The Brian Lehrer Show

Julie Su , deputy mayor for economic justice, talks about the administration's priorities when it comes to economic development, jobs and economic justice. Photo: Then-Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su testifies before the Senate Appropriations Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on May 09, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Hosted by Simplec...

Wedding season is upon us! Listeners who are planning a wedding call in to share the stickiest decision or detail they had to deal with. Photo: A jogger approaches newlyweds getting ready to pose for wedding photos on the Bow Bridge in Central Park as New Yorkers and tourists take advantage of the unusually warm weather for winter in the city on January 8, 2013. (Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via...

After the Supreme Court decision that weakened Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, Daniel Squadron , co-founder of The States Project, former New York State senator and author of the forthcoming book The Fourth Branch: How State Government Can Save Our Union (Zando, 2026), talks about the interplay between state legislatures and the redistricting fights happening now. Photo: Oliver Larkin, Democra...

Albany lawmakers finally passed the state budget, eight weeks late. Jon Campbell , Albany reporter for WNYC and Gothamist, reports on the key provisions in the deal. Photo: New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani testifies at the 2026 Joint Legislative Budget Hearing in Albany on Wednesday, February 11, 2026. (Photo by Michael Appleton courtesy of the Mayoral Photo Office) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsW...

An investigation by The CITY, built from a database of more than 1,200 lawsuits filed against Immigration and Customs Enforcement, found that of the 430 street arrests it documented across the New York City area, more than 93% targeted Latinos -- far out of proportion to their share of the undocumented population. Gwynne Hogan , senior reporter covering immigration and homelessness for The CITY, a...

Stephanie Coontz , director of research and public education at the Council on Contemporary Families and the author of The Way We Never Were; Marriage, a History; and now, For Better and Worse: The Complicated Past and Challenging Future of Marriage (Viking; May 26, 2026), offers historical context for the institution of marriage and examines the attitudes and policies that can strengthen it. Phot...

Dan Goldman , US Representative (D, NY-10), and Brad Lander , former NYC comptroller and former mayoral candidate, discuss key issues as they campaign in the June primary election to be the Democratic nominee for Congress for New York's 10th congressional district. Photo: On August 7, 2025, NYC Comptroller Brad Lander and Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) speak outside the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building o...

On Tuesday, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani unveiled his plan to build 200,000 affordable units and preserve another 200,000 over the next decade. David Brand , housing reporter for WNYC and Gothamist, relays the standout details of the Mamdani administration's "Block by Block: The Housing Plan for a New Era." Photo: Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani speaks to the media as he stands with some of the p...

David B. Oppenheimer , clinical professor of law at the University of California, Berkeley, co-director of the Berkeley Center on Comparative Equality & Anti-Discrimination Law and the author of The Diversity Principle: The Story of a Transformative Idea (Yale University Press), argues that the idea that there is value in diversity in education and politics has a long history, and that attacks on...

Jordan Lauf , producer for All Of It and its book club, Get Lit with All Of It, introduces this summer reading contest from All Of It and Get Lit, six books across six categories. Photo by Luke Green/WNYC Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy , D-Conn., talks about his new book, Crisis of the Common Good: The Fight for Meaning and Connection in a Broken America (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2026). In it, Murphy identifies the underlying crises that have resulted in our current politics and offers solutions that could reinvigorate Americans' sense of the common good. Photo: Cover art for Crisis of the Common Good . (C...

New York State lawmakers are considering the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act. Judith Enck , founder of Beyond Plastics, professor at Bennington College, former EPA Region 2 administrator and author of The Problem with Plastic: How We Can Save Ourselves and Our Planet Before It’s Too Late (The New Press, 2025), talks about why she is advocating for its passage and what the bill...

Jeffrey Winters , professor of political science at Northwestern University and the director of the Equality Development and Globalization Studies Program at Northwestern’s Buffett Institute for Global Affairs and the author of The Blind Spot: How Oligarchs Dominate Our Democracies (Scribner, 2026), talks about the history of oligarchy, how to fight it, and why it maintains power in a democracy. P...

After the Knicks dominant performance in the Eastern Conference Finals, New York fans are feeling an overwhelming sense of exuberance. Listeners call in to share other sporting moments in their lives that brought this feeling—whether with a professional team or at a lower level. Photo: Knicks fans celebrate winning the eastern conference championship against the Cleveland Cavaliers on May 25, 2026...

For Memorial Day, a new interview on its history, and some recent favorites: Kenneth C. Davis , author of the "Don't Know Much About History" series and most recently, The World in Books: 52 Works of Great Short Nonfiction (Scribner, 2024), shares the history of how Americans have observed Memorial Day and its history Jodi Kantor , New York Times investigative reporter, co-author of She Said (Peng...

Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them. National News With Kai and Carter (First) | Hantavirus Fact and Fiction  (Starts at 29:48) | How Belief in God Has Changed (Starts at 44:40) If you don't subscribe to the Brian Lehrer Show on iTunes, you can do that here .     Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and...

David Brand , housing reporter for WNYC and Gothamist, discusses Mayor Zohran Mamdani's “South of Prospect Plan," which aims to rezone the commercial corridors of McDonald and Coney Island avenues south of Brooklyn's Prospect Park, as well as surrounding blocks, for taller buildings and more housing development. Photo: Coney Island Avenue in Brooklyn. (Credit: Jim.henderson/Wikimedia Commons CC BY...

Nahal Toosi , Politico’s senior foreign affairs correspondent and columnist, discusses her latest reporting on how President Donald Trump and his aides have grown frustrated that the U.S. pressure campaign against Cuba, which includes depriving the island of fuel, doesn't seem to be working and what sort of military action might be on the table. Photo: A person waves US and Cuban flags during a "F...

Everlane, the brand built on "radical transparency" and sustainable basics, is reportedly selling to ultra-fast-fashion giant Shein for $100 million. Elizabeth Cline , author of Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion (Penguin, 2012) and The Conscious Closet (Plume, 2019) , talks about her piece in The Atlantic, "Everlane, Shein, and the Limits of the Ethical Consumer," on what the...

Julia Moskin , food reporter for the New York Times, talks about New York's proposed ban on potassium bromate, a flour additive that gives New York pizza and bagels their distinct textures—and a possible carcinogen in humans. Photo: ESPN invites fans to get a bite of the NBA action at PopUp Bagels ahead of season tip-off on October 22, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for...

Renita Francois , deputy mayor for community safety, talks about her job leading the newly established Mayor’s Office of Community Safety, focused on violence prevention. Photo: Members of a violence prevention team gather near a hookah lounge where three people were shot dead and 10 others wounded following a shooting at the Taste of the City lounge in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, early Sunday on Aug...

Jonathan Lemire , co-host of Morning Joe on MSNOW; writer for MSNOW and staff writer for The Atlantic , talks about the late Barney Frank's advice for Democrats and other national political news of the day, including his analysis of how President Trump is changing as his second term continues, and why he thinks the president's age is less scrutinized than his predecessor's. Photo: U.S. President D...

Kai Wright , host of the podcast Big Lives, and Carter Sherman , co-hosts of the new Guardian US video podcast Stateside With Kai and Carter , talk about recent stories in the news, including their take on the Supreme Court's voting rights decision, an ICE arrest that turned violent and more. Photo: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents patrol Terminal C at LaGuardia Airport on March 24...

Reshma Ketkar , co-founder of the group We Start Here and the lead organizer for Stories without Borders, talks about the work the group We Start Here does to help people organize fundraising events for organizations that are important to them. Plus, listeners call in to talk about local fundraisers they've worked on, who they are supporting and why. Photo: A donation box at the entrance to the li...

Andrew Weissmann , professor of practice at NYU School of Law, co-host of the podcast Main Justice and and the author of Liar’s Kingdom: How to Stop Trump’s Deceit and Save America (Little, Brown, 2026) , talks about the changes to the legal system needed to preserve US democracy. Photo: Sunira Moses, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.co...