St. Louis on the Air

At the start of the pandemic, three St. Louis-area healthcare CEOs promised that they would reduce or freeze their seven-figure salaries. It came at a time when thousands of their employees were losing their jobs and benefits. As it turns out, those promises were never fulfilled. St. Louis Post-Dispatch reporter Jacob Barker evaluated tax filings from the three major hospital systems in the area — Mercy Health, BJC Health and SSM Health — and found their leaders were paid more in 2020 than they were in 2019. Barker takes us inside his reporting, the crises facing hospitals when they announced the pledge in May 2020, and what he's learned about how these leaders fared while their employees suffered.

Since 1973, Missouri has been among a handful of states where judges would not grant divorce if one of the spouses was pregnant. But as of today, that’s no longer the case. We hear from the state representative who sponsored a new law that clarifies such proceedings, and we discuss what the change could mean for families, and for courts, with a St. Louis family law attorney.

This week, James Beard Award-winning chef Kevin Nashan opened The Clydesdale, a new tavern in Ballpark Village. Nashan talked about preparing for the restaurant’s first lunch service, avoiding a “burger war” on the menu, and what he’s learned from his other restaurants, Sidney Street Café and Peacemaker Lobster & Crab Co. He also shared details of his upbringing and culinary inspirations, including his time working at a Michelin-starred restaurant in Spain and what he learned from growing up near his grandfather’s restaurant in Sante Fe, New Mexico.

Questions and concerns continue to swirl about how large-scale data centers could impact the St. Louis region. As more proposals are submitted and elected officials change their stance on these controversial developments, St. Louis Public Radio reporters Kate Grumke and Kavahn Mansouri share their latest reporting about data centers in the St. Louis area. They also answer listener questions regarding the scale of newer data center projects, environmental studies and other states’ integration of data centers into their economic and environmental plans.

Missouri’s congressional map is one court ruling away from being locked in for the 2026 midterms. In Part 2 of the “Meet Me” podcast’s look at redistricting, host Luis Antonio Perez talks with voters about the confusing primary election. He then sits down with STLPR politics correspondent Jason Rosenbaum to unpack the redistricting drama and the upcoming court battle. Along the way, they revisit why the plot of the ‘90s film “Air Bud” is key to understanding the legal arguments over voting rights and representation in Missouri.

Starting this fall, a new Missouri law will require school officials to define antisemitic behavior in their codes of conduct and report those cases to state officials. The law’s requirements raise concerns from attorneys that schools will be forced to violate the First Amendment to enforce them. On this month’s edition of the Legal Roundtable, attorneys Brenda Talent, Javad Khazaeli and Bill Freivogel talk about the free speech complications of the new law. The panel also discusses two recent rulings with major implications for November’s elections, a discrimination lawsuit with ties to the Mafia, and more.

St. Louis native and composer Julia Riew went viral on TikTok in 2022 with a Korean Disney-style princess she created to fill a representation void in musical theater. This spring, she published her second book, "Shim Jung Takes the Dive," a middle-grades novel inspired by a beloved Korean folktale. Riew discusses the development of the book and its connection to her 2022 TikTok video. She also describes how growing up in St. Louis, being Asian in different spaces including the arts, and taking risks have shaped her journey to becoming a professional artist.

Published by St. Louis board game company Stonemaier Games, the hit game “Wingspan” flew onto the scene in 2019 and has steadily gained popularity ever since. Millions of players around the world have enjoyed its unique blend of card strategy and nature. Each card is based on a real-life bird and its behaviors. The game’s designer Elizabeth Hargrave — an avid birder — and Stonemaier Games co-founder Jamey Stegmaier talk about the game’s conception, a new pocket edition, and its expansions involving fish and dragons.

When Mike Bush came to St. Louis in 1985, he thought it would be a stop on the way to working in his hometown of Chicago. Instead, St. Louis became home, and Bush spent the next 41 years at KSDK Channel 5. He started in sports coverage, but spent most of his career as a news anchor. Along the way, he found a niche in telling positive stories about people making a difference though his “Making A Difference” segments and as host of the Musial Awards. Nearly two weeks into his retirement, Bush shares reflections and highlights from his career — and discusses what’s next.

After the abysmal failure of two constitutional amendments on the August primary ballot, Missouri Republicans gathered at the Missouri State Fair this week and it marked the unofficial kickoff of the state’s general election season. STLPR’s Sarah Kellogg joins “The Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air” to talk about how the GOP plans to move forward, especially with a favorable environment nationally for Democrats.