Episodes
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BPR Full Show 9/9/20: Warped
Today on Boston Public Radio: MIT economist and Affordable Care Act architect Jonathan Gruber discussed concerns that a rushed COVID-19 vaccine could exacerbate vaccine skepticism in the U.S., and other political quandaries surrounding Operation Warp Speed. We opened lines to ask listeners: what would it take to get you on board with an American-made coronavirus vaccine? CNN’s Brian Stelter discussed his latest book, "Hoax: Donald Trump, Fox News, and the Dangerous Distortion of Truth.” National security expert and CNN analyst Juliette Kayyem discussed controversial acknowledgments made by the president in a forthcoming book from veteran journalist Bob Woodward, and her latest piece in The Atlantic, called "The Emotionally Challenging Next Phase of the Pandemic." Medical ethicist Art Caplan weighed in on the thousands of Americans attending Donald Trump rallies without masks, and ethical questions raised by a new drug claiming to treat a common form of dwarfism. Food writer Corby Kummer discussed data from the Massachusetts Restaurant Association indicating that 20% of Mass. restaurants have closed permanently because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and thoughts on fellow food writer Tom Philpott’s new book, “Perilous Bounty: The Looming Collapse of American Farming and How We Can Prevent It." We opened lines to ask listeners: are you ready to continue eating outside at restaurants during the fall and winter? -
Kayyem Weighs in on ‘Deadly Interesting’ Revelations from Bob Woodward’s ‘Rage’
National security expert Juliette Kayyem made her weekly appearance on Boston Public Radio Wednesday, where she touched on reporting from veteran journalist Bob Woodward’s forthcoming book, “Rage,” which includes an acknowledgment from President Trump that he understood the looming severity of the COVID-19 pandemic back in February, at the same time he was publicly claiming the virus would “disappear." "Trump never likes to be wrong,” she said. "And so what was interesting to me about his claim that he always knew how bad it was going to be, is that even though it’s against self-interest… in some ways it satisfies his own narrative about himself, which is ‘I’m never wrong.’" "I think that that’s so interesting… deadly interesting, that that’s how his brain actually works,” she said. “He’d rather be accused of lying than be accused of being wrong." Kayyem also discussed her latest piece in The Atlantic, "The Emotionally Challenging Next Phase of the Pandemic," and whether she believes the president's latest string of scandals will influence swing voters in November. Kayyem is an analyst for CNN, former assistant secretary for the Department of Homeland Security, and faculty chair of the homeland security program at the Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. -
Corby Kummer Warns More Restaurants 'Will Die’ Without Dramatic Action
Food writer Corby Kummer joined Boston Public Radio on Wednesday, where he discussed new data from the Massachusetts Restaurant Association indicating the state has already lost a fifth of its restaurants to revenue losses resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Kummer warned that while the numbers are tragic, this forthcoming winter season could prove even grimmer for Mass. restaurants. "Until Spring… we’re not going to have an accurate count, an accurate figure – and I think that’s the news we’re going to be bracing for,” he said. “Many restaurants this winter, unless something changes dramatically, will die." During the interview, Kummer also touched on his recent New York Times review of Tom Philpott’s “Perilous Bounty: The Looming Collapse of American Farming and How We Can Prevent It,” and an NPR report about the alarming percentage of low-income kids not getting government-subsidized meals through the pandemic. 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. -
Caplan: Vaccine Trials Cannot Be Rushed, Regardless Of Political Pressure
The pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca has halted the late stage trial for a COVID-19 vaccine this week due to a suspected adverse reaction in a participant. Medical ethicist Arthur Caplan told Boston Public Radio on Wednesday the participant developed an inflammation of the spinal cord and had to be hospitalized, causing the company to pause the trial in order to conduct a safety review and determine whether the reaction was in fact caused by the vaccine. Caplan said the takeaway from this latest development is that medical trials cannot be rushed, no matter the political pressure to quickly develop a vaccine. “We want to vaccinate our way out of this thing and people keep spinning tales it’ll be here in October,” he said. “I keep saying no it wont, it’ll be here next year, and I don’t know when, but maybe the end of the year … because you’ve got to collect this data.” Art Caplan is the Drs. William F. and Virginia Connolly Mitty chair and the director of the division of medical ethics at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. -
BPR Full Show 9/8/20: Suspension and Disbelief
Today on Boston Public Radio: We opened our lines to talk with listeners about the 11 Northeastern University students suspended, without tuition reimbursement, for violating the school’s social distancing rules. NBC Sports Boston reporter and anchor Trenni Kusnierek talked about the disqualification of tennis icon Novak Djokovic from the US Open, and a new opinion piece in the Boston Globe from Celtics center Enes Kanter, titled “Why I won’t shut up and play basketball." WGBH News analyst and GroundTruth Project CEO Charlie Sennott discussed ongoing pro-democracy protests in Belarus, and muted reaction from President Trump to the poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. Reverends Irene Monroe and Emmett Price, hosts of WGBH’s All Rev’d Up, discussed a new report showing Black girls are nearly four times as likely to be disciplined in school as their white peers, and President Trump's order that federal agencies end training on white privilege and critical race theory. TV expert Bob Thompson weighed in on data analytics giant Nielsen’s embrace of streaming, the piling controversy around Disney’s "Mulan" reboot, and “Women Make Film,” an ongoing film series airing on TCM. CNN’s John King talked about the latest news on the presidential race, eight weeks away from Election Day, and ongoing federal debate around further coronavirus relief funding. We reopened lines to talk with listeners about the recent Atlantic piece alleging that President Trump called dead U.S veterans “suckers” and “losers.” -
BPR Full Show 9/7/20: Early Autumn Retrospects, Part Three of Three
Note: We’re on tape today, replaying some of our favorite conversations. On today’s episode of Boston Public Radio: ESPN’s Howard Bryant discussed his book "The Heritage: Black Athletes, a Divided America, and the Politics of Patriotism.” Writer Michael Eric Dyson discussed his book “What Truth Sounds Like: RFK, James Baldwin, and Our Unfinished Conversation About Race in America.” Harvard historian Stephen Greenblatt talked about his book "Tyrant: Shakespeare on Politics.” Journalist and naturalist Sy Montgomery discussed her book "The Hyena Scientist.” Writer and humorist John Hodgman discussed his book, titled "Vacationland: True Stories from Painful Beaches.” Actor and activist George Takei discussed the musical “Allegiance," which is based on his real life experience of living in a Japanese-American internment camp. -
BPR Full Show 9/4/20: Early Autumn Retrospects, Part Two of Three
Note: We’re on tape today, replaying some of our favorite conversations. On Today’s episode of Boston Public Radio: Writer Ron Chernow talked about “Grant,” his biography of president Ulysses S. Grant. Harvard Business School's Michael Norton talked about his research on whether consumers prefer saving money or saving time. Author Karl Ove Knausgaard discussed his book, “Autumn.” Artist Patti Smith talked about why she considers herself a writer above her other crafts, in a conversation about her memoir "Devotion (Why I Write)." Novelist Salman Rushdie discussed his novel "The Golden House.” Naturalist Sy Montgomery and fellow animal writer Elizabeth Marshall Thomas discussed their book, "Tamed and Untamed: Close Encounters of the Animal Kind." -
BPR Full Show 9/3/20: Early Autumn Retrospects, Part One of Three
Note: We’re on tape today, replaying some of our favorite conversations. On Today’s Boston Public Radio Actor Ed Asner discussed his new play, called "God Help Us!” Restauranteurs Andrew Li and Irene Li talked about their new cookbook, which they wrote with their sister Margaret Li, called "Double Awesome Chinese Food: Irresistible and Totally Achievable Recipes from our Chinese-American Kitchen." Bren Smith, a former commercial fisherman, discussed his new memoir, “Eat Like a Fish: My Adventures as a Fisherman Turned Restorative Ocean Farmer." Writer Christopher Castellani discussed his latest novel, "Leading Men." US Women’s National Team Soccer player Sam Mewis stopped by the GBH studio days after winning the Women’s World Cup Championship. -
BPR Full Show 9/2/20: Adieu, 'W'
Today on Boston Public Radio: Jennifer Nassour and Steve Kerrigan recapped down Tuesday’s primaries, and debated President Trump's odds of winning reelection in November. Nassour is a former Chairwoman of the Mass GOP, founder of Conservative Women For A Better Future, and President of the Pocketbook Project. Kerrigan is the CEO of the Edward M. Kennedy Community Health Center and former CEO of the DNC. We opened lines to hear your takeaways from Tuesday’s primaries. CNN analyst Juliette Kayyem discussed ongoing Russian interference ahead of the November election, and a new campaign ad from Joe Biden that counters the president’s claim of being the “law and order” candidate. Medical ethicist Art Caplan discussed President Trump’s unprompted denial that he had a series of mini-strokes, and weighed in on the ethical problems with the Trump Administration’s efforts to fast-track a coronavirus vaccine. Food writer Corby Kummer talked about claims from some conservatives that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris would like ban hamburgers, and discussed ongoing turmoil for restaurants struggling to stay afloat through the coronavirus pandemic. Writer David Gessner discussed his latest book, “Leave It As It Is: A Journey Through Theodore Roosevelt's American Wilderness,” which dives into the former president's complicated legacy as a conservationist. GBH President and CEO Jon Abbott called in to talk about the station’s rebrand, and explain why you might want to hold on to all your old WGBH merch. -
Art Caplan: Pursuing 'Herd Immunity' Is A 'Bad Idea'
Medical ethicist Art Caplan spoke with Boston Public Radio on Wednesday about herd immunity, regarding COVID-19. “Herd immunity, bad idea - Sweden tried it - didn’t work,” he said. “Sweden basically said, let’s let [COVID-19] run its course, we’re not going to isolate, we’re going to let everybody get infected, and then once that’s done we won’t be able to infect each other, we’ll all have antibodies.” But Sweden had terrible death rates, Caplan noted. “Too many old people died, too many vulnerable people died, so they admitted it was a mistake.” President Donald Trump’s new virus advisor, Dr. Scott Atlas, is pushing for a herd immunity response, Caplan added. “This idea is now circulating back in the White House with this new advisor Dr. Scott Atlas,” he said. “I don’t know why we’re listening to this again, because we have this giant example of a country failing.” 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.
