On The Record

Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman, a Democrat, takes the oath of office this morning.. We ask how he’ll keep campaign promises like teacher raises, ... more police officers and firefighters,... smart growth ... and keeping developer money out of politics. Then, a facility in Linthicum, in northern Anne Arundel, offers the first step in treating substance abuse: medically supervised det...

They’re creepy, they’re crawly … and seeing even a tiny arachnid can make more people than you might expect ... squirm, shriek or run from the room. We’re talking about spiders. Nature educator and animal behavior specialist Jane Marlow believes we should actually thank spiders for what they provide … and to get beyond the stereotype: Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea...

Arthur Magida (maGHEEda), telling his Stoop Story about childhood Christmas envy during Hanukkah ! 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, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes...

We learn how the VA Maryland Health Care System is offering some disabled veterans an alternative to institutional care; instead, up to three veterans move into the home of a full-time caregiver. Coordinator Nicole Trimble describes the delicate matchmaking process. And we hear from US Army veteran Peter Samaras, who moved in with caregiver Patrice Taylor six years ago. Do you have a question or c...

Ferguson, Charleston, Baton Rouge--DeRay Mckesson has been on the ground: protesting police violence, marching against racism, organizing the next generation of activists. His just-published memoir is: “On the Other Side of Freedom: The Case for Hope.” In it Mckesson weaves together reflections on growing up in Baltimore and Catonsville … with lessons learned as an activist at the forefront of the...

Baltimore County’s list of challenges is long: redeveloping Sparrows Point to take advantage of the prospect of thousands of new jobs, even as some manufacturing jobs are wiped out; keeping up with promises to create more affordable housing in parts of the county that have resisted it; making government more transparent; and building a strong relationship with Baltimore City. The top priority, say...

Many of those who provide the bounty that will grace our Thanksgiving tables .. . are struggling. Two-and-a-half weeks before the deadline for enrolling in health insurance, we look at changes affecting what Marylanders will pay. Lara D. Wilson, Executive Director of the Maryland Rural Health Association, describes challenges and resources for the one-fourth of Marylanders who live in rural counti...

She’s known as the ‘First Lady of Song’ and the ‘Queen of Jazz.’ Ella Jane Fitzgerald overcame poverty, abuse and racism … to build an international career that spanned seven decades … and a foundation in her name. We talk with Geoffrey Mark, author of ‘Ella: A Biography of the Legendary Ella Fitzgerald,’ who walks us through the story behind the music. We learn about some of her personal and prof...

Many of those who provide the bounty that will grace our Thanksgiving tables .. . are struggling. The physical, emotional and financial stresses of farming ... lead to mental health crises, opioid addiction, even suicides ... at higher rates among farmers than Americans in general. We hear about the day-to-day strain on farmers ... from Shannon Dill, agriculture extension educator for University o...

Produce bins at the grocery stores are filled with fruits and vegetables from around the world. What about the bounty grown close to home? Renee Brooks Catacalos has written “The Chesapeake Table: Your Guide to Eating Local”. 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 4...

Maryland’s political boundaries are some of the most gerrymandered in the country. This month a federal court ruled the state violated the constitutional rights of Republicans in western Maryland by deliberately diluting their votes, and ordered the state to re-draw the 6th Congressional District at once. The state’s attorney general is appealing that order to the Supreme Court. We discuss the imp...

We’re getting close to 400 years since white settlers set foot on Maryland. Most of the early colonists were indentured servants--through their labor they could pay off their debt and become free. But over the colony’s first five decades fewer indentured servants came, says Henry Miller, archeologist at Historic St. Mary’s City. To get labor for their crops, planters turned to the system already r...

Here's a stoop story from Petula Caesar, about perception … deception … and realizing one’s truth. You can hear her story and others at stoopstorytelling dot com, or on the Stoop podcast. 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, Melissa G...

Maryland is home to nearly 60,000 people of Native American heritage. The Baltimore American Indian Center is working hard to keep cultural traditions alive. Community artist and folklorist Ashley Minner describes celebrating young and old members of the Lumbee Tribe in her work. And Dr. Dennis Seymour, who leads the center’s museum, explains why it’s important to pass traditional skills on to fut...

Superman, Spiderman, the Black Panther - in pop culture, these figures reign supreme and they all got their start in comic books. Comic books are enjoying a burgeoning popularity, driven by blockbuster films and hit television shows. With a growing fanbase, many readers are clamoring for characters that look like them. Guest host and Midday producer Cianna Greaves speaks with comic scholars Stanfo...

Johns Hopkins amassed millions by trying almost anything that promised to make money--investing in liquor, real estate, coal-mining, fertilizer, and more. He never married, and it was only after he’d retired from most of those businesses that the public saw what he intended to do with his fortune: create a university--including a medical school--and a hospital. Beyond the man himself, how have his...

Eating nutritious food is an important step toward a healthy lifestyle. For some, making nutritious food is a main ingredient to improving self-confidence and finding a path to gainful employment. We talk with Deborah Haust, director of School of Food, and we visit the social enterprise City Seeds in East Baltimore, to meet chef Aharon Denrich and some of his staff. Do you have a question or comme...

Today is a special jazz edition of the show -- Alexander Jarman, tells us about founding the Baltimore Kissa Society, a monthly jazz ‘vinyl record’ listening party, and DJ Mills, whose skills can be heard at the Otto Bar and the Crown, gives us a taste of what he’ll be offering this month at ‘A Night of Latin Jazz.’ Do you have a question or comment about a show or a story idea to pitch? Contact O...

Hear about the running group Back on My Feet and also Polish Independence Day. 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, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-14...

Post election discussion with Mileah Kromer and Barry Rascovar. 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, Melissa Gerr she/her/hers mgerr@wypr.org 410-235-1157 Producer Sam Bermas-Dawes he/him/his sbdawes@wypr.org 410-235-1472

Just eight percent of people with pancreatic cancer live for five years after their diagnosis. Why is this cancer so deadly and where are advances in treatment headed? We speak to Meryle Bemnet, an oncology nurse who lost her sister-in-law to pancreatic cancer less than six months after she was diagnosed. And Dr. Elizabeth Jaffee, deputy director of the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at...

Linguistics expert Deborah Tannen has delved deep into the fabric of how women communicate. We talk with her about her book: “You’re the Only One I Can Tell: Inside the Language of Women’s Friendships.” 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 Prod...

Here's a Stoop Story from Dr. Graham Redgrave, an expert in treating eating disorders. You can hear his story and many others at stoopstorytelling.com, as well as the Stoop podcast. 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, Melissa Gerr sh...

Fat-free, fair-trade, or fast food--our feelings about food are complicated and highly influenced by the media’s messages about health and weight. Journalist Virginia Sole-Smith’s book, “The Eating Instinct: Food Culture, Body Image, and Guilt in America”, explores the forces that have eroded our relationship with food. She says we’re bombarded from infancy with negative judgments about what we ea...

Professor Deborah Thorne is a principal investigator for the ‘Consumer Bankruptcy Project.’ Then we ask Helene Raynaud, of the non-profit Guidewell Financial Solutions, how to avoid monetary crisis and stress. 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 Seni...