On The Record

The novel American Ending by Mary Kay Zuravleff received praise from a number of critics. Oprah selected it for her Best Books for Spring reading list. Kirkus Reviews gushed that the voice of the young narrator, Yelena, is so vivid , “it feels like Zuravleff is channeling a real person.” What brings readers to connect with Yelena and her family? These characters, most of them immigrants, lived mor...

U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy raised the alarm last year about social media use and deteriorating mental health among young people. In the advisory, headlined Social Media and Youth Mental Health , Murthy highlighted research tying social media use to eating disorders and body-image concerns among young people. Eating disorders are among the deadliest mental disorders. Here to talk about the m...

Concern for the safety and privacy of young people online is prompting a wave of legislation in several states. The Maryland Kids Code could become among the nation's first laws dictating how social media companies design and sell their products to young people. We asked Marisa Shea , a proponent of the bill and US Senior Policy Manager with nonprofit 5Rights Foundation , to give us the rundown on...

Here’s a Stoop Story from Steve Parke about using art to meet his heroes. The next Stoop event is Friday, March 15th, in partnership with the Maryland School for the Blind. The theme is “ See Beyond: Dismantling the Disability Narrative ." Check out the Stoop Storytelling Series podcast . Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supe...

America’s democracy is in crisis. A University of Maryland constitutional scholar has a plan to fix it -- maybe not the plan you’d expect. In "Parliamentary America," Professor Maxwell Stearns says the flaw is our two entrenched political parties. Stearns will be speaking on Sunday at 3 p.m. at Politics & Prose in Washington, DC and on Monday evening at 7 p.m. in the Pratt Library’s Writers Li...

The 15 members of the Baltimore City Council do not elect the council’s leader from among themselves like most legislative bodies. Instead, city directly elect the president of the City Council. Several candidates are vying for the role in the 2024 election. In the Democratic primary, where the winner is almost assured of winning the seat, incumbent Council President Nick Mosby faces two formidabl...

Housing costs are soaring. Maryland Housing and Community Development Secretary Jake Day says low supply drives up both rents and home prices. We ask about Governor Moore's legislative proposals to boost new construction, spur affordable development, and increase protections for renters. Links: HB0538/SB0484 The Housing Expansion and Affordability Act HB0599/SB0483 The Housing and Community Develo...

Longtime Maryland congressman Ben Cardin’s decision not to seek re-election means Maryland will choose a new U.S. Senator in 2024. The top contenders in the May 14 Democratic primary are David Trone, a self-funding businessman who has represented Maryland in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2019, and Angela Alsobrooks , county executive of Prince George’s and formerly that county’s top pros...

Two hotels in downtown Baltimore will be converted into emergency shelters for the homeless. The city’s Board of Estimates approved the deal ten days ago, authorizing $15 million to acquire side-by-side hotels and $3 million to manage the shelters from the end of March through December. We speak to Baltimore City’s Chief Administrative Officer, Faith Leach. Links: City of Baltimore Reaches Deal to...

For every dollar invested in preventing evictions, Maryland could save nearly $2.50 in what evictions cost. That’s according to a study by Stout Risius & Ross with the Maryland Center on Economic Policy and members of the Maryland Eviction Prevention Funds Alliance . Lisa Sarro is legal counsel for Arundel Community Development Services . We ask Sarro about the need in Anne Arundel County and...

Tami Jacobs shares a Stoop Story about the father figures of her childhood. The next Stoop event is next Wednesday, March 6th, in partnership with the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. The theme is “ Failing Up - Rising Stronger from Professional Failures. ” And the following week - on Friday, March 15 - the Stoop and the Maryland School for the Blind will present, “ See Beyond: Dismantling the...

The day before her wedding, writer Mako Yoshikawa received news that upended her world: Her abusive, estranged father was dead. In her new memoir, "Secrets of the Sun," Yoshikawa reckons with grief and guilt.  Mako Yoshikawa will be in conversation with author Kyoko Mori at Bird in Hand Cafe & Bookstore on Friday, March 8th at 6 pm. Details here . Do you have a question or comment about a show...

Access is key, and athletes often encounter obstacles to competing in the sport they love. Lacrosse has grown in popularity in recent years, but some fans say the sport has a problem. A Baltimore lacrosse organization is trying to change the sport. We speak with Coach Lloyd Carter , one of the founders of Blax Lax . Blax Lax is set to host its 10th annual Devin Day Celebration with a lacrosse tour...

We ask Mayor Brandon Scott , who is running for re-election: why many Baltimore residents do not feel safer, even though crime is down; why it has taken so long to buy hotels to shelter the homeless; and whether he is satisfied with how city schools are run. Links: Mayor Brandon Scott , Maryland Board of Elections info , Environmental Mayoral Forum Wed. Feb. 28 5:30pm . Do you have a question or c...

Juvenile justice, what to do about young people caught up in crime, is a huge issue in this year’s session of the Maryland General Assembly. After weeks of public hearings and committee discussion, the full House and Senate are close to debating changes to policy. To understand what's at issue and what may come out of the General Assembly’s debate over juvenile justice, we turn to Brenda Wintrode...

In Maryland we know Harriet Tubman best for fearlessly guiding people out of bondage. She was also a priceless scout and spy for the Union. Historian Edda Fields-Black , in her book " Combee ," recounts Tubman’s vital role when the army liberated hundreds of enslaved rice-plantation workers. Fields-Black will be at the Enoch Pratt's Central Library tonight at 7 pm. Register to attend in-person or...

Here’s a Stoop Story from Aisha Alfadhalah about making her way … and finding community. You can find more information about Stoop Storytelling, including the Stoop podcast, at Stoopstorytelling.com Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie she/her/hers mharvie@wypr.org 410-235-1903 Senior Producer...

Baltimore is full of immigrant stories. Susan Muaddi Darraj adds to the tapestry with her debut novel: Behind You is the Sea . It draws on her Palestinian roots and her family’s immigration experience, tracing the intertwined daily lives of three families. On Saturday, Feb. 24, 2023, at 3pm, Muaddj Darraj is scheduled to appear at the Johns Hopkins Barnes and Noble in Charles Village. Do you have...

The rich tidal marshes and mixed oak and pine forests of the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge stretch back into time. Into this lush, mysterious world of cricket song and nesting waterfowl in Dorchester County on the edge of the Eastern Shore, Araminta Ross was born in March 1822. Araminta would later be called “Moses” by the enslaved people she led to freedom along the Underground Railroad. Mo...

The musical legacy of Mahalia Jackson, the Queen of Gospel, is immense. Arena Players tells her story, through song! How do you bring that legacy to the stage? We talk with musical director and performer Tevin Brown , and Tierra Strickland , who portrays Mahalia. Plus, the Banneker-Douglass museum revisits the past with a look to the future … pairing archival civil rights photos with contemporary...

Longtime journalist Michele Norris thought no one would talk about race, but she asked anyway: In six words, your thought? Those messages form the core of her book, " Our Hidden Conversations: What Americans Really Think About Race And Identity." L earn more about the Race Card Project . Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Super...

Historian  David O. Stewart traces George Washington’s skills as a political operator, as well as the first president’s failure to speak out against slavery as he came to realize its evils. Stewart's biography is titled, "George Washington: The Political Rise of America’s Founding Father." This interview originally aired on September 8, 2021. Do you have a question or comment about a show or a sto...

Here is a Stoop Story from Geoffrey Danek about the highs and lows of goat parenting. The next Stoop event is March 6th, in partnership with the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. The theme is " Failing Up – Rising Stronger from Professional Failures ." Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact On the Record at: Senior Supervising Producer, Maureen Harvie s...

Baltimore Banner reporter Liz Bowie joins us for a roundup of news about schools. Why are so many kids chronically absent, and why is it getting worse? What’s up with a pay raise for Baltimore teachers? Will the head of City Schools renew her contract?  Read her reporting: Time is nearly up. Will Baltimore City schools keep CEO Sonja Santelises? Baltimore teachers negotiate a 9% pay bump for early...

Divorce and child custody, employment discrimination, sexual assault, domestic violence--for five decades the Women’s Law Center of Maryland has been responding to, representing and advocating for women. Executive Director Katie Curran O'Malley and Chief Programs Officer Laure Ruth describe their agenda. Plus, former client Meisha Hall  describes what she's lived through. Links: Women's Law Center...