Here and Now

Monday through Thursday from 1pm to 3pm, Friday noon to 2pm
  • Hosted by Robin Young and Jeremy Hobson

Here! Now! In the moment! Paddling in the middle of a fast moving stream of news and information. Here & Now is Public Radio's daily news magazine, bringing you the news that breaks after "Morning Edition" and before "All Things Considered." Hosted by Robin Young and Jeremy Hobson.

FBI Probing Possible Links Between Russia And Trump Associates

By editor • Mar 20, 2017

FBI Director James Comey confirmed Monday that the bureau is investigating possible links and coordination between Russia and associates of President Trump as part of a broader probe of Russian interference in last year’s presidential election.

NPR’s Scott Detrow (@scottdetrow) joins Here & Now‘s Meghna Chakrabarti with more on the congressional hearing, and Comey’s testimony.

With reporting from The Associated Press.

Remembering Jimmy Breslin, Legend Of New York City Journalism

By editor • Mar 20, 2017

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jimmy Breslin died Sunday at the age of 88. Breslin’s writing, which appeared in New York City newspapers for 40 years, evoked working-class characters like the man who dug President John F. Kennedy’s grave.

This NCAA Tournament Season, March Really Is Mad

By editor • Mar 20, 2017

So how’s your bracket looking? Top seeds have fallen like timber in a forest as the men’s NCAA basketball tournament heads into its second weekend. The losers include defending champion Villanova and Duke.

Here & Now‘s Robin Young speaks with sports analyst and author John U. Bacon (@johnubacon) about the results so far.

Study Abroad Program In Ghana Looks At Both Sides Of Slave Trade

By editor • Mar 17, 2017

Lehigh University in Pennsylvania takes students to Ghana to learn about the Transatlantic slave trade.

What Eliminating Arts Funding Would Mean For Massachusetts Arts Organizations

By editor • Mar 17, 2017

Among other cuts to domestic spending called for in President Trump’s budget proposal is the elimination of the National Endowment for the Arts. The NEA helps fund cultural institutions large and small across the country, and many of them are now worried about their future.

Andrea Shea from Here & Now contributor WBUR takes a look at how some Massachusetts-based arts organizations might be affected.

White House Resists GOP Pressure, Stands By Wiretap Claim

By editor • Mar 17, 2017

The White House on Thursday stood by President Donald Trump’s unproven accusations that his predecessor wiretapped his New York skyscraper, despite growing bipartisan agreement that there’s no evidence to back up the claim and mounting pressure to retract the statement.

Angrily defending the president’s statement, White House spokesman Sean Spicer told reporters Trump “stands by” the four tweets that sparked a firestorm that has threatened Trump’s credibility with lawmakers.

Film 'The Belko Experiment' Pits Office Workers In A Life-Or-Death Struggle

By editor • Mar 16, 2017

In the new film “The Belko Experiment,” brutal mayhem ensues when workers at Belko Industries are told that they must kill or be killed. The film is a change of pace for screenwriter and producer James Gunn (@JamesGunn), who’s best known for the hit 2014 film “Guardians of the Galaxy.”

What Is The Alternative Minimum Tax?

By editor • Mar 16, 2017

The release of two pages of President Trump’s 2005 tax return this week has drawn attention to what’s known as the alternative minimum tax.

Trump reported $153 million in income that year, and paid a tax rate of around 25 percent. But if it weren’t for the alternative minimum tax, he would have paid closer to 4 percent in taxes. NPR’s Marilyn Geewax (@geewaxnpr) explains what the alternative minimum tax is with Here & Now‘s Robin Young.

Trump Vows To Battle 'Judicial Overreach' After Travel Ban Blocked Again

By editor • Mar 16, 2017

President Trump’s revised travel ban has been dealt another setback Thursday — from a federal court in Maryland. This after a federal judge in Hawaii ordered Wednesday night that the travel ban targeting six majority-Muslim countries be put on hold, just hours before it was to take effect.

From Car Keys To A Loved One, Learning Lessons From Loss

By editor • Mar 15, 2017

Writer Kathryn Schulz (@kathrynschulz) lost her car keys. Then her house keys. Then she left her shirt in a café, retrieved it, and left her wallet behind. She found it, and later left it at a bike shop, where she bought a lock, which she lost the next day. And then, she lost her father.

Washington Town Sues OxyContin Maker Claiming It Failed To Stop Illegal Sales

By editor • Mar 15, 2017

In a first-of-its-kind lawsuit, the town of Everett, Washington, is suing Purdue Pharma, saying the drugmaker failed to prevent or to inform authorities about illegal diversion of the addictive drug, OxyContin, to the black market in the 2000s.

The result, according to Everett officials, was an epidemic of opioid drug addiction and crime that continues to plague the city.

Federal Reserve Raises Short-Term Interest Rates

By editor • Mar 15, 2017

The Federal Reserve raised short-term interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point, a widely expected move.

The central bank also indicated that most of its voting members continue to forecast two more rate increases will occur this year.

Here & Now‘s Meghna Chakrabarti speaks with Michael Regan (@Reganonymous) of Bloomberg News about the impact of Wednesday’s decision.

Snowfall Totals Downgraded Along Much Of East Coast As Storm Tracks Farther West

By editor • Mar 14, 2017

Thousands of flights have been canceled, schools and businesses are closed and people are being told to stay off the roads Tuesday as a large storm makes its way up the East coast.

Snowfall totals have been significantly downgraded for New York City — from 18-plus inches to just 4 to 6 — as the storm tracks further west than initially forecast. Other parts of New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine and Vermont, among others, are still set to get 1 to 2 feet of snow.

When Juveniles Are Held In Adult Jails

By editor • Mar 13, 2017

Every day in the United States there are approximately 20,000 juveniles held in detention facilities. The average length of stay is about 20 days. That may not seem like much, but research shows even a short time behind bars can have a major impact on a young person’s life.

Benedictine Monk Saves Ancient Manuscripts, Most Recently From ISIS

By editor • Mar 13, 2017

Father Columba Stewart (@ColumbaStewart) has spent more than a decade traveling to some of the world’s most dangerous regions — Iraq, Syria, the Balkans — to find and preserve manuscripts, many of them centuries old. And now, with the rise of ISIS, his work has become more urgent than ever.

For Every Homeowner That Moves To California, More Than 2 Leave

By editor • Sep 26, 2016

Homeowners have been fleeing high-cost states like California for cheaper states like Arizona and Texas for some time, but the impact of high real estate prices is striking, according to an analysis by the company CoreLogic.

It says that for every buyer moving to California, more than two are leaving.

Here & Now‘s Robin Young speaks with Jill Schlesinger of CBS News about the latest data.

Guest

Remembering Pulitzer Prize-Winning Playwright Edward Albee

By editor • Sep 26, 2016

Edward Albee, author of such plays as “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” died on Sept. 16. He was 88.

Albee won three Tony Awards during his career — including one for lifetime achievement — as well as three Pulitzer Prizes.

Here & Now‘s Robin Young spoke with Albee in 2007 about his advice for aspiring writers and his thoughts on the future of American theater.

Guest

Edward Albee, Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright. Copyright 2016 NPR. To see more, visit NPR.

Airbnb Launches Ad Campaign Aimed At Countering Criticism

By editor • Sep 26, 2016

Airbnb, the global home-sharing company, has begun airing ads that show how becoming an Airbnb host has changed peoples’ lives for the better.

The campaign is aimed at countering ads run by hospitality industry groups that claim Airbnb is getting rich while shrinking the local housing market, and avoiding paying taxes that the rest of the industry must pay.

Here & Now‘s Peter O’Dowd talks with media analyst John Carroll about how the campaigns are being received.

Guest

Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump Go Head To Head In First Presidential Debate

By editor • Sep 26, 2016

The highly anticipated first presidential debate begins Monday at 9 p.m. ET at Hofstra University on Long Island.

While all eyes are on Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, moderator Lester Holt will share some of the spotlight. Both campaigns and the general public are curious to see how strict the NBC anchor will be when it comes to fact-checking the candidates.

NPR’s Domenico Montanaro joins Here & Now’s Robin Young to preview tonight’s debate.

Long-Sought Peace Accord Is Signed In Colombia

By editor • Sep 26, 2016

The Colombian government and the rebel group known as FARC took a step toward peace Monday when they signed an accord. It’s designed to end 50 years of bloody conflict that has killed more than 220,000 people and displaced millions more.

FARC is a Marxist group, and the United States backed Colombia’s military campaign against the rebels.

Here & Now‘s Peter O’Dowd hears more about the accord and what it means from Latin America scholar Cynthia Arnson.

Guest

Making His Debut At 63, Bluesman Says 'Age Don't Mean A Thing'

By editor • Sep 26, 2016

Robert Finley is not your average new artist.

At 63, the north Louisiana blues and soul musician has already lived a lifetime. He served as a helicopter serviceman in the Army in the ’70s and worked as a carpenter for decades until he started to lose his sight a few years ago.

Unable to continue working, Finley fell back on his dream: singing and playing guitar.

What To Do If You're Struggling To Sleep

By editor • Sep 26, 2016

Many people have trouble sleeping, at least sometimes. Symptoms of insomnia are the most common sleep disorder and affect about one third of Americans at some point in their lives.

But chronic insomnia — when trouble sleeping persists for more than a month, and alters how you feel and perform during the day — is different, and affects about 8 to 10 percent of Americans.

So what should you do when you’re having trouble sleeping?

Trump, Clinton Gird For 'Super Bowl Of Debates'

By editor • Sep 26, 2016

Viewership numbers for tonight’s first presidential debate are expected to reach record-breaking levels, as Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton go head to head onstage together for the first time.

Political commentators Paris Dennard and Angela Rye join Here & Now‘s Robin Young and Peter O’Dowd to discuss what to watch for tonight.

Guests

This 89-Year-Old Is Walking To Make Juneteenth A National Holiday

By editor • Sep 26, 2016

Opal Lee, an 89-year-old woman from Fort Worth, Texas, is on a mission to make Juneteenth a nationally observed holiday.

Juneteenth, or June 19, 1865, was the day word arrived in Texas that slavery had been abolished. To bring attention to her cause, she’s on a symbolic walk to Washington.

Christopher Connelly from KERA in Dallas reports.

Reporter

In Boston, Opioid Hack-Athon Generates Novel Ideas To Fight Crisis

By editor • Sep 26, 2016

America is experiencing an unprecedented opioid epidemic.

On average, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says 78 people die from an opioid-related overdose every day. Prevention and treatment are key to fighting the crisis and new, innovative ideas in both areas are gaining traction in Boston after an opioid “hack-athon.”

Here & Now’s Robin Young speaks with two of the hack-athon winners, Scott Strode and Aubri Esters, about the impact they hope to have with their projects.

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