Midday

Food deserts. In cities and rural areas across America, millions of people live without access to supermarkets, and no access to fresh, healthy foods. In parts of Baltimore’s West Side, nearly 64% of people live in a food desert. Emily Stubb’s new film, ----deserted,---- explores food deserts here in Baltimore. Harlem Park activist Anthony Francis is featured in the film. They join Tom Hall in thi...

The “go back where you came from” taunt is one in a long, long series of demeaning comments by Mr. Trump aimed at non-white people. What did you think of the way the President’s view of people of color has been characterized in the media? Guests Michael Kruse is a senior staff writer at POLITICO and POLITICO Magazine Dr. Baruti Kopano, Professor and Chair at the School of Global Journalism and Com...

Today, Tom's guest in Studio A is the newish police commissioner of Baltimore City, Michael Harrison. He was appointed by then-Mayor Catherine Pugh in January of this year, approved by the City Council a few weeks later, and sworn into office in March. Last Thursday, flanked by Mayor Jack Young and other city officials, Commissioner Harrison unveiled his new plan to address the crime problem that...

At precisely 4:17 pm Eastern time tomorrow (July 20), it will have been 50 years since a spidery-looking American spacecraft named Eagle touched down on the surface of the Moon. Two hours earlier, Apollo 11 mission commander Neil Armstrong and Lieutenant “Buzz” Aldrin had left Colonel Michael Collins alone in their orbiting Command Module, as they began their powered descent to the Moon and to the...

Baltimore-based pianist and jazz innovator Lafayette Gilchrist joins Tom in the Midday studio to muse on the makings of his second solo CD, Dark Matter, out today (July 19) on the Lafayette Gilchrist Music label. The eleven tracks on the new disc were all recorded live in front of an ----intimate---- crowd at the University of Baltimore's Wright Theater in 2016 by acclaimed hip-hop producer Wendel...

It's Thursday, and theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck joins us for another of her weekly reviews of the regional stage. Today, she spotlights the six plays being presented in rotating repertory at this year's Contemporary American Theater Festival, a showcase for important new work held annually since 1991 on the campus of Shepherd University in historic Shepherdstown, West Virginia. Email us at midda...

We're talking the O's woes, the latest edition of Madden and what the scores mean to NFL athletes, as well as an update on the athletic program at University of Maryland one year after the death of offensive linemen Jordan McNair. Guests: Milton Kent, the host of Sports at Large here on WYPR, and a member of the journalism faculty at Morgan State University. Jeff Barker covers national politics an...

“Send her back” has replaced “Lock her up” as President Donald Trump champions fear and divisiveness at a campaign rally in North Carolina last night. Political Scientist Dr. Carol Anderson joins Tom with analysis. Dr. Carol Anderson is the Chair of African American Studies at Emory University in Atlanta. Her most recent book is called One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression is Destroying Our D...

Today, Midday on Ethics. The growing popularity of services like 23andme and other personal genetic testing companies means it’s easier than ever to find long lost relatives – including some who were assured that they would never be found. For years, men and women who donated sperm or eggs were guaranteed anonymity. That’s a guarantee that’s no longer possible in an era when the children they help...

What happens to our cognitive ability as we get older? Is age a legitimate issue in considering a person’s qualifications for political office? And what political calculations might voters make about the argument for maturity and experience versus a desire for a generational shift in leadership? Tom is joined today by two guests with valuable perspectives on those questions. Lisa Lerer is a report...

Tom Hall and his guests weigh in on the debates, candidates and key issues for the 2020 Presidential race. Guests: Kate Payne, reporter and Caucus Land co-host for Iowa Public RadioDr. Shayla Nunnally, Associate Professor of political science ant the Africana Studies Institute at the University of Connecticut. Julie Bykowicz, Wall Street Journal national political reporter, focusing on money and i...

Today on the Midday News Wrap, WYPR Morning Edition news anchor Nathan Sterner sits in for Tom Hall as we examine some of the week's top news developments. First, a look at the continuing migrant crisis along the U.S. southern border, and the impending nationwide ICE raids on migrants with deportation orders. Nathan talks with Seattle-based immigration attorney Minda Thorward -- whose private firm...

It's the July edition of Midday at the Movies, our monthly look at notable new films and trends in filmmaking. Today, we’re talking about the new crop of summer movies, and some of the exciting new animation technologies in films like Toy Story 4 and the Disney remake of Lion King (set for release on July 19). Our favorite movie mavens -- Maryland Film Festival founding director Jed Dietz and Ann...

It's Thursday, and time for our weekly visit with theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck, who joins Midday senior producer and guest host Rob Sivak today with her review of Roald Dahl's Matilda: the Musical, now on stage in an extended run at Olney Theatre Center, in Olney, Maryland. An adaptation of one of the late British author's most popular children's stories, Matilda: The Musical was written by Denn...

On today’s show, we're talking about Baltimore’s local film industry. From thoughtful documentaries to gritty indie darlings, films made in and about Baltimore have been riding a wave of critical acclaim. Local filmmakers Clarke Lyons, John Benam and Madeline Becker are Fellows of the Saul Zaentz Innovation Fund, a film incubator at Johns Hopkins University. They join guest host and Midday Produce...

It's another edition of Midday Culture Connections, with Dr. Sheri Parks. Today we’re asking the question: what is courage? From sacred texts to screenplays to the daily news, our culture is filled with references to courage as an element of character that makes a person worthy of respect. We see courage in the physical bravery of soldiers and first responders. But courage is also the moral streng...

After the crew of Apollo 11 made history on July 20th, 1969, more American teams followed and then, three years later, just as suddenly as the momentum had built, it stalled out. We haven’t set foot on the moon since. But it looks like it won’t be long now until we make a return. Guest host Aaron Henkin discusses human ventures to the moon -- and beyond -- with authors Oliver Morton and Christian...

(Originally aired on May 21, 2019)In this archive edition of Midday, Tom speaks with James Cabezas, the former chief investigator for the Office of the State Prosecutor here in Maryland and, before that, a Baltimore City cop. His new memoir is called Eyes of Justice: A Career Crime Fighter Battles Corruption… and Blindness. Joining Tom and James in the studio is Joan Jacobson, the co-author of the...

(Originally aired on May 21, 2019)Today, in this archive edition of Midday, Tom's guest is John Urschel, whose resum\u233\u includes great skill and high achievement in two areas that are not often, in fact, hardly ever, associated: football and mathematics. He is a former offensive lineman for the Baltimore Ravens who retired from the NFL at the age of 26 to pursue a career in math. The book is c...

(Originally aired on May 15, 2019)In this archive edition of Midday, Tom's guest for the hour is William Davies, a political economist and author who argues in his new book, Nervous States: Democracy and the Decline of Reason, that a decline of trust in scientific expertise has led individuals and governments to rely less on facts and increasingly on feelings -- especially feelings of fear and anx...

It’s What Ya Got Cookin?: Another in our occasional series featuring some of Baltimore’s best chefs and foodies, who take time away from their steamy kitchens to share with Midday listeners all manner of cooking tips. With July 4th looming, we’re zeroing in on that most American category of summer holiday cooking: the backyard barbeque. What should you grill? And how, exactly should you grill it?...

On April 4, 2018, the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s assassination, seven Catholic peace activists cut fences and entered the King’s Bay Naval Base in Southeast Georgia, to protest the United States nuclear weapons arsenal. King’s Bay is presumed to be home to several Trident Nuclear Submarines. They called their protest a “Plowshares Action,” inspired by the book of Isaiah, from th...

As we prepare to celebrate America's July 4th Independence Day holiday tomorrow, it's fitting that theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck joins us today with her review of a little musical that's rolled into Baltimore that tells the story of one of the nation's most celebrated Founding Fathers. The touring production of Hamilton -- the multiple Tony Award-winning musical that was created and launched on B...

Today, a look at the state of American Conservatism with George Will, the Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and author, and Thomas Frank, the author of the best-seller, What’s the Matter with Kansas: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America. Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

Tom's guest for the hour is LaFontaine Oliver, who today becomes WYPR's new President and General Manager. Mr. Oliver succeeds Tony Brandon, who shepherded the station when the Your Public Radio Corporation purchased the broadcast license from Johns Hopkins University in 2002. Mr. Oliver, a veteran broadcaster who also serves as a director on the Board of National Public Radio, comes to his new po...