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Friday, May 12, 2023 - We preview this Sunday’s episode of WHY, Philosophical Discussions about Everyday Life with UND professor Jack Russell Weinstein. His guest will be Michael Ignatieff, author of “On Consolation: Finding Solace in Dark Times.” Known for his work as a historian, Ignatieff has held senior academic posts at the universities of Cambridge, Oxford, Harvard, and Toronto. Most recently, he was rector and President of Central European University. ~~~ Pew Research Center finds that 25-30% of children under 18 are living in single parent households, and 30% of single parents live in poverty. This Sunday is Mothers Day. In another episode of “Practical Kindness,” Brandi Malarkey explores the many ways women become single moms and the challenges they face. ~~~ Matt Olien reviews “Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3.” ~~~ NDSU professor of history Tom Isern is here with another episode of Plains Folk. This one is titled “A Free State.”

Thursday, May 11, 2023 - Governor Doug Burgum is John Harris’s guest in an excerpt from tonight’s Prairie Pulse television show. ~~~ Tim Hagerty is the author of “Tales from the Dugout: 1,001 Humorous, Inspirational & Wild Anecdotes from Minor League Baseball.” Did you know that a Fargo vs. Grand Forks game set a still-active baseball record? And why did fans in Grafton throw coins at the players? We visit with the author. ~ A BirdNote feature on catbirds.

Wednesday, May 10, 2023 - Kathryn Rand and Steven Light have been named 2023 Chester Fritz Distinguished Professors at UND. Their area of expertise is Indian gaming law and policy. They’ll be honored at Saturday’s commencement. They join us to discuss the work that led to this recognition. ~~~ Sanctified, is the western produced by Dan Bielinski of Bismarck with the assistance of a host of local talent. It’s being shown Thursday at the Arts Center in Jamestown, so we thought it would be a good time to repeat our conversation about the film. Filmmaker Bielinski is program chair of Dramatic Arts at the University of Mary. ~~~ Patrick Hicks shares a profile of Emily Dickenson, in an episode of Studio 47.

Tuesday, May 9, 2023 - Julie Carr is the author of “Mud, Blood and Ghosts: Populism, Eugenics, and Spiritualism in the American West.” Populism is a word that has come up a lot in politics in recent years. Carr explores how the concept has changed in the many decades since it was first popularized. ~~~ Jessie Veeder shares another essay from the ranch. This one is titled “Stuck Season.”

Monday, May 8, 2023 - May is Mental Health Month, and the Empire Arts Center in Grand Forks is presenting a new, original play titled “Retail Therapy: 700 years of mental health care.” It’s a dark topic, woven through with gallows humor. We visit with the playwright, UND associate professor of English, Kathy Coudle-King. ~~~ Pipeline companies want to sequester carbon in Illinois and North Dakota. Geologists say it's safe - landowners aren't so sure. We have a report from Harvest Public Media’s Harvest Sarah Nardi. ~~~ NPR’s Steve Drummond, a long-time senior editor and executive producer at NPR, is the author of “The Watchdog: How The Truman Committee Battled Corruption and Helped Win World War Two.” He joins us to discuss this fast-paced story of how Harry Truman, as a newcomer to Washington Politics, cobbled together a bipartisan team that fought wartime corruption, placing him in the national spotlight and paving his path to the White House. ~~~ A regular segment on the Great American Folk Show is called Dakota Diners. Today we share Tom Brousseau’s piece on Mo Mo’s in Fargo.

Friday, May 5, 2023 - In an excerpt of the Prairie Pulse television show, host John Harris recaps the legislative session as he visits with two members of the House of Representatives. We’ll hear from Don Vigesaa, Republican from Cooperstown, but he begins with Josh Boschee, Democrat from Fargo. ~~~ News director Dave Thompson joins us to recap the news of the week. ~~~ Matt Olien reviews “Evil Dead Rise,” a twisted tale from writer/director Lee Cronin.

Thursday, May 4, 2023 - “Hike Every Mile-North Dakota” is an event on June 3rd, when folks will fan out to hike the entire 475 miles of the North Country Trail in North Dakota. ~~~ Every five years, Congress has to renew the Farm Bill. Harvest Public Media’s Xcaret Nuñez breaks down the major pieces of the omnibus bill and why it matters. ~~~ Cheryl Wachenheim, professor of agribusiness and applied economics, has been selected to give the 60th Faculty Lectureship, one of NDSU’s oldest and most prestigious awards. ~~~ Tom Isern shares a Plains Folk essay.

May 3, 2023 - The Collective Abundance Fund will distribute nearly $50M to Indigenous people in the tri-state region of North Dakota, South Dakota, and Minnesota for the next 5 years. ~~~ Chuck Lura shares a Natural North Dakota essay. ~~~ Gigi’s Playhouse is a Down Syndrome Achievement Center providing programming and support for people with Down syndrome and their families. ~~~ We learn about the kestrel in another episode of BirdNote.

Tuesday, May 2, 2023 - Dr. Gabriela Balf-Soran is a psychiatrist in Bismarck, North Dakota. She joins us to comment on how recent legislation regarding transgender care will affect the medical community. ~~~ Red River Valley Kids Read is a community-wide reading project for kids in Fargo, Moorhead, West Fargo, Grand Forks and Wahpeton. They focus on a single title of regional interest in an effort to build an appreciation for storytelling, our region, a sense of place, and a love of books and stories.

Monday, May 1 - The Magic City Discovery Center in Minot will open its new facility in May and is working to engage children and families in the magic of lifelong learning through discovery, creativity and play. It hopes to become a destination to bring children, their families and caregivers together in an interactive environment that inspires creativity, encourages play and enhances education. ~~~ With some nice bird-related thank-you gifts during our membership drive, we revisit an interview with the executive director of BirdNote, Nick Bayard.