The Brian Lehrer Show

After Dobbs and other Supreme Court decisions that restrict rights, Eyal Press, contributing writer at The New Yorker and the author of Dirty Work: Essential Jobs and the Hidden Toll of Inequality in America (Macmillan, 2021), talks about renewed efforts to focus on the rights found in individual state constitutions."Can State Supreme Courts Preserve—or Expand—Rights?" (New Yorker, June 3, 2024)

From NFL superstars to TikTok moms, discussion about the role of women in society have been all over the internet for months. Monica Hesse, columnist for The Washington Post's Style section, who frequently writes about gender and its impact on society, discusses her recent essays on the rise of 'tradwives,' and how most people's lives intersect and diverge from the "tradwife" life.

Two climate-related bills still hang in the balance in Albany this legislative session: the NY HEAT Act and the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act. Activists Courtney Williams, founder of Westchester Alliance for Sustainable Solutions, an organization fighting the Peekskill Incinerator, and John Raskin, president of Spring Street Climate Fund, talk about how the bills would impact their neighborhoods.

Nancy Solomon, WNYC reporter and host of the “Ask Governor Murphy” monthly call-in show, talks about what there is to know for New Jersey voters on primary day, where they'll be voting to choose their party's candidates for president, senate and many other offices, without the so-called "county line" ballot design. Plus listeners call in to participate in an informal, unofficial, thoroughly unscientific exit poll.

A new artificial intelligence feature recently rolled out by Google is under fire for giving out inaccurate information. Listeners call in to share how they use AI in their daily lives and how they navigate some of its pitfalls.

Jill Colvin, national political reporter for the Associated Press, talks about the political impact of the Trump verdict on the presidential campaign, plus the start of the Hunter Biden trial, and more.

As Pride Month starts, Nia Nottage and Brandon Cuicchi, organizers at ACT UP NY, advocate against the mayor's proposed budget cuts to HIV/AIDS spending.

The Food and Drug Administration is currently considering MDMA as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. Anna Silman, features correspondent at Business Insider, breaks down her reporting on the decades-long fight to legalize the drug and why some pro-MDMA advocates are sounding the alarm.

For your weekend listening, in case you missed it:Legal analysis of the felony convictions of the former president in the "hush money" trial in Manhattan. If you don't subscribe to the Brian Lehrer Show on iTunes, you can do that here.

Andrea Bernstein, journalist reporting on Trump legal matters for NPR, host of many podcasts including "Will be Wild" and "Trump, Inc." and the author of American Oligarchs: The Kushners, The Trumps and the Marriage of Money and Power (W. W. Norton & Company, 2020), reports on the guilty verdict for President Trump from her vantage point from the courtroom, and as a longtime reporter on the former president and his business dealings.

Lincoln Restler, New York City Council Member (District 33: Boerum Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn Navy Yard, Downtown Brooklyn, Dumbo, Fulton Ferry, Greenpoint, Vinegar Hill and Williamsburg), talks about the latest conflicts between the Council and the mayor, safety issues on McGuinness Boulevard and more.

Aziz Huq, professor of law at the University of Chicago Law School and author of the forthcoming The Rule of Law: A Very Short Introduction, offers legal analysis of the Manhattan jury's guilty verdict of Donald Trump in his so-called "hush money" trial.

Warren Lehrer, writer and designer and author of Riveted in the Word (EarSay in collaboration with AltSalt, 2024), talks about his new e-book, a story about a woman's journey to recovering the ability to speak after a stroke, and Laura Boylan, M.D., Bellevue Hospital neurologist and adjunct professor, department of neurology at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine, explains what aphasia is and how treatment and rehabilitation has evolved.More information on upcoming book events at the Center for Book Arts and Topaz Arts here: https://earsay.org/

Richard Ocejo, professor of sociology at John Jay College and the Graduate Center, City University of New York, and the author of Sixty Miles Upriver: Gentrification and Race in a Small American City (Princeton University Press, 2024), examines the effect on racial and income balance in the Hudson Valley's Newburgh, NY, of an influx of wealthier remote workers from NYC and its suburbs.

Curtis Bashaw, entrepreneur running in the New Jersey Republican Senate primary, talks about his campaign for the GOP nomination for the U.S. Senate and his stance on issues important to primary voters.

Donald Trump's hush money case is currently being deliberated by the jurors after hearing weeks of arguments. Andrew Weissmann, professor of practice at NYU School of Law, lead prosecutor in Robert Mueller’s Special Counsel's Office, the co-author of The Trump Indictments: The Historic Charging Documents with Commentary (W. W. Norton & Company, 2024), and co-host of the podcast Prosecuting Donald Trump, explains the central questions the jury is discussing as well as what impact the jury's decision, whatever it may be, could have on our legal system and future political campaigns.

With this legislative session wrapping up next week, Jon Campbell, Albany reporter for WNYC and Gothamist, talks about what is likely to be included in the next "big ugly" collection of final legislation. Plus, he explains why Republicans outside of the city are filing lawsuits against even-year elections.

According to a recent poll conducted by the Pew Research Center, Americans are less likely to feel close to people in their country or community. Listeners with ties to countries abroad weigh in on the poll results and offer comparisons to other countries.

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, including the NYPD responses to mental health crises, the "balance of power" with the City Council, and more.

Eric Levitz, senior correspondent at Vox, shares his theory for why the Biden campaign is struggling in the polls with younger voters, as well as Black and Latino voters -- traditionally groups that vote for Democrats.

Martin Lewis, senior lecturer in history at Stanford University, and author of the book The Myth of Continents: A Critique of Metageography, explains why determining what makes a continent a continent involves both physical and human geographical criteria, and why people around the world don't agree on how many there are.

James Comey, former director of the FBI and author of non-fiction, including A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership, and the crime novels Central Park West (2023) and his latest, Westport (Mysterious Press, 2024), talks about his new career as a crime novelist and offers his take on the Trump trial.

Dharna Noor, fossil fuels and climate reporter at Guardian US, shares her investigative series on "Big Oil," including more on an alleged "deal" offer from former President Donald Trump to big oil that could save industry $110 billion in exchange for campaign donations.

Roger Cohen, Paris bureau chief of The New York Times and author An Affirming Flame: Meditations on Life and Politics (Knopf, 2023), discusses Spain, Norway and Ireland's decision to recognize a Palestinian state as well as the International Criminal Court's arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders.

The Brian Lehrer Show observes the Memorial Day holiday with a selection of favorite interviews:Eric Klinenberg, professor in the social sciences and director of the Institute for Public Knowledge at New York University and the author of 2020: One City, Seven People, and the Year Everything Changed (Knopf, 2024), tells the story of New York in 2020 through the lens of seven New Yorkers, and talks about the ongoing effect of that traumatic year.George Takei, actor, activist and writer, discusses his debut picture book, My Lost Freedom: A Japanese American World War II Story (Crown Books for Young Readers, 2024).Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize-winning presidential historian and the author of And There Was Light: Abraham Lincoln and the American Struggle (Random House, 2022), talks about the real lessons to learn from the life and work of Abraham Lincoln.Jay Caspian Kang, staff writer for The New Yorker, documentary film director, and the author of The Loneliest Americans (Crown, 2021), shares his thoughts on what he calls the "ideology of the internet," and the tangible effects it has on culture, democracy, institutions and our day-to-day lives.While Hart Island has a reputation for being the burial grounds of New York's unwanted, those laid to rest on the island each have stories and loved ones. Joe Richman, founder and executive producer of Radio Diaries, discusses the Radio Diaries series "The Unmarked Graveyard: Stories from Hart Island" and Susan Hurlburt, shares stories of her son Neil Harris Jr., also known as Steven, who was buried on the island. These interviews were lightly edited for time and clarity and the original web versions are available here:How 2020 Changed Us (Feb 16, 2024)George Takei on 'My Lost Freedom' (Apr 16, 2024)What We Should Learn from Lincoln (Oct 19, 2022)Jay Caspian Kang on 'The Ideology of the Internet' (Mar 15, 2024)Stories from Hart Island (Nov 8, 2023)

Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them.The Expanding Market for Weight-Loss Drugs (First) | Anne Lamott on Love (Starts at 25:00 ) | Searching for Something in Our Childhood Homes (Starts at 38:00)If you don't subscribe to the Brian Lehrer Show on iTunes, you can do that here.

With beach season getting started, Chris Allieri, founder of the NYC Plover Project, and Aydon Gabourel, founder of Laru Beya Collective, talk about their work in the Rockaway Beach community.

It's impossible to ignore the chatter about Ozempic, Wegovy, and other weight-loss medications that have hit the market in the last few years. This week, Hims & Hers -- a telehealth company known for discreetly treating erectile dysfunction, balding, and other sensitive conditions -- announced the launch of their own off brand weight-loss injection, sparking a boost in their stock prices. Melissa Lee, Host of CNBC's Fast Money, takes us into the marketplace for GLP-1 agonist drugs, Ozempic dupes sold online, and what the popularity of these drugs on Wall Street means for patients.

It's "NYC Small Business Month" and Kevin D. Kim, commissioner of the NYC Department of Small Business Services, talks about the upcoming Small Business Expo, the services the department offers small business owners and what the "City of Yes" could mean for city storefronts and more.

The Supreme Court issued a ruling that will allow a gerrymander in South Carolina to stand, on the basis that it was done for partisan, not racial, reasons. Ari Berman, voting rights correspondent for Mother Jones and author of Minority Rule: The Right-Wing Attack on the Will of the People—and the Fight to Resist It (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2024), explains how this will affect voters in South Carolina and beyond, and explains the larger voting rights context of the decision.

Cheryl Mendelson, author of Home Comforts, and her latest,Vows: The Modern Genius of an Ancient Rite (Simon & Schuster, 2024), reflects on the state of marriage today, through the traditional wedding vows, from their feudal origin to contemporary interpretations.

Jordan Lauf, producer for All Of It and its book club, "Get Lit with All Of It," shares some of the new on-or-off the beach reads.She highlights these great summer books:Memory Piece by Lisa Ko (This month's Get Lit selection - the event is Tuesday, May 28!)The Ministry of Time by Kuh-lane BradleyIn Ascension by Martin MacInnesOne of Our Kind by Nicola Yoon (out June 11th)

Faith Hill, staff writer at The Atlantic, talks about what people are looking for when they visit their childhood homes, and how it can be stressful, or sweet.

Each day during the spring membership drive, The Brian Lehrer Show is inviting listeners to try their hand at quiz questions, this time loosely based on the titles of radio shows that air on WNYC. Today's quiz questions are inspired by the title "All Of It."It turns out which landmasses are "continents" is not that clear. So we are awarding a prize to the caller who got the answer "wrong".

An upside-down American flag was displayed outside Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito's house just after January 6, 2021. 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), talks about this act - widely thought to symbolize belief in "the big lie" promoted by former President Trump - plus another flag apparently flown at the justice's summer home - and what the symbols say about the ethics of the Supreme Court.

In this membership drive mini-series, we run through some of can't miss things to see and do this summer. Today, Jerry Saltz, New York Magazine senior art critic and the author of How to Be an Artist (Riverhead, 2020), shares some art highlights from plazas, galleries and museums.

Anne Lamott, author of twenty books, including Bird by Bird and her latest, Somehow: Thoughts on Love (Riverhead Books, 2024), talks about turning 70, and why love has been the answer to the many challenges she's faced in her own life.

Each day during the spring membership drive, The Brian Lehrer Show is inviting listeners to try their hand at quiz questions, this time loosely based on the titles of radio shows that air on WNYC. Today's quiz questions are all about famous people named Ted, inspired by the title "TED Radio Hour."

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, including the NYPD's response at a protest for Palestine in Bay Ridge, the city's lifeguard shortage and more.

Andrea Bernstein, journalist reporting on Trump legal matters for NPR, host of many podcasts including "Will be Wild" and "Trump, Inc." and the author of American Oligarchs: The Kushners, The Trumps and the Marriage of Money and Power (W. W. Norton & Company, 2020), reports on the latest news from Trump's so-called "hush money" trial, where witness testimonies have finished and attorneys are preparing their closing arguments for next week.

Summer brings fun to the cultural calendar. In this membership drive mini-series, we run through some of can't miss things to see and do. Today, Jackson McHenry, theater, TV, and film critic for Vulture, New York Magazine’s entertainment site, shares some of theater highlights of the summer season.

Bill McKibben, environmental activist, founder of Third Act and author of many books, most recently: The Flag, the Cross, and the Station Wagon: A Graying American Looks Back at His Suburban Boyhood and Wonders What the Hell Happened (Henry Holt and Co., 2022), breaks down what's at stake for mitigating climate change ahead of the 2024 presidential election and how the result of the election might impact fossil fuel’s political influence.

Each day during the spring membership drive, The Brian Lehrer Show is inviting listeners to try their hand at quiz questions, this time loosely based on the titles of radio shows that air on WNYC. Today's quiz questions are inspired by the title "Fresh Air."

Fareed Zakaria, Washington Post columnist, host of CNN’s "Fareed Zakaria GPS," and the author of Age of Revolutions: Progress and Backlash from 1600 to the Present (W. W. Norton & Company, 2024), looks back at other turbulent eras for insights into navigating this one.

In this membership drive mini-series, we run through some of can't miss things to see and do this summer. Today, Ed Yim, chief content officer and senior vice president at WQXR, shares some of highlights for classical music and opera fans.

Jimmy Carter entered hospice care over a year ago, and just recently his grandson said he thinks the former president is "coming to the end." Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University, CNN political analyst and contributor to NPR’s Here and Now, reflects on the 39th president's legacy in this presidential election year, plus shares more political analysis on the presidential election.

Each day during the spring membership drive, The Brian Lehrer Show is inviting listeners to try their hand at quiz questions, this time loosely based on the titles of radio shows that air on WNYC. Today's quiz questions are inspired by the title "On the Media."

The city's cultural institutions rely on funding from the city budget, and they are dealing with budget cuts. Adrian Benepe, president of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden and Regina Bain, executive director of the Louis Armstrong House Museum, put the budget cuts in context, and talk about what they need from the city to operate compared to what they're getting - despite generating billions in economic activity

Jen Psaki, former White House press secretary, MSNBC host, and the author of Say More: Lessons from Work, the White House, and the World (Simon & Schuster, 2024), offers advice on effective communication in Washington, and beyond.

Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them:Nikole Hannah-Jones on Colorblindness (First) - A Family Heritage of Social Justice (28:00) - Advocates Push for Medical Aid in Dying Bill (46:00) If you don't subscribe to the Brian Lehrer Show on iTunes, you can do that here.