Weekly Program Highlights

Friday 2/20

1:00 – 2:00 PM
Science Friday… This week on Science Friday, hear how public health researchers and the American Medical Association are partnering to assess vaccine safety and effectiveness, rivaling advice from the CDC.

2:00 – 3:00 PM
Hidden Brain… From the time we're schoolchildren, we're ranked and sorted based on how smart we are. But what if our assumptions about intelligence limit our potential? Hear a more expansive notion of what it means to be "smart."

3:00 – 4:00 PM
Fresh Air… This week on Fresh Air, hear archive interviews with two film icons who have died. Robert Duvall, known for his roles in The Godfather, Apocalypse Now, The Great Santini, Tender Mercies, and Lonesome Dove; and Frederick Wiseman, whose narration-free documentaries examined institutions and neighborhoods.

6:30 – 7:30 PM
The Club McKenzie… Slack Key Guitar: Slack-key guitar was most likely developed in the early-to-mid 1800s when Mexican and Spanish vaqueros (cowboys) were brought to Hawaii to teach cattle ranching, bringing along their guitars and their own playing traditions. What likely happened is that Hawaiian musicians creatively adapted the guitar to their own musical sensibilities by loosening the strings into open tunings—meaning the open strings formed a chord without fretting anything—making it easier to play Hawaiian melodies and allowed for the distinctive slack-key sound with droning bass notes and intricate fingerpicking patterns.

Saturday 2/21

10:00 – 11:00 AM
Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me!… This week on Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me, celebrate the closing of the Winter Olympics with some of the show’s own gold medal moments. Hear from celebrity chef Roy Choi, musician Ally the Piper, and actor Cynthia Nixon, plus some highlights with the team of panelists.

11:00 – NOON
Radiolab… Most of us spend some part of our lives feeling bad about ourselves and wanting to feel better. But this preoccupation is a surprisingly new one in the history of the world and can largely be traced back to one man: a rumpled, convertible-driving California state representative named John Vasconcellos who helped spark a movement that took over schools, boardrooms, and social-service offices across America in the 1990s. This week, explore the rise and fall of the self-esteem movement and ask, is it possible to raise your self-esteem? And is trying to do so even a good idea?

3:00 – 4:00 PM
American Routes… This week on American Routes, dig into the Piedmont blues, a rich style that mixes ragtime, old-time country music, jazz, gospel, hollers, and historic popular songs. Hear a conversation and music with two younger players in the tradition: guitarist/singer Jontavious Willis from rural Greenville, GA, and harmonica player Andrew Alli from Richmond, VA. Plus, music by Sonny Terry and Brownie McGee, Elizabeth Cotten, Cannonball Adderly and Bob Wills. Then, it’s the Stooges Brass Band from New Orleans in a live studio session.

Sunday 2/22

10:00 – 11:00 AM
Reveal… At a time when Black history is being erased from schools, museums and parks, Black journalists are fighting to tell a more inclusive American story.

11:00 – NOON
This American Life… This week on This American Life, stories of people going after their heart's desire, even when it seems pretty ill-advised.

NOON – 3:00 PM
Sunday Baroque… This week on Sunday Baroque, celebrate George Frideric Handel’s birthday, who was born on February 23rd in 1685, with a cross-section of his music. Many musicians throughout history have admired Handel , such as composer Ludwig van Beethoven, who called Handel “the greatest composer who ever lived.”

3:00 – 4:00 PM
Code Switch & Life Kit… This week on Code Switch, a show about Cuban immigration over the years, and how the Trump administration is deporting Cubans in record numbers. Then on Life Kit, a show about the different types of rest we need.

6:00 – 7:00 PM
The Moth Radio Hour… This week on The Moth Radio Hour, stories of jumping, or being thrown, in the deep end—figuratively and literally: leaving the "nest;" reptilian co-workers; and a school swimathon.

Monday 2/23

1:00 – 2:00 PM
Climate One… Congress approved billions for federal grants and programs through the EPA during the Biden administration. Those dollars were meant to help disadvantaged communities and fund community resilience projects, public health programs, and initiatives to reduce energy insecurity on tribal lands. But just as these projects were getting underway, the Trump administration froze many of the grants, put others under indefinite review, or canceled them outright. Now, some of the groups that were awarded federal funds have banded together and are suing the federal government for the money they’re owed. Others are seeking alternative funding streams. In this episode, hear from the people whose projects are on hold, but who continue to serve their communities.

2:00 – 3:00 PM
The Splendid Table… This week on The Splendid Table, host Francis Lam is joined by restaurateur and philanthropist Martha Hoover of The Patachou Foundation, food writer Brian Garrido, chef Samir Mohammad of 9th Street Bistro, baker Zoë Taylor of Borage, and Isaac Roman and Thomas Hays of Rene’s Bakery and Deli.

Tuesday 2/24

1:00 – 2:00 PM
TED Radio Hour… This week on Ted Radio Hour, host Manoush Zomorodi talks with a social psychologist leading the campaign to ban kids from social media, a Gen Z advocate pushing back, and a writer inspiring both kids and adults to live a life with less screentime and more fun.

6:00 – 8:00 PM
LIVE SPECIAL COVERAGE: State of the Union Address… President Trump promised to lower costs, crack down on illegal immigration, and usher in a new “Golden Age.” But after a full year in office, he’s preparing to deliver his State of the Union Address with his lowest approval rating this term. NPR brings you his speech and the Democratic response — along with reporting and analysis. Join us for live special coverage.

Wednesday 2/25

1:00 – 1:30 PM
Bioneers… This week on Bioneers, explore the biological truth that human health is dependent upon the health of nature’s ecosystems and our social structures. Dr. Rupa Marya, associate professor of medicine at UC San Francisco and faculty director of the Do No Harm Coalition, says "social medicine" means dismantling harmful social structures that directly lead to poor health outcomes, and building new structures that promote health and healing.

1:30 – 2:00 PM
California Report Magazine… This week on California Report Magazine, for people who are incarcerated, books can be a lifeline to the outside world, but critics say the kinds of books officials allow behind bars is a form of censorship.

2:00 – 3:00 PM
Freakonomics Radio… This week on Freakonomics Radio, hear part two of a series on sports. The science says weed isn’t a performance enhancing drug, at least not in the athletic sense. But the psychic benefits can be large — just ask former NFL star Ricky Williams. He says athletes should consider cannabis a healing drug, not a party drug, and even the NFL is starting to agree.

6:30 – 8:00 PM
KCBX in Concert… This week on KCBX in Concert, Craig Russell previews exciting vocal concerts by Canzona and the Cal Poly Choirs, and then focuses on the SLO Symphony’s upcoming concert, “Classical Hits,” with works by Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven. He devotes particular attention to the origins of Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony, examining the clues in Beethoven’s sketchbook Landsberg 6 in order to help us reconstruct Beethoven’s compositional process.

Thursday 2/26

1:00 – 2:00 PM
Central Coast Voices… In the second of a two-part series, co-executive directors Connie Alexander and Audrey Gamble join host Lata Murti to talk about their non-profit learning center, Gateway Educations Services. Then, restaurateur Feben Teffera joins Lata to talk about her Ethiopian restaurant, Ebony SLO.

2:00 – 3:00 PM
Latino USA… This week on Latino USA, hear from a reporter who obtained thousands of chats and internal communications from the federal employees running media relations for the Department of Homeland Security and ICE. Also on the show, born in France to Chilean parents exiled in the ‘70s, Ana Tijoux grew up between cultures. Now a Latin Grammy winner and nominee, Ana makes music that disregards borders and genres. The hosts go behind Ana’s music, including her new EP, 97, and she closes the show out with an a cappella song.