Our Shows
We know how good fresh programming can feel and how important it is to provide relevant and engaging content to our listeners. We also know it can be difficult to find the perfect show to fill your schedule.
WAMC produces new shows each week with current events, topics and trends ranging from education to women’s issues and politics. Our veteran hosts, reporters and producers scan the globe searching for the most interesting and engaging stories and guests that we hope will inspire our listeners.
Below is a list of our shows that we offer free to all stations. As you may be looking for show replacements at this time, we hope our programming can fit your plans.
National Productions
THE BEST OF OUR KNOWLEDGE
30 minutes, weekly
Produced and hosted by Dave Cantor, The Best of Our Knowledge investigates developing research on everything from architecture to psychedelics and beyond. Cantor interviews various academics, scientists and culture makers about their current work and how it might impact the world we all share.
THE BOOK SHOW
30 minutes, weekly
Each week on The Book Show, host Joe Donahue interviews authors about their books, their lives and their craft. It is a celebration of both reading and writers. Joe holds interesting conversations with a variety of authors including Malcolm Gladwell, Lawrence Wright, and Emily St. John Mandel.
THE MEDIA PROJECT
30 minutes, weekly
The Media Project is an inside look at media coverage of current events with Albany Times Union Editor-at-Large Rex Smith, WAMC President and CEO Alan Chartock, Daily Freeman Publisher Emeritus Ira Fusfeld, Former Editor, Investigative Journalist and current UAlbany Professor Rosemary Armao, and Former Editor of the Daily Gazette and Vice President for Editorial Development for the New York Press Association Judy Patrick. The panel speaks about everything from how the media covers coronavirus to how news is digested via social media and whether journalists are doing their jobs as expected.
51%
30 minutes, weekly
In America, women make up more than half the population. Worldwide, women are expected to outnumber men within the next fifty years – and every issue we face is one that affects us all. Whether it’s the environment, health, our children, politics or the arts, there’s a women’s perspective, and 51% is a show dedicated to that viewpoint. Host Jesse King talks to experts in their field for a wide-ranging, entertaining discussion of issues that not only fall into the traditional “women’s issues” category, but topics that concern all human beings and citizens of the global community. 51% highlights a wide range of women from Kathy Valentine of the Go-Go’s, author and historian Amy Teitel on spaceflight and Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on her history and decision to enter law school.
PERSON PLACE THING
30 minutes, weekly
Hosted by former New York Times Ethicist Columnist Randy Cohen, PPT features guests who talk about a person, a place and a thing they find meaningful. Randy pulls out the most interesting details from columnists to musicians, architects and ballerinas including Rosanne Cash, E. Jean Carroll and Gene Kohn. The results: surprising stories from great talkers.
EARTH WISE
2 minutes, daily
From the latest environmental news, eco-friendly business practices, and how transportation and energy technologies are rapidly changing, to how human activities and natural phenomena impact our world in ways never before considered, Earth Wise offers a look at our changing environment. Host Dr. Randy Simon covers stories ranging from how the world’s largest battery energy storage facility is being built to how many studies have shown, to no great surprise, that affluent lifestyles lead to larger carbon footprints.
THE ACADEMIC MINUTE
2 minutes 30 seconds, daily
This daily module features professors from colleges and universities around the world, keeping listeners abreast of new and exciting research in the academy. Hosted by AAC&U President Dr. Lynn Pasquerella, the module covers a wide range of subjects are covered including psychology, health, education, and many more to help us better understand the world around us.
STRANGE UNIVERSE
2 minutes 30 seconds, daily
Astronomer Bob Berman sheds light on the mysteries of space and time. Always fascinating and fun, Strange Universe will take you places you never knew existed. Learn why Betelgeuse sometimes goes weirdly dim and how after the totality in 2017 in places like Wyoming and the Carolinas, millions finally got to see a total solar eclipse.
New York State Shows
THE CAPITOL CONNECTION
30 minutes, weekly
Maybe you voted for them and maybe you didn’t, but either way, what they do and how they think affects you. Each week on The Capitol Connection, you can keep yourself abreast of political developments and gain a little insight into how New York State’s politicians think when you listen in as political scientist Dr. Alan Chartock holds conversations with the governor, the comptroller, members from the Assembly and Senate, and other political movers and shakers.
THE LEGISLATIVE GAZETTE
2 minutes 30 seconds, daily
You can find the region’s most in-depth look at New York State politics and government each week on The Legislative Gazette. On each program, the award-winning WAMC News team combines forces to bring you a wrap-up of the week’s political news, the latest from the legislature, and the stories that will keep you well-informed.
Other Shows
WAMC LISTENING PARTY
Join host Lucas Willard as he digs through the crates to find rare grooves and hidden gems in an exciting mix of music. “WAMC Listening Party” features songs from a variety of artists and genres across the decades, with a focus on vinyl records. WAMC Listening Party airs Saturdays at 10 p.m.