WESA listeners have asked for more and different shows on the weekends, so we are pleased to announce a new program schedule on Saturdays and Sundays.
90.5 WESA, Pittsburgh’s NPR news station, announces four new shows coming Sunday, January 8, 2023, and a favorite show returns. To make room in our schedule, several other programs are changing their time of day.
New programs include The People’s Pharmacy, featuring health topics (Sundays, 7 a.m.); Freakonomics Radio, featuring stories from a unique economics perspective (Sundays, 2 p.m.); Notes from America with Kai Wright, a live national discussion about the unfinished business of our history and how we break its grip on our future incorporating calls from listeners (Sundays, 6 p.m.); and Climate One, the environmental program presenting multiple viewpoints (Sundays, 8 p.m.).
Returning to the schedule is Fresh Air Weekend, which highlights some of the best interviews and reviews from past weeks of Fresh Air, emphasizing interviews with writers, filmmakers, actors, and musicians (Sundays, 3 p.m.).
“Based on listener feedback, we are offering a wider selection of different programs on our weekend schedule,” explained Mike Sauter, Vice President of Broadcasting. “To accommodate more shows, the program schedule for the weekend had to be adjusted.”
The new 90.5 WESA Saturday schedule is as follows:
| New Saturday Schedule | Change: |
| 6 a.m.: Travel with Rick Steves | -- |
| 7 a.m.: New Yorker Radio Hour | -- |
| 8 a.m.: Weekend Edition | -- |
| 9 a.m.: Weekend Edition | -- |
| 10 a.m.: Planet Money/How I Built This | -- |
| 11 a.m.: Wait Wait… Don't Tell Me! | -- |
| 12 p.m.: On the Media | -- |
| 1 p.m.: Radiolab | New Day and Time |
| 2 p.m.: This American Life | New Day and Time |
| 3 p.m.: Allegheny Front | -- |
| 3:30 p.m.: Living on Earth | -- |
| 4 p.m.: The Pulse | New Day and Time |
| 5 p.m.: Weekend All Things Considered | -- |
| 6 p.m.: Rhythm Sweet & Hot | -- |
| 8 p.m.: Saturday Night Jazz | -- |
| Midnight: BBC World Service | -- |
The new 90.5 WESA Sunday schedule is as follows:
| New Sunday Schedule | Change: |
| 6 a.m.: Living on Earth | -- |
| 7 a.m.: The People's Pharmacy | New Show |
| 8 a.m.: Weekend Edition | -- |
| 9 a.m.: Weekend Edition | -- |
| 10 a.m.: New Yorker Radio Hour | -- |
| 11 a.m.: TED Radio Hour | -- |
| 12 p.m.: Hidden Brain | New Day and Time |
| 1 p.m.: Wait Wait… Don't Tell Me! | New Time |
| 2 p.m.: Freakonomics Radio | New Show |
| 3 p.m.: Fresh Air Weekend | Returning Show |
| 4 p.m.: It's Been a Minute | New Time |
| 5 p.m.: Weekend All Things Considered | -- |
| 6 p.m.: Notes From America with Kai Wright | New Show |
| 7 p.m.: This American Life | New Time |
| 8 p.m.: Climate One | New Show |
| 9 p.m.: BBC World Service | -- |
While The BBC Newshour was dropped from the WESA weekend schedule, 90.5 WESA will continue to carry BBC Newshour on weekdays and BBC World Service late at night throughout the week and weekend.
Learn more about the added programs:
The People's Pharmacy features nationally recognized authorities on medicine, mental health, nutrition, fitness, and related issues. The show will explore the most interesting, compelling, and controversial health and medical issues of our time in a fun and entertaining way.
Freakonomics Radio ferrets out connections between seemingly unrelated things. The program explores the hidden riddles of everyday life and the weird wrinkles of human nature using an economics perspective.
Climate One focuses on elevating critical conversations around climate change. It is an environmental program presenting multiple viewpoints.
Fresh Air Weekend highlights some of the best interviews and reviews from past weeks of Fresh Air from WHYY in Philadelphia. Fresh Air Weekend emphasizes Terry Gross’ and Dave Davies’ interviews with writers, filmmakers, actors, and musicians.
Notes from America with Kai Wright examines the unfinished business of our history, and how we break its grip on our future. The show incorporates calls from listeners, engages digital communities, and seeks ways to build a community among listeners.
