The Colin McEnroe Show

How well do we really know the poor? As our nation's economy grows and the jobless rate decreases, are we increasingly ignoring their voices? Haven't we always ignored them? Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We were going to produce a show today on loneliness with British writer Olivia Laing. We still want to do that show with Olivia - but not today. Instead, we decided to switch gears and talk with Olivia and other artists about the themes in Olivia's new novel because they mirror our own concerns: how to live life in this fast-moving world where the present is history in the blink of an eye and worl...

There's a mostly forgotten story by the mostly forgotten sci-fi writer, R.A. Lafferty. It's called, "What's The Name of That Town." We meet a team of scientists and an amusing sentiant computer examining clues that suggested something existed once upon a time and has now been erased. It turns out to be the city of Chicago which has been obliterated in an accident so traumatic that the city's...

Today, we have no guests. We want to hear from you. We canceled our previously planned show so we could dedicate the entire hour to understanding how you are feeling about the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to the  Supreme Court. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Actress Cynthia Nixon lost the Democratic gubernatorial primary in New York yesterday . Did she lose because of the kind of bagel she eats ? Probably not. But from the Nose's point of view, what could really matter more than that? And Vulture , last week -- "as the discourse rages on about whether or not political correctness is destroying comedy (spoiler alert: it isn't)" -- ran a piece on the jo...

Color doesn't exist on its own. A red rose will look different to me than it does to you. It will also look different to a pigeon, who can see way more shades and tints than most humans can see. Remember the 2015 debate over the dress ? Gold & white,  blue & black or yes, some saw brown & light purple.  Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener...

You may have heard that Bob Woodward has a new book out . It was number one on Amazon... before it came out. It was into its seventh printing -- a million copies... before it came out. The president Twittered about it at least a dozen times... before it came out. Well, now it's out. This hour: a look at the phenomenon of Fear . Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listen...

Nearly ninety-percent of Americans own a smartphone. On average, we spend more than four hours a day on our phones, which adds up to about 56 full days a year. That's like sealing yourself in a room on the first day of summer and not emerging until the kids head back to school.  Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After Naomi Osaka won the first set against Serena Williams during Saturday's U.S. Open Women's Final, chair umpire Carlos Ramos gave Williams a warning for receiving help from her coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, who was sitting in the stands. She asked Ramos to take it back. She told him she doesn't cheat. Ramos didn't take it back. After that, it got ugly. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donat...

Here's the money quote from a recent Washington Post story on entertainment in the Trump era : "People look at politics when deciding how they feel about a host or actor. Pop culture has now become one more thing that divides us, just like cable news and social media." The Nose couldn't pass that up, and this not-quite-The-Nose show can't pass it up either. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/do...

Semiotics is the study of sign process, which is to say: it's the science of the search for meaning. And then, part of the underlying premise of semiotics -- which just happens to be part of the underlying premise of The Colin McEnroe Show , itself -- is that there's meaning... everywhere. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nike is catching a lot of press for selecting former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick as the face of a new "Just Do It" ad campaign.  Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former Trump official Steve Bannon was disinvited from the 19th annual "New Yorker Festival" Monday, after David Remnick, editor of The New Yorker,  first invited him for a "serious" and "combative" conversation in which Remnick promised to pose "difficult" questions to Bannon.  Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We all know that the days of punching our clock for exactly forty hours is over. One of the alternatives that has risen in its place is what's called the "gig economy": Americans are casting off the traditional full-time job to freelance, moonlight, and temp their way to financial success. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Noah Baerman Resonance Ensemble's The Rock & the Redemption is a jazz concept album of sorts that recasts the Sisyphus myth around the heroism of perseverance and persistence. Keyboardist and composer Noah Baerman joins us for the hour. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mimes have been gesticulating their way into our hearts (or nightmares) for a lot longer than you may think. While it may have been the legendary Marcel Marceau who popularized the mime, people have been communicating through movement since the very beginning. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nobody likes the termite. They get into the wood in our homes that can lead to infuriating and expensive repairs. What's to like. It turns out, there's a lot to like about the termite; scientists study how termites build their "mounds" for clues to solving some of the world's most pressing problems, like mitigating the effects of drought, building colonies on Mars, and the creation of biofuels.&nb...

One of the things you will learn this hour is how close New Haven came to being a possession of Spain. Even if you think you know the story of the New Haven Regicides, the men who fled to the New World rather than face punishment, by which I mean death, for their complicity in the execution of Charles I, we probably have some surprises for you.   By we, I mean Lord Charles Spencer, who j...

I didn't vote for U.S. Senator John McCain when he ran for president in 2000 and again in 2008. I was deeply angry with him in 2008 when I felt he capitulated to political pressure when choosing his running mate. I realize now that I felt angry because I expected more from him. In my mind, he was a man with integrity. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for pri...

The Nose is off this week, but we bring you some pop culture topics anyway: Jon M. Chu's Crazy Rich Asians is the number-one movie in the country, and it's expected to hold onto the top spot on the charts through this weekend. It's on the cover of Time magazine , and it's seen as "a major step forward for representation -- and the industry." And: Hits are down, and strikeouts are up. Pitching chan...

You know lots of sociopaths right? It could be anyone from your ex-spouse to the guy who cut you off on your drive to work today. It's a term we throw around loosely to refer to anyone whoever lied to us or didn't follow the rules. But, if we use it that way, it's not a very useful term. A sociopath is not the same thing as a jerk. In fact, the person you know who strikes you as a jerk is probably...

humor = tragedy + time Okay, but then the logical next question is: How much time? If it's okay, at this point, to joke about, say, The Spanish Inquisition ... what about, for instance, the Holocaust ? Or  AIDS ? September 11th ? The #MeToo movement ? Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The history of sugar is a complicated one. Once available to only the rich and powerful, sugar now shows up in everything from cereals and soups, to cigarettes and body scrubs. It is known to both have medicinal qualities and to contribute to a variety of health problems. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We tend not to think much about that pat of butter we put on our morning toast, including how the store-bought sweet cream butter we're eating likely pales in comparison to the rich, nutty flavor of  the cultured butter not found in many stores. Support the show: http://www.wnpr.org/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

August 16 -- yesterday -- is kind of an oddly busy day in the history of popular culture. In 1954, the first issue of Sports Illustrated was published. In 1962, Pete Best was fired from The Beatles. In 1948, Babe Ruth died. In 1958, Madonna was born (and so she turned 60 yesterday). In 1977, Elvis Presley died . And yesterday, a new August 16th-shaped dot was added to the timeline of pop culture:...