Podcasts: Bill Newman

Bill Newman

The Bill Newman Show. Weekdays at 9AM. Join Bill & Monte Belmonte as they talk with news-makers, elected officials, authors, artists, poets, and ‘fish wrap’ about the day’s headlines.

Recent guests include authors Senator Elizabeth Warren (Persist); Larry Tye (Demagogue: The Life and Long Shadow of Senator Joe McCarthy); Daniel James Brown (Facing the Mountain); Chuck Collins (The Wealth Hoarders and Born on Third Base).

Black In The Valley

6/17: A special edition of Black in the Valley with Rev. Barbara Headley, Senior Pastor of the Zion Community Baptist Church and segment hosts Professor Carlie Tartakov and Rev. Jacquelyn Smith-Crooks.

Forever A House Divided?

6/16: Award-winning bestselling author and Pulitzer finalist, Colin Woodard, whose new book is “Union: the Struggle to Forge the Story of United States Nationhood;” them Tim Lovett, founder of the Northampton-based Comedy As a Weapon.

A Mayor’s Look at The Numbers Behind “Defunding Police”

6/15: Easthampton Mayor Nicole LaChapelle on racial justice and racial injustices and recovering from Covid-19;
then Bloomsday (tomorrow—June 16! – we celebrate in the Valley) with the Literacy Project’s Judith Roberts and Rosemary Caine.

The Beat Goes On

6/12: Max Page, Mass. Teachers Ass’n Vice-President, and Michael Ash, UMass. Amherst professor of economics, on the importance and payback of fully funding higher education in this time of budget cuts ( Professor Ash reports on his new study); Artbeat host Donnabelle Casis and Dean Brown, owner of Pulp in Holyoke, on a new exquisite exhibit and a new economic model for artists created in response to Covid-19; Bob Flaherty and Bill remember Mike Ahearn.

The Cult of Glory

6/11: Doug Swanson, author of “Cult of Glory: The Bold and Brutal History of the Texas Rangers” on whether a law enforcement agency with a long history of racism can be reformed; then, Rev. Peter Ives and Rabbi Justin David on the upcoming Northampton City Council meeting and the demand that Northampton defund its police department.

Tell the Bosses We’re Coming!

6/10: Shaun Richman, labor organizer and author of “Tell the Bosses We’re Coming! A New Action Plan for Workers in the 21st Century.” We begin with the question, What about the police unions? Then, Natalia Munoz speaking out about the Holyoke City Council turning down an almost $300,000 grant.

To Baseball or Not To Baseball?

6/9: We continue our conversation with Attorney Pucci about the murder cases against the cops charged with the murder of George Floyd; Douglas Abrams, moderator of “The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World”—a conversation between the 14th Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu; “Talking Baseball with the Duke”—Duke Goldman on the 2020 baseball season (or not): can the owners and the players come to an agreement in time to save the season—and the sport?

A Former Prosecutor on The Murder of George Floyd

6/8: Attorney John Pucci on the case against the cops accused of murdering George Floyd.

Under the Milky Way tonight…

6/5: MTA Vice-President Max Page on teacher layoffs, school budgets, and UMass and public schools openings in September – or not; Hampshire College professor and astronomer Salman Hameed, MHC astronomy professor Jason Young, and MHC physics professor and Sci-Tech Cafe coordinator Kerstin Nordstrom on the summer sky, our place in the universe, and science’s obligations in this time of national crises; ArtBeat with Donnabelle Casis and Dee Boyle-Clapp, Director of the UMass Arts Extension Service.

Election or Insurrection?

6/4: Josh Silver, CEO of Represent US, on the presidential election and what the most recent polls tell us; then Rev. Peter Ives and Rabbi Justin David on the moral and religious response to the murder of George Floyd, police brutality and systemic racism

Recent Headlines

1 day ago in National

Trump says he’ll send National Guard to Memphis, escalating his use of troops in US cities

President Donald Trump said Friday he'll send the National Guard to address crime concerns in Memphis, Tennessee, his latest test of the limits of presidential power by using military force in American cities.

1 day ago in National

Suspect in Charlie Kirk killing became more political, opposed activist’s views, authorities say

A 22-year-old Utah man who was arrested and booked on murder charges in the assassination of Charlie Kirk held deep disdain for the conservative activist's provocative viewpoints and indicated to a family member that he was responsible for the shooting, authorities said Friday.

2 days ago in National

The rise of AI tools forces schools to reconsider what counts as cheating

The book report is now a thing of the past. Take-home tests and essays are becoming obsolete. Student use of artificial intelligence has become so prevalent, high school and college educators say, that to assign writing outside of the classroom is like asking students to cheat.

3 days ago in National

Authorities search for conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s killer but provide little about motive

Authorities searched on Thursday for a sniper who assassinated Charlie Kirk, a conservative activist and close ally of President Donald Trump, with one bullet and then slipped away in the mayhem resulting from the latest act of political violence to befall America.

3 days ago in National, Trending

US marks 24th anniversary of 9/11 terror attacks

Americans are marking 24 years since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks with solemn ceremonies, volunteer work and other tributes honoring the victims.