Viewpoints Radio
Award-winning reporting on current issues featuring America's leading experts.
If you’re a Baby Boomer then you know all about the excitement and frenzy that occurred when the Beatles first arrived on the scene and traveled to America. We talk to a photographer who not only took many memorable pictures of the Fab Four, but who also became their good friend. We discuss what the musicians were like, how he gained their trust, what it was like to photograph the Beatles and …
When Congress debates a constitutional point, or when the Supreme Court is considering a case brought before it, we often hear the question, “what did the framers intend?”
There are many good schools that try to ensure that every student gets the best education possible and an equal opportunity to succeed in their studies and extracurricular activities. Our guest says that despite efforts on the part of school administrators and teachers, there is still a racial achievement gap in even the most diverse and progressive schools. We discuss why the gap exists, how it …
This holiday season, there probably won’t be a celebration in the country that doesn’t contain cheese in some form or another. It’s one of America’s favorite snack foods, and cheddar is our favorite variety of the dairy product. But what is cheese? How is it made and how did cheddar get to be America’s iconic cheese? And how do “processed cheese food products” fit into the mix? Our guest is a …
When you’re the new person at the office, in the neighborhood or at a party it can be an awkward situation, especially if you’re not the most gregarious person. Our guest discusses the issue and offers advice on how to navigate various situations when you’re the newbie in the room.
Most of us have heard the name of Henry Clay, but he’s not one of the people we usually remember the way we do George Washington or Thomas Jefferson. Our guest says that Clay was just as important to our nation as the founding fathers, and he discusses the great contributions this Speaker of the House made to keep our country together, fight for justice, and create the foundations of our extensive …
Although their numbers are dwindling every year, there are still many people alive today who remember and lived through the Holocaust during World War II. One of these men spoke to us about his experience as a young boy in a Czechoslovakian work camp, and how his mother – through hard work, quick thinking and just pure luck – managed to keep herself and her two children from the death camps in …
Back in the 1870s and 80s, the north and south poles were as mysterious and intriguing as the moon and planets are to us today. Many expeditions tried – and most failed – to reach the North Pole, leaving many courageous sailors and their ships encased in the snow and ice.
Author Jack London is known for his stories of adventure in the Klondike, the Yukon and other far-away places. Our guest, however, says these stories also reflect his desire to bring the plight of poor and exploited workers to the public’s attention. We’ll hear how London’s hardscrabble youth and physically demanding jobs informed his writing, and find out how the author used sustainable farming …
You can find almost any fruit – domestic and exotic – in the produce section of grocery stores across the country these days. There’s one fruit, though, that’s both domestic and exotic that you will have a hard time locating: the pawpaw. The once-common fruit has all but disappeared from stores except for a few mail order specialty shops and some farmers’ markets. We talk to a man who wanted to …
Every parent wants their child to excel in school, and a big part of succeeding is learning to read well. Some parents try to teach their children to read when they’re toddlers, but is that too early? When should children be taught to read and how? Our two guests, one a professor specializing in early childhood, the other an author of children’s books, share their opinions on the subject.
A college education is usually a ticket to a better job, better health and overall life satisfaction – that is if you can get one. Non-traditional students -- those who are older, who work fulltime or who have families – can have a tough time just figuring out how to apply to college, talk to a professor or find scholarships or financial aid. Our guest discusses the hurdles non-traditional …
Separations and divorces are common in the U.S., and out of those split-ups come children living in two households. These kids often experience situations and conflicts that their friends living in an intact household don’t .We talk to a co-parenting specialist about how the parents’ behavior, ability to compromise, and desire to put the child’s needs above their own, can lead to successful …
When you ask an American, “where are you from?” most of them will say it’s where they live now or where they were born. We talk to one man who thought long and hard about that question and went on a journey around the Midwest and Plains States to try to answer it. He learned a lot about his family’s heritage and the cost in lives, land and culture that indigenous peoples paid so European settlers …
These days, a phone or digital interview often precedes the face-to-face meeting for job hunters. If you think that all you have to do is sit in front of your computer or cell phone camera and talk, think again. Resumes are also changing, with online services such as Linkedin and CareerBuilder the first places an employer looks to find an applicant. We talk to two employment specialists about how …
We’re taught from a young age that we should obey authority and do what adults tell us to do. Those lessons usually work in our favor, however there are times when a child – and an adult – should say "no" to the ones in charge. Our guest has studied this issue and has come up with situations where refusing to do something is the right thing.
Snapchat is quickly rising to the top of the social media hierarchy, and presidential candidates want to tap into its growing audience. But how exactly do you reach young voters on social media without sounding “too political” and boring? We speak with two media-savvy election pundits about the issue.
Millions of young people will soon head out on their own for the first time to attend college or start their first job. It will also be the first time that many of them are in charge of their own finances. How literate are they about banking, spending, saving, and credit? We talk to two financial specialists about what kids need to know about money and budgets, the best ways to organize their …
Our guest offers a new way to discuss abortion – without taking sides, without name-calling or raised voices -- that brings the issue to a more personal and compassionate level.
The President of the United States has a lot of powers that we think are given to him by the U.S. Constitution. You might be surprised to find out, however, that very little in that document actually outlines the job or the authority the Commander-in-Chief possesses. We talk to a historian about how executive powers and privilege for the President were created not by Congress but by the first man …
Crime novels are among the most popular reading in the U.S., and nobody writes a more engaging, suspenseful and factually accurate story than award-winning and best-selling novelist Patricia Cornwell. Her Kay Scarpetta series is full of detailed forensic information, and we talked to her about how she gathers her facts and actually experiences some of the dangerous situations that she puts her …
Kids are little bundles of imagination and they can amuse themselves with the simplest of household goods: a pot and a spoon, becomes a drum; a cardboard box turns into a fort, and a towel can transform them into a caped crusader! However, some parents tend to micromanage their kids’ time with structured activities and there’s little left for the child to explore the world. We talk to a …
After World War I there was a great conflict in Turkey and many Christians and others were killed. The city of Smyrna was set ablaze and even more people had to run to the beaches just to escape the flames. Refugees poured into the city from towns and rural areas and soon there were tens of thousands stranded on the shore with nowhere to go.
When the last child leaves home for college, marriage or that first job, parents are often sad and at loose ends about how the rest of their lives will progress. We talk to a therapist and author who’s experienced her own children leaving home, about the emotions of “the empty nest” and what parents can do to reframe their lives when the children go out on their own.
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