St. Louis on the Air

Republicans and Democrats agree that the federal campaign finance system is a failure. The limits on contributions to candidates can be easily circumvented and it’s difficult to track how money is influencing politics. One of the Democrats who agrees with this assessment is U.S. Sen. Elissa Slotkin, a Democrat from Michigan, who was in St. Louis last week to talk about, among other things, a national ethics overhaul. Slotkin provides her ideas on “The Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air.”

Missouri’s Children’s Division is on the verge of a major overhaul. Workers who look into alleged child abuse and neglect will transition into more specialized roles on Sept. 1 with the goal of reducing a traditionally high caseload. But the workload for investigators has risen, sparking concern among some who work for the agency. Reporter Steph Quinn with the Missouri Independent joins “The Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air” to discuss her latest article about the agency.

A single suicide affects about 135 people on average. A new study on the construction industry, which sees disproportionately high rates of suicide, shows how employers and peers can play a powerful role in the aftermath of such a tragedy. The St. Louis advocate behind that research shares how its findings could improve on current practices. (Producer’s note: While we don’t go into graphic detail, our guest does discuss his personal connection to suicide during this conversation. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 9-8-8 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.)

Also known as the “mouth harp,” the harmonica has deep roots in St. Louis. Those roots run so deep that 40 years ago it inspired the creation of a harmonica review called “Harp Attack!” Jon “Johnny Diamond” Erblich talks about the event’s history, the connections between the harmonica and ST. Louis, and why the underrated, versatile instrument has persisted for so many years in jazz, blues and folk music.

This Saturday, Aug. 22, marks the 150th anniversary of when St. Louis chose to split itself in two. The decision, now known as the Great Divorce, created an enduring divide that still shapes the region today. In this encore of the first episode of STLPR’s podcast, “Meet Me,” host Luis Antonio Perez visits a family whose home sits right on the city-county line and explores the origin of the split with Missouri Historical Society historian Andrew Wanko.

For international students heading to college this fall, the usual questions about housing, classes and finding community come with an added layer of uncertainty: changing federal immigration policies. New reporting from the Midwest Newsroom examines how those policies are affecting international enrollment — and the bottom line of colleges and universities across the region, including in Missouri. We talk with Midwest Newsroom reporting fellow Steph Conquest-Ware about what they found.

The critically acclaimed 2025 box office hit “Sinners” continues to captivate cinephiles — and foodies. Tenacious Eats owner and executive chef Liz Schuster and Foodies Eat First Fest founder Braden Tewolde have curated a “Sinners” experience complete with themed dishes and a mojo bag crafting station. They share the motivations behind their collaboration, the chefs and plates attendees can expect, and St. Louis’ diverse dining culture.

St. Louis passed the Social Evil Ordinance in 1870, making it the first U.S. city to legally regulate and license sex work. Today, the region’s adult entertainment footprint is back in the spotlight thanks to “Double Lives of Suburban Wives,” a TLC reality series featuring St. Louis-area creators. We talk with cast member Tammy Thompson about her adult-content journey and the show. With Dr. Heather Berg, a UCLA Associate Professor of Gender Studies and Labor Studies and former WashU faculty member, we also discuss the complexities of the job and the broader implications of sex work.

The St. Louis theatre community is thriving with new companies, shows and events. But in the aftermath of local media closures like the Riverfront Times, the only thing that is missing is a place for both theatre lovers and artists alike to follow what’s happening. That is where the new website St. Louis On Stage comes in. Its founders Carmen Garcia, Julie George, and Troy Schnider join us to discuss the importance of the website’s upcoming show, auditions and company database, their vision for this new online theatre hub and what we can expect in the future.

This summer, researchers from St. Louis Zoo spent hours in Forest Park studying what the turtles living there eat — and excrete. The work is part of a yearslong mission to understand how plastic affects the natural world. Dr. Sharon Deem, a veterinarian and director of the Institute for Conservation Medicine, talks about why she and her team are focusing on the snapping and box turtles living in St. Louis’ largest park, how to “wrangle” a sample from them, and what the plastics in their bodies could tell us about how plastics are affecting humans, too.