine’s rollout. “You’re probably going to have to wait after you get the vaccine - like an hour in the place where you get it - to make sure you don’t have that kind of reaction,” he said. “So that makes it harder, logistically, because now you’ll have people lined up, trying to find a place to sit them, and once you unfreeze the Pfizer vaccine, you have to administer it all like 500 at a time.” Caplan also worries that anti-vaxxers will use this as fuel against the vaccine. “You’re probably going to see anti-vax people use that to scare people away from the vaccine,” he said. “That would be unfortunate.” Art Caplan is the Drs. William F and Virginia Connolly Mitty Chair, and director of the Division of Medical Ethics at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We kicked things off by opening lines, to talk with listeners about the surging coronavirus cases in Mass., and whether the state ought to be imposing stricter lockdown measures to quell the spread of COVID-19. NBC Sports Boston reporter and anchor Trenni Kusnierek discussed new charges in the prostitution cases involving Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who himself will not face charges. She also weighed in on the $1 million PPP loan for former Patriot Tom Brady, and Sport Illustrated's list of five athlete activists it named “Sportspersons of the Year." Jamahrl Crawford talked about his impressions of the Mass. police reform bill, the political limits of the “defund the police” slogan, and the value in hiring police officers from within the communities they'd be serving. Crawford is a Boston based Boston community activist, and the publisher of the Blackstonian. He also served on the Boston Police Reform Task. Food writer Corby Kummer talked about Singapore becoming the first nation to approve lab grown meat for human consumption, and growing displeasure in the U.S. with foods that’re described as “moist." He also spoke about the pandemic’s impact on the already-miserable food served in prisons, and other food headlines. Next, we opened lines to talk with listeners about lab-grown meat, and whether you'd be open to making the switch from the real thing. CNN’s John King returned for his weekly breakdown of national political stories, including infighting in Washington over further pandemic relief, and conversation around whether or not to pursue potential legal charges against President Trump and his allies once President-elect Biden is in office.

Singapore has become the first nation on the planet to approve cell-cultured meat for human consumption. Food writer Corby Kummer spoke to Boston Public Radio on Tuesday about San Francisco start-up Eat Just Inc., which got regulatory approval to cell it’s lab-grown chicken in Singapore. “We talk all the time about Beyond Meat and the Impossible Burger, but this is different,” Kummer said. “Its cells are from animals, that are then cultured in quantity enough to, in this case, make a chicken cutlet.” What’s good about this is that only one animal is needed to give cells which will then be cultured to produce boundless chicken meat, Kummer said. “Only one chicken has to die to provide vibrant cultures, which the company then builds out onto various forms,” he said. “Cell-cultured meat has had billions of dollars invested in it over the past years, and it will be coming here [to the United States.]” Kummer is a senior editor at The Atlantic, an award-winning food writer, and a senior lecturer at the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition and Policy.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Dr. Elizabeth Pinsky, a pediatrician and psychiatrist at MGH, talked about the mental and physical strain that remote learning has taken on the thousands of Mass. kids stuck at home through the pandemic, and offered her assessment of the state's pandemic response with respect to public education. We opened our lines to talk with listeners about Dr. Pinksy's comments about schooling in Mass., and ask: did we get it wrong?  Charlie Sennott, GBH News analyst and GroundTruth Project CEO,  talked about the potential problems with the U.K.’s fast-tracked approval of Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine. He also reflected on President-elect Joe Biden’s choices for secretary of state and director of national intelligence director, and weighed in on the future of “Trumpism” after President Trump leaves office. TV expert Bob Thompson discussed news that Warner Brothers plans to release all of their 2021 films online at the same time they’ll be in theaters. He also reviewed Netflix’s “Mank,” Showtime’s “Your Honor,” and HBO's new documentary about The Bee Gees, “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart." Irene Monroe and Emmett Price, hosts of GBH’s All Rev’d Up podcast, discussed last week’s Supreme Court ruling on COVID restrictions and religious liberty, reflecting on the impact of the court’s decision to side with religious organizations. Boston Globe business columnist Shirley Leung explained the growing tension between Mass. Gov. Charlie Baker and local leaders and public health officials around the spike in Mass. residents who’re testing positive for COVID-19. Anthony Rudel, general manager for music at GBH, talked about GBH’s upcoming collaboration with performance arts organization The Handel & Haydn Society, for their annual holiday production of “Messiah.”

Today on Boston Public Radio: We kicked off Friday's show by turning to listeners to talk about all things coronavirus, from the incoming vaccines to your thoughts on the winter ahead.  Media magnate Sue O’Connell offered her prediction about the public reputation of the Trump family, post-presidency. She also weighed in on recent comments from Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito that’ve drawn condemnation from LGBT advocates, and gave a quick review of the Hulu holiday rom-com about two lesbians, called “The Happiest Season." Boston Mayor Marty Walsh called in for our monthly “Ask the Mayor” series. He discussed the city's ongoing efforts to mitigating the spread of coronavirus, his views on the latest police reform bill, and what he thought of the recently-released four hour documentary about his administration, titled “City Hall.” CNN analyst Juliette Kayyem talked about the latest news on distributing a COVID-19 vaccine in the U.S. She also touched on the current COVID surge, overcrowding in hospitals, and why she’s started calling social-distancing “smart-distancing." GBH’s A Celtic Sojourn host Brian O’Donovan detailed this year’s virtual Celtic Christmas Sojourn, with performances from musicians around the world. He also discussed the enormous amount of work that went into putting together the event safely, leading him to call it the “NBA of Christmas shows.” We closed out Friday’s show by returning to listeners about “revenge travel,” and asking: Now that there's the promise of a vaccine, is it safe to start thinking about travel?

National security expert Juliette Kayyem joined Boston Public Radio Friday, where she offered a comprehensive rundown of everything going on with respect to the now multiple coronavirus vaccines. Despite the increasingly grim number of infections heading into winter, she said that she’s staying emotionally buoyed by the prospect of a vaccine in the coming months. “It’s always easier to go through the storm when you can see the light,” she said. "In the last week alone, the amount of progress we’ve gotten to in terms of vaccine and vaccine distribution is tremendous.” She added, “it’s that split screen where we’re in the darkness but we can see the light, and I think it’s gonna be like that for a while.” Juliette 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.

Today on Boston Public Radio: NBC “Meet the Press” moderator Chuck Todd discussed rumors that President Trump intends on running for reelection in 2024, and weighed in on the ongoing coronavirus outbreaks in the NFL. We opened lines to talk with listeners about the forthcoming COVID-19 vaccines, and news that former Presidents Obama, Clinton, and Bush are all vowing to take the coronavirus vaccine publicly. Former Suffolk County sheriff and secretary of public safety Andrea Cabral offered her impressions of the Mass. police reform bill, and talked about why she expects Gov. Baker will sign it into law. She also talked about reporting on President Trump’s supposed plans to pardon those in his inner circle, and explained her recent endorsement of Boston City Councilor Andrea Campbell’s campaign for city mayor. Lawrence Lessig discussed the legal window for Republicans to replace electors in a last-ditch effort to get President Trump reelected, and other extrajudicial efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Lessig is the Roy L. Furman professor of law and leadership at Harvard Law School, and the founder of Equal Citizens. His latest book is “They Don’t Represent Us: Reclaiming Our Democracy.” Former Mass. education secretary Paul Reville weighed in on whether schools ought to remain open as COVID cases surge across Mass., and other education headlines of the week. Tech writer Andy Ihnatko discussed news that Comcast is going to begin charging heavy internet users with additional costs. He also weighed in on fines against Apple over waterproof iPhone claims, a problematic workplace culture at Google, and other major tech stories of the week. We closed Thursday's show by returning to callers, getting your impressions on the 2020 Christmas tree shortage, and reviving the debate around real trees versus fake trees.