On Second Thought

The opioid crisis continues to ravage Georgia and the rest of the nation. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, prescription opioids caused more than 32,000 deaths in 2016. Last week, President Donald Trump said he is prepared to sue some drug companies as part of the fight against the opioid drug crisis. He also talked about punishing drug traffickers with the death penalty . We talked with Missy Owen , co-founder and CEO of the Davis Direction Foundation, and

The estate of Harper Lee, author of "To Kill a Mockingbird," is suing over an upcoming Broadway adaptation of the classic novel. In the lawsuit, Lee's estate complains about significant differences between the book and the play, which was adapted for the stage by "The West Wing" creator Aaron Sorkin.

Former Georgia Gov. Zell Miller, 86, died Friday morning at his home in Young Harris. Miller was best known for pioneering the lottery-funded HOPE scholarship , which has provided nearly 9.5 billion dollars in financial assistance to millions of Georgia college students since its creation in 1992. In July 2000, after two terms as governor, Miller was appointed to the U.S. Senate. He won a special election to keep the seat in November 2000 and remained in the Senate until 2005. A conservative

Normally when you think of cherry blossoms, you think of Washington D.C. or Japan. But unbeknownst to a lot of tourists, Macon, Georgia is the Cherry Blossom Capital of the World . William A. Fickling Sr. discovered the distinctive blooms in his backyard in 1949. Since then, more than 350,000 Yoshino cherry trees have taken root in Macon. There's even an international festival that celebrates them , playfully nicknamed the "Pinkest Party on Earth." We talked with Macon arborist Derrick Catlett

Today in the Breakroom we talked about this week's top stories. We were joined by Ed Sohn , the Vice President for Product Management and Partnership at Thomson Reuters , Hector Fernandez a professor at Georgia State University, Kalena Boller the host of "The Credits" podcast, and Kathy Lohr , a former NPR Correspondent. Breakroom Topics: 1. President Donald Trump pushed for the death penalty for drug dealers this week. The specifics of his proposal aren't yet clear, but Trump says it's time to

Normally when you think of cherry blossoms, you think of Washington D.C. or Japan. But unbeknownst to a lot of tourists, Macon, Georgia is the Cherry Blossom Capital of the World . William A. Fickling Sr. discovered the distinctive blooms in his backyard in 1949. Since then, more than 350,000 Yoshino cherry trees have taken root in Macon. There's even an international festival that celebrates them , playfully nicknamed the "Pinkest Party on Earth."

For Women’s History Month, On Second Thought is paying tribute to Georgia's female trailblazers. Civil Rights icon Roslyn Pope made history in 1960 when, as a student at Spelman College, she wrote “An Appeal for Human Rights ." The document was instrumental in advancing the Atlanta Student Movement 's efforts to end segregation. On Second Thought producer Fenly Foxen spoke with Pope about her experiences as a student leader in the Civil Rights Movement.

White, Georgia is about 45 minutes northwest of Atlanta, and home to a massive junkyard for rare and retired vehicles. What started as a car dealership in 1931 is now the final resting place for more than 4,000 cars. On Second Thought producer Sean Powers drove up to Old Car City USA and visited the massive junkyard.

Opioid addiction is a major problem in Georgia. Several years ago, Governor Nathan Deal signed the "Good Samaritan" bill. The bill was created to prevent opioid overdose deaths by giving amnesty to anyone who reports drug-related emergencies. The measure also equips law enforcement and first responders with Naloxone, a drug that can reverse overdoses if given right away. We looked back at a conversation from last year with Andy Miller , the editor of Georgia Health News and with Mona Bennett ,

Frankenstein has been a popular novel turned movie since it was first published in 1818. At Emory University , three Atlanta playwrights took a new look at Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein with modern scientific research. They each contributed to a single show that’s being performed at the Atlanta Science Festival . We were joined by Neely Gossett and Edith Freni , two of the three playwrights from the show "Frankenstein Goes Back to the Lab." African-American churchgoers have increasingly