Hello Houston

On today’s Hello Houston, we spotlight the Harris County Judge debate that Houston Public Media is hosting tonight with HPM reporters Andrew Schneider and Sarah Grunau, who will both be involved in the debate.

Then, Houston Public Media reporter Bianca Seward helps us understand why elections for the Texas State Board of Education could shape what more than five million students learn in the classroom for years to come in this week’s edition of HPM in Focus.

In the second hour, we discuss Houston native and NFL quarterback Jalen Hurts’ season-ending blood clot diagnosis with Dr. Daniel Hermann, an interventional cardiologist with Memorial Hermann, who explains how these conditions develop, how they’re treated, and whether these complications can be prevented.

And finally, our hosts and listeners share the latest things that have been taking over all their free time as part of our regular Thursday feature, Current Obsessions. Share your Current Obsessions with us anytime by emailing us at [email protected].

And, as always, our hosts Tessa Barrera and Ernie Manouse discuss today's top stories at the top of each hour, including President Trump saying he’s requiring data center builders to provide their own electricity, voting rights advocates pushing to make Election Day a federal holiday, and voters receiving frequent political texts from campaigns. Plus, we hear Tessa's conversation with Houston Rockets legend Rudy Tomjanovich at last night's game.

On today’s Hello Houston, with early voting officially underway, we talk with Jacqueline Lucci Smith, the Republican candidate for Harris County Attorney, who discusses her campaign and why she believes she’s the right person for this position.

Then, in this week’s edition of On The Marquee, Ernie visits with soprano Sylvia D’Eramo and internationally acclaimed tenor Matthew Polenzani, who both discuss playing the titular roles in Houston Grand Opera’s new season openers Susannah and Faust.

In the second hour, Dr. Richa Shukla, an associate professor of medicine in gastroenterology at Baylor College of Medicine, discusses living with inflammatory bowel disease and a new event at The Health Museum that’s designed to connect patients and families with information and support.

And finally, filmmaker Azfar Ali and producer and co-writer Yasir Raza share the story behind Jyoti, a Houston-produced film that’s earning recognition on the festival circuit while also building cultural connections through storytelling.

And, as always, our hosts Tessa Barrera and Ernie Manouse discuss today’s top stories at the top of each hour, including Texas leaders campaigning to bring the new space academy to the Lone Star State, Elon Musk vowing to give a SpaceX share to every child in the U.S., and U.S. Senate candidate Ken Paxton campaigning in the Houston area yesterday.

On today’s Hello Houston, we discuss the controversy surrounding the delayed release of Texas's maternal mortality report until after the November midterm elections, with Mary Tuma, a staff writer for the Texas Observer, who wrote about the delay.

Then, as the Houston Rockets start their new season, Locked on Rockets podcast host Jackson Gatlin sits down with Hello Houston Executive Producer Jim Kovacik to share his favorite Rockets moments for this week’s edition of Five Simple Questions.

In the second hour, Ernie talks with start-up guru Paul DeJoe, best known as the co-founder and COO of MUD\WTR, to discuss creativity, success, and the impact of artificial intelligence on creativity in an excerpt of the latest episode of his recurring feature InnerVIEWS.

Plus, University of Houston political science professor and co-host of Houston Public Media’s Party Politics, Brandon Rottinghaus, investigates the ghost stories found in the history of the Texas State Capitol in the newest episode of Texperts.

And, as always, our hosts Tessa Barrera and Ernie Manouse talk about today’s top stories at the top of each hour, including a Texas man wanting a robbery conviction tossed over a no-warrant Flock camera search and State Rep. Gina Hinojosa suing Gov. Greg Abbott to receive access to emails between him and Elon Musk.

On today’s Hello Houston, Houston Public Media’s energy and environment reporter Natalie Weber discusses this year’s race for Texas Railroad Commissioner and how each of the three candidates running for this position differs from one another.

Then, in this week’s Producer Spotlight, Hello Houston producer Garrett Bohlmann talks with playwright Gloria Majule, who discusses the world premiere of her satirical play Uhuru, which is currently running at Alley Theatre through November 8.

In the second hour, we’re joined by Lieutenant John Klafka with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office, who tells us about the creation of the Sheriff’s Mobile Advocacy Response Team (SMART), a new program aimed at addressing domestic violence in the Houston region.

And finally, employment specialist Dr. DeShanna Reed joins us during National Disability Employment Awareness Month to talk about mentorship, workplace inclusion, and helping employers recognize talent they may be overlooking.

And, as always, our hosts Tessa Barrera and Ernie Manouse talk about today’s top stories at the top of each hour, including a software error causing another backlog of Texas voter registration records, Elon Musk donating over $150 million to help support Ken Paxton’s U.S. Senate campaign, and early voting for the midterm elections beginning in Texas today.

On today’s Hello Houston, we’re joined by the Houston Chronicle’s Opinion and Community Engagement Editor, Evan Mintz, who explains how their endorsement process works for elections and what goes into deciding which candidates deserve their support.

Then, we turn to weekend events and talk with original MTV VJs Alan Hunter and Mark Goodman, who both join us to reflect on the MTV era and tell us all about tonight’s free Neon Nostalgic performance at Miller Outdoor Theatre.

In the second hour of the show, Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare shares new details from his office’s independent investigation into the ICE operation that led to a Houston man being struck by an agent's vehicle and what comes next.  

Plus, in our regular Friday feature, Tessa Takes On, Tessa talks with Tierra “TT On The Mic” Chapman, who discusses the great responsibility that comes with holding a microphone and her journey from the Prairie View A&M Marching Storm to Texas Southern University’s Ocean of Soul.

And, as always, our hosts Tessa Barrera and Ernie Manouse talk about the top stories of the day at the top of each hour, including President Trump canceling the livestream of the Fort Hood shooter’s execution and a Texas school district canceling a high school production of Little Shop of Horrors over the casting of a female student in a traditionally male role. 

On today’s Hello Houston, Vincent Powell, a filmmaker and professor in Texas Southern University’s Radio, Television, and Film department, helps us unpack Paramount Skydance’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery and what it could mean for the future of movies and streaming.

Then, Houston Public Media City Hall reporter Dominic Anthony Walsh joins us for this week’s HPM in Focus, to take a closer look at the sharp decline in the Houston Police Department’s cite-and-release program.

In the second hour of the show, we turn to health policy and talk with New York Times FDA reporter Christina Jewett, who breaks down Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s investigation into pediatricians and drugmakers over how they handle childhood vaccines.

And finally, our hosts and listeners share the latest things that have been taking over all their free time as part of our regular Thursday feature, Current Obsessions. Share your Current Obsessions with us anytime by emailing us at [email protected].

And, as always, our hosts Tessa Barrera and Ernie Manouse talk about the top stories of the day at the top of each hour, including Governor Abbott and Texas AG Ken Paxton adopting a hard stance against data centers, Kimberly Guilfoyle resigning as ambassador to Greece, and Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico answering voter’s questions during a CNN town hall.

On today’s Hello Houston, Noel Collier, a Houston real estate agent and host of HGTV's Extreme Buyers Club, helps us understand what rising mortgage rates mean for homebuyers and sellers in the Houston market and the city's housing market.

Then, in this week’s edition of On the Marquee, Ernie talks with actor Craig Allen Smith, who’s playing the titular role of "Mrs. Doubtfire" in the national tour of the 1993 film's musical adaptation, which is running at the Hobby Center through October 25. 

In the second hour of the show, we turn to literature and talk with the New York Times best-selling author of the Divergent series, Veronica Roth, who discusses her latest book, The Sixth Faction, which serves as an alternate-universe reimagining of Divergent.

Plus, Houston-based mixed-media artist Romeo Robinson joins us to tell us about his artistic process, how the city of Houston has influenced his work, and what to expect from the collection he’ll be showcasing at the Affordable Art Fair this weekend.

And, as always, our hosts Tessa Barrera and Ernie Manouse talk about the top stories of the day at the top of each hour, including Kroger saying it will cut 3,000 corporate jobs as it expands its use of artificial intelligence and Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare saying the ICE agent who struck a man with a federal vehicle did so intentionally.

On today’s Hello Houston, with the U.S. Supreme Court opening its new term last week, we talk with Seth Chandler, a professor of law at the University of Houston Law Center, who breaks down some of the major cases on the docket and what effects they might have.

Next, we do our regular Tuesday feature, Five Simple Questions, in which Hello Houston Executive Producer Jim Kovacik sits down with Houston singer, producer, and songwriter Brandon J. Marks for a conversation about his music career and R&B influences.

In the second hour, author Dr. Arelia R. Johnson, who was the first Chief Equity Officer and Chief Officer of Human and Civil Rights for Harris County, discusses her book Hijacking Equity and the Fight for Justice and how leaders can turn words into meaningful action.

And finally, we wrap up today's show with Brandon J. Marks performing his songs PLJ (Peace, Love, Joy), Hold On, and ALR in our Geary studio.

Plus, as always, our hosts Tessa Barrera and Michael Adkison discuss today’s top stories at the top of each hour, including President Trump’s government funded TV ads still running despite a federal judge's order to take them down, the Harris County District Attorney’s Office launching an investigation into an incident involving an ICE agent's vehicle striking a man, James Talarico leading over Ken Paxton in Harris County according to a new poll, and more.

On today’s Hello Houston, we talk with Bao Long Chu, Program Director of Arts & Culture for the Houston Endowment, and Jen Benoit-Bryan, director of SMU DataArts, who both discuss the impact arts and culture have on the city of Houston.

Then, in this week’s Producer’s Spotlight, we hear Hello Houston producer William Menjivar chat with Giuseppe Taurino, Executive Director of Inprint, to find out what makes Houston a great literary city.

In the show's second hour, we’re joined by Chris Heinbaugh, Chief Advocacy Officer of the AT&T Performing Arts Center, and Taylor Jackson, CEO of Houston Arts Alliance, who both talk about how the Texas Legislature impacts funding for the arts and what we can expect from the upcoming legislative session. 

Plus, Claudia de Vasco, the Effective Storytelling Working Group Lead for HouArts in Action, and the Hobby Center’s Marketing and Communications Director, Joel Luks, tell us all about Houston’s arts community and what makes it so vibrant.

And, as always, our hosts Tessa Barrera and Michael Adkison talk about today’s top stories at the top of each hour, including a man struck by an ICE agent during a pursuit in Northwest Houston, the Justice Department launching an anti-trust investigation into five major TV networks, and James Talarico's return to the campaign trail.

On today’s Hello Houston, Harris County Attorney Abbie Kamin joins us to discuss a new program that's designed to help domestic violence survivors get protective orders and other legal protections, the latest court battles surrounding local election rules and mail-in voting, and more.

Next, we hear the latest edition of Tessa’s regular Friday feature, Tessa Takes On, in which she talks with Louie Hinchliffe, a member of the UH Track and Field team, who also won a bronze medal with his home country of Great Britain in the 2024 Summer Olympics.

In the second hour, Hello Houston producer Laura Walker showcases the Call Me Mother Experience with its founder, curator, and lead artist Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton, who explains how this exhibition uses art, poetry and personal stories to confront disparities in Black maternal health. The exhibition is on view at The Health Museum through February 28, 2027.

And finally, we wrap up the week with our regular Friday feature, Last Minute Plans, in which we share a list of Houston area events that will help you make the most of your weekend, while our hosts and Hello Houston listeners share their own plans for the weekend.

And, as always, our hosts Tessa Barrera and Michael Adkison talk about the top stories of the day at the top of each hour, including Harris County Commissioner Lesley Briones saying more than 60 Flock cameras will be decommissioned in precinct 4 and the firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan being livestreamed.