Connections Podcast

On Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that government workers who choose not to join a union cannot be charged for the cost of collective bargaining. The plaintiff in this case, Mark Janus, a child-support specialist for the state of Illinois, challenged a requirement that government workers who opt out of a union still have to pay partial dues to cover the union's cost of negotiation and other functions. It was a predictable 5-4 decision. Justice Samuel Alito wrote the majority opinion

Data from the Pew Research Center shows that there are mixed messages about public trust in science, and science advocates say the field is under attack. A group of graduate students at the University of Rochester Medical Center have joined together to try to improve perceptions of science. Students in the “Thinkers and Drinkers” group meet up with strangers at local bars and, in exchange for free appetizers, talk to them about science. The goal is to help the students improve their

Politico reports that liberal gun rights groups have grown in the past year. And while conservative gun owners far outnumber liberal gun owners, the firearms enthusiasts who vote for Democrats want their fellow progressives to understand their viewpoints. Our panel discusses what it’s like being the unusual combination of gun-owning progressives, and what they want their fellow progressives to know about gun policy. In studio: Alexis Marie Walt Borowiec Dave Tese

The Rochester Jewish Film Festival kicks off next week, and one film tells the story of a local Holocaust survivor. Jack Feldman grew up in Poland and was sent to Auschwitz during the war. In the camp, he was known only by his number, A17606. The tattoo on his arm caught the attention of his great-grandson, Elliott Saiontz. Saiontz interviews Feldman in the film, “The Number on Great-Grandpa’s Arm.” We get a preview of the film this hour from Feldman, Saiontz, and Feldman’s granddaughter, Stacey

You may have seen the recent TIME Magazine cover that juxtaposed President Donald Trump and the image of a crying child at the American border. It turns out, that child had not been separated from her parents, and now there are questions about whether TIME should have used the image at all. Our panel of photographers and journalists weighs in. In studio: William Snyder , four-time Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer, and chair of the Photojournalism Program at RIT Jenn Poggi , assistant

A restaurant owner in Virginia asked White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders to leave her establishment over the weekend. The owner said she knew Huckabee Sanders defended the president’s ban on transgender people in the military, and out respect for her employees who are gay, she told Huckabee Sanders to leave. The move has led to a fierce debate. Our guests discuss their take on the issue. In studio: Kevin McCann, owner of McCann’s Local Meats Assemblymember Harry Bronson , Equal

With the summer kicking off, we’re seeing more children playing outside in their neighborhoods and neighborhoods streets. But do all kids have access to safe places to play? New research shows that that car crashes involving pedestrians and cyclists are more frequent in some of Rochester’s most economically-challenged neighborhoods. What it will take to make streets safer? We’re joined by experts and local residents who share their ideas. In studio: Mike Bulger, coordinator for the Healthy

We're joined by Ken Rudin , host of “Political Junkie.” We sit down with Rudin in studio to discuss the latest in national and New York State politics.

How do German political leaders and the German people view the Trump administration? The Consul General of Germany helps us understand the answer this hour. David Gill is in Rochester to attend a showcase at the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival . The performance is a collaboration between the Eastman School of Music and the German Federal Jazz Orchestra, BuJazzO. The orchestra will perform new compositions for archival films from the vaults at the George Eastman Museum. We hear about

Matt Savage is not just a musical prodigy who has become an international talent; he's one of the inspiring autism stories on the arts scene. Savage will play two shows at the opening night of the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival; then he's heading off on a kind of world tour. He joins us to discuss his talent, and how to learned to cultivate it, despite growing up without much music in the house in his early childhood. Our guests: Matt Savage , pianist Maria Battista-Hancock , chair