Viewpoints Radio
Award-winning reporting on current issues featuring America's leading experts.
We grow up hearing nursery rhymes and fairy tales that deal with good and evil. All of us fondly remember the cartoons of our youth and the stories we grew up with. We talk to Soman Chainani about authoring a new entry into the catalogue of mythology and his attempt to course-correct the lessons more modern stories have been teaching our children.
After working for years as an OB/GYN for inmates at San Francisco Jail, author Carolyn Sufrin wanted to tell the story of the women she helped. She talks about what health care for pregnant women in jails and prisons looks like, and the changes she hopes to see in the system.
The right to an education is guaranteed to all students, regardless of disability, by federal law. But experts and parents are now wondering if we are doing enough to help autistic students maximize their abilities to live their best possible lives. We discuss the current status of public schooling for students with autism and how the systems in place can be …
Facing the prospect of death isn’t pleasant, but it is the reality of being human. We talk to two experts about how people can get their affairs in order both personally and medically to ensure their wishes are respected and their loved ones can properly grieve if the unthinkable happens.
Grudges are something most of us think of as a negative feeling. They’re petty or vindictive or unforgiving. But we talk to author Sophie Hannah, who says grudges can be a really positive thing in our lives if we just know how to hold them properly. She can explain.
We talk to the parent and the doctor of a transgender child to discover what science says about gender transitions and how one family navigated the issues associated with having a child you suddenly don’t fully understand.
In America, we may have an idea of how China’s one-child and two-child policies work, but the truth is more complicated than many of us imagine. We talk to journalist and author Vanessa Hua about how these policies have rippled all the way into America.
Grief is an innate part of human life, but how we process that grief varies from person to person. Tom Malmquist knows too much about grief after he lost his partner shortly after the birth of their first child. Malmquist put his experiences into his novel, In Every Moment We Are Still Alive, to help others in similar situations feel less alone.
Maintaining a relationship or a marriage is a wonderful thing, but sometimes it can be tricky. We hear tips from an expert clinical psychologist on how couples can communicate better, understand each other more deeply, and work through some of the issues common in modern marriages.
Minding the Gap tells the story of Liu himself, and of his closest friends from his childhood in Rockford, Illinois. Each came from something of a broken home, and turned to each other, and to skateboarding for an escape from their personal demons. What begins as a movie about kids skateboarding and hanging out becomes a searing look at childhood trauma, the …
Sarah Ruhl is a MacArthur Fellowship recipient and a famed playwright. As a professor, she met Max Ritvo, who went on to become a published poet. She recounts the story of their friendship and how they used letters to make a connection and comfort one another while Ritvo faced the end of his life.
You may have noticed a new movie on your Netflix homepage called Roma. It’s Oscar-winning director Alfonso Cuarón’s most personal film yet and an absolute masterpiece.
In the social media era, the techniques bullies use are getting more public and crueler. We look at bullying, the shame it can cause, and how it can stick with us for life.
From the moment a child is born, parents are working to get them off on the best possible foot in everything from sports to academics. We look into how families can best evaluate good pre-kindergarten programs for children, and how those programs can set kids up for success.
There are millions incarcerated in American prisons, even many juveniles who were sentenced to long terms alongside adults. We talk to guests about how and why this happens, whether it should continue, and what life is like for young people behind bars.
Frances Stroh grew up in the family that owned America’s third biggest brewer, Stroh Brewing Company. As she aged into adulthood, she watched as both the brewery and her family life fell apart. She talks about the struggles the company faced, how her family dealt with it, and when a legacy can become a burden.
Sexual offenders have to live by a very particular set of rules. They can’t live near playgrounds, they’re on a registry for life. These rules exist to make everyone safer. But they also can limit a reformed criminal’s ability to reintegrate into everyday life and be productive members of society.
One morning without warning, Giulia Lukach experienced a psychotic break. We talk to her husband Mark about Gulia’s journey, his own experience as a caregiver, and how they overcame three stints in a psych ward.
America is facing a literacy problem: according to surveys, fewer than 50% of American schoolchildren are highly proficient readers. We talk to several experts who suggest that we may simply be teaching the skill incorrectly.
For centuries, the Catholic Church and the LGBT community have been at odds. Now, the Rev. James Martin, a Jesuit priest, is trying to usher in a new era and welcome LGBT individuals to the church.
Many of us have spent years dreaming of traveling the globe… but what should we do when we book the trip and are preparing to make the dream a reality? Journalist and author Andrew Solomon gives tips on how to get the most out of your trips, from embracing new cultures to establishing better connections.
Domestic abuse is something many women and men will experience in their lives. We talk to two psychologists familiar with the subject about what victims can do to remove themselves from the abuse and how being a witness to or a victim of abuse affects the intimate relationship, children, and the family dynamic.
Teamwork is seen as a premium in our culture. We believe that two is better than one. But entrepreneur and author Shane Snow says that we often don’t use our groups and teams to their fullest potential. He gives us the science behind why, and how we can improve our communities.
With all of our technology many schools are phasing out some handwriting lessons like teaching cursive. We talk to two experts about whether that’s a good idea.
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