Midday

Today on Midday, we are going to switch gears - so to speak - from the news of the day, and talk about Cars.

Tom's guest is John Davis, the creator, producer and host of MotorWeek, now in its 41st season. The weekly automotive magazine show is produced at Maryland Public Television (MPT) and syndicated on PBS stations across the country.

Gas prices are brutal, and there’s no end to the high prices in sight. What can we do to maximize our mileage, and given the damage we do every time we fill up, is now the time to take the plunge and go electric?

For the past many months, it’s been a challenging time to be in the market for a new set of wheels. We’ll talk about the current state of inventory for both new and used cars, and what we should look for when we’re ready to buy.

John Davis is with us for the hour today to take your questions and comments about all things automotive…

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

It's time again for a visit with Midday theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck, who joins Tom each week with her reviews of Maryland's regional stage. Today, she spotlights Everyman Theatre's world-premiere production of Crying on Television, the new play by Baltimore-based writer and humorist R. Eric Thomas.

The Thomas rom-com about race, media culture and real friendship is directed by Reginald L. Douglas, with a cast that includes Paige Hernandez as Ellison, Erika Rose as Taffy, Starr Kirkland as Mackenzie, and Dwayne Washington as Chris.Crying on Television continues at Baltimore's Everyman Theatre until June 26. The play will also be available as a streaming video for ticketed patrons starting on June 17. Follow the theater link for showtimes and ticket info.

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

We begin today with a conversation about an exciting development that will transform and enrich the media landscape in Baltimore.

The Baltimore Banner will begin publishing soon. The Banner is a multi-platform news organization, launched under the aegis of the non-profit Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism, that has attracted top talent from Baltimore and around the country, and it may turn out that it’s riding something of a wave in journalism. Non-profit newsrooms are springing-up and succeeding across the country in cities large and small. The Institute for Non-Profit News reports that in 2020, “Web traffic to nonprofit news sites grew by 43%.”

The Banner enjoys the substantial financial and philosophical support of Stewart Bainum, a wealthy entrepreneur who has made a multi-year, multi-million-dollar commitment, and serves as chairman of the Venetoulis Institute. Soon, anyone who values first-rate local journalism will have the opportunity to support this enterprise as well, with subscriptions and contributions.

Kimi Yoshino is an award-winning journalist who has come to Baltimore to be the Banner’s Editor in Chief after more than two decades at the Los Angeles Times…

Imtiaz Patel was a senior executive at the Wall Street Journal for several years. He’s also been a consultant with the Philadelphia Enquirer and USA Today. He is the CEO of the Baltimore Banner…

They both join us on Zoom from the Banner headquarters in Baltimore.

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

“Let me be very clear to all of you, and I've been very clear to the President. He bears responsibilities for his words and actions — no ifs, ands or buts. I asked him personally today, does he hold responsibility for what happened? Does he feel bad about what happened? He told me he does have some responsibility for what happened and he needs to acknowledge that.”

—House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, speaking with fellow Republicans about Donald Trump’s culpability for the attack on the Capital on January 6th of last year.

The US House of Representatives' Special Committee investigating that attack and efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election will hold its first public hearing tonight. WYPR will carry NPR’s live coverage beginning at 8:00pm

Today on Midday, a conversation with New York Times national correspondent Alexander Burns about a compelling and comprehensive book he co-authored with his Times colleague, Jonathan Martin, about the last year of the Trump administration, including the months preceding the insurrection, through the first months of the Biden Administration.

Burns and Martin make a strong case for the fragility of the basic architecture of American democracy. They argue that government cannot function in a two-party system in which neither party is internally coherent and serious about governing. It is a book full of excellent reporting and trenchant insights.

It’s called This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden, and the Battle for America’s Future.

Alexander Burns joins us on Zoom from Washington, DC…

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

Today , it's Midday on Maryland Politics, with a little over a month to go before statewide primary elections.Tom's guests today are two of the most astute observers of the state and local political scenes...

Steve Raabe is the founder and president of OpinionWorks, an independent research, strategy and opinion survey firm based in Annapolis, Maryland. Raabe discusses some of the key issues an concerns driving the Maryland electorate this election season. He joins us by phone from Annapolis.

Later, Justin Fenton, investigative reporter with The Baltimore Banner, the new online local news platform launching next week, talks with Tom about how rising crime in the Baltimore region and the debate over police reform are playing in this year's local politics. He joins us on the phone from Baltimore.

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

Today, another in Midday's continuing series of Conversations with the Candidates: 2022. Tom's guest is Baltimore City State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby.

Ms. Mosby is standing for re-election to a third term as Baltimore’s top prosecutor. She is one of three candidates in the July 19th Democratic primary, a race that pits her against the same two opponents she beat, handily, in 2018: Ivan Bates and Thiru Vignarajah.

Marilyn Mosby drew national attention when she indicted the six officers in the Freddie Gray case in 2015. None of those indictments resulted in a conviction, but Ms. Mosby became one of the country’s highest-profile progressive prosecutors. Her policies have drawn the ire of those on the political right, including Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, who has been an outspoken critic.

That is not to say that those on the left have been completely enamored with Ms. Mosby. Advocates for Keith Davis, Jr., have mounted a highly organized and vocal campaign to pressure Ms. Mosby to drop her plans to try Mr. Davis for murder for the fifth time.But in addition to controversies surrounding her decisions as the State’s Attorney, Ms. Mosby has been no stranger to personal controversy as well. She is scheduled to stand trial in federal court in September for perjury and making false statements on a mortgage application. She has called the investigation that led to her indictment politically and racially motivated.

Marilyn Mosby is 42 years old. She is a graduate of Boston College Law School and Tuskegee University. She served as Assistant State's Attorney for Baltimore from 2005 to 2012. She became a litigator for Liberty Mutual Insurance in 2012, a position she held until she announced her plans to run for State’s Attorney the following year. She’s married to Baltimore City Council President Nick Mosby. They are the parents of two teenage daughters.

State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby joins us on Zoom from Baltimore.

And as always, we welcome listener calls, emails and Tweets.

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

This coming Sunday, the Baltimore Chamber Jazz Society presents its inaugural vocal ensemble performance as part of its 30th anniversary celebration. The Grammy award-winning jazz quartet, New York Voices will make its Charm City debut in a 5pm concert at the Baltimore Museum of Art.

Joining Tom now with a preview of NYV's June 12 performance, and a little more background on this acclaimed jazz vocal ensemble, is Darmon Meader, the group's co-founder, musical director and its tenor. Other members include Peter Eldridge, baritone, and sopranos Lauren Kinhan and Kim Nazarian.Darmon Meader joins us on Zoom from Hudson Valley, New York.

For ticketing information on the New York Voices performance at BMA on Sunday, June 12 at 5pm, click here.

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

Prospects for new gun legislation, battling US inflation and continuing to support Ukraine in its war with Russia are front-and-center issues on Capitol Hill.

Tom's guest now is Senator Ben Cardin, who has served as Maryland's senior senator since 2007.

Sen. Cardin joins us on Zoom.

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

We begin Midday today with an update on the latest CDC data showing an uptick in COVID-19 infection and hospitalization in Baltimore City and surrounding counties in recent days.

Joining us to explain what the numbers tell us about the state of the COVID pandemic in our region is Dr. Letitia Dzirasa. She is a Hopkins-trained pediatrician and since 2019, she has served as the Commissioner of Baltimore City's Health Department.

Dr. Dzirasa joins us on Zoom from Baltimore City...

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

We open this segment of Midday with the music of Johann Sebastian Bach - from his Cello Suite in G Major, played by the great English ‘cellist, Steven Isserlis.

Mr. Isserlis, who is also the author of the recently published authoritative musical guide, The Bach Cello Suites: A Companion, is appearing in recital in Baltimore this Sunday afternoon (June 5) with the pianist Jeremy Denk.

Their concert is part of the Candlelight Concert Society Series. They’ll play in the beautiful Linehan Hall, on the campus of UMBC in Catonsville. For performance and ticketing information, click here.

Steven Isserlis joins us on Zoom from New York City.

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.