St. Louis on the Air

“Heartbroken” is the word Missouri state Rep. Cheri Toalson Reisch used to sum up what she’s feeling in the wake of the 2021 legislative session. On Tuesday, the Republican from Hallsville learned that legislation she’d hoped would soon open doors for certain nonviolent drug offenders serving decades-long, no-parole terms didn’t make it into the final version of Senate Bill 26.

“Lake Loch Pond Monster,” the creation of independent filmmaker Carolina Diz and actress and creator Brittany Zeinstra, is the winner of this year’s biennial Cinema at Citygarden film competition.

Susan Polgar, the first woman to earn the Chess Grandmaster title by norm and rating, will soon retire from Webster University. She discusses nature vs. nurture, women and chess and her future plans for the championship program she built from scratch

The IpsiHand Upper Extremity Rehabilitation System recently received market authorization from the Food and Drug Administration. The device has stroke patients utilize a robotic exoskeleton on their hand and wrist, allowing them to open and close their hand using their minds.

Mike Milton’s new organization will offer diversion from the criminal justice system for an intensive process including both victim and defendant. He and UMSL’s John Nanney explain what inspired it, and how it will work

The “Second Amendment Preservation Act” could cause serious problems for law enforcement, says St. Louis Interim Public Safety Director Dan Isom. He explains his concerns, which include costly fines for police departments that seek to enforce gun laws

Florissant-based novelist Lyndsey Ellis discusses the 16-year journey to bring her novel to publication, and the St. Louis history that provides a backdrop to its plot.

For nearly a decade, the local band FIRE DOG has been writing songs about endangered species. It even released a concept album. Now band leader Mark Pagano has enlisted area elementary school kids to help the band in its fixation — and the kids have crafted some great lyrics. We play some highlights.

Fifty-four years ago this month, three boys went missing in Hannibal, Missouri, and were never seen again. The cold case, situated as it is in the boyhood home of Mark Twain and beloved fictional characters like Tom Sawyer and Becky Thatcher, has been the subject of attention and speculation by everyone from authors to armchair detectives in the decades since.

In this episode, we discuss the science behind Missouri’s many sinkholes and learn how the city of St. Louis was developed upon porous and uncertain terrain.

Sylvester Brown grapples with race and humanity in his new story collection. In this episode, we listen back to his January 2021 conversation about it with host Sarah Fenske.

LynnMarie Alexander’s new book, “The Hill: St. Louis’s Italian American Neighborhood,” is a coffee table-ready compilation of the neighborhood’s history and highlights. We listen back to our conversation with her in this encore episode.

Chesterfield based tech company, Fybr, has installed 275 wireless parking sensors in downtown Kirkwood. Starting this week, residents and visitors will be able to access real time parking availability via the mobile app, Park Kirkwood.

As vice president of sustainability and electrification for Ameren Missouri, Gwen Mizell is juggling more than one big challenge. Climate pledges are great, but how does a major utility company make the shift to clean energy while maintaining reliable and affordable services — and also reckon with the reality that the technology needed to become totally green does not yet exist?

Missouri lawmakers wrapped their special session Friday with some surprising moves — and serious frustration on both sides of the aisle. Jason Hancock of the Missouri Independent gets us up to speed on the bills that made it through — and the surprising alliances that shaped the session.

An Ohio state senator went viral last week after he was caught on camera driving during a Zoom debate on penalties for — you guessed it — distracted driving. But Andrew Brenner is hardly an outlier: Numerous elected officials, including St. Louis aldermen, have been spotted driving while participating in virtual public meetings.

Attorney Bevis Schock discusses how police citing and arresting his client has led to a six-figure bill for St. Louis County -- and changes to county ordinances

Author and punk musician G'Ra Asim discusses his new book and how he feels about moving back to St. Louis, the city he left as a 10-year-old.

After a lengthy hiatus, Circus Flora's big red tent in Grand Center will once again fill with circus tricks and fans next month — and lots of St. Louis talent. With shows running June 4-6, “The St. Lou Revue” promises a focus on hometown performers and plenty of COVID-conscious safety measures, plus some talented canine newcomers from Purina.

On Saturday, Ashley-Ann Davis will offer some words of wisdom to her fellow graduating seniors at the Missouri University of Science and Technology in Rolla. She’s one of just four students scheduled to speak at the university’s in-person commencement ceremonies. But when it comes to giving life advice, the 22-year-old hasn’t just written a speech — she’s also got a small book to her name.

Pediatric infectious disease physician Dr. Jason Newland of Washington University discusses the FDA's authorization of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for younger teens.

Missouri’s medical marijuana industry is faring well since the first dispensaries opened their doors last October. Today, more than 100,000 patients and caregivers use and purchase medical cannabis in the state.

This week, Missouri Governor Mike Parson joined a growing number of GOP governors in rejecting federal unemployment benefits. Beginning June 12, the state will no longer participate in a half-dozen federal programs designed to aid out-of-work residents during the pandemic, including the $300-per-week supplemental benefits given to unemployed workers.

Two military members share their experience working with FEMA and other agencies to distribute vaccinations at The Dome at America’s Center

Restaurateurs across the region are grappling with staff shortages. Former chef Patrick Tague, who spent about 30 years in the industry, hopes that the demand for workers will lead to a kinder, gentler culture for food service workers, and more jobs with employee benefits like health insurance.

At a time when opinions about critical race theory and inclusive pedagogy are loud and manifold, two experts from Webster University offer a closer look at what critical race theory is — and what to make of the controversy surrounding it.

In late February, Honduran immigrant and longtime Missourian Alex Garcia left the Maplewood church where he'd been living in sanctuary for 1,252 days. He and his wife, Carly, join host Sarah Fenske to discuss their reunited life and remaining challenges ahead.

Opera Theatre of St. Louis’ sold-out 2021 season moves outdoors for the first time. Among its world premieres: A timely comic opera about parenting in a pandemic

We talk with "Hidden Brain" host Shankar Vedantam, His new book is "Useful Delusions: The Power & Paradox of the Self-Deceiving Brain."

Last year, COVID-19 restrictions put a damper on festivities. But this year, precautions and vaccines helped return a sense of normalcy to the religious traditions. Producer Lara Hamdan checks in with local Muslims to hear how they are observing Ramadan.

The Webster-Kirkwood Times and the Riverfront Times faced an uncertain future last March. As the coronavirus spread across the U.S., management at both newspapers sought to suspend print editions. Journalists from both organizations share how they battled back from the brink.

Aloha Mischeaux, program director of Revival Runway, shares details about the new collaborative group where local models, photographers and designers mentor refugee students interested in the fashion industry.

Rebecca Rivas' new two-part series looks and how and why Ferguson activists gave up trying to reform local police departments and decided instead to take control of them. They’ve found huge political success in the last five years.

Restaurants across the metro continue to reopen and expand their service as diners return to restaurants. There’s just one problem: They can’t find enough good help. St. Louis Magazine’s George Mahe and Tom Schmidt of Salt + Smoke join us to discuss what's going on.

Thirty years ago this summer, an act of random violence stole William Johnson’s eyesight, and the lives of two of his colleagues, during a business trip to Atlanta. Johnson describes what happened — and how he adapted to his new reality in the months and years that followed his return home to St. Louis — in his new memoir.

Chancellor Kristin Sobolik joins host Sarah Fenske to share her vision for the University of Missouri-St. Louis as well as her perspective on some of the biggest challenges currently facing UMSL and higher education as a whole.

Pickleball has seen explosive growth in the St. Louis metro. Certified instructor Mike Chapin explains how he brought the first permanent courts here and why demand shows no signs of lessening.

A proposal introduced by Missouri Republicans — and its roots within a debate raging among teachers, administrators and parents within the Rockwood School District — is the subject of Tony Messenger’s latest column, “Missouri Republicans embrace racism and censorship in trying to ban the 1619 Project.”

STLPR reporter Rachel Lippmann spoke with Chief Mary Barton about her controversial tenure. Hear most of that conversation.

Though racially restrictive covenants have been illegal for more than 70 years, their impact can still be felt today. That’s the focus of a new paper by Colin Gordon in the Journal of Urban History.

In the 1860s, a plan to move the U.S. Capitol from D.C. to St. Louis garnered substantial support. Journalist Livia Gershon gives a crash course in this long-forgotten history.

As a 14-year-old imprisoned in a satellite camp to Auschwitz in 1944, Ben Fainer crafted a bracelet engraved with his name, his ID number and some decorative elements. We explore Fainer's story and how the bracelet made it's way to St. Louis.

Missouri Independent editor-in-chief Jason Hancock explains what’s happening in the Missouri legislature. The discussion delves into various topics, including the decision to not fund Medicaid expansion, COVID-19 liability and vaccine passports.

When migrating songbirds get to a major city like St. Louis, light pollution can cause them to become disoriented or exhausted, and sometimes die. A new effort seeks to address the problem by encouraging businesses and individuals in the Midwest to turn off exterior lights during May and September.

Last month, Mark Fingerhut set out from his home in St. Louis’ Dogtown neighborhood to see how far his feet could take him over the course of 24 hours. And he convinced 20 fellow St. Louisans to do the same, dubbing the adventure the 24 Hours from Home Challenge.

The legal roundtable featuring Mark Smith, Jennifer Joyce and Sarah Swatosh digs into cases including a class-action lawsuit against police treatment of protesters in St. Louis, lawsuits against the city's earning tax, and the resumption of jury trials during the pandemic.

St. Louis composer Jeremy Schonfeld shares how his father's memoir, "Absence of Closure" inspired his "Iron & Coal" rock-opera concert.

Kayla Reed shares what she saw at the City Justice Center and the Medium Security Institution, better known as the Workhouse — and what she hopes city leaders will do with those observations.

Polling suggests that attitudes and misunderstandings among political conservatives and people with limited health care coverage may pose the biggest challenges to mass vaccination.

Rex Sinquefield has had an outsized influence on the St. Louis region — whether he’s pushing a city-county merger or turning the Central West End into a world capital of chess. And for most of that time, fellow St. Louisan Devin Thomas O’Shea has been watching to see what the libertarian billionaire’s next moves might be.