Bob Collins
Thursday March 14, 2019
(Subject to change as events dictate. This page is updated throughout the day.)
9 a.m. – MPR News with Kerri Miller
“Captain Marvel” ruled the box office opening weekend, busting the myth that movies about female superheroes don’t make money. In fact, it grossed $455 million globally, the sixth best start for a movie ever.
But the numbers aren’t as good elsewhere. Women played leads in only 40 percent of the top 100 films of 2018. And behind the scenes? It’s even worse. Of the top 100 grossing movies, only four had female directors; just 18 had female producers.
Guests: Liliana Percy, host of the podcast This Movie Changed Me; Melissa Silverstein, founder of Women and Hollywood, and artistic director of the Athena Film Festival
10 a.m.- 1A with Joshua Johnson
Actor Tracee Ellis Ross is on a mission to change Hollywood through the “Me Too” movement. She’s a co-founder of Time’s Up: fighting discrimination, sexual harassment and assault of women. Now that focus is broadening, to the healthcare industry. Joshua Johnson will talk with Tracee Ellis Ross about remaking the world of movies, and medicine.
11 a.m. – MPR News with Angela Davis
On Wednesday night at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, former NPR host Michele Norris sat down with former first lady Michelle Obama.
Norris is no stranger to big names or tough subjects.
She won a Peabody for her work on The Race Card Project. When she started the project, Norris thought she needed to prompt people to talk about race. She was wrong. There was no shortage of people who craved a venue for those discussions.
MPR News host Angela Davis will talk with Norris about growing up in Minnesota, race and her new ventures at the Aspen Institute.
12 p.m. – MPR News Presents
Reflections on Congress with former Congressman Erik Paulsen. Moderated on Tuesday by Gary Eichten at the University of Minnesota Humphrey School. They talked about the way elections work, and the performance of Congress.
1 p.m. – The Takeaway
On Wednesday, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order halting executions in the state. California has the largest death row in the country… but hasn’t executed an inmate since 2006. What does this means for the hundreds of prisoners on death row, and the California residents who repeatedly voted to uphold capital punishment?
How young people are changing the conversation about global efforts to stem climate change. Students across the world are protesting climate change by ditching school on Friday and airing their calls for action in public. The movement started with Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg, and has become an international phenomenon.
A law designed to keep Native American children within their tribes is facing a challenge in the federal courts. A federal judge in Texas ruled that the Indian Child Welfare Act is unconstitutional, and opponents of the law say it is racially motivated. What does this challenge mean for Native Americans who want to maintain a sense of tribal sovereignty?
Friday marks eight years since the start of the Syrian civil war. The Takeaway is going to look back at the history of this war, which has left more than 400,000 people dead, pushed 5 million people out of the country to seek safety, and displaced another 6 million internally.
2 p.m. – BBC NewsHour
The chaos of Brexit: British MPs are to vote later today on whether to ask the European Union, to defer Britain’s exit from the bloc beyond the end of month.
The Chinese tech giant, Huawei charged with wire fraud and breaking US sanctions against Iran.
And an interview with the self-declared leader of Venezuela, Juan Guaido telling the BBC that 80 per cent of the military are now supporting him.
3 p.m. – All Things Considered
The national emergency vote; the potholes of Des Moines; the roots of white U.S. nationalism; youth mental health problems on the rise.
6:00 p.m. – Marketplace
A look at the businesses trying to make robot security guards commonplace.The newest security guard at your local shopping center might be a robot, instead of a human.
6:30 p.m. – The Daily
When a federal prosecutor revealed a $25 million scheme to seek an edge in college admissions for the children of celebrities, executives and other rich parents, he declared, “There can be no separate college admissions system for the wealthy.” But, as it turns out, there is.
Guests: Jennifer Medina, a national correspondent for The New York Times; Katie Benner, who covers the Justice Department for The Times.
7 p.m. – The World
Students across Europe strike over inaction on climate change. School kids in Munich have racked up unexcused absences three Fridays in a row to protest melting glaciers, mass extinctions. and mismanagement of the earth.
8 p.m. – Fresh Air
Terry Gross talks with Aidy Bryant. In addition to being a cast member of Saturday Night Live, she stars in a new comedy series called Shrill, that’s based on the collection of autobiographical essays by Lindy West, who identifies as fat and a feminist. Shrill starts streaming on Hulu on Friday.
