AirTalk

Cover any beat long enough in the world of journalism, and you’re bound to start viewing your own life through the lens of the topic you cover. In her new book “Transient and Strange: Notes on the Science of Life,” NPR Science Correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce does exactly this in a collection of personal essays, weaving together the clarity and matter-of-fact style of a science writer with the personal prose of a memoirist. The result is an intimate portrait of her life, and how the subjects she’s covered in her science reporting over the years connect to personal events that have shaped her, from seeking advice from meteorologists and storm chasers on how to calm her children’s fear of tornadoes to how modern science and medicine both saved her husband’s life and yet was unable to help her bear longed-for children.

Today on AirTalk, Nell joins Larry to talk about her new book.

Today on AirTalk, SCOTUS agrees to hear homelessness case. Also on the show, LA County DA candidate Judge Debra Archuleta; the history of RMS Queen Mary; remembering the legacy of MLK and more

The minister and civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta Georgia. Maybe most remembered by his famous “I have a dream…” speech or the march from Selma, King was a prominent figure in the civil rights movement of the 1960s, fighting for the equality of Black Americans. Although he is revered today as an American icon, King remained a controversial figure throughout his lifetime and several years after his death amongst much of white America. Today, we’re celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. 's impact by opening the phones to listeners to share their memories of the historical figure. What does King’s legacy mean to you? What part of King’s life or achievements do you remember the most? Share with us at 866-893-5722 or you can email us at [email protected].

Today on AirTalk, How the IRS gets millionaires to pay their taxes. Also on the show,  everything you need to know about energy vampires; Luca Servodio on the best sandwiches in Los Angeles; FilmWeek: ‘Mean Girls,’ ‘The Book of Clarence,’ ‘Role Play’ and more.

Have you felt completely overwhelmed when deciding what new show to watch these days? Us too. There’s just so much content out there between network TV and numerous streaming platforms. Each week, we will try to break through the noise with TV watchers who can point us to the must-sees and steer us clear of the shows that maybe don’t live up to the hype. This week, listeners will get the latest scoop on what’s worth watching with Roxana Hadadi, television critic for Vulture, and Angie Han, television critic for The Hollywood Reporter.

This week’s shows include:

Today on AirTalk, New legislation takes aim at youth tackle football. Also on the show, everything you need to know about the presidential election in Taiwan; Andersen’s Split Pea Soup to close after a century; TV-Talk: 5 shows to watch including ‘Grimsburg,’ ‘Echo’ and more.

Today on AirTalk, LAist/KNPR Simulcast. Also on the show, the state of local journalism in Los Angeles and San Quentin State Prison reform.

The metro Las Vegas area continues to be a popular destination for folks looking to leave Southern California. According to an analysis from the online real estate brokerage Redfin at the end of 2023, Vegas is the number two spot that folks using their services are looking to move -- and the majority of people looking to do so are coming from L.A. In 2020, according to Nevada DMV data reported by the Las Vegas Review Journal, 43 percent of out-of-state drivers licenses surrendered when obtaining a Nevada license were from California. So, why are so many people leaving the Golden State for the Silver State? Reasons vary depending on who you ask, but for many, it comes back to the cost of living -- home prices in California are rising and taxes are high compared to other states, while Nevada does not levy an income tax and it simply costs less to buy a house. The median price of a home in Nevada as of November 2023, according to Redfin, was $435,000. In California, Redfin says the median price was $793,700.

This morning on AirTalk, we’re partnering with fellow NPR member station KNPR in Las Vegas for a joint broadcast looking at the population pipeline between Southern California and Southern Nevada, and we want to hear from you! If you’ve recently moved between the two regions, what prompted you to relocate? What do you like and/or dislike about your new home? Join our live conversation by calling us at 866-893-5722 or by emailing us at [email protected].

Today on AirTalk, LA Times increases newspaper delivery rates. Also on the show, listeners share their haircut horror stories; Larry talks with Director Michael Mann about his new film “Ferrari”; what does the moon mean to you? and more.

There’s a reason they call Ella Fitzgerald the “First Lady of Song” -- because the world had never seen anything like her when she burst onto the music scene in the 1930s, and no one has ever done it quite like her since then. With a powerful and commanding yet beautiful and delicate voice that could transition effortlessly from a jazz standard to a sultry lounge song to a scatting swing tune, Fitzgerald carved her place among not just the greatest jazz singers of all time, but among the greatest singers to ever grace a stage anywhere. Northeastern University Professor Emerita and Music Historian Judith Tick provides the first full-scale biography of the so-called “Queen of Jazz” since her death in 1996 in the new book “Becoming Ella Fitzgerald: The Jazz Singer Who Transformed American Song.” Tick paints the arc of Fitzgerald’s career from her sometimes troubled childhood in Yonkers, New York to her discovery in 1935 by Benny Carter and Chick Webb, the latter of whom would make her the singer of his band, to touring the world in the 1940s with Dizzy Gillespie and Jazz at the Philharmonic, to her exploration of the Great American Songbook in the 1950s and beyond, during which time she released her own spins on the works of greats like Cole Porter and Duke Ellington.

Today on AirTalk, Professor Tick joins Larry Mantle to talk about her new biography of Ella Fitzgerald -- and of course, we’ll listen to a few of the songs that defined her career.