Kansas City Today

Military members and their families are especially vulnerable to food insecurity, but Kansas City groups are providing a safety net. Plus: Missouri hemp producers are stuck in confusion after the delay of Gov. Mike Parson's ban on hemp-derived edibles.

Many Missouri veterans and military families struggle to access enough food to stay healthy. As KCUR’s Noah Taborda reports, some Kansas City organizations want to make sure they don't have to choose between the expenses of day-to-day life and going hungry.

When Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft blocked Gov. Mike Parson’s emergency rules banning the sale of hemp-derived drugs, he may have delayed the effort by at least six months. As Harshawn Ratanpal reports, the looming ban leaves farmers and businesses in Missouri’s hemp industry holding their breath.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted today by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by David McKeel and KCUR Studios, and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

Does agreeing to take part in a political debate make you a man? How gender politics and notions of masculinity are playing out in this year’s presidential election — and in the Missouri showdown between Lucas Kunce and Josh Hawley for the U.S. Senate.

The intersection of gender and politics often features in American elections, and has been accentuated by Donald Trump’s presidential contests against Hillary Clinton in 2016 and now Kamala Harris. “Being a man” is also a recurring undertone of the race in Missouri between incumbent U.S. Senator Josh Hawley and his challenger Lucas Kunce.

As a political correspondent for NPR who often focuses on gender politics, Danielle Kurtzleben has been following this trend from a national perspective. KCUR's Brian Ellison spoke with Kurtzleben about the 2024 campaign.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted today by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by David McKeel and KCUR Studios, and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

A new Missouri poll shows growing support for Amendment 3, this fall's ballot measure enshrining a right to an abortion in the state constitution. It even has backing from some Republicans, who still have strong leads in all the races for statewide office.

A new poll from St. Louis University and YouGov reports that 52% of respondents indicated they'd vote for Amendment 3, protecting the right to an abortion in Missouri. St. Louis Public Radio political correspondent Jason Rosenbaum has been following the story. He spoke with Up To Date's Steve Kraske about this support and its implications.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted today by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by David McKeel and KCUR Studios, and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

For more than a century, bird hatcheries and farmers across the country have used the U.S. Postal Service to ship newborn birds. But recent shipment delays have led to many birds dying in transit. Plus: Climate change could bring more water scarcity to the Midwest and Great Plains and, with it, more legal battles over water.

When someone wants to add chicks to their backyard farm or populate a larger operation, they often order from hatcheries. For the past 100 years, those hatcheries have used the U.S. Postal Service to ship live baby birds around the country. Increasingly, customers and suppliers say slow deliveries are causing birds to arrive dead. The Midwest Newsroom’s Kavahn Mansouri investigates.

The Western U.S. has seen decades of disputes over water. Now, climate change could bring more water scarcity to the Midwest and Great Plains. That’s left states in the middle of the country wondering if the thirst for water could be headed their way. Harvest Public Media’s Kate Grumke reports.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted today by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by David McKeel and KCUR Studios, and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves is casting blame on a lack of consequences for teens who commit property crimes like car theft, saying it emboldens them and causes the crimes to escalate — like in the recent murder of Shaun Brady.

Two teens were charged Friday in Jackson County family court with second-degree murder for the fatal shooting of Brady, a well-known Kansas City chef, last week.

Graves spoke with KCUR's Steve Kraske on Up To Date about concerns with crime in Kansas City, what her department is seeing, and what changes she's asking for from Juvenile Court.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted today by Nomin Ujiyediin. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios, and edited by Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

Kansas City is finishing its campaign of installing LED streetlights that they say promote green sustainability. But activists say it's just a band-aid on the city's bigger climate problem. Plus: Why Kansas musician Freedy Johnston returned to his small hometown to paint a mural.

Over the past six years, Kansas City has converted almost all of its street lights to energy-saving LED bulbs. But as KCUR’s Brandon Azim reports, environmental advocates say that until the city moves toward a more renewable energy source, the transition is a token gesture toward its sustainability goals.

Musician Freedy Johnston left his hometown of Kinsley, Kansas, in the 1980s to pursue his musical dreams. He returned this August to work on a mural celebrating the place he once moved away from. Jedd Beaudoin, of KMUW in Wichita, spoke with Johnston about the project, and forging a new connection to home.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

This episode of Kansas City Today is hosted by Brian Ellison. It is produced by David McKeel and KCUR Studios. It's edited by Madeline Fox, Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

As the Kansas City Irish Fest begins today, the Irish community is in mourning after the killing of chef and festival organizer Shaun Brady during a possible car burglary. Outgoing Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker says she's seeing a trend of rising property crimes that end in tragedy.

“My heart’s really broken. I vacillate from anger and outrage to all those personal feelings of why, why, why,” Baker said. “Why was this man’s life taken? What could have been done? What can be done still?"

Baker spoke with Up To Date's Steve Kraske about her office's efforts to address property crimes — and what's standing in the way of more prosecutions.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

This episode of Kansas City Today is hosted by Frank Morris. It is produced by David McKeel and KCUR Studios. It's edited by Madeline Fox, Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

An increasingly popular way for political campaigns to connect to voters is through text messaging. And while you may find the barrage of messages annoying — they're probably working. Plus, Kansas Democrats are hoping to flip enough seats in the state Legislature to get rid of the Republican supermajority.

On the day before Missouri’s primary, many potential voters received a flood of text messages from candidates for governor, lieutenant governor, treasurer, secretary of state and attorney general among other races. St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum looks into why many campaigns are using text messages to reach the public.

Kansas lawmakers are strapping in for an election season that could decide the dynamics of power in state politics. Kansas News Service reporter Zane Irwin and editor Stephen Koranda sat down to talk about what’s at stake in the Kansas Statehouse.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

This episode of Kansas City Today is hosted by Peggy Lowe. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios. It's edited by Madeline Fox, Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

Nearly 50 cases of tuberculosis have been confirmed in Wyandotte County — more than the total number of cases in the state of Kansas last year. Still, experts say overall public risk is low.

Health officials have confirmed 49 cases of the respiratory disease tuberculosis in Wyandotte County, more cases than the entire state of Kansas had last year. Tuberculosis is not widespread in the United States, but 40 states and Washington, D.C., reported increases in 2023. KCUR's Steve Kraske spoke with Dr. Dana Hawkinson of the University Kansas Health System about the disease, how to treat it and why public risk remains low amid the latest outbreak.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

This episode of Kansas City Today is hosted by Peggy Lowe. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios. It's edited by Madeline Fox, Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.

Marcellus Williams remains on death row in Missouri after 20 years, despite evidence that he is innocent in the 1998 murder of a St. Louis woman. But a plea deal that would have saved him from the death penalty, in exchange for life in prison, was blocked by the Missouri Supreme Court.

An evidentiary hearing for Williams' innocence case is scheduled for Wednesday, Aug. 28. UMKC law professor Sean O'Brien breaks down the history of the case with KCUR's Steve Kraske on Up To Date.

Contact the show at [email protected]. Follow KCUR on Instagram and Facebook for the latest news.

Kansas City Today is hosted today by Brian Ellison. It is produced by Byron Love and KCUR Studios. It's edited by Madeline Fox, Gabe Rosenberg and Lisa Rodriguez.

You can support Kansas City Today by becoming a KCUR member: kcur.org/donate.