Up To Date

For a Democrat running in bright-red Missouri, the 2018 election will be quite the challenge. Today, we speak with Sen. Claire McCaskill about a new Republican opponent's campaign bid as well as the latest developments on Capitol Hill. Then, we learn how the 2014 Farm Bill is affecting dairy farmers and why they're pushing for reform , not replacement. Afterwards, we learn about the experiences of gay and transgender youths in the rural Midwest. It's not as repressive as you might expect.

You could be forgiven for not realizing there's an organization based in Kansas City that's helping people around the world gain access to sanitation and clean water. Today, we meet the CEO and co-founder of Water.org . Then, astrophysicist Angela Speck returns to discuss what the scientific community learned from the eclipse on August 21. We also find out what it was like for folks living in St. Joseph, Missouri, to play host to more than 80,000 total eclipse tourists.

For people on fixed incomes, being priced out of house and home by redevelopment and rising property values is a real concern. Today, we learn how developers can maintain affordable housing levels while improving neighborhoods and avoiding gentrification. Then, Celeste Headlee, host of Georgia Public Broadcasting's On Second Thought , explains the importance of having face-to-face conversations in an era of ubiquitous online "pokes" and tweets.

Not only is David Litt one of the youngest presidential speechwriters ever, but he also has the distinct (dis)honor of deplaning Air Force One in his pajamas. Today, Litt shares stories about his time writing jokes — and some serious stuff, too — for President Barack Obama. Then, Kansas advocacy groups react to a ruling from that state's supreme court on the most recent school funding formula proposal. We'll also speak with the attorney representing several school districts in the long-running

Chances are good that you've heard of Dan Brown before. (Does The Da Vinci Code ring a bell?) Today, the mega best-selling author talks about about his latest thriller, Origin , and explains why he thinks God won't survive the next hundred years. Then, we find out how reframing the gun control debate can help prevent more children being killed in gun violence. It's a topic near and dear to Nicole Hockley , whose son Dylan was killed at Sandy Hook Elementary in 2012, and Kansas Sen. Barbara

Playwright August Wilson wrote a series of ten plays, one for each decade of the 20th century, that examines the black experience in America. Today, director Ron OJ Parson takes us into the enduring themes of Fences , which looks at the 1950s, and will soon be staged at The Rep . Also, we talk with veterans of two Kansas City organizations, the Center for Conflict Resolution and COMBAT , about their years of work teaching groups and individuals how to resolve conflict without violence. Kansas

They may be icons of the old west, but cowboys aren't just an American phenomenon. Today, we learn the long history of the horseback herdsmen, whose roots go back to Africa. Then, we discuss climate change and the complexities of reducing fossil fuel use with environmentalist Bill McKibben . Later, we ask Sam Cossman why on earth he climbs into active volcanoes and what he hopes to gain from doing so. " Cowboy Mike " Grauer shares "The (True) History of Cowboys" at the Kansas City Public Library

With the country's attention trained on Sunday night's tragic events in Las Vegas, we discuss whether the worst mass shooting in modern American history might shift the attitudes of Second Amendment advocates, and hear how police departments train and respond to quickly-developing kinetic events. Then, we find out how Amazon's recent purchase of Whole Foods and other grocery industry trends might shift shopping habits away from trips to the supermarket and onto the internet.

If you’re planning a movie night but find yourself underwhelmed by plastic blocks or cannibal clowns, take heart! There are other cinematic options this fall: A man flees Leningrad and the Soviet secret police, a doctor wrestles with guilt and mystery, and more. Today, Up To Date 's Film Critics review the latest indie, foreign, and documentary movies now showing, including Different Flowers , Battle of the Sexes , The Unknown Girl , Polina , The Fencer , Stronger , Rebel in the Rye , Brad’s

Today, two Kansas City DREAMers talk about the challenges they face as Trump’s DACA deadline approaches. Also, Hurricanes Irma and Maria have wreaked havoc upon Florida and Puerto Rico. We’ll speak with KCUR's Frank Morris, who's covering the destruction, and an area relief agent working to help victims piece their lives back together.