Talk Louisiana

(LRN) Bradley Beychok discusses the role of media watchdog groups and the interaction between the press and President Donald Trump. Beychok, a Baton Rouge native, is senior adviser and executive chief of staff for American Bridge, a group with ties to the Democratic Party. He was formerly with the watchdog group Media Matters.

(LRN) Colonel Rob Maness talks about his unwavering support for President Trump amid multiple investigations into Trump's 2016 campaign. Maness remains an ardent Trump supporter despite revelations this week of a June 2016 meeting between Donald Trump Jr. and two high-ranking officials of the campaign with a Russian emissary. Maness is a former Louisiana Senatorial candidate.

(LRN) Conservative columnist and commentator Quin Hillyer weighs the dilemma faced by Republicans who are dismayed with the first 25 months of the Trump Presidency. Hillyer is a former aide to Congressman Bob Livingston of Louisiana.

(LRN) Political consultant Raymond Strother comments on the political consequences of the connection between the Trump campaign and Russia. Strother discusses why President Donald Trump remains popular with his base of supporters and is a powerful force in the American South. Strother worked for Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Gary Hart, and many major elected officials,

(LRN) Alexander Howard of the Sunlight Foundation talks about the resignation of Walter Shaub as head of the Office of Governmental Ethics. Howard analyzes ethics issues in the Trump administration. Also on today's program : Bernie Pinsonat on the state of President Trump's popularity in Louisiana, here .

Pollster Bernie Pinsonat talks about President Donald Trump's popularity in Louisiana and how Republican lawmakers in the state might still be reluctant to challenge initiatives from an embattled president. -

Deepa Soul is a Billboard-charting singer from of New Orleans. Soul talks with us about her recording career as an award-winning performing ahead of her performance in New Orleans later this year. Soul is a former LSU journalism student.

East Baton Rouge Councilwoman Chauna Banks talks to us about controversy regarding the location of the Baton Rouge Zoo. She also addresses the pending anti-smoking ordinance and the anticipated decision in the Alton Sterling case.

(LRN) Photographer Aaron Hogan and filmmaker Jency Griffin Hogan talk about "Wanderlust," an exhibition featuring travel photography and film. (LRN) Also on today's program : Commissioner of Higher Education Joseph Rallo on funding and TOPS, here .

(LRN) The classic tune "Ode to Billy Joe" by Bobbie Gentry was recorded 50 years ago. Music critic John Wirt is with us today to talk about it. Rolling Stone Magazine ranks "Ode to Billy Joe" among the Top 500 songs of all time.

(LRN) Louisiana's Commissioner of Higher Education Joseph Rallo talks about restoration of TOPS and continuing budget woes on college campuses in our state. -

(LRN) Journalist Jason Berry talks with us about the future political prospects of New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu in the aftermath of his decision to remove four Civil War-era confederate monuments. Also on today's program : U.S. Rep. Mike Johnson talks civility in politics, here .

(LRN) In 1998, Celia Farber wrote what is credited as the definitive profile of O.J. Simpson for Esquire. Farber talks with us about what she calls the humiliating end for Simpson. We're talking to Farber because it's two day's before Simplson's 70th birthday. 

U.S. Rep. Mike Johnson (R-Shreveport) talks to us about his quest for civility in politics, a mission that began after the shooting of fellow Congressman Steve Scalise on June 14. -

Clinical psychologist Diane Medved talks to us about why married couples should avoid divorce like the plague. Also on today's program : Donna Collins-Lewis on the Alton Sterling tension and the smoking ban, here .

Journalist John Camp of St. Francisville discusses the era of "fake news" and the firing of three top reporters by CNN. Camp was formerly a CNN investigative reporter and is a Peabody Award winner.

East Baton Rouge Councilwoman Donna Collins-Lewis speaks to us about the tension as community waits for a decision from Attorney General Jeff Landry in the Alton Sterling case. Collins-Lewis also addresses how the council will vote on the bar and casino smoking ban on August 9th. -

Michelle Gable, best-selling author, on her latest work, "The Book of Summer." Also on today's program : Rep. Ted James on the one year anniversary of the Alton Sterling shooting, here .

State Rep. Ted James visits with us on the one-year anniversary of the shooting of Alton Sterling. With Attorney General Jeff Landry reviewing the case involving two police officers, Rep. James comments on the tension lingering from the events of last July 5th. -

(LRN) Rachael Hebert, executive director of Sexual Trauma Awareness and Response (STAR), joins us to talk about counseling those affected by sexual trauma in an age when some of our male role models have been accusued of sexual harassment and assault. Also on today's program : Jamie Hanks on commerce on the west side of the river, here .

Jamie Hanks, executive director of West Baton Rouge Chamber of Commerce, talks with us about economic development on the west side of the Mississippi River and the issues West Baton Rouge faces. -

(LRN) Stephanie Grace of the Advocate joins us to talk about President Donald Trump, health care, and Governor John Bel Edwards. Greg Hilburn from the News-Star joins us to talk about politics from his viewpoint in the northern regions of the state. Also on today's program : Mike Strain joins us to talk agricultural issues, here .

On today's program live from the Louisiana Farm Bureau convention, Commissioner of Agriculture Mike Strain addresses agricultural topics, including trade with Cuba and the sugar industry and its response to trade with Mexico. -

(LRN) East Baton Rouge Metro Councilman Matt Watson discusses the council's decision to delay the vote on a proposed smoking ordinance until August 9. Also on today's program : Randy Hayden of Smoke Free Baton Rouge, here .

(LRN) Randy Hayden of Smoke Free Baton Rouge discusses the decision by the Metro Council to delay a vote on the smoking ordinance until August 9. Also on today's program : EBR Council Member Matt Watson on the decision to delay the smoke vote, here .