2006 Broadcasts

December 31, 2006
Best of the Third Coast International Audio Festival
Listen: Part 1 | Part 2
Every year, this two-hour broadcast features the world's best new radio documentaries, representing radio at its finest — moving, insightful, surprising and sometimes even life-changing.

December 24, 2006
In the Loop: Lighting up the Holidays
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Through stories, music, interviews and humor, host Jeff Horwich and guests look at how the light and darkness shape our holiday traditions and state-of-mind. In the Loop will take you from the Star of Bethlehem to Seasonal Affective Disorder to personal stories on how to appreciate the darkness on this darkest week of the year.

December 17, 2006
Hanukkah Lights
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"Hanukkah Lights" — a perennial holiday favorite — now in its second decade on our air. Four authors explore Hanukkah traditions in original stories commissioned expressly for the program. Hosted by Murray Horwitz and Susan Stamberg.

December 10, 2006
The McCarthy Tapes
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This new documentary on U.S. Senator Eugene McCarthy includes audio tape from his 1968 campaign and oral history interviews that have not been broadcast before. It's a look beyond the mythology that surrounds McCarthy — showing the Minnesota Democrat at his best and his worst during a chaotic 1968 presidential campaign.

December 3, 2006
Rabbi Michael Lerner
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The heavy Republican losses in the midterm elections has led some analysts to wonder whether the influence of the "religious right" on American politics has waned. Rabbi Michael Lerner is one of those who think the time has come for a "spiritual progressive movement" in America. Lerner is the author of "The Left Hand of God: Taking our Country Back from the Religious Right." He explained his vision in a recent Minneapolis speech

November 26, 2006
Patricia Hampl and Dan Chouinard
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Author Patricia Hampl in an audio essay on St. Paul and Minnesota's cultural history over the last 125 years. She'll look at the great artists, writers and musicians that have stopped here, and describe her own experiences and ambitions as a writer who was born and has stayed here. Pianist Dan Chouinard provides the musical underscore.

November 19, 2006
In the Loop: Diplomacy Begins at Home
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Host Jeff Horwich welcomes house band The Smarts and a number of special guests to the UBS Forum for this episode, "Diplomacy Begins At Home." Through stories, music, interviews and humor In The Loop looks at diplomatic developments, from North Korea to Capitol Hill to a family of five.

November 12, 2006
American RadioWorks: Reports from a Warming Planet
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"Reports from a Warming Planet" takes you to parts of the world where global warming is already making changes to life and landscape... and demonstrates how climate change is no longer restricted to scientific modeling about the future. It's happening now.

November 5, 2006
Word for Word: David McCullough
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"Why is history so important?" That's just one of the questions that Pulitzer Prize-winning historian David McCullough answered in an appearance Aug. 5 at the Aspen Institute in Aspen, Colo. McCullough discussed his best-selling biographies of John Adams and Harry Truman and his most recent book, "1776."

October 29, 2006
Katherine Lanpher and Chan Poling
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Former Minnesota Public Radio host Katherine Lanpher returns to the Fitzgerald Theater in a freewheeling one-woman show exploring her life and loves and her experiences since moving from St. Paul to New York City. Lanpher recounts many of the stories found in her new book, "Leap Days: Chronicles of a Midlife Move" with special guest Chan Poling providing musical counterpoint and songs.

October 22, 2006
In The Loop
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Why bother to vote? Why stick your neck out by running for office against a "safe" incumbent? Why give money to a political candidate? Why do those people in political ads sound like they're trying to scare us? Why is it just a little unsettling to see a mirror of ourselves in a race for student council?

October 15, 2006
Neil Simon
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Neil Simon has already won almost every award a playwright can win, but he'll also receive the Kennedy Center's prestigious Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. One of Simon's Tony and Pulitzer-Prize winning plays, "Lost in Yonkers," is now playing at the Guthrie Theater. You'll hear Neil Simon in a recent conversation with Guthrie Artisitic Director Joe Dowling.

October 8, 2006
Talking Volumes with David Treuer
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Talking Volumes kicks off its season opener with Minnesota writer David Treuer. His latest novel, "The Translation of Dr. Appelles" is about a solitary translator who finds love in an unexpected place. While the novel has won praise from the critics, it's Treuer's book of essays that has really stirred up the literary community. Hear David Treuer in conversation with "Midmorning" host Kerri Miller.

October 1, 2006
The Grapes of Wrath
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The Midmorning Book Club returns with an exploration of John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath." This classic novel encapsulates the struggle of migrants in their search for work and justice after the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl that tore them from their homes. Join Midmorning host Kerri Miller for new insights into this American literary gem.

September 24, 2006
The Loop
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The Loop returns with "Crime Hits Home." Concern about crime in the Twin Cities has been making news all summer ... and we each respond differently when crime touches our lives. Through stories, interviews, music, poetry and even humor, The Loop will explore our reactions to criminal encounters.

September 17, 2006 (8–10 pm)
Cokie Roberts on Politics
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Long time NPR political analyst Cokie Roberts talks about election year news and her role as a Washington insider. Cokie Roberts is Senior news analyst at NPR. She's also the author of "Founding Mothers: The Women Who Raised Our Nation."

September 10, 2006 (8–10 pm)
The Price of Security with Ted Koppel
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A live town hall meeting from the National War College in Washington, D.C. This two-hour special examines the balance between security and liberty in the U.S. in the five years after the attacks of September 11, 2001. Joining Ted Koppel will be current and former Bush Administration officials, former Pentagon commanders, plus privacy and civil liberties experts.

September 3, 2006
Rebuilding Biloxi, One Year After Katrina
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This week marked the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and America focused on New Orleans, and on how devastating the flooding was, and how slowly the city is in picking up the pieces. But 90 miles east, in the city of Biloxi on Mississippi's gulf coast, a dramatically different story is unfolding.

August 27, 2006
A conversation with Lynne Cheney
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She is, of course, married to Vice President Dick Cheney ... but she is also a very accomplished woman in her own right. Cheney's authored nine books—from a critique of post-modern philosophy to a children's alphabet book. She's also a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and the former chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Cheney gave a speech at the Aspen Institute on Aug. 16.

August 20, 2006
Terrorist Plots
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The recent terrorism plot uncovered by British authorities is precisely what the chairmen of the 9/11 commission say they are worried about. Co-chairs Thomas Kean and Lee Hamilton describe their concerns in their new book, "Without Precedent: The Inside Story of the 9/11 Commission" and in conversation with Midmorning host Kerri Miller.

August 13, 2006
Philip Brunelle
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Minnesota Public Radio Presents a conversation with famed choir master Philip Brunelle, founder and artistic director of the VocalEssence choral group. Brunelle talks with Midmorning host Kerri Miller about the state of vocal music, and his latest project to find and perform American choral music from the Revolutionary War era to the present.

August 6, 2006
Mason Jennings
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The Minneapolis-based singer/songwriter has a new CD, his first on a major label. It's called "Boneclouds." He stopped by our studios this week to perform some songs and talk about his career and what inspires him with Midmorning host Kerri Miller.

July 30, 2006
Early Childhood Education
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Early childhood education has received a lot of attention in recent years from politicians on the left and the right. Proponents argue kids do better if their formal education starts before kindergarten — a claim backed by many studies. The Minneapolis-based conservative think-tank Center of the American Experiment organized a forum recently on that topic, here are the results.

July 23, 2006
Bush addresses NAACP | Georgia Congressman John Lewis
Listen: Bush at the NAACP | John Lewis
It's been a week of firsts for President Bush. On Wednesday, the president cast his first veto as president, and on Thursday, Bush delivered his first speech at the NAACP convention as president. Bush is the first president in 80 years to go his full first term without addressing the group.

U.S. Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., spoke at the 16th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Breakfast in Minneapolis earlier this spring. Lewis was the chairman of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee during the height of the civil rights movement.

July 16, 2006
The Indigo Girls
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Minnesota Public Radio Presents Amy Ray and Emily Saliers, better known as the Indigo Girls. They met as kids in a Georgia elementary school and by high school they were performing together in high school. Their first album release came out in 1985. Twenty years and many CDs later, they're known for their activism almost as much as their music.

July 9, 2006
Katie Couric and Bob Schieffer
Listen: Part 1 | Part 2
Katie Couric was a successful host of the "Today" show, but anchoring one of the network evening news programs is still thought to be the top job in broadcast journalism ... so her move to CBS is generating much interest. Katie Couric and Bob Schieffer appeared this week at the Aspen Ideas Festival to talk about the transition at CBS and the future of TV news.

July 2, 2006
Verlyn Klinkenborg
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New York Times Editorial Board member and author Verlyn Klinkenborg recently joined Minnesota Public Radio's Kate Moos for a conversation about the writer's life, the state of the family farm, and his new novel, "Timothy: Or Notes of An Abject Reptile."

June 25, 2006
American Humorist Series: Calvin Trillin
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Though Calvin Trillin is perhaps best known for his writings about food and the art of eating it, he has also written features, comic verse and several books of fiction. A staff writer for The New Yorker since 1963, Trillin has also written for The Nation and Time, and is the author of numerous books, including Remembering Denny, Messages from My Father and Tepper Isn't Going Out. Trillin was featured as part of the Series of American Humorists at the Fitzgerald Theater on June 17, 2006.

June 18, 2006
Vietnam and the Presidency
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Vietnam tested four American presidents, took the lives of more than 58,000 Americans, and more than one million Vietnamese. Ealier this year, the John F. Kennedy Library hosted a landmark conference to discuss the lessons and legacy of the Vietnam War. At a time when the United States debates what to do in Iraq, these lessons are more relevant than ever.

June 11, 2006
Highlights from Mambo Italiano at the Fitzgerald Theater
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Continuing down a side alley of last year’s bicycling travelogue "Cafe Europa," Dan Chouinard and friends Prudence Johnson, Peter Ostroushko, Carlo Cicala, Paul Peterson, Jim tenBensel and Dan Dressen invite you on another European musical ramble. This time they go in search of the Italian roots of American popular music, from peasant songs and opera to postwar big-band hits to Antonio Bennett and Concetta Francis.

June 4, 2006
American RadioWorks: Married to the Military
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The United States is making huge demands on its military people, the toughest since the Vietnam War. But most soldiers during Vietnam were young, single men. Today, in the all-volunteer military, about half of all service people are married with children, so the burdens of fighting these wars are shared back home.

May 28, 2006
Francis Fukuyama | Korea: The Unfinished War
Listen: Francis Fukuyama | Korea: The Unfinished War
A Commonwealth Club appearance by Professor Francis Fukuyama. He says neo-conservatives in the US have been some of the strongest supporters of the Iraq war, but some are now having second thoughts. Then at seven, the American RadioWorks documentary, Korea: The Unfinished War.

May 21, 2006
Darfur: Genocide and Global Intervention | Stage Series of American Humorists: Ian Frazier
Listen: Genocide and Global Intervention | Ian Frazier
A report from the America Abroad Series called "Darfur: Genocide and Global Intervention" which looks at the situation in Sudan and at past genocides in Europe, Cambodia, Rwanda and elsewhere. Then at seven, an hour with author and humorist Ian Frazier—recorded at the Fitzgerald Theatre in St. Paul.

May 14, 2006
After Welfare and The Loop
Listen: After Welfare | The Loop
An encore broadcast of the American RadioWorks documentary, "After Welfare." Then at seven, The Loop returns and the topic is immigration. We'll bring you some voices that range outside the usual coverage... plus humor, music, commentaries and exciting interviews.

May 7, 2006
Bankrupt: Maxed Out In America and American Humorist Series with Peter Schickele
Listen: Bankrupt | Peter Schickele
At 6 pm, an encore broadcast of the American RadioWorks documentary, Bankrupt: Maxed Out In America. Then at 7 pm, The Stage Series of American Humorists returns with the creator of P.D.Q. Bach—Peter Schickele—in "What's So Funny About Music?"

April 30, 2006
Stage Sessions: The Stories That Haunt Us
Listen: Part 1 | Part 2
Tune in for a "Stage Session" with host Heather McElhatton and her special guest, best-selling author Sebastian Junger. It's a night of stories that only get bigger with time—The Titanic, the Loch Ness Monster, the Edmund Fitzgerald, the Bermuda Triangle and the Boston Strangler—plus musical accompaniment from several of the state's best groups.

April 23, 2006
Polio: An American Story
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Fifty years ago, polio was a dreaded killer around the world. Two dedicated researchers contributed to polio's eradication—and a clinic in Minneapolis created treatments for polio patients. Author David Oshinsky chronicled this saga in his book, Polio: An American Story—and this week, his book won the Pulitzer Prize for history. Hear David Oshinsky in a recent speech at the Minnesota History Center.

April 16, 2006
Affirmative Action
Listen: Speech | Q&A
Ward Connerly says when public institutions start taking race into account in hiring or college admissions, "we've changed what it means to be an American." Connerly led the charge to end affirmative action in California. He's the founder of the American Civil Rights Institute and he spoke recently at the Center of the American Experiment in Minneapolis.

April 9, 2006
Same-sex Marriage Hearing
Listen: Part 1 | Part 2
It was a busy week at the Minnesota State Capitol, including the Senate Judiciary Committee tackling one of most debated issues in Minnesota politics lately—the proposed constitutional amendment that would ban same-sex marriage and its legal equivalents. We'll bring you excepts from the hearing's testimony on both sides of the issue.

April 2, 2006
The Media and the Role of Public Opinion
We'll look back at the lessons learned from the Vietnam War era with a panel discussion that was held recently at the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum in Boston, featuring journalists who reported from the battle zone—Dan Rather, Steve Bell and Frances Fitzgerald—and how their reports affected America's view of the war.

March 26, 2006
A Stage Session with Ann Bancroft: Survival of the Fittest
Listen: Part 1 | Part 2
A collection of amazing stories from amazing Minnesotans. As the first woman in history to cross the North and South Poles, Ann Bancroft has been honored by press and public alike. Special guests for the evening include Rudy Maxa, Dan Buettner, Emily Carter; plus poetry from Inmates in the Direct Action workshop, a program that teaches poetry to prisoners. Musical guests include: The Autumn Leaves, Mu Daiko Drums, Karen Paurus, and songs by Frenchy's Big Bang Burlesque Band.

March 19, 2006
Logging On and Losing Out: Dealing Addiction to America's Kids
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Three-quarters of American adolescents gamble on a regular basis. In fact, more young Americans gamble once a week than those who smoke, drink or take drugs combined. In "Logging On and Losing Out," American RadioWorks and BBC Radio 4 team up to reveal the heavy social cost that comes with America's poker obsession.

March 12, 2006
Historian Garry Wills and the Gospel of Jesus
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Historian Garry Wills argues that the political evocation of Jesus by the left and the right obscures the true meaning of the Gospels. Wills is the author of the new book, "What Jesus Meant" as well as other books on religion and faith including "Papal Sin" and "Why I Am a Catholic." Wills is a professor of history emeritus at Northwestern University.

March 5, 2006
Talking Volumes: Marilynne Robinson
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When Marilynne Robinson's first novel came out more than 20 years ago, she was hailed as a strikingly original voice. But since then, Robinson has been teaching at the University of Iowa and writing non-fiction. Now, her second novel Gilead has won the Pulitzer Prize. Join host Kerri Miller and author Marilynne Robinson on Talking Volumes.

February 26, 2006
Marian Wright Edleman
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Marian Wright Edelman is widely recognized as one of the nation’s strongest voices for the rights of children and families. With a distinguished background in the law and civil rights, Edelman founded the Children’s Defense Fund in 1973...and she spoke recently on these issues at the Westminster Town Hall Forum in Minneapolis.

February 19, 2006
Author Kate DiCamillo and the Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
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Join MPR's Brian Newhouse at The Fitzgerald Theatre as we meet Newbery Award-winning author Kate DiCamillo. Her new book, "The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane," is the tale of a china rabbit learning to love, lose and love again ... all through many extraordinary adventures.

February 12, 2006
A Stage Session: The Un-Valentine
Listen: Part I | Part II
Join Heather McElhatton for a very special Valentine's Day Stage Session called "The UN-Valentine." Co-hosting with Heather will be humorist Kevin Kling, Rake columnist Colleen Kruse, The Brave New Workshop, and blues musician Charlie Parr. Plus the divine Miss Richfield will sing a duet with opera soprano Maria Jette.

February 5, 2006
Talking Volumes with Kaye Gibbons
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Talking Volumes returns with author Kaye Gibbons. Her latest book, The Life All Around Me is a sequel to her acclaimed novel, Ellen Foster. Gibbons talks about re-capturing her character's voice 20 years after Ellen Foster came out. She also discusses her decision to leave the South and how that might change her writing. With host Kerri Miller

January 29, 2006
Prescription for Change
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U.S. health care costs keep soaring and—with no government solution on the table—some employers have turned to "consumer-driven health care" to help reign in the expense. But do these plans really work? All this week, MPR News featured a series of reports on the growing trend toward consumer-driven health care plans.

January 22, 2006
Radio Lab featuring Robert Krulwich
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What happens when there is no leader? Bees and ants manage just fine. In fact, they form staggeringly complicated societies, all without a maestro to conduct them into harmony. Take a gaze down at the bottom-up logic of cities, Google, even our very own brains on "Radio Lab" with Robert Krulwich.

January 15, 2006
Say it Plain: A Century of Great African American Speeches
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The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Junior was the most famous black orator in history—but he was hardly alone. For generations, African-Americans have been demanding justice and equality, reminding America to make good on its founding principles of democracy. These acts of speaking out played a crucial role in the long struggle for equal rights. You'll hear these great speeches in "Say It Plain" from American RadioWorks.

January 8, 2006
Radio Lab featuring Robert Krulwich
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Back when trouble meant being chased by a tiger, the body's built-in systems gave us a real survival edge. But these days, "trouble" is more likely to mean waiting in traffic... and "the system" is more likely to make us sick. Stress—and its treatment—on the next Radio Lab, featuring Robert Krulwich.

January 1, 2006
Radio Lab featuring Robert Krulwich
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The realms of "mind" and "self" were formerly the domain of philosophers and priests... but today, it's neurologists who are asking the big questions. This episode of "Radio Lab" explores self-hood, consciousness, and the story of a woman who one day woke up as a completely different person.