Midday

Political scientist Tom Schaller , who teaches at UMBC, and former Washington Post columnist Paul Waldman have written a book that examines how rural communities wield out-sized political influence. The book is called White Rural Rage: The Threat to American Democracy and the authors assert that, quote, “white rural voters pose a growing threat to the world’s oldest constitutional democracy. Email...

Today is Midday at the Movies,  our monthly focus on new films and film-industry trends, with our regular movie aficionados, Jed Dietz,  founding director of the Maryland Film Festival , and Ann Hornaday , film critic for the Washington Post . We discuss some of our favorite movies of the past year, and look ahead to a couple upcoming releases. We also look ahead to the 25th Maryland Film Festival...

Sia Kyriakakos, a 2017 Maryland teacher of the year, joins Midday to discuss her aspirations for representing Baltimore County in congress. Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

It's Tango time in Baltimore! David Richardson is an instructor with the Argentine Tango Space Project and joins the show to walk us through the dance. The Inner Space Tango Weekend kicks off tonight in the Hamilton and Lauraville community in North Baltimore. Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

On Midday on the Arts, acclaimed soprano Nola Richardson joins the show to preview her weekend concert with Pro Musica Rara , an early-music ensemble that’s been a beloved fixture on the Baltimore music scene for decades. Richardson is an Australian-American soprano who did part of her graduate work at the Peabody Conservatory, before heading to Yale University where she earned a doctorate in musi...

After an Israeli airstrike killed seven aid workers in Gaza on Monday, U.S. President Joe Biden leveled his strongest criticism of Israel's conduct of its war in the region. Biden has previously criticized Israel's handling of the war. Despite the criticism of its prosecution of the war, military aid to Israel from the United States continues. Aaron David Miller joins Tom to discuss the latest fro...

The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in late March left a sizeable impact Baltimore. The bridge was a part of the city's identity and a key route for commuters in the region. Emily Hofstaedter, a WYPR reporter, joins the show to give the latest updates on the recovery in the Patapsco River. She has been reporting on efforts by the city and state to cushion the economic blow to local worker...

One week since the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, Governor Wes Moore joins Midday to discuss the latest on the recovery efforts which include the enormous salvage operation and requests for financial support from Congress. Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

Former Maryland state lawmaker Neil Parrott joins Midday to discuss why he thinks 2024 is the year western Maryland votes him into U.S. Congress. Delegate Parrott first represented District 2B, and then District 2A in the Maryland House of Delegates from 2011-2023. Before being elected to the General Assembly, he was a traffic engineer at the Maryland State Highway Administration. The landscape in...

It’s another edition of the Midday Healthwatch ,  our monthly conversations about public health with Dr. Leana Wen . On today's show, we talk about vaccines. How should you approach conversations with loved ones who are skeptical of vaccines? We address 10 common vaccine concerns and how to talk to friends or family who are fearful of inoculating themselves against disease. Email us at midday@wypr...

On Thursday, Transporation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced Maryland is to receive $60 million of emergency relief funds as a first tranche of support in the recovery and rebuilding process of the bridge. He joins the show to give updates on federal recovery efforts.  Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

Today's guests will discuss the next phase of the recovery process following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key bridge. Baltimore City Councilman Zeke Cohen,  who represents the city’s first district, which includes part of the Port of Baltimore and  Baltimore County Councilman Todd Crandall , who represents Dundalk and the rest of District 7. Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR,...

How does public policy impact public health. We ask Dr. Keshia Pollack Porter, the Chair of the Dept. of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, the director of the “Health in All Policies Initiative." She is a scholar in the field of health equity, and she is the first African American to be named as the chair of a department in the longer than 100 yea...

Can the Orioles keep up the magic this year? It is Opening Day at Camden Yards. The O's come into the season with a winning record in spring training, and an abundance of new talent. Kyle Goon , a sports columnist for our news partners the Baltimore Banner , joins us from Camden Yards. Meanwhile, the Orioles have a new owner in David Rubenstein. Major League Baseball owners approved the sale yeste...

Hours before dawn on Tuesday morning, Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge suddenly vanished into the Patapsco River. While many questions remain about the disaster, it will be years before a new bridge is built to replace the wreckage, and many months before a new normal is established for the tens of thousands of people who traveled on the bridge every day. Late Tuesday night, the U.S. Coast Gua...

In a special Midday evening broadcast, Tom recaps the events of the day in the search and rescue mission regarding the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse. In the early hours Tuesday morning, a cargo ship leaving the port of Baltimore crashed into the Francis Scott Key Bridge , wrapping the ship in a tangled mass of steel, and plunging most of the bridge structure into the Patapsco River within seco...

A large search-and-rescue operation is underway following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge Tuesday morning after a container ship crashed into a support pier. The bridge, which links serves an important artery for the region, and is part of Interstate 695 which serves north-south traffic along the I-95 corridor. WYPR News Director Matt Bush joins us to discuss the latest developments....

In today’s installment in our series of  Conversations with the Candidates ,  we talk with State Senator Clarence Lam, a Democrat who is one of several members of the Maryland General Assembly running for U.S. Congress in the 3rd Congressional District.  Senator Lam is in his second term representing District 12 in the state Senate. When he was first elected in 2019, the district included parts of...

Karen Zacarías is an award-winning playwright and her popular work, The Book Club Play opens at the Everyman Theatre here in Baltimore tonight. The Everyman is by no means the only theater choosing to produce a Karen Zacarias play. This season she’s one of the 20 most-produced playwrights at American regional theaters, and it’s not the first time she’s made that list. Zacarias has also co-written...

WYPR Senior Reporter Rachel Baye joins us to discuss the last year she spent, along with colleagues at American Public Media Reports, investigating what juvenile justice advocates say are arbitrary and inconsistent reasons to keep teenagers charged with serious crimes in adult court. A review of more than three dozen court hearings over the past three years found a process that subjects teenagers...

Tom speaks with Wendy Bozell, a Democratic candidate for Mayor. As a home and hospital teacher, some of the students she encounters are gunshot victims. After seeing the effects of violence in the school system, she is motivated to address this issue by running for mayor. Email us at midday@wypr.org, tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

In today’s installment in our series of  Conversations with the Candidates ,  we speak with  Tekesha Martinez , the Mayor of Hagerstown, Maryland. The Democrat is one of 16 candidates running for U.S. Congress in the 6th Congressional District this year. The incumbent in that seat, Rep. David Trone, is running for the Senate against Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks. District 6, i...

In today’s installment in our series of Conversations with the Candidates ,  we speak with City Council President Nick Mosby about his reelection run. Mosby was first elected to the city council in 2011, but then served in the Maryland State House until returning as council president in December 2020. The Council President discusses his family’s legal challenges, in addition to his achievements on...

According to the State of the Economy report from Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman , the state's economy saw slow growth over the past seven years relative to other states. Over the weekend, lawmakers in the state House of Delegates passed a $1.2 billion package of increases in tolls, fees and taxes to close projected deficits in transportation funding and the state budget. Governor Wes Moore a...

What will it take to get young people interested in a career in the public sector? Dr. Ann Cotten , the director of the Schaefer Center for Public Policy at the University of Baltimore , joins us to talk about educating the next generation of leaders in public service We also speak to two graduates of the Schaefer Center, MiYarnie Johnson , a loan coordinator with the Maryland Department of the En...