Viewpoints Radio
Award-winning reporting on current issues featuring America's leading experts.
How do young people deal with race in their lives? We aren’t born racist, so how do some of them become that way? We talk to two young readers authors about their new book that addresses the issue.
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 …
It’s almost time to head to the mall and check out the holiday decorations and pick up some presents for friends and family. A lot of people will be buying clothing, shoes, accessories and making sweets as gifts, thinking only about the cost and if the recipient will like it. Our guests say that you should also consider where the gift comes from, what it’s …
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 …
Two of the scariest symbols of Halloween are spiders and bats. They have bad reputations for not just being creepy, but dangerous. We get the straight scoop in these creepy critters from two experts in the fields of entomology and bats, and hear how both of these creatures are not as scary as we think, but very beneficial members of the insect and animals …
It’s the time of year when all the ghosts and goblins, witches and monsters, superheroes and villains don their Halloween best and head off to trick-or-treat, party or walk through a haunted house. Why do we dress up for the holiday? What do our costumes say about us? Why do we love to be frightened on this night in the year? We talk to a psychologist and a …
Slang is often thought of as a lower-class way of speaking, although we use it all the time and it does make our language more colorful and vibrant. But how does it come into being? We talk to a linguist and to an author about why slang and jargon are part of our speech, who brings them into our language and why some slang falls out of favor – but should …
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 …
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.
These days “instant photography” means digital pictures that can be cropped, enhanced, captioned and uploaded to the Internet in a matter of minutes. It wasn’t that long ago, however, that “instant” photography was a lot more cumbersome and complex, and as novel as the latest tech gadgets are today. We’ll hear about the genius who made the first instant …
Everyone makes lists: shopping lists, to-do lists, Christmas lists, and many more. But what do your lists say about you? We talk to an author who looked at hundreds of lists compiled by the famous, the infamous and the unknown, and found out that they say a great deal about the times, our history and the list makers themselves.
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 …
Jazz is the quintessential American music genre, and nobody sings it better than Sheila Jordan. We talk to Jordan and her biographer about Jordan’s rise from poverty to her career singing with some of the most famous jazz musicians of the 20th century, the racism that jazz musicians – both black and white – experienced, and the need to preserve this music …
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 …
There has been a debate going on for decades over Social Security and it’s future. We talk to an author and researcher about his ideas on why Social Security is important, isn’t going broke, and how it can be expanded and funded with modest increases in the future.
America is a melting pot of many nationalities, races and religions, each with its own traditions and cuisines. Some of the food that is so loved by families across the country isn’t the healthiest, however, and can cause obesity, blood sugar problems and heart issues. We talk to two experienced cooks and an award-winning baker about how they are trying to …
When we learn about the Bill of Rights in school, we often look at it as ten separate amendments to our Constitution instead of as a single, well-structured work, like a poem or symphony. Our guest didn’t see this either, until he needed a document to type while practicing his word processing program. We’ll hear about his realization that the Bill of Rights …
We hear a lot about creativity these days, but can you be creative and artistic if you work in any kind of occupation? We talk to two creative people – one an artist and the other a business consultant – about the essence of creativity, how they foster creativity in their work and how anyone can be creative – even under very constrained conditions -- if they …
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Gardner Museum heist of millions of dollars in paintings by Rembrandt, Vermeer and others. Nobody knows who took the paintings, but our guest has a theory. We also talk to an art expert and an art show coordinator about what happens to stolen art, how art is determined to be genuine, and how to avoid scams if …
Many people remain in bad situations because they are afraid to quit, but they shouldn’t. Our guest says that if you take the time to carefully plan just how and when you’ll walk out the door, it’s easier to deal with the anxiety, fear and depression that can follow such a big decision. We’ll hear about steps anyone can take – and those they shouldn’t – when …
The Academy Award-nominated film, “The Imitation Game” brought to light the contributions of Alan Turing in breaking the Enigma code during WWII. Throughout his career, he thought that maybe we could build a computer that could think like a human. But could even the best tech whizzes of today build a machine that could not only think but also converse like a …
We all drew pictures as children, but as we grew older, we saw that we either did or did not have real talent. Those of us who were not skilled gave it up and went on to do other things. Our guest says that we shouldn’t have dropped the pencil or paintbrush, and he’ll tell us how we can all benefit from drawing on a daily basis – both in developing skill in …
The next presidential campaigns are gearing up and GOP and Democratic hopefuls are already testing the waters more than 18 months before the elections. The people you see in front of the cameras and in the headlines are only part of the story, though. Behind the scenes are men and women who support the candidates in very important ways. We’ll hear about a …
Many of us make resolutions on New Year’s Day to lose weight, exercise more or maybe save more money. How are those going a month later? Most Americans don’t keep resolutions after a few weeks. Why is that? We’ll discuss strategies for planning and fulfilling that big change in your life.
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