Access Utah

Mitt Romney’s presidential run, the hit Broadway musical "The Book of Mormon," and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ “I’m a Mormon” media campaign all drew the public eye in the 2010s.

For most Americans, fairy tales feel like Disney inventions. But the "original" stories were filled with sharp moral lessons, psychological terror, and bizarre magic.

On today's episode, we talk with Shawn Teigen, president of the Utah Foundation, about Utahns' concerns about healthcare costs and the housing market.

"A Reed Shaken with the Wind" traces the Bear River Marsh from its creation during the last ice age to its current status as an imperiled national wildlife refuge.

In his new book, acclaimed science writer Michael Bond explores how animals have profoundly influenced our minds and cultures.

We talk with Jay Neugeboren whose new book is "Dickens in Brooklyn: Essays on Family, Writing, & Madness," a collection of essays in which he explores experiences that have been central to his life.

We preview the USU Student Short Film Festival 2026. This film festival invites emerging filmmakers from every discipline to showcase their vision, craft, and originality on the big screen.

Every year on or near Earth Day, we check in with writer and photographer Stephen Trimble. Today we talk with Trimble and three scientists.

We check in with Susan Madsen, director of the Utah Women &Leadership Project. This conversation comes after the Utah Legislature eliminated the bulk of the project's ongoing funding.

Today we talk with Patrick Guzzle, vice president of food science for the National Restaurant Association. We talk about food safety, standard practices, food allergies and more.

We talk with historian Charlotte Brooks about her new book "The Moys of New York and Shanghai."

Los Angeles and smog have been synonymous for decades. But the last smog alert happened in 2003, and lead has virtually disappeared from the air.

We check in with USU’s Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art about their exhibits, including Jim Mangan: The Crick, a meditation on religious succession, patriarchal systems, zealotry and fraternity;

You've probably heard his name associated with regular listener challenges during our fund drives. Now a chance to meet long-time UPR friend Alberto Brizolara on this fund drive Access Utah special.

Today we talk with former UPR student reporters who have gone on to great things. Our guests will include: Aimee Van Tatenhove, and Clarissa Casper.

National Geographic says that tree canopy ecologist Nalini Nadkarni "has spent four decades dangling among the branches to study how forests inform our daily lives.”

We talk with several of the hosts of Eating the Past about a variety of food and history topics, including a food quiz.

In the 2026 Fife Honor Lecture at USU, professor Katherine Borland of Ohio State University’s Center for Folklore Studies, focused on miracle narratives. She joins us for the hour.

Intermountain Song Trails is a new oral history project exploring how songs travel across generations, families, and migration routes, from lullabies to work songs to church or scouting traditions.

Gardening expert and UPR friend Dan Drost joins us. Whether you’ve got a large backyard garden, participate in a community garden, or have a small box near your window, Dan can help.

On this episode we talk with Wil Wood, author of “And It Was Beautiful” and Zack Garner and Rachel Quillen Garner, writer and illustrator, respectively, of “Half Moon on the Moon.”

In his book Three Revolutions: Steering Automated, Shared, and Electric Vehicles to a Better Future, Dan Sperling says transportation is on the cusp of revolutionary change. He joins us for the hour.

Beloved USU professor Norm Jones has died. We remember him by revisiting our conversation from May 2019, talking about his book "Being Elizabethan: Understanding Shakespeare’s Neighbors."

We revisit our conversation from October 2025 with Gary Ferguson, talking about his book "The Twilight Forest."

As a result of childhood learning disabilities and educational neglect, Oliver James graduated from high school and became one of approximately 45 million functionally illiterate Americans.