Category: Blog

Blue Dot: Apollo 8 on Christmas (12/26/2020)

Blue Dot celebrates Christmas with a repeat of the the look at the very first mission to the Moon—Apollo 8—which overlapped Christmas Day. Considered by most space historians as the most dramatic and bold mission of the entire lunar program, astronauts Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders became the first human beings to ride the powerful Saturn V rocket, leave Earth’s gravitational well and see the backside of the Moon with their own eyes.

Airs Saturday, December 26 at 9am.


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The Keepers: Archiving the Now with Host Frances McDormand (12/5/2020)

Airs Saturday, December 5 at 9am

The Keepers: Archiving the Now — a new hour-long special from The Kitchen Sisters and PRX with host, Academy Award-winner Frances McDormand. Stories of can-do people. Must-do people. Get-it-done people. People who are grappling with the now, with where we are and where we’ve got to get to. As the world we all knew unravels and communities begin to re-shape themselves The Kitchen Sisters have been gleaning, looking for those who have something to offer during these uncharted times. People who rebuild, restore, reinvent. Like Gert McMullin, one of the first people to put a stitch on the AIDS Memorial Quilt, who is now sewing masks for healthcare workers fighting Covid, using leftover fabric from the quilt. The Climate Underground, former Vice President Al Gore and food activist Alice Waters convene a gathering of farmers, scientists, soil visionaries, chefs, students, activists and policymakers on Al Gore’s farm in Tennessee contemplating the role of soil, food and regenerative agriculture in combatting the climate crisis. Youth on Fire: The International Congress of Youth Voices, founded by writer Dave Eggers — 137 youth activists from 37 countries coming together to form a global network of young visionaries. Louis Jones: Detroit Field Archivist, who has been building and caring for the largest labor archive in North America. And host Frances McDormand speaks of her new film, Nomadland, about the new nomads — itinerant workers living in DIY vans, moving across America. Striking stories of grit, hope and possibility.

Feasting with the Great American Songbook: An Afterglow Thanksgiving Special (11/28/2020)

Well, it’s Thanksgiving weekend, a holiday that revolves around family, football, and most importantly, food. So on this Afterglow special, we’re going to chow down on some food-related songs from the Great American Songbook. Ahead this hour, we’ll hear some odes to beans, cornbread, meat, and potatoes by some guys named Louis. Louis Jordan, Louis Armstrong, and Louis Prima, that is. Nat King Cole will also get in on the food-song fun. And we’ll hear a few songs saluting feasting together at home, sung by Kay Starr and Cab Calloway.

Airs Saturday, November 28 at 9am.

From WFIU in Bloomington.

American Dreamer: Sam’s Story (10/3/2020)

“American Dreamer: Sam’s Story” tells the story of a talented and articulate young jazz musician named Sam, who was brought to the U.S. at age 5 by his Mexican parents. He stayed out of trouble, was drum major of his high school’s marching band, fell in love with playing jazz on the tenor sax, and got his diploma with honors– only to find that for an “illegal,” graduation marks a dead end. .  Though Sam dreams of attending college to study jazz performance, he hides his status from even his closest friends, and can’t legally work, drive, get financial aid, or even gain admission to some colleges.  “American Dreamer” follows him from his high school graduation, through the following summer, as he struggles to raise money to continue his education and weighs the risks of working and driving illegally against his own desire to achieve his American dream.

Airs Saturday, October 3 at 9am
with an encore on Sunday, October 4 at 2pm.

Climate One: Erin Brockovich—Superman’s Not Coming (9/26/2020)

Climate One

Saturday, September 26, 2020 @ 10am
Sunday, September 27 @ 10am

Erin Brockovich was vaulted into national recognition in 2000, after the eponymous movie starring Julia Roberts made her a water activism icon. Famous for her focus on contamination, Brockovich says there is a larger threat facing water’s very existence: climate change, and the impact it has on dwindling freshwater supplies, longer droughts, and hotter weather. Superman isn’t coming to protect our water or environment, writes Brockovich in her latest book — and neither are corporations, politicians or the “gutted” EPA. How can individuals and communities take collective action to safeguard our environment and our resources? What are today’s leading activists doing to create change that lasts? Join us for a conversation on speaking truth to power with Erin Brockovich, author of Superman’s Not Coming: Our National Water Crisis and What We the People Can Do About It.


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