The Brian Lehrer Show

The collision between a passenger jet and Army Blackhawk Helicopter resulted in the worst aviation tragedy in the United States in decades. Oriana Pawlyk, POLITICO’s aviation reporter, and Jeff Wise, aviation journalist and host of the Finding MH370 podcast, share their reporting on the incident, the issues surrounding air traffic controllers, and whether or not this tragedy could have been prevented.

Francesca Chambers, White House Correspondent for USA Today, talks about the news from Washington focusing on the federal worker buyout offers and the announced tariffs on goods from Canada, Mexico and China.

Elizabeth Glazer, founder of the journal Vital City and former director of the New York City Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice, discusses a report that looks at data that illuminates surprising trends in crime in New York City and what it says about public safety and justice right now.

Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them.Subway Breakdowns (First) | The Federal Aid Freeze and Reversal (Starts at 30:30) | 100 Years of 100 Things: The New Yorker Magazine (Starts at 1:12:00)If you don't subscribe to the Brian Lehrer Show on iTunes, you can do that here.

With the Grammy Awards coming up and as our centennial series continues, Gary Trust, New York-based managing director of charts and data operations at Billboard Magazine, looks back through this century of hit music.

Michael Elsen-Rooney, reporter at Chalkbeat New York, delves into his reporting on how fears of family separation and deportation are affecting New York City schools and their students.

As our centennial series continues, David Remnick, editor of The New Yorker and the host of The New Yorker Radio Hour, talks about another centenarian, The New Yorker, which published its first issue on February 21, 1925.

U.S. Senator Andy Kim (D NJ) talks about the Trump cabinet nominees, including his questioning of RFK, Jr. on Thursday, the impact of the foreign aid freeze and federal employee purges, plus his other work in Washington and New Jersey.

The China-based AI startup 'DeepSeek' has sent shockwaves throughout the American tech and financial sector since its release. Reed Albergotti, technology editor at Semafor, explains what DeepSeek is and what it means for the future of American global dominance of the tech industry.

The White House budget office ordered a pause on federal loans and grants, only to issue a reversal days later. Kate Shaw, professor at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, co-host of the Supreme Court podcast Strict Scrutiny and a contributing opinion writer with The New York Times, offers legal analysis of the move — and the Trump administration's attempts to expand executive power in general.

New York State Senator Jessica Ramos (D, District 13, Queens) talks about the session in Albany, responds to the ICE raids in NYC, and discusses her challenge to Mayor Adams for the Democratic nomination for mayor in the June primary.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on Joe Rogan's podcast recently that "masculine energy" is good, and that culture should celebrate aggression. Listeners of all genders call in to share what masculinity means to them today, and whether they identify with Zuckerberg's comments.

Daniel Griffin, MD, PhD, chief of infectious disease for Island Infectious Diseases, the largest physician-owned Infectious Disease Specialist Group on Long Island, an infectious disease specialist and clinical instructor of medicine at Columbia University and president of Parasites Without Borders and co-host of the podcast "This Week in Virology", offers commentary and analysis of the Senate Finance Committee confirmation hearing for Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., President Trump's nominee to lead the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

Clare Malone, staff writer at The New Yorker covering politics, previews the confirmation of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s first of two confirmation hearings as President Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. Then, Ian Ward, reporter at POLITICO, where he covers the conservative movement and the American right for POLITICO Magazine, discusses the confirmation hearing of Brooke Rollins, President Donald Trump’s agriculture secretary nominee and her priorities for USDA.

Peter Beinart, journalist, commentator, author of the Substack newsletter 'The Beinart Notebook', professor at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY, and the author of Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza: A Reckoning (Knopf, 2025), talks about his new book on calling for 'a reckoning' for the state of Israel.

Listeners tell us how their relationships with the social media platforms have changed in this second Trump era.

The nation’s largest health care union, 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers, is in the midst of a succession battle to unseat its long term president. Maya Kaufman, health care reporter for POLITICO New York in New York City, explains what's the driver behind the battle and what New Yorkers stand to gain, and lose, depending on the outcome.

Jill Colvin, national political reporter for The Associated Press, talks about the latest national political news, including the ICE raids in Chicago and Dallas, the freeze on foreign aid and on immigration support funding.

Joe Biden called himself "the most pro-labor President in American history," and National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) general counsel Jennifer Abruzzo was key to his enforcement efforts. As an administration with a much different posture on labor shapes up, Dan Kaufman, contributing writer for the New York Times Magazine and author of The Fall of Wisconsin: The Conservative Conquest of a Progressive Bastion and the Future of American Politics (W. W. Norton & Company, 2018), looks back through a century of the NLRB and NLRA.=>"What Labor Could Lose" (The New York Review of Books, 1/19/25)

Stephen Nessen, transportation reporter for the WNYC Newsroom, and Clayton Guse, WNYC/Gothamist editor on the NYC Accountability desk, talk about a new Gothamist series "State of Collapse" and the latest transportation news.

Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them.Trump's Anti-DEI Push (First) | The State of Broadcast Journalism (Starts at 48:00 ) | Lessons Learned on Staying Warm (Starts at 1:15:00)If you don't subscribe to the Brian Lehrer Show on iTunes, you can do that here.

Genia Blaser, director of Hotline at Immigrant Defense Project, and Yasmine Farhang, director of Advocacy at Immigrant Defense Project, discuss President Donald Trump's recent executive order to ramp up the deportation of undocumented immigrants and explain the rights that undocumented individuals have when interacting with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander talks about the June primary as he seeks the Democratic nomination for mayor in 2025 as well as the effect on NYC of the new Trump administration, and other NYC news.

Ashley Parker, staff writer at The Atlantic, former Washington Post White House bureau chief, talks about the close relationship between the incoming Trump administration and tech billionaires."The Tech Oligarchy Arrives" (The Atlantic, 1/20/25)

Will this year be the year you see some experimental theater or finish that crafting project? Listeners share their arts and culture resolutions for 2025.

Jelani Cobb, dean of the Journalism School at Columbia University and a staff writer at The New Yorker, talks about the 2025 duPont-Columbia award winners, plus the inauguration and the Trump administration's expected treatment of journalists.

Russell Contreras, Justice and Race reporter at Axios, discusses President Donald Trump's sweeping executive order revoking decades of diversity and affirmative action practices in the federal government and how it might impact the private sector.

Ahead of the TikTok ban, many Americans moved over to an even more Chinese social media application called RedNote. Steffi Cao, internet culture reporter, explains why she sees this as an opportunity for diplomacy and shares her reporting on how average American and Chinese civilians are getting along.

Jimmy Vielkind, New York State Issues reporter for WNYC, reviews what Gov. Hochul proposed in her $252 billion budget for the state, which now gets negotiated with the legislature.

Mayor Adams holds one off-topic press conference per week, where reporters can ask him questions on any subject. Elizabeth Kim, Gothamist and WNYC reporter, recaps what he talked about at this week's event. Topics this week include the City's response to early actions taken by the Trump administration, Adams' attendance at Trump's inauguration, Adam's surprise interview on Tucker Carlson, and more.

As our centennial series continues, Paul Bloom, professor emeritus of psychology and cognitive science at Yale University and professor of psychology at the University of Toronto and the author of several books, including Psych: The Story of the Human Mind (Ecco, 2023), reviews a century of developments in psychology, psychoanalysis and psychotherapy.

Jason Marczak, vice president and senior director of the Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center at the Atlantic Council, and Peter Bergen, CNN's national security analyst, vice president for Global Studies and Fellows at New America and host of the Audible/Fresh Produce Media podcast "In the Room with Peter Bergen," offer analysis of President Trump's statements in his inaugural address about taking back the Panama Canal.

Amidst another cold snap this season, listeners share their hacks and hard-won knowledge for keeping warm at work or play during periods of plunging temps and high winds.

Jon Favreau, host of Pod Save America, Offline with Jon Favreau, and co-founder of Crooked Media, and Jon Lovett, host of Pod Save America and co-founder of Crooked Media, round up the latest news from Washington, including how Democrats should, and are, responding the day after President Donald Trump's slew of first day executive orders.

John Wilkerson, a Washington correspondent for STAT who writes about the politics of health care, and Jael Holzman, senior reporter at Heatmap, discuss President Donald Trump's first day in office and his administration's actions regarding health and climate, including on wind farms and the World Health Organization.

Harold Solis, legal director at Make the Road New York, offers legal analysis of President Donald Trump's executive order ending birthright citizenship for those born to undocumented parents and the lawsuit brought forth by his organization, the ACLU, and other Civil and Immigration Rights advocacy groups.

On Inauguration Day, Philip Bump, national columnist for The Washington Post and the author of The Aftermath: The Last Days of the Baby Boom and the Future of Power in America (Viking, 2023), talks about the final moves by President Biden, and what President-elect Trump may do in his first days in office.

For the centennial series "100 Years of 100 Things," Jacqueline Lewis, senior minister and public theologian at the Middle Collegiate Church, and author of Fierce Love: A Bold Path to Ferocious Courage and Rule-Breaking Kindness that Can Heal the World (Harmony, 2021), and Jeanne Theoharis, professor of political science at Brooklyn College, and the author of many books on the civil rights and Black Power movements and the contemporary politics of race, reflect on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s life and legacy, on the day that honors him. Their conversation was part of the WNYC event, "A Burning House" — MLK and the American Experiment at The Apollo Theater, on Sunday, January 19, 2025.

Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them.100 Years of 100 Things: Partisanship & Inaugural Addresses (First) | 100 Years of 100 Things: The Great Gatsby (Starts at 42:23) | Dry January Amid a New Cancer Risk Report (Starts at 1:22:50)If you don't subscribe to the Brian Lehrer Show on iTunes, you can do that here.

Zellnor Myrie (D-20th), New York state senator and Codes Committee chair, talks about his mayoral bid as well as the new legislative term in Albany.

Elise Hu, Los Angeles-based journalist and podcaster, former NPR correspondent, offers guidance for helping those affected by the fires in Los Angeles, including how to watch out for scams.

The Supreme Court has upheld a ban on the popular social media app TikTok, and it now could be banned for U.S. users starting on Sunday. Sylvia Varnham O'Regan, reporter covering social media companies for The Information, discusses the latest news, including how President-elect Donald Trump may react to the ban, and Emily Bazelon, staff writer for The New York Times Magazine, co-host of Slate's "Political Gabfest" podcast, Truman Capote fellow for creative writing and law at Yale Law School and author of Charged: The New Movement to Transform American Prosecution and End Mass Incarceration (Random House, 2019), offers legal analysis of the Supreme Court's decision to uphold the ban.

Jonathan Lemire, co-host of "Morning Joe" on MSNBC, contributing writer at The Atlantic and the author of The Big Lie: Election Chaos, Political Opportunism, and the State of American Politics After 2020 (Flatiron Books, 2022), talks about the latest national political news as President Biden prepares to leave Washington and President-elect Trump gets ready to move back in to the White House.

In light of the surgeon general's new report on the health risks of alcohol consumption, listeners call in to reflect on partaking in the abstinence from alcohol for the 'Dry January,' and if the report has had any impact on their choices and to share how it's going so far.

As he prepares to leave office, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy talks about the recent report highlighting the cancer risk of even moderate alcohol consumption, other public health issues, and his hopes for the next administration's public health policies.

The senate continued their hearings for president-elect Donald Trump's picks for major cabinet positions in his incoming administration. First, Timothy Gardner, climate and energy correspondent at Reuters, introduces Chris Wright, the fossil fuel executive tapped to fill the role of energy secretary. Then, Aysha Bagchi, Justice Department correspondent at USA Today, discusses how the hearing went for Pam Bondi, Trump's pick for attorney general.

Reuven Blau, senior reporter for The City, and Max Rivera, former intern at The City, discuss their reporting on the handful of doctors sanctioned for “glaring medical mistakes” and practicing in the New York State prison system.

Continuing our centennial series, Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University, CNN political analyst, NPR contributor, and author of several books, including his latest, In Defense of Partisanship (Columbia Global Reports, 2025), walks us through some key presidential inauguration speeches from the last 100 years and talks about the effect of political parties on American political life and the opportunities to enact changes.=> Prof. Zelizer will speak with Margaret Hoover on January 22nd at New York Historical. (ticketed event)

Terrence T. McDonald, editor at New Jersey Monitor, recaps New Jersey governor Phil Murphy's State of the State address, where he discussed his priorities in his final year in office, including building more affordable housing by changing zoning laws, banning cell phones in schools and more.Correction: Gov. Murphy will give a final State of the State address in 2026, prior to leaving office later in January.

Jon Campbell, Albany reporter for WNYC and Gothamist, recaps Governor Hochul's "state of the state" address, where she focused on affordability and public safety.