Writer Gish Jen recently had a revelation about her novels: her characters often talk to the dead. But in her most recent work, Bad Bad Girl, the dead talk back. In this book, Jen fictionalizes real details of her mother’s life, immigrating from China to the US in the 1940s and raising a big Chinese American family. The result is an exploration of a fraught mother-daughter relationship, and the elusive grasp of the American Dream. Jen talks to Boston Globe editorial page editor Jim Dao about this personal book, and about how America has changed since she started writing about it. Email us at [email protected].

As Americans, we are at our best when we’re engaged with the world - confident and curious. So says Marco Werman, the long-time host of public radio program The World, based at GBH here in Boston. Recent cuts to public media funding mean programs like The World are in trouble, with fewer resources to tell deep stories about the complexities and diversity of our planet, and less awareness about America’s place in it. This week on Say More, Marco Werman sits down with podcast editor Anna Kusmer to talk about the importance of a global perspective, and why he loves The World. Email us at [email protected].

Recording LIVE from Globe Summit, Shirley Leung talks to Ben & Jerry’s cofounder Ben Cohen about what makes his company stand apart. Activism has been part of the ice cream company’s DNA since launching with Jerry Greenfield four decades ago. While it may turn some customers away, it’s a worthy price to pay staying true to your values, says Ben. Now, Ben is working to #FreeBenAndJerry’s from large corporate owners to try to return the company to its activist roots. He talks to Shirley about this battle and expresses his current feelings through an extended ice cream metaphor. Email us at [email protected].

Globe columnist Kevin Cullen has written countless stories about veterans, but one recent story was the most powerful he’s ever told. This week on Say More, Cullen talks to Globe’s Opinion Editor Jim Dao about one Boston veteran who spent decades finding peace after a devastating experience in Vietnam. Cullen talks about his own motivations for telling these types of stories, and his grief and anger about the treatment of veterans in this country. 

Email us at [email protected]

Read Kevin’s piece here: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/11/06/metro/end-ed-kochanowskis-wars/

When we think of middle class life, several things come to mind: owning a home, stable childcare, food in the pantry, a sense of security. But as the rich get richer in Massachusetts, the middle class is falling further behind, and making ends meet is no longer a given. People are angry, and politicians seem to be waking up to the crisis. Say More host Shirley Leung talks to the Boston Globe’s Money, Power,Inequality team about their new reporting project “Squeezed” about MA’s disappearing middle class. The episode features project editor Kris Hooks and reporters Katie Johnston and Mara Kardas-Nelson. 

To read SQUEEZED, click here: https://apps.bostonglobe.com/2025/11/money-power-inequality/squeezed/massachusetts-middle-class/unravel/

When New York Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani was asked in a debate which democratic politician was most effective, he answered, “Boston Mayor Michelle Wu.” Wu and Mamdani are both young, progressive and unapologetically ambitious about their visions for their respective cities. They both captured vast coalitions and are being watched closely by the rest of the country, to see if progressive ideas can really translate into policy. Wu has had some success… can Mamdani follow in her footsteps? Say More host Shirley Leung and Globe Ideas writer Abdallah Fayyad discuss. Email us at [email protected].

Today, we’re sharing the first episode from My Home Fronts , a podcast from journalist Romy Neumark.

My Home Fronts is a four-parts documentary podcast series tracing the student founder of "Jews for Palestine" at Harvard during the Gaza war - and the generational gap it reveals within American Jewish families.

Episode 1, "Meeting Violet":

An unexpected encounter between Israeli journalist Romy Neumark and student activist Violet Barron sparks a candid conversation, tracing Violet’s journey from the shock of October 7 to the founding of Harvard Jews for Palestine. This sets the stage for a four-part exploration of Jewish identity, activism, and family in contemporary America.

Romy Neumark: Creator & Host

Noa Amiel Lavie: Co-Creator & Editor

Tina Tobey Mack: Sound Designer

https://myhomefronts.com/

The Israel-Hamas war took place more than 5,000 miles away from here, but you wouldn’t know that from the intensity of protests happening on US college campuses. Israeli journalist Romy Neumark works at Harvard University, and was curious to understand her own blind spots about how Israel is perceived in Jewish American homes. In Neumark’s new podcast “My Home Fronts,” she attempts to detangle a complex web of values, worldviews and history that lead to vastly different opinions about the Middle East within Jewish families. In this episode of Say More, Neumark talks to opinion editor Jim Dao about her project.  Email us at [email protected]. 

Listen to "My Home Fronts" here:  https://myhomefronts.com/

After years of lobbying, Massachusetts has convinced toy company Hasbro to move its global headquarters from Rhode Island to Boston. Massachusetts is the historic home of many iconic toy companies, like Milton Bradley and Parker Brothers, and now, Hasbro joins Lego for another era of toy making. The question is, should we really be celebrating stealing business from our little neighbor to the south? Say More host Shirley Leung talks to Boston Globe business reporter Jon Chesto about the move and why headquarters still matter to a city like Boston. Email us at [email protected].

The exact causes of autism are unknown - but you wouldn’t know that from listening to President Trump and his health secretary RFK Jr., who recently announced Tylenol was to blame. The science behind the announcement is not solid - but more troublingly, it falls into an old pattern of blaming mothers for autism, which creates a culture of stigma, says Maura Sullivan, CEO of The Arc of Massachusetts, an advocacy group for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Maura has two sons with autism, so this issue is very personal for her. She talks to Say More host Shirley Leung about her own two sons on the spectrum. Email us at [email protected].