St. Louis on the Air

From its early Lemp Brewery days to the Schlafly era and beyond, St. Louis has earned its reputation as a drinking town. But lately the city is also seeing a nightlife trend that doesn’t involve alcohol at all. Among other beverage and restaurant industry professionals, the people behind WellBeing Brewing, a locally based company that exclusively makes non-alcoholic craft beer, have helped to catalyze the movement. So has the Wellness Council of St. Louis, which is affiliated with the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse and oversees Sans Bar STL. The inaugural Sans Bar STL event early this year drew about 300 people to Third Degree Glass Factory for a night of music, glass-blowing, tarot card readings and handcrafted alcohol-free drinks. Host Sarah Fenske discusses St. Louis’ growing sobriety scene with Genevieve Barlow, co-founder of WellBeing Brewing; restaurant industry veteran Tom Halaska; and Nichole Dawsey, executive director of NCADA.

St. Louis Public Schools has lost four children to gun violence over summer break, including the most recent death of Xavier Usanga, an incoming second-grader at Clay Elementary, who was shot and killed on Monday. In this St. Louis on the Air episode, host Sarah Fenske talks with school officials about the ways their districts are helping St. Louis kids cope with a long, violent summer.

The chancellor is the chief academic, administrative, and budgetary officer of the University of Missouri-St. Louis, and Tom George has held the post for the past 16 years. He is retiring Sept. 1. In this St. Louis on the Air segment, Sarah Fenske talks with George about his tenure, major trends in higher education and what he hopes to see in the university’s future.

In this St. Louis on the Air segment, guest host Jonathan Ahl talks with the new chancellor of Missouri University of Science and Technology.

"How has the death of Michael Brown Jr. impacted your life?" That's among the questions that the St. Louis Public Radio community and people throughout the region have been pondering in recent days in light of the five-year anniversary of the Ferguson protests. The answers are myriad, but Olajuwon Davis’ certainly stands out in the crowd: He’s spent most of his life since that time in prison. How and why Davis’ life changed so drastically in the wake of Brown’s death is the focus of a newly published report by the Riverfront Times’ Danny Wicentowski. In it, Wicentowski details everything from the moment Davis, then a member of the New Black Panther Party, first became active in Ferguson to his arrest and conviction in an FBI sting for “planning and conspiring to ignite explosive devices” among other charges. Prosecutors would allege he and his alleged co-conspirator Brandon Baldwin sought to blow up the Gateway Arch. Host Sarah Fenske discusses Davis’ prosecution with Wicentowski and with Trevor Aaronson, who is a contributor to The Intercept and the author of “The Terror Factory: Inside the FBI's Manufactured War on Terrorism.”

Host Sarah Fenske explores what the busing experience has been like for students who participated in St. Louis' desegregation program – and if it’s really time to wind it down. Joining the conversation were former VICC students Maalik Shakoor and Hope Rias; and Veronica Johnson, a civil rights attorney in St. Louis who represented the NAACP and helped bring about the busing program by suing the St. Louis schools.

Host Sarah Fenske talks with artist Tonina Saputo, who is among the rising names in the local music scene, and whose reach is far and wide. The St. Louis-raised musician has made the world her stage, performing throughout Europe and singing in both English and Spanish. Former President Barack Obama is a fan himself and placed her song “Historia De un Amor” on his best-of-the-year roundup.

Last week, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch unveiled a new online comment system. Declaring its old Facebook-based model broken, the daily newspaper explained that community moderation and a scoring system for commenters would give greater prominence to readers who “consistently drive positive conversation.” The paper's reader engagement editor, Beth O’Malley, joins the show to discuss how the new system is working and the difficulties of keeping online conversation civil in an angry age. Lindsay Toler, digital engagement producer for St. Louis Public Radio, also participates in the discussion.

A few weeks ago, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released some positive statistics related to the ongoing opioid crisis. While drug overdose deaths in the U.S. had reached record levels in 2017, the nation saw an overall 4.2% decline in 2018. In Missouri, though, the 2018 outcomes were far less hopeful – despite an influx of $65 million in federal funds aimed at addressing the crisis over the past few years. Provisional data for the state indicates a 16% increase in drug overdose deaths over the course of last year. Host Sarah Fenske talks with two local experts about where Missouri should go from here in light of the discouraging statistics.

To describe the St. Lou Fringe Festival as a theater event is something of a misnomer. There are plenty of actors, playwrights and other theater professsionals involved in the annual six-day-long extravaganza that gets underway this Tuesday. But there are also poets, dancers, performance artists, sculptors, burlesque performers and improv acts. This year’s offerings also run the gamut with offerings by established and experienced playwrights as well as emerging artists and previously untested work. That’s by design, according to organizer Matthew Kerns. He and playwright Shannon Geier, whose local headline act “Check In” will help kick off the festival, talk with host Sarah Fenske.

This edition of St. Louis on the Air features highlights from a live storytelling event with speakers whose lives changed drastically after Michael Brown Jr. was fatally shot by a police officer in Ferguson.

It’s been five years since Michael Brown was killed by a Ferguson police officer, setting off a protest movement that led to big changes here in St. Louis and throughout the world. Remembering those events, the St. Louis Public Radio newsroom interviewed nearly twenty people for its Living Ferguson project. By talking to people who lived the events in Ferguson, or are directly touched by the systemic inequalities exposed in its wake, the reporters seek to illuminate what we remember, how we have changed, and what we hope for. Shula Neuman, executive editor of the St. Louis Public Radio, joins host Sarah Fenske to talk about the project.

Last week, St. Louis attorney Michael Kahn won over a federal jury in a case looking at whether the Katy Perry song "Dark Horse" infringed on the copyright of a 2009 rap song “Joyful Noise” by St. Louis artist Marcus Gray, who is known as Flame. The jury decided that Katy Perry and Capitol Records must pay Gray $2.78 million in damages. In this segment, Sarah Fenske discusses the case with Kahn, as well as copyright expert Micah Zeller of Washington University Libraries.

As the host of The Splendid Table, a cookbook editor and food journalist, Francis Lam has explored cuisines from all around the world. That may be one reason he’s not at all disconcerted by St. Louis’ method of slicing bagels as if they were loaves of bread.

The first few minutes of Tanner Craft’s new short film pair a seemingly everyday scene – a mother and her young son at a doctor’s office – with an unsettling soundtrack. There’s a looming, ongoing hum audible beneath the dialogue as the physician tells the mother that her son has autism spectrum disorder. “It’s a developmental disorder,” the doctor says, the mother appearing overwhelmed. “It impairs his ability to communicate and interact with others.” But “Diagnosis,” which Craft wrote, directed and produced, doesn’t stop there. The film goes on to highlight a mother-son journey from early diagnosis, to learning more about autism and existing resources, to finding new ways to connect with one another and thrive. On Wednesday’s St. Louis on the Air, host Sarah Fenske talked with both Craft and his mother, Tanya Craft, about the film and about autism’s influence on their lives.

Host Sarah Fenske delves into ways that St. Louis’ Latino community continues to grow and influence the city – artistically and otherwise. A local artist and podcast host share their experiences of navigating a bicultural life, the importance of representation in their fields of work and how the Latino arts scene is expanding in the region.

Host Sarah Fenske sits down with Anna Crosslin, CEO of the International Institute, and Nadya Kanim, a business specialist there, to discuss their weekly lunch, the institute’s efforts to support immigrants, and the bevy of cuisines on the menu.

Host Sarah Fenske sits down with Anna Crosslin, CEO of the International Institute, and Nadya Kanim, a business specialist there, to discuss their weekly lunch, the institute’s efforts to support immigrants, and the bevy of cuisines on the menu.

Young adults throughout the St. Louis area make up the artist collective, St. Louis Story Stitchers. They aim to showcase the region’s culture through performance art, and they work to curb gun violence, which many of its members have grown up with.

Host Sarah Fenske talks with our partners from Sauce Magazine about the latest additions to the St. Louis region’s food-and-beverage community. Joining her for the conversation were Catherine Klene and Matt Sorrell, managing editor and staff writer, respectively.

Host Sarah Fenske talks with Dr. Page for a look at what he’s accomplished in his first 100 days in office as St. Louis County Executive, and what he hopes to do in the weeks and months to come.

Host Sarah Fenske talks with longtime Quincy Senior High School music director Kathi Dooley about her experience on Netflix's "Queer Eye" makeover show, "Dooley-cizing," her future plans and more.

Host Sarah Fenske spoke with Amy Breihan, director of the MacArthur Justice Center, and Nicholas Phillips, a reporter at Missouri Lawyers Weekly, about developments in a case against the state of Missouri, for allegedly failing to provide “meaningful” legal representation for indigent defendants, as the U.S. Constitution requires. Because the public defenders’ office is overworked and underfunded, the ACLU and the MacArthur Justice Center argued, poor people charged with a crime are denied their constitutional rights.

Paying for child care is one of the largest expenses per month for families. According to the Economic Policy Institute, the average annual cost of infant child care in Missouri is about $800 a month. At the same time, day care providers are tasked with more work for little pay. On Thursday’s St. Louis on the Air, host Sarah Fenske hosts a discussion on the rising cost of child care, the impact on families, and the challenges facing child care center teachers.

Paying for child care is one of the largest expenses per month for families. According to the Economic Policy Institute, the average annual cost of infant child care in Missouri is about $800 a month. At the same time, day care providers are tasked with more work for little pay. On Thursday’s St. Louis on the Air, host Sarah Fenske hosts a discussion on the rising cost of child care, the impact on families, and the challenges facing child care center teachers.

Host Sarah Fenske previews the latest Missouri History Museum exhibits: “Pulitzer Prize Photographs” and “In Focus: St. Louis Post-Dispatch Photographs.” The first is a traveling exhibit from the Newseum in Washington, displaying the most comprehensive collection of Pulitzer-winning photos ever assembled. The second provides a companion exhibit that shows off the work of local photojournalists.

A group of local teens made St. Louis proud earlier this month when they earned first place at the 2019 Brave New Voices International Youth Poetry Slam Festival in Las Vegas. Sarah Fenske talks with two members of the award-winning team: Zack Lesmeister, who is a graduate of Marquette High School, a freshman at Emerson College and a former St. Louis youth poet laureate, and Keana Fox, a graduate of Collinsville High School who is headed to college in Indianapolis this fall. Also participating in the discussion is one of the team’s coaches, Sahara Sista SOLS.

St. Louis County has significantly reduced its jail population over the past year, as Missouri Lawyers Weekly reported last month. Officials say the drop from an over-capacity total of 1,242 inmates in July 2018 down to 965 as of May 2019 has a lot to do with justice reform efforts that began in the wake of Ferguson protests. University of Missouri-St. Louis criminologist Beth Huebner has led research in collaboration with the county, its circuit court and service providers – an effort fueled by $4.5 million in grant funding from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. She talks with host Sarah Fenske about the progress she’s observed in the county system as well as aspects still in need of change.

"St. Louis on the Air" host Sarah Fenske talks with State Rep. Bruce Franks Jr. ahead of his resignation from the Missouri House on July 31, capping off an unlikely political tenure that placed the Ferguson activist and rapper firmly into the political spotlight.

Sarah Fenkse is among the notable media leaders of St. Louis. She’s served as the editor-in-chief of the Riverfront Times for the past four years, reporting on various topics such as breaking news, business, arts and culture. She’ll now be heard on the airwaves as the new official host of "St. Louis on the Air" at St. Louis Public Radio.

In the early 1990s, a man abducted and murdered at least three women from south St. Louis. This man is known as the package killer and the three murders remain cold cases nearly 30 years later. In this St. Louis on the Air segment, guest host Jonathan Ahl talks with Riverfront Times contributor Ryan Krull, who has investigated the details of these cold cases over the past year. Also joining the conversation are cold case detective Sgt. Joseph Burgoon and the stepsister of one of the women murdered by the package killer.

"St. Louis on the Air’s" latest Sound Bites segment with Sauce Magazine explores how salads are indeed culinary staples that can withstand the vegan trends of 2019 and beyond. St. Louis Public Radio’s Jeremy D. Goodwin talks about how the magazine compiled its list of the 12 best salads foodies should try in the St. Louis area with Sauce’s art director, Meera Nagarajan, and Kevin Willman, chef and owner of Farmhaus Restaurant.

A federal judge on Tuesday ruled on the City of St. Louis’ motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by a former St. Louis Post-Dispatch reporter. The decision went mostly in the reporter’s favor and allows the lawsuit to proceed. Now based in Washington state, journalist Mike Faulk filed the suit following a September 2017 protest related to the acquittal of former police officer Jason Stockley. Faulk was reporting on the protest when he alleges police officers unlawfully assaulted and arrested him. St. Louis Public Radio’s Jeremy D. Goodwin goes behind the headlines in this segment to talk with Faulk about where things stand.

From the announcement of MetroBus service shifts coming this fall, to record-setting MetroLink ridership the day of the St. Louis Blues parade last month, to security challenges, the past year and a half has proved to be a pivotal time for Metro Transit. The developments have daily implications for area residents who depend on public transportation. Metro Transit’s executive director, Jessica Mefford-Miller, joins St. Louis Public Radio’s Jeremy D. Goodwin to provide an update on the latest changes to bus and train service in the region. She focuses on what’s in store with the Metro Reimagined plan set to launch later this year.

St. Louis Public Radio’s Jeremy D. Goodwin delves into a variety of recent local and national stories pertaining to the law.

Last Friday marked the one-year anniversary of a tragic accident that killed 17 people near Branson, Missouri, one of the state’s biggest family vacation destinations. The drownings occurred when a Ride the Ducks boat capsized and sank on Table Rock Lake in neighboring Stone County. In this talk show segment, Branson Mayor Edd Akers and Fire Chief Ted Martin look back on the day of the tragedy and also discuss efforts to support victims and their families and bring healing to the Branson community.

The St. Louis County Pet Adoption Center was once celebrated for lowering its euthanasia rate, but a recent audit found that the rate was only lowered after the shelter implemented the practice of labeling the “owner requested euthanasia” check box as simply “ORE” on animal surrender forms. In this episode of St. Louis on the Air, Jeremy D. Goodwin talks with Danny Wicentowski, who has been covering this story as a staff writer for the Riverfront Times.

The St. Louis County Pet Adoption Center was once celebrated for lowering its euthanasia rate, but a recent audit found that the rate was only lowered after the shelter implemented the practice of labeling the “owner requested euthanasia” check box as simply “ORE” on animal surrender forms. In this episode of St. Louis on the Air, Jeremy D. Goodwin talks with Danny Wicentowski, who has been covering this story as a staff writer for the Riverfront Times.

When Darwin Aquino was a young boy growing up in the Dominican Republic, his father directed him to choose one instrument to learn to play. Aquino opted for the violin and, with that early decision, took his first steps along a musical journey that would eventually lead him to St. Louis. Along the way, his musical accomplishments have also expanded beyond his skills as a violinist. Aquino is now a conductor and a composer, with his current roles including positions at both Washington University and the University of Missouri-St. Louis. He was also recently named the musical director of Gateway Festival Orchestra, which is wrapping up its 2019 season this Sunday. Aquino talks with St. Louis Public Radio’s Jeremy D. Goodwin about his local musical endeavors and compositions.

Emoji have come a long way in recent years, with smiling faces and simple thumbs up now vastly outnumbered by a wide range of visual expressions available for digital use. As this visual language infuses contemporary forms of communication more and more, emoji present both opportunities and challenges in humans’ abilities to understand each other.

Over the weekend, the National Women’s Political Caucus convened in St. Louis to give women the chance to network, recruit, train, and provide support for political campaigns. In this St. Louis on the Air segment, guest host Jeremy Goodwin talks with St. Louis Public Radio political correspondent Jason Rosenbaum and University of Missouri political analyst Hanna Brant about the convention and the representation of women in American politics.

Over the weekend, the National Women’s Political Caucus convened in St. Louis to give women the chance to network, recruit, train, and provide support for political campaigns. In this St. Louis on the Air segment, guest host Jeremy Goodwin talks with St. Louis Public Radio political correspondent Jason Rosenbaum and University of Missouri political analyst Hanna Brant about the convention and the representation of women in American politics.

St. Louis Public Radio reporter Rachel Lippmann goes behind the headlines with guest host Jim Kirchherr on two big stories from recent days: John Rallo, a major campaign donor to former St. Louis County Executive Steve Stenger, pleaded guilty to federal charges on Tuesday. And, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner has publicly spoken out defending her conduct with regard to the case involving former Missouri Governor Eric Greitens. She's also been defending the changes she’s made to the circuit attorney’s office.

St. Louis Public Radio arts and culture editor David Cazares talks with Ralph Johnson of Earth, Wind & Fire ahead of the band's performance at the Stifel Theatre in St. Louis. The group has received multiple Grammy Awards and is enshrined in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Nearly a decade ago, HandleBar owner Tatyana Telnikova began heading up the after-party for St. Louis’ World Naked Bike Ride. She’s now even more deeply involved as an organizer of the annual event, which gets going at 4 p.m. Saturday in the Grove neighborhood. Telnikova talks with guest host Jim Kirchherr of the Nine Network about this growing St. Louis tradition. Twelve years running, the ride aims to raise awareness about oil dependency, body positivity and cyclist vulnerability.

Saturday marks the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing, when humanity took its first steps on another planetary body via astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. In this St. Louis on the Air segment, guest host Jim Kirchherr remembers that day in history with the manager at the James S. McDonnell Planetarium, Will Snyder, and Linda Godwin, a professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Missouri and retired NASA astronaut.

Years ago, when many multiple sclerosis researchers believed that a type of immune cell known as a T cell was the cause of the disease, Dr. Anne Cross turned her focus instead to B cells. Her findings have led to key breakthroughs in MS research – and also to receiving the John Dystel Prize for Multiple Sclerosis Research from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and the American Academy of Neurology.

Guest host Jim Kirchherr of the Nine Network talks with a past winner of the competition, Justice Hill, who is now a SLU student, as well as Rebecca Butler Mona, the president of Optimist International. Also joining the discussion is Wayne Fields, the Lynne Cooper Harvey Chair Emeritus in English at Washington University. Among other books, Fields is the author of “Union of Words: A History of Presidential Eloquence."

While many writers pen memoirs because of something particularly distinctive or unusual about their lives, the reason Chavisa Woods gives for writing hers is pretty much the opposite. “I felt that it was incumbent for me to put this on the page ... because my life is not exceptional,” Woods, the author of “100 Times: A Memoir of Sexism,” says. “And I think when people hear that you’ve experienced 100 formative incidents of sexism, maybe the first reaction is, ‘Oh, I can’t believe that it influences your life so much.’ But I think when most women stop and think about discrimination, harassment, groping, sexual violence and also microagressions, you’ll see that you could easily compile [such a list]. ”

Guest host Jim Kirchherr of the Nine Network talks with Jaclyn Driscoll, who recently joined St. Louis Public Radio’s newsroom as its statehouse reporter to help cover all things Missouri politics.