Midday

A look at the top stories of the region with the reporters who covered them. This hour, Rep.

NPR media correspondent David Folkenflik talks about the latest Pew Research Center’s State of the News Media Report; the ramifications of the Bradley Manning-WikiLeaks case; the canceling of NPR’s Talk of the Nation; the debut of MSNBC’s All In with Chris Hayes, and Rupert Murdoch’s efforts to buy the Tribune Co. newspapers, including The Baltimore Sun. 

A sweeping gun reform legislation that received national attention, repeal of the death penalty, a significant increase in the gasoline tax and billion-dollar funding for Baltimore City school construction were the big pieces of legislation in the 2013 General Assembly session. We wrap up with Herb Smith, political science professor McDaniel College; Barry Rascovar, communications consultant and political writer whose column appears in the Community Times; Karen Hosler, WYPR Statehouse reporter; and Sen.

Film critics Linda DeLibero and Christopher Llewellyn Reed look back at the career and contributions of the late film critic Rober Ebert, who died this week of cancer at the age of 70. Also, an appreciation of three stars born on April 5 -- Gregory Peck, Bette Davis and Spencer Tracy.

A look at the top stories of the region with the reporters who covered them. Special guest: Andor Skotnes, author of "A New Deal For All? Race And Class Struggles in Depression-Era Baltimore."

Under President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, enacted during the Great Depression, when more than half of the nation’s senior citizens were in poverty. Ira Katznelson, professor of political science and history at Columbia, expands our definition of the New Deal by examining the domestic and global forces behind it. Katznelson is the author of Fear Itself: The New Deal and The Origins of Our Time.

The Congressional Budget Office thinks so. Currently, earned income in excess of $113,700 is entirely exempt from the 6.2 percent payroll tax that funds Social Security. Removing it, says the CBO, would stabilize the Social Security system. Others believe means testing makes more sense.

An encore broadcast of Dan’s interview with Dr. Eben Alexander, author of  "Proof of Heaven: a Neurosurgeon’s Journey Into the Afterlife." Alexander recounts his near death experience, and the ways in which it altered his beliefs regarding consciousness and heaven. Also, Linda Hoy, author of "The Effect: Where Science Meets Spirituality," explores the ways in which science might explain the afterlife, and the power of human spirituality. 

A review of top stories of the region with the reporters who covered them. This hour, WYPR senior political analyst Fraser Smith weighs in on Dr. Ben Carson and his recent stumble on gay marriage as he contemplates a run for political office, and we'll discuss the potential political comeback of former Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon. Plus, WYPR’s Karen Hosler gives us her final report on the 2013 Maryland General Assembly. 

This week the Supreme Court considers the issue of gay marriage; on Tuesday the Court heard opening arguments concerning Proposition Eight in California, which prohibits same-sex couples from  marrying in that state, and today the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is on the docket. Midday on the Supreme Court and gay marriage today at noon.