The VPR Saturday Special

Radiolab: The Bad Show

Sat, 02 Jun 2012 16:00:00 -0400

Cruelty, violence, badness. In this episode of Radiolab, we wrestle with the dark side of human nature.

Radiolab: Patient Zero

Sat, 26 May 2012 16:00:00 -0400

The greatest mysteries all have a shadowy figure at the center, someone who sets things in motion and holds the key to how the rest of the story unfolds. This hour, Radiolab hunts for Patient Zeroes from all over the map.

Radiolab: Loops

Sat, 19 May 2012 16:00:00 -0400

So much of life is organized by cycles-seasons, biological rhythms, even our ideas of consciousness. In this episode, Radiolab looks at some of the surprising ways that loops steer our lives, and asks what happens when we disturb them.

Radiolab: Games

Sat, 12 May 2012 16:00:00 -0400

A good game can make you feel, at least for a little while, like your whole life hangs in the balance. What is it about games that make them feel so pivotal?

Radiolab: Talking To Machines

Sat, 05 May 2012 16:00:00 -0400

What can machines tell us about being human?

Tune in Saturday at 4

Sat, 28 Apr 2012 16:00:00 -0400

Chris Kimball brings his recipe- and gadget-testing to the airwaves with this new call-in show.

Tune in Saturday at 4

Sat, 21 Apr 2012 16:00:00 -0400

Lasagna on the stove-top? Chris Kimball tells us how.

Listen Saturday at 4

Sat, 14 Apr 2012 16:00:00 -0400

This week's show looks into weight-loss, the best measuring cups and a fool-proof recipe for great tomato sauce year-round.

Listen Saturday at 4

Sat, 07 Apr 2012 16:00:00 -0400

Christopher Kimball of public television and Cook's Illustrated fame tests the airwaves with a new radio call-in show!

Lottery Loopholes And Deadly Doctors

Sat, 31 Mar 2012 16:00:00 -0400

What if every time you make a bank deposit, you get a lottery ticket?

Eating & Tweeting

Sat, 24 Mar 2012 16:00:00 -0400

We stir the pot on the debate between "slow food" and "fast food," plus take a look at the etiquette of Twitter.

The Power Of The President & The Thumb

Sat, 17 Mar 2012 16:00:00 -0400

How much does the President of the United States really matter and why did hitchhiking virtually disappear?

Show & Yell

Sat, 10 Mar 2012 16:00:00 -0500

Is "booing" an act of verbal vandalism or the last true expression of democracy?

The Days of Wine and Mouses

Sat, 03 Mar 2012 16:00:00 -0500

How does a restaurant bounce back when a customer finds a mouse in her salad?

Can Do: Stories of Black Visionaries, Seekers, and Entrepreneurs

Sat, 25 Feb 2012 16:00:00 -0500

From The Kitchen Sisters and PRX, a Black History Month Special: "Can Do: Stories of Black Visionaries, Seekers, and Entrepreneurs," with host, Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actress, Alfre Woodard.

State of the Re:Union: Miami

Sat, 18 Feb 2012 16:00:00 -0500

Famous for its beaches and clubs, Miami is also the 3rd poorest city in the nation. Here, instead of working towards assimilation and blending with one another, ethnic communities exist as a patchwork, remaining like isolated microcosms of their homeland.

State of the Re:Union: Oakland

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 16:00:00 -0500

Refugees, entrepreneurs, visionaries - these are the historic roots of Oakland, California. The city has long been home for people building new lives and imagining even better ones but dreams deferred also haunt this place.

State of the Re:Union: Utica

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 16:00:00 -0500

A couple of decades ago, Utica, New York, was dying, even by its residents diagnosis: A popular bumper sticker in the ‘90s read "Last One Out of Utica, Please Turn Out the Lights." Something has changed in recent years, with a surprising influx of refugees to this part of snowy, cold upstate New York.

State of the Re:Union: Birmingham

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 16:00:00 -0500

Birmingham, Alabama. Just the words make you think about freedom riders, church bombings, civil rights marches and police dogs. This is a place that can’t escape its history—especially the painful parts.

State of the Re:Union: Las Vegas

Sat, 21 Jan 2012 16:00:00 -0500

These days, two versions of Las Vegas occupy the public imagination. One is of Sin City, the City of Lights, home to The Strip, to glitter and entertainment. The other is as a dramatic victim of the recent economic recession.

State of the Re:Union: Sacramento

Sat, 14 Jan 2012 16:00:00 -0500

Sacramento is a company town where the company is government.

State of the Re:Union: Cleveland

Sat, 07 Jan 2012 16:00:00 -0500

From Rockefeller's Standard Oil to GE's first industrial park, Cleveland was a city made by entrepreneurs.

State of the Re:Union: The Mississippi Gulf Coast

Sat, 10 Dec 2011 16:00:00 -0500

After Hurricane Katrina ravaged the area, Mississippi Gulf Coast residents were forced to come together to deal with the aftermath. Then there was the BP oil spill. This week on State of the Re:Union, the Mississippi Gulf Coast comes together to deal with these catastrophes.

State of the Re:Union: Veterans Coming Home

Sat, 03 Dec 2011 16:00:00 -0500

State of the Re:Union explores the challenges veterans face as they return home from war.

State of the Re:Union: The Bronx

Sat, 26 Nov 2011 16:00:00 -0500

From President Carter’s famous 1977 urban decay photo-op in the wastelands of the South Bronx to Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five’s iconic early hip-hop rhymes about growing up in poverty, the Bronx has long been a symbol of America’s failings.

The Moth Radio Hour

Sat, 12 Nov 2011 16:00:00 -0500

This week on The Moth Radio Hour, Christian McBride, a jazz bassist, is put to the test by his idol, Freddie Hubbard and writer Adam Gopnik details his daughter’s cosmopolitan imaginary friend.

The Moth Radio Hour

Sat, 05 Nov 2011 16:00:00 -0400

In this episode of The Moth Radio Hour, a young woman is told to keep her heritage a secret by her mother; a reckless partier gets shipwrecked; and an author contends with her unsupportive mother on her deathbed.

The Moth Radio Hour

Sat, 29 Oct 2011 16:00:00 -0400

This week on The Moth Radio Hour, stories of leaving home, shocking secrets, and the benefits of your girlfriend's prison sentence.

The Moth Radio Hour Returns This Saturday

Sat, 15 Oct 2011 08:51:20 -0400

The Moth Radio Hour returns with five new episodes!

American RadioWorks: Who Needs An English Major?

Sat, 08 Oct 2011 16:00:00 -0400

Advocates of liberal arts programs say their graduates are among the most likely to become leaders, and that a healthy democracy depends on citizens with a broad education.

American RadioWorks: Don't Lecture Me

Sat, 01 Oct 2011 16:00:00 -0400

In this week's VPR Saturday Special, American RadioWorks investigates how traditional approaches to teaching are failing college students.

American Radio Works: Some College, No Degree

Sat, 24 Sep 2011 16:00:00 -0400

The college drop-out rate is actually worse than the high school drop-out rate. This week on The VPR Saturday Special, a new documentary from American Radio Works examines whether a college degree is the right answer for everyone.

The State We're In: Loverboys

Sat, 17 Sep 2011 16:00:00 -0400

In the next The State We're In, we meet Elina who went on a date that turned out to be a trap, and hear other stories of so-called "Loverboys."

Living 9/11

Sat, 10 Sep 2011 16:00:00 -0400

Ten years after the terrorist attacks of September 11th, this special produced by WNYC explores New Yorkers' most visceral and immediate emotional reactions to the attack on the World Trade Center and how they are, or aren't, still with us today.

The State We're In: Split-Seconds

Sat, 27 Aug 2011 16:00:00 -0400

This week on The State We're In:When Leah and her infant son learned there was no protection at the Hotel Rwanda, she made a split-second decision, and risked being killed outside the hotel.

Imagine Forgetting Who You Are

Sat, 20 Aug 2011 18:00:00 -0400

What would you do if you suddenly forgot who you were?

New Saturday Special!

Sat, 13 Aug 2011 16:00:00 -0400

VPR's Saturday Special welcomes a new series produced by Radio Netherlands Worldwide. The State We're In looks at relationships and the choices that define them. Whether it's the relationship between a captive and a captor, or a blogger and the world-wide web community, "The State We're In" offers new perspectives every week.

Rubin Carter's Hurricane

Sat, 06 Aug 2011 16:00:00 -0400

Bob Dylan's song "Hurricane" made Rubin Carter an American legend. On this week's Saturday Special, hear the true story of the prize fighter who was falsely convicted of murder in Carter's own words.

The Promised Land: Voices from the Gulf Coast

Sat, 30 Jul 2011 16:00:00 -0400

Wilma Subra may look like your neighborhood granny, but she's a serious scientist. On this episode of The Promised Land, we see how Wilma's been educating communities and defending ecosystems in the Gulf Coast.

Moth Marathon Saturday at Noon!

Sat, 23 Jul 2011 12:00:00 -0400

Tune in Saturday afternoon for the VPR Moth Marathon, 5 hours of stories told live without notes. We're also giving away tickets to The Moth live at Burlington's Flynn Center, plus dinner and accommodations. The Moth Marathon runs noon to five this Saturday on VPR.

The Promised Land: Coastal Women for Change

Sat, 16 Jul 2011 16:00:00 -0400

This week on The Promised Land, we meet a hair-dresser turned activist. Sharon Hanshaw is the Executive Director of Coastal Women for Change, an organization that empowers women to create positive change in their Biloxi community.

The Promised Land: Voices from the Gulf Coast

Sat, 09 Jul 2011 16:00:00 -0400

This week on The Promised Land, Majora Carter visits New Orleans East, the most dense ethnically Vietnamese population outside of Vietnam. In the Gulf region, about 80 percent of Vietnamese Americans were connected to the fishing industry, and the BP oil spill hit the community hard.

The Promised Land: Voices from the Gulf Coast

Sat, 02 Jul 2011 16:00:00 -0400

The Promised Land brings us the stories of people who are changing their communities with innovative thinking and tireless effort. This episode features Nat Turner, who has transformed an old store in New Orlean's Lower Ninth Ward into Blair Grocery, a nontraditional school and an urban farm run by youth who've dropped out of mainstream education.

The Promised Land: Voices from the Gulf Coast

Sat, 25 Jun 2011 16:00:00 -0400

The Promised Land brings us the stories of people who are changing their communities with innovative thinking and tireless effort after hurricane Katrina and the BP oil spill. This episode features Dr. Kyshun Webster, founder and executive director of Operation Reach, an extensive family of programs for kids throughout the Gulf South.

Travels with Mike: In Search of America 50 Years After Steinbeck

Sat, 18 Jun 2011 16:00:00 -0400

In the fall of 1960, the writer John Steinbeck drove across the country with his poodle, Charley, and a question: "What are Americans like today?" Half a century later, "Travels with Mike" retraces Steinbeck's steps to hear America's story today and reflect on its history.

The Moth Season Finale

Sat, 11 Jun 2011 16:00:00 -0400

This Saturday is the Moth season finale and our final installment of stories told live without scripts. This week, hear stories of tragedy, intrigue, and a tattoo that reveals compassion among prison inmates.

VPR Saturday Special

Sat, 04 Jun 2011 16:00:00 -0400

The Moth returns to VPR for a fourth week of stories told lives without scripts.

Saturday: The Moth

Sat, 28 May 2011 16:00:00 -0400

In this episode of the Moth, we listen to stories of identity. This week's featured story-tellers include Blue's Clues host Steve Burns and Sex in the City producer Cindy Chupak.

Like A Rolling Stone - The Music of Bob Dylan

Sat, 21 May 2011 16:00:00 -0400

Celebrate Bob Dylan's birthday with us during this week's VPR's Saturday Special . This program is brimming with rare-recordings and first hand accounts of Bob Dylan. Tune in at 4 on Saturday.

The Moth: Prejudice and Power

Sat, 14 May 2011 16:00:00 -0400

In this episode of The Moth, hear stories of prejudice and power from double-amputee/record-setting runner/actress Aimee Mullins, ex-NYC Mayor Ed Koch, and three high school students from New Orleans.