Monday, April 21
Noon-1:00
It’s make or break time for Hillary Clinton in Tuesday’s presidential primary in Pennsylvania; we’ll talk with journalists Jean Marbella, Columnist for the Baltimore Sun; Cynthia Tucker, Editor of the opinion section of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution; Nell McCormack Abom, Host of Smart Talk on WITF-TV in Harrisburg, PA; and Karen Hosler, WYPR news contributor.

1:00-2:00
Finding a job in straight time – how a man answers the question he finds on almost every job application: Have you been convicted of a crime? And employers talk about the ups and downs of putting ex-offenders to work. Taking part in the discussion are Darryl Russell, an ex-offender, and Mary Sloat, Assistant Director for the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development.


Tuesday, April 22
Noon-1:00
In honor of Earth Day, we’ll look at the issue of biofuels: the promise they may hold to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and whether they truly help or harm the environment.  We'll talk with Tim Searchinger, Visiting Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton, and Lisa Keunnen, Director of Public Resources for Catholic Relief Services.

1:00-2:00
A number of problems are facing the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore.  Facilities are deteriorating, workers are underpaid, money is running short, and the national accrediting agency might withdraw its approval.  We’ll discuss what can be done to save the zoo with Don Hutchinson, President of the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore.


Wednesday, April 23
Noon-1:00
We’ll discuss the results of yesterday’s Pennsylvania Primary with a panel of journalists, including Paul West, National Correspondent for the Baltimore Sun, and Catherine Lucey, Reporter for the Philadelphia Daily News.

1:00-2:00
With May sweeps right around the corner and rumors of Katie Couric making an early departure from the CBS Evening News, we’ll discuss the latest news in the world of television with David Zurawik, television critic for the Baltimore Sun.


Thursday, April 24
Noon-1:00
We'll discuss the ongoing issue of whether slots can save the horse racing industry in Maryland with Aaron Meisner, Chairman of Stop Slots Maryland, and Alan Foreman, General Counsel for the MD Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association.

1:00-2:00
Someone’s in the kitchen with Dan and it’s WYPR’s own Radio Kitchen hosts, Al Spoler and Jerry Pellegrino. Along with Donna Crivello, Owner of Donna’s Café and Coffee Bar, they’ll take the first "Midday Chef’s Challenge."

Midday

April 14 – April 17

 

Monday, April 14

Noon-1:00
Dan talks with Rev. Frank Reid of Bethel AME Church, to talk about Barack Obama and the national conversation he believes we need to have on race.

1:00-2:00
The documentary King Corn takes an in-depth look at the subsidized crop driving our fast food nation. We’ll talk with Curt Ellis and Aaron Woolf, two of the filmmakers behind King Corn.


Tuesday, April 15

Listen to Tuesday's complete show:

Noon-1:00
While much has been written about childhood obesity, there are a number of young people who are being pushed to the extreme to excel in sports. We’ll examine the physical and psychological aspects of youth sports with Dr. Andrew Cosgarea, Director Division of Sports Medicine and Shoulder Surgery at Johns Hopkins; James McGee, Sports Psychologist; and Dan Doyle, Author The Encyclopedia of Sports Parenting.

 

1:00-2:00
Many parents hope an athletic scholarship will alleviate the high cost of their child’s college education.  Kim Clark, senior writer for the US News and World Report; Mike Buchanan, basketball coach and trainer; Meridy Glenn, former head coach Univ. of Cincinatti women’s soccer team; and John Wallpher, Regional Scouting Director for CSA PrepStar, a national scouting service for high school athletes, will discuss the realities of college athletic scholarships.

Wednesday, April 16

Noon-1:00
Michael Rabuck’s drug addiction caused him to commit crimes which resulted in his being sentenced to 25 years in prison. The availability of drugs in prison eventually lead to his death. Dan will talk with Rabuck’s mother, Amy Stealey, about her son’s plight during this hour.  We’ll also talk with Naomi Long, Director of the Washington Metro office for the Drug Policy Alliance.

1:00-2:00
This hour we’ll talk with Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, Commissioner Baltimore City Health Department, about the use of buprenorphine as an alternative to addiction treatment.


Thursday, April 17

Noon-1:00
Teen courts are a means of saving teens from a possible life of crime by pulling them out of the juvenile justice system by going before a jury of their peers. We’ll discuss teen courts with Dr. Rick Miller, Head of the Citizen Law Related Education Program and Diane Leasure, Administrative Judge in Howard County Circuit Court and heads the Citizenship Law Related Education Program.
If you are interested in volunteering to be a teen court jury member, you can call (410) 706-5361 for more information.

1:00-2:00
Dan discusses the educational issues confronting Maryland school students with Dr. Nancy Grasmick, Maryland State Schools Superintendent.

Midday

April 7 – April 10

Monday, April 7

Noon-1:00
It’s the final day of the 2008 Maryland legislature better known as Sine Die. We’ll talk with Andy Green, City/State editor for the Sun and Karen Hosler, WYPR news contributor.

1:00 – 2:00
We’ll discuss the little known history of African-Americans in aviation which is chronicled in the book Black Wings: Courageous Stories of African-Americans in Aviation and Space History by our guest Von Hardesty.


Tuesday, April 8
Noon-1:00
We’ll discuss the latest news from Washington and the campaign trail with David Nitkin, White House correspondent for the Baltimore Sun.

 

1:00-2:00
All the world’s a stage this hour as we talk about theater happenings here in Baltimore and New York with Charles Shubow, Theatre Critic for Broadwayworld.com.


Wednesday, April 9

Noon-1:00
Dan talks with David Wood of the Baltimore Sun who’s embedded with the military in Kandahar Province about current U.S. military tactics in Afghanistan.

1:00-2:00

This hour we’ll talk with Annapolis resident and former Navy Reservist Mark Feffer about his work with Operation Baghdad Pups which brings unit mascots home from Iraq. Mark’s story is detailed in the book 44 Days Out of Kandahar by Christine Sullivan. Mark and Christine will join us this hour along with Don Jestes, who was a scout dog handler with a 101st Airborne in Vietnam in 1968 & 69.

Thursday, April 10
Noon-1:00
Recent news stories reveal the economy is the one of the leading issues on the minds of Americans. In addition, 81% of Americans feel the country is on the wrong track. We’ll discuss the economy with Jay Hancock, business columnist for the Sun, and Anirban Basu, Chairman Chief Executive Officer of Sage Policy Group and host of WYPR’s Morning Economic Forecast.

1:00-2:00
In his new book The Big Squeeze, Steven Greenhouse, workplace correspondent for The New York Times, examines the disturbing trends that are hurting tens of millions of American workers. We’ll talk with Steven Greenhouse this hour.

 

Midday

March 31-April 3

Monday, March 31
Noon-1:00

Pip and Zastrow: the story of two men from Annapolis who crossed racial boundaries in the midst of segregation to become lifelong friends against the backdrop of the civil rights movement. We’ll talk with Victoria Bruce, producer and director of the documentary.

1:00 – 2:00
Dan talks with Senator Ben Cardin about the nation’s mortgage crisis, global warming, the war in Iraq, and more.

Tuesday, April 1

Noon-1:00
Generations grew up getting vaccinated for measles, mumps, and polio. Now a number of parents are questioning the safety of vaccines. Some critics see this as a risk to public health. We’ll discuss the fear of vaccines with Saad Omer, Assistant Scientist at the Johns-Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Dr. Neal Halsey, a pediatrician at the Johns-Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Dr. Tim Doran, Chairman of the Department of Pediatrics at GBMC.

 

1:00-2:00
This week WYPR is airing the radio special 1968: The Fire Last Time. This hour we’ll talk with members of the WYPR news team about the special and the Baltimore riots of 1968.

Wednesday, April 2

Noon-1:00
Congratulations! College acceptance letters are in the mail. Now you get to deal with the confusion of financial aid forms and rising tuitions. To figure out how you’re going to pay for college, Dan will talk with Kim Clark who writes about higher education for the US News and World Report and will discuss the cost of college.

 

1:00-2:00
The Maryland SPCA’s 13^th Annual March for the Animals event will take place later in April. During this hour we’ll discuss the event and care for pets with Aileen Gabbey, Executive Director of the Maryland SPCA and Dr. Estelle Ward, a veterinarian. Also taking part in the discussion is Don Jestes, a dog handler in the Vietnam War .

Thursday, April 3

Noon-1:00
2008 marks the 75^th anniversary of the New Deal. We’ll talk with author Nick Taylor about his book American Made: the Enduring Legacy of the WPA, When FDR Put the Nation to Work about the enduring legacy of the WPA.

 

1:00-2:00

A recent cover story in the City Paper told us all about Maryland’s signature dish: the crab cake. We’ll talk with Henry Hong about the history of the crab cake, how they’re made, and the best spots in Baltimore to get your hands on this favorite seafood treat.

Midday

Monday, March 24

Noon-1:00

John McCain is the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. We’ll talk with Robert Timberg, author of John McCain: An American Odyssey, a biography of McCain which has been the basic resource for many McCain profiles.

 

1:00 – 2:00

Since 1968, when his Baltimore Essays first began appearing in the Baltimore Evening Sun, Gil Sandler has been chronicling the stories of Baltimore and Baltimoreans in the paper and on the radio. Gil Sandler talks with Dan about his forthcoming book Wartime Baltimore and the upcoming celebration of Gil Sandler’s Baltimore at the Baltimore Museum of Industry.


Tuesday, March 25
Noon-1:00
With Wall St. bumping through the credit crisis and consumers seeing higher prices at the grocery and gas pump, we’ll look at the leading economic issues facing the country. First we’ll talk about the looming recession with John Irons of the Economic Policy Institute and Kevin McIntyre, Associate Professor of Business and Economics at McDaniel College.

1:00-2:00
The real estate boom has gone bust and this hour we’ll discuss the effect foreclosures are having on homeowners with Jay Hancock, business writer for the Baltimore Sun and Kathleen Skullney, Attorney for the Foreclosure Prevention Act at Legal Aid.

Wednesday, March 26

Noon-1:00
Last week marked the 5^th Anniversary of the war in Iraq. During this hour Dan will discuss the casualties of war, the civilian death toll due to the war in Iraq with Les Roberts, Associate Professor at the Program in forced migrations & health at the Columbia University and Gilbert Burnham, Professor of International Health at Johns-Hopkins Bloomberg School of Health.

 

1:00-2:00
Best known for playing rock legend Richie Valens in the movie La Bamba, actor Lou Diamond Phillips is now touring the country as King Arthur in Lerner and Loewe’s classic musical Camelot. We’ll talk with the actor about his life and career during this hour.


Thursday,  March 27
Noon-1:00
With BRAC (Base Realignment and Closure Act) expected to bring more jobs and residents to Maryland what will the impact be on the state. Dan talks with Lt. Governor Anthony Brown about his work overseeing the state’s preparedness.

1:00-2:00
Lonely cities, dark streets, tough as nails detectives and dangerous femme fatales; these are some of the classic elements of film noir. We’ll discuss some of the classic film noirs and the books that inspired them with Kevin Johnson, author of the book The Dark Page: Books That Inspired American Film Noir and film historian Greg Mank.

 

Midday

March 17-March 20, 2008

Monday, March 17

Noon-1:00
We look at the issue of consumer directed health insurance plans with Greg Scandlen, Executive Director of Consumers for Healthcare Choices and Jonathan Weiner, Prof. of Health Policy and Management at Johns-Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

1:00 – 2:00
How’s your vocabulary? Have a paper and pen handy and get ready to take our dictionary quiz as the English language approaches its millionth word. We’ll talk with Paul Payack who runs the website and language consulting business Global Language Monitor.


Tuesday, March 18

Noon-1:00

The first of two shows about different kinds of informants, first the public serving whistleblower. Dan talks with George Tarburton a Maryland police officer who lost his job after reporting lapses in security around the Port of Baltimore.

 

1:00-2:00  Ethan Brown, author of a book called Snitch; Informants, Cooperators and the Corruption of Justice, argues that harsh minimum sentencing laws have lead prosecutors to rely to heavily on unreliable informants and too little on police work. Dan will talk with Ethan Brown during this hour.


Wednesday, March 19

Noon-1:00
What happens to discarded cell phones?  We’ll talk with Seth Heine, President and CEO of Collective Good a charitable resource for recycling spare cell phones in an environmentally and socially responsible manner. Also taking part in the conversation is Kevin Harrison, Professor of Environmental Science and Policy at McDaniel College.

1:00-2:00

With the writer’s strike a thing of the past new episodes of your favorite television shows are finally airing. Baltimore Sun television critic David Zurawik stops by for his monthly take on television to update us on what’s new in the world of television.


Thursday, March 20

Noon-1:00

We’ll talk with Pastor William Calhoun of the Trinity Baptist Church about Barack Obama’s speech on his assessment of race in America and his pastor’s controversial remarks

1:00-2:00
Boomeritis is defined as injuries to older amateur athletes, especially those who are part of the Baby Boom. We’ll talk with Dr. Paul Asdourian, an orthopedic surgeon who’s been treating a lot of patients with Boomeritis. We’ll also talk with Dr. Bill Howard about the rise in Boomers using HGH and testosterone in an attempt to fight father time.

Midday
March 10-March 13, 2008

Monday, March 10
Noon-1:00
Dan talks with feminist icon Gloria Steinem about gender politics and the presidential campaign.

1:00 – 2:00
Regardless of nationality, as soon as a student completes 8th grade, they have just two million minutes to prepare for college and ultimately a career. We’ll discuss the documentary Two Million Minutes with Robert Compton, Executive Producer of the documentary and Neal Ahrendt, a student featured in the documentary.

Tuesday, March 11
Noon-1:00
Opponents of the death penalty in Maryland have another reason to argue against it…it costs more than a life term. We’ll discuss the issue with Jane Henderson, Executive Director of Maryland Citizens Against State Executions and John Roman, a researcher at the Urban Institute.

1:00-2:00
With only $25 dollars and a few belongings Adam Shepard set out in search of the American dream. He’ll talk with Dan about his search which is detailed in the book Scratch Beginnings: Me, $25 and the Search for the American Dream. 


Wednesday, March 12
Noon-1:00
We’ll discuss the results of the primaries in Ohio and Texas with UMBC Professor Tom Schaller and Richard Cross, Communications Director for the Republicans House Financial Services Committee.

1:00-2:00
The latest technology is the focus of the hour when Dan talks with David Modell, producer of the film U23D and Mario Armstrong, host of WYPR’s Digital Café.


Thursday, March 13
Noon-1:00
Dan discusses the week’s local and national news with Karen Hosler, former Sun editorial writer and Brian Morton who writes the Political Animal column for the City Paper.

1:00-2:00
Someone’s in the kitchen with Dan and it’s Al Spoler and Jerry Pellegrino, hosts of WYPR’s Radio Kitchen.

Midday

March 3-March 6, 2008

Monday, March 3
Noon-1:00 For the first time in US history, more than one in every 100 adults are in jail or in prison. Dan discusses this issue with Sheila Betty, Executive Director of the Justice Policy Institute, Adam Gelb, Dir. of the Public Safety Performance Prospects of the Pew Center on the States and Jason Perkins-Cohen, Executive Dir. Job Opportunities Task Force.

1:00 – 2:00
How does one hundred years ago compare to the present? We’ll find out when we look at the similarities of one hundred years ago and today with Jim Rasenberger author of the book America 1908. 


Tuesday, March 4
Noon-1:00
Is it okay to love Wal-Mart, the nation’s largest private retailer, now that they’re working to reduce America’s energy use and improve its health care system? We’ll discus the issue with Charles Fishman, business writer for Fast Company magazine and David Nassar, Executive Director of Wal-Mart Watch.

1:00-2:00
It’s National Grammar Day and we celebrate with a feast of deplorable grammar. Join Dan and his guests John McIntyre, Copy editor for the Baltimore Sun and Martha Brockenbrough, Humorist and author of Things That Make Us Sic who’ll tell whether we should feel bad, or is it badly, about our lack of good grammar.


Wednesday, March 5
Noon-1:00
We’ll discuss the results of the primaries in Ohio and Texas with UMBC Professor Tom Schaller and Richard Cross, Communications Director for the Republicans House Financial Services Committee.

1:00-2:00
Nothing says lovin’ like something from the oven and there’ll be love in the studio when Warren Brown, host of the Food Network’s Sugar Rush, and owner of Cakelove bakery, stops by to discuss all things cake.


Thursday, March 6
Noon-1:00
Over the past year, Howard County has promoted a Choose Civility Movement. We’ll talk with Johns Hopkins professor PM Forni whose book on civility inspired the movement.

1:00-2:00
There’s growing concern amongst pediatricians, mental health experts, educators and environmentalists about the lack of unstructured play for children. We’ll find out where the children play with Joan Almon from the Alliance for Childhood.

Midday

February 25-February 28, 2008

Monday, February 25

Noon-1:00

Dan interviews Reverend Jim Wallis about the change in the evangelical right. Wallis is the editor of Sojourners magazine and author of the book The Great Awakening; Reviving Faith & Politics in a Post-Religious Right America.

1:00 – 2:00

The 80th Academy Awards were handed out last night. Dan discusses the big winners and losers with Violet Glaze film critic for the City Paper and Michael Sragow film critic for the Baltimore Sun.


Tuesday, February 26
Noon-1:00
Many people first became aware of Barack Obama when he delivered a speech at the Democratic national convention. We’ll talk with people who knew the Senator before he emerged on the national scene. Taking part in the discussion are Harvard Law Professor Kenneth Mack and Chicago Tribune reporter David Mendell.

1:00-2:00
What began as a community art project for Frank Warren has turned into a cultural phenomenon. Warren hosts the blog Post Secret which features post cards he’s received from strangers divulging their deepest, and sometimes most intimate, secrets.

Wednesday, February 27
Noon-1:00
The presidential candidates have health care plans but which plans are realistic?  Can consumers take back health care? We’ll discuss the issue with Greg Scandlen, President of Consumers for Health Care Choices and Jonathan Weiner Prof. of Health Policy and Management at Johns-Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

1:00-2:00
With the writers strike over, your favorite television series are back in production. Baltimore Sun television critic David Zurawik joins us this hour. He’ll update us on the remaining TV season and what we might expect in the future on the networks and cable.


Thursday, February 28
Noon-1:00
Dan talks with WYPR’s Fraser Smith and former Sun editorial writer Karen Hosler about Maryland’s brewing slots war, along with other local and national stories.

1:00-2:00
Since taking the baton as music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Marin Alsop has brought new composers and innovative programs to the concert hall. A new program called CSI: Beethoven takes a forensic look at the composer.

You can contact midday by sending your email to midday@wypr.org.
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Midday is produced by Marcus Charleston and Brett Keller