Midday

Today is Midday at the Movies, our monthly focus on new films and film-industry trends with movie aficionados Jed Dietz, founding director of the Maryland Film Festival, and Max Weiss, film critic and Editor-in-Chief of Baltimore Magazine. Our critics take a guess at the winners of this year's Oscars. Could it be Anora, Wicked or Conclave? The Oscars air Sunday, March 2, 2025, at 7 p.m. on ABC.

Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman was first elected in 2022, becoming the first female Comptroller of the state. She joins Midday to explain how residents may be able to file their taxes for free. Plus, what should you you were one of the 6,000 people who received the wrong tax form in the mail? Taxpayers affected by the mistake can email gad@marylandtaxes.gov with the subject line “1099G Issue”...

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott joins Midday to discuss how President Trump’s executive orders targeting DEI initiatives could affect hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding for the city. And, as water rates rise for City residents, City Hall has vowed to crack down on customers who do not pay their water bills, including the City’s own Departments of General Services and Public Works. Ho...

On a special edition of Midday, a live broadcast of Gov. Wes Moore's 2025 State of the State speech With the state facing a $3 billion budget gap, Moore makes the case for focusing on what he calls "three pillars" to confront this financial crisis. These areas of focus include investing in business industries of the future, improving the state's tax system and investing in Maryland's residents. Ho...

Homicide and non-fatal shootings in Baltimore recently reached their lowest rates in a decade, a welcomed sign of success for the city's anti-violence programs. While a nationwide fall in violence suggests wider factors at play, city agencies and nonprofits dedicated to violence intervention say their work is making a difference. Roca is a Massachusetts nonprofit that branched out to Baltimore in...

A new exhibit at McDaniel College examines how the romance became the most popular but least respected of literary genres. Romancing the Novel pushes back on criticism of the romance novel, and offers a look into the wide scope of the genre. Pam Regis, Professor of English Emerita at McDaniel College and a consultant on the exhibit, says romance novels celebrated joy and lightened readers lives. T...

Dr. Leana WenMidday Healthwatch, where they discuss issues affecting the health and well-being of Charm City residents. Cases of the flu are up, while COVID rates are down. We discuss why COVID is may be inactive and why the flu season is so severe. Health officials are worried about the flu because of the emergent H5N1 strain of bird flu, which has been found in livestock across the nation. And,...

Theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck joins Midday to share another weekly review of a local theatrical production. This we, Rousuck takes a look at “Working for Crumbs,” continuing at the Spotlighters Theatre through February 2. The theatre bills the play as, “a mashup of ‘The Office,’ ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ and ‘Weekend at Bernie’s.'" So, how does that combination work?

On today's Midday Newswrap, we discuss some of this week's developing stories concerning Maryland, the economy and public health. Lee O. Sanderlin, a reporter for The Baltimore Banner, discusses his coverage of the uncertainty and fear surrounding the freeze on federal sources of funding for crucial services in Maryland. State and nonprofit officials grappled with the consequences of the sudden pa...

This week, Americans are again starting to think about their taxes. The Internal Revenue Service began accepting 2024 tax returns on Monday. Employers and contractors are sending out their W2 and 1099 forms, and taxpayers are gathering the information they need to file their taxes by the April 15, 2025, deadline. Today on Midday, tax tips to help you use the complicated rules of the tax code to yo...

No survivors are expected following a midair collision yesterday evening between a U.S. Army helicopter and a domestic flight on approach into Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Airplane collisions remain incredibly rare in the United States. However, domestic aviation has witnessed several close calls in recent years. Peter Greenberg joins Midday to talk about the reverberations Wednesday...

Commissioner of the Baltimore City Police Department Richard Worley joins Midday to discuss challenges facing his department, which he has lead for less than a year. Homicides and non-fatal shootings continue to decline in Baltimore and around the country, and the city has announced another expansion of the Group Violence Reduction Strategy. But can police sustain the program with hundreds of patr...

Yesterday, acting Attorney General James McHenry fired more than 12 career prosecutors who worked with Special Counsel Jack Smith on two criminal investigations into President Donald Trump. A Justice Department spokesperson said the prosecutors could not be trusted to “faithfully implement” the President’s agenda. Aaron Zelinsky, a Baltimore-based attorney, joins Midday to discuss this development...

Murders and nonfatal shootings are down in Baltimore, while arrests and prosecutions are up. Baltimore City State's Attorney Ivan Bates wants to sustain that trend, and says it is time to refocus the Group Violence Reduction Strategy. GVRS is the city's effort to reduce violence in Baltimore by intervening in the lives of residents determined to be at highest risk of being involved in gun violence...

Today, we check-in with longtime journalist Dan Rodricks. Rodricks joined the Evening Sun as a reporter in 1976. For nearly 5 decades, Dan has chronicled changes, challenges in our region, and he is introduced us to an amazing array of characters; the powerful, the vulnerable, the saints, the sinners, the quirky, and the quarrelsome. Over the years, Rodricks also hosted a show on WBAL Radio, a TV...

Theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck joins Midday to share another weekly review of a local theatrical production. StillPointe Theatre’s production of Whitechapel continues through February 1 at The Club Car at 12 North Ave in Baltimore.

The Blueprint for Maryland’s Future is the ambitious education reform plan passed by the General Assembly in 2021. Today on Midday, analysis and perspective about the plan, and the prospects for how it will be funded moving forward. We discuss with two longtime education advocates. Kalman, “Buzzy” Hettleman is member of the Kirwan Commission, the group that developed the plan. He’s a former Baltim...

Dry January, a month-long stint of sobriety at the beginning of the new year, is growing in popularity in the United States. According to data from Civic Science, 23 percent of U.S. adults 21 and over said they intended to take part in Dry January in 2023. That grew to 27 percent in 2024. So, what are the benefits of cutting back—or cutting out—drinking? Is there a healthy number of drinks one can...

People seeking to drink less can find it less enjoyable to be in social situations where others are drinking. Bars and breweries might have soda or water available, but that might not be what someone is looking for to unwind. A growing industry of mocktails and other non-alcoholic beverages seeks to provide complex flavors to those looking to avoid alcohol. Laurie Hefner, owner of Modern World, a...

Baltimore City voters selected Councilmember Zeke Cohen to lead the City Council. Cohen joins Midday to discuss his agenda for the council in 2025 and beyond. Truancy in schools, consumer protections, improving the city’s lengthy permitting process and providing relief to citizens affected by sewer malfunctions a few of the issues the Council plans to consider in the coming weeks.

Today, we hear a viewpoint from Nuestra Raices, Inc., which was founded in 2019 to work among the Hispanic and Latino communities of Baltimore City. In 2024, the organization created the documentary We Are Baltimore, to showcase their organization's work to preserve the diversity of the region's Latino and Hispanic cultures. Angelo Solera, the Founder and Executive Director of the organization, jo...

On Monday, Americans will celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King’s legacy with a day of service. For the past several years, Midday has shined a spotlight on a couple of organizations who are on the ground in their communities, centered, as Dr. King said, in the broader concerns of humanity. This year, we speak to Joni Holifield, founder and executive director of HeartSmiles, and Aaron Vetter, founder a...

Gov. Wes Moore joins Midday to discuss his proposed state budget, unveiled this week. The Democratic governor plan is to raise taxes for people who earn more than $500,000 a year, while lowering or holding taxes at current levels for those earning less. Moore said about two thirds of Marylanders will get a tax cut. Overall, he is addressing the nearly $3 billion structural deficit by adding roughl...

Theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck joins Tom to share another weekly review of a local theatrical production. This week, Iron Crow Theatre’s production of An Act of God continues at the Theatre Project through January 26. Iron Crow is a theater company that describes itself as “renegade” and “unorthodox.” Can we assume the tone of An Act of God is less than reverent?

Pinky Cole-Hayes is the founder of a nationwide chain of restaurants called Slutty Vegan. She grew up on Baltimore’s East Side, and now calls Atlanta home. Her restaurant company that has been valued at more than $100 million dollars. Slutty Vegan’s newest location is here in Baltimore in the Baltimore Peninsula. Cole-Hayes joins Midday to talk about growing up in Baltimore, and what it means to e...