'Pull of Gravity,' a documentary about re-entry after prison January 31
Seven hundred thousand inmates are released from U.S. prisons each year. A new documentary film funded by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania wrestles with the question: What happens when they come home? “Pull [...]

The early causes and lasting impact of the education and knowledge gap January 31
For their newly-published book, Giving Our Children A Fighting Chance, education researchers DONNA CELANO and SUSAN NEUMAN studied two Philadelphia neighborhoods — one in Chestnut Hill and the other in North Philadelphia — and found that children living [...]

Immigration reform: reaction and response January 30
Yesterday afternoon, President Obama announced his blueprint for immigration reform in response to a set of principles laid out by a bipartisan group of U.S. senators on Monday.   The President's plan calls for a quicker path to citizenship [...]

Penn's Eve Troutt Powell on 'Tell This in My Memory' January 30
Hour 2 What does the slave trade in North Africa of the late 19th Century have to tell us about the countries whose revolutions and social unrest explode onto our screens today? How does the legacy of the [...]

The ongoing threat of al-Qaeda January 29
In her Congressional testimony last week regarding the attack on an American consulate in Benghazi, Hillary Clinton said that the recent seizure of an Algerian gas plant and the ongoing conflict in northern Mali were “all part of [...]

Temple University Symphony Orchestra's Grammy-nominated “Music of Ansel Adams: America" January 29
The late photographer, Ansel Adams, and late jazz composer and pianist, Dave Brubeck, were the first in their fields to bring their art to university campuses. Decades later the Temple University Symphony Orchestra is nominated for a Grammy [...]

An end to the combat ban for women January 28
Last week Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced that he was ending the military’s ban on women serving in combat positions. “Female service members have faced the reality of combat, proving their willingness to fight and, yes, to die [...]

Reflections on Haiti: Farewell, Fred Voodoo January 28
GUEST: AMY WILENTZ It’s been three years since Haiti was rocked by the 2010 earthquake that has left the country known for its hardship in an even more dire condition. Journalist AMY WILENTZ looks back on covering Haiti [...]

Debating mental health legislation after Newtown massacre January 25
The massacre last month at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut galvanized the national conversation on gun control, but that wasn’t all. Family stories of shooter Adam Lanza’s mental health struggles – on the heels of mental [...]

Julie Otsuka-The Buddha in the Attic January 25
Novelist JULIE OTSUKA didn’t dream of being a writer. She pursued fine art at Yale and Columbia Universities, and it wasn’t until she was 30 that she put her paint brush down and concentrated on words as her [...]

Will Obama's second term change prospects for climate? January 24
In his inaugural speech, President Obama made climate change a central priority of his second term: “We will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that the failure to do so would betray our children and future [...]

Ayana Mathis on The Twelve Tribes of Hattie January 24
AYANA MATHIS is living every aspiring writer’s fantasy. Your first book gets published and then the good reviews start rolling in. You are even chosen for the Oprah book club guaranteeing good sales.  Ayana Mathis’ novel that’s getting [...]

Former Congressman Mickey Edwards on why political parties are the real problem with government January 23
In his new book, The Parties Versus the People:  How to Turn Republicans and Democrats into Americans, former Republican Congressman MICKEY EDWARDS argues that it is the political parties that are the root of dysfunction in American government.  [...]

The Mary Wilson, co-founder of the Supremes January 23
Last month marked the 50th anniversary of “Meet the Supremes,” the first album featuring the seminal female vocal group. From 1963-1969, the group scored 10 number one hits, including their first number one pop hit in 1964, “Where [...]

The Inauguration and Obama's next term January 22
Yesterday President Obama was sworn into his  second term as commander in chief of the United States , something that has only happened to 16 other U.S. Presidents.  The inaugural ceremony, though full of pomp and pageantry, didn't [...]

NPR's Andy Carvin, a 'Distant Witness' via social media January 22
The Arab Spring changed history, and changed the way breaking news is reported around the world and who controls the news. NPR social media chief ANDY CARVIN – “the man who tweets revolutions” – offers a unique first-person [...]

True confessions: Lance Armstrong comes clean January 18
Lance Armstrong confessed last night in an interview with Oprah Winfrey to taking performance-enhancing drugs during his cycling career. Yesterday, the International Olympic Committee stripped Armstrong of his 2000 bronze medal and last fall cycling’s governing body, the [...]

#innovateRT: Sustainable Philadelphia January 18
In the fifth and final hour in our series on Philadelphia Innovators, we look at sustainability in the city and the effort to make Philly the greenest city in America.  We’ll find out how close we are to [...]

William Ecenbarger on the 'Kids for Cash' scandal January 17
[REBROADCAST] Between 2003 and 2008, Luzerne County juvenile court judge Mark Ciavarelli sentenced thousands of children who committed minor offenses to months of incarceration in two private, for-profit juvenile detention centers in Pennsylvania.  The youngsters and their families [...]

#innovateRT, pt. 4: Open Data Philly & bridging the digital divide January 17
In the fourth part of our #innovateRT series exploring PHILADELPHIA INNOVATORS, we investigate: What is Philadelphia doing to use the Web, apps and digital technology to change its relationship with its citizens? What could open data and the [...]

Guns & gun laws, after Newtown, CT: US, PA, Philly January 16
In advance of President Obama’s much anticipated news conference later this morning outlining his agenda regarding gun and safety regulations in the wake of the horrific massacre in Newtown, Connecticut last month, we check in with three people [...]

#innovateRT: The Arts Community January 16
“Kids are everything. Poetry is my passion, but PYPM is my purpose,” says our guest, poet PERRY “VISION” DIVIRGILIO, referring to his work with the Philly Youth Poetry Movement. The third part of our PHILADELPHIA INNOVATORS series drums, [...]

The pros and cons of privatizing the lottery January 15
Late Friday afternoon, the Corbett administration announced it had issued a "notice of award" to the UK's Camelot Group to run the Commonwealth's lottery. Camelot, the only bidder on the contract, promised that over its 20-year contract it [...]

#innovateRT: A conversation with local tech innovators January 15
Talk to local government officials, entrepreneurs and investors and they will tell you that things are happening in Philadelphia's technology sector.   New tax incentives that benefit start-ups and venture capitalists who are committed to developing and nurturing them [...]

Sarah Palin: Unlikely Liberal January 14
Since her selection as Republican vice-presidential candidate in the 2008 election, Sarah Palin has become a popular partisan voice in conservative politics – she’s a strong Tea Party supporter and a commentator on FoxNews.  But for people who [...]

#innovateRT: Three Philly leaders innovating land-use January 14
There are some cool and exciting things happening in Philadelphia: tech start ups and theater groups plus new ways of looking at land use and sustainability. Leading off our weeklong series on PHILADELPHIA INNOVATORS, we’re talking about some [...]

Food myths and fad diets January 11
Every New Year millions of Americans resolve to lose weight, eat better and hit the gym.  Sadly, many of us aren’t successful.  But in our quest to be slimmer and fitter, we often seize on headlines that tout [...]

Journalist Mark Bowden on "The Finish" of Osama bin Laden January 11
[REBROADCAST] Journalist MARK BOWDEN returns to Radio Times to take us inside the rooms where the decisions were made to take down Osama bin Laden. Having access to President Obama, his national security advisors, and high ranking members [...]

The President's national security team nominations and the future of foreign policy January 10
In nominating Senator John Kerry as Secretary of State, Senator Chuck Hagel as Secretary of Defense and White House counter-terrorism advisor John Brennan to head the CIA, President Obama has signaled a change in the direction of American [...]

Abolitionist Pennsylvania U.S. Representative, Thaddeus Stevens January 10
If you’ve seen the recent film, “Lincoln,” you may have walked away wanting to know more about the character played by Tommy Lee Jones – outspoken abolitionist Pennsylvania U.S. Representative, Thaddeus Stevens. Our guests will help us understand [...]

Forty years since Roe v. Wade January 9
Forty years ago this month, the Supreme Court ruled on Roe v. Wade, the historic case that made abortion legal in the United States. The Roe v. Wade decision held that a woman, with her doctor, could have [...]

Trips, adventures and vacations and how to get there in 2013 January 9
If you're like the staff of Radio Times, you're always planning your next trip or thinking about where you'd  like to go — especially this time of year when we're counting down the days to warmer weather.  There's [...]

Gov. Corbett's suit vs. the NCAA over Penn State/Sandusky penalties January 8
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett sued the NCAA last week on behalf of the Commonwealth, claiming that the governing body for college sports went overboard in penalizing Penn State in response to the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal. In [...]

A conversation with Philadelphia school chief William Hite January 8
On Monday, after four months on the job, Philadelphia School Superintendent William Hite, Jr. made public his blueprint for turning around the city’s public schools. Its two broad goals are to improve academics on all levels — from [...]

Violence against women January 7
The six men accused of gang raping and killing a 23-year-old Indian woman were formally charged last week. The horrific attack has set off dozens of protests in India demanding justice for the victim and changes in attitudes [...]

What's happened to recess? January 7
As school districts cut budgets, worry about litigation and squeeze more academics into limited time, recess has taken a hit in terms of frequency and duration in some schools throughout the country.  Only six states mandate 20 minutes [...]

Sandy relief bill, the fiscal cliff and GOP politics January 4
The U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to vote today on a $9 billion boost to the federal flood insurance program sucked dry by the catastrophic damage caused by Superstorm Sandy at the end of October. The vote [...]

Cosmologist Lawrence Krauss: 'A Universe from Nothing' January 4
[REBROADCAST] How did the Universe arise from nothing? And what was there before?  Those are the kinds of questions that for most of us set our heads spinning — not so for renowned cosmologist LAWRENCE KRAUSS.  Krauss says [...]

Marijuana politics in NJ, PA & the U.S. January 3
Last month, JAY LASSITER of Cherry Hill, New Jersey, purchased the Garden State’s first legal medical marijuana from Greenleaf Compassion Center in Montclair, New Jersey. Battling HIV for two decades, the advocacy consultant and former BlueJersey.com blogger campaigned [...]

The end of the Andy Reid era January 3
This past Monday, after 14 years, Andy Reid was fired as head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles.  This season was particularly difficult for Reid and the team beginning with the death of Reid’s son during training camp and [...]

Congress, politics and the fiscal cliff January 2
In the wee hours of January 1, the Senate passed legislation that would raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans — those earning over $400,000, extend unemployment benefits for 99 weeks, and delay for two months $110 billion cuts [...]

The diary of Emilie Davis January 2
Yesterday marked the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s signing of the Emancipation Proclamation which legally freed three million slaves. On that day, January 1st, 1863 in Philadelphia, Emilie Davis, a 21year old black woman, wrote in her pocket [...]

Ross King on Leonardo da Vinci and The Last Supper January 1
[REBROADCAST] One of the most famous paintings in the world is Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper,” painted on the wall of a Dominican convent in Milan in the 1490s.  Surprisingly, da Vinci didn’t start his masterpiece until [...]

A look at today's changing drug laws January 1
[REBROADCAST] Recently Colorado and Washington voters passed ballot initiatives in support of the use of legal recreational marijuana. This is in addition to 18 states, including Washington, D.C., that have legalized medical marijuana on their books. The United [...]