massachusetts

WAMC's Dr. Alan Chartock shares his thoughts on the Senate conformation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.  Dr. Chartock also discusses Tuesday's primary results in Massachusettes.

The White House has a new approach to trade.

In today’s Congressional Corner, Massachusetts Congressman Richard Neal of the first House district wraps up his interview with WAMC’s Alan Chartock.

The Farm Bill is being reconciled.

In today’s Congressional Corner, Massachusetts Congressman Richard Neal of the first House district continues his interview with WAMC’s Alan Chartock.

The Democratic Party is hoping to win back the House.

In today’s Congressional Corner, Massachusetts Congressman Richard Neal of the first House district speaks with WAMC’s Alan Chartock.

The Mueller investigation is now a year old.

In today’s Congressional Corner, Massachusetts Congressman Jim McGovern, a Democrat from the second district, wraps up his talk with WAMC’s Alan Chartock.

Around the country, students have been planning walkouts and other protests after the school shooting in Florida last month. On Monday, students in Pittsfield met with one of the top Democrats in the House.

Students in Massachusetts lead the nation in achievement on Advanced Placement exams.

The nonprofit College Board, which administers the exams, says 32.1 percent of students who graduated from the state's public high schools last year scored a three or better on at least one exam.

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (AP) — The Springfield Water and Sewer Commission has qualified for a $50 million low-interest loan that could help the Connecticut River run cleaner. 

W.E.B. Du Bois was one of the most important African-American activists during the first half of the 20th century. He co-founded the NAACP, supported Pan-Africanism, and was the first African American to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard University.

Du Bois was born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts 150 years ago this month and Great Barrington's Du Bois anniversary celebration began on January 15 and will continue throughout 2018.

Here to tell us more are Dennis Powell, President of the Berkshire County Branch NAACP;and member of the Steering Committee Du Bois Lecture Series; Professor Dr. Whitney Battle-Baptiste, Associate Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Du Bois Center at UMass Amherst; Ted Thomas, poet and teacher who directs the student Du Bois spoken word programs; and Barbara Dean, musician, performer, and radio DJ who has worked on Du Bois issues and promotion in Great Barrington for about three decades.

Through his roles as a "Daily Show" Correspondent, Deranged Millionaire, the PC to Justin Long’s Mac, and his own bestselling books, the real John Hodgman has always remained hidden: a mystery wrapped beneath his signature dry, absurdist wit (and a moustache or beard, depending on the year).

But now -- for the first time -- he turns to the truth, exposing his real-life roles as a father, husband, and hater of fudge. He’s the first to admit that his path to success has been a strange one, and he’s the best person to explain why. 

His new book: "Vacationland: True Stories from Painful Beaches," follows his journeys as a very citified only child nerd, navigating wildernesses where he does not belong. 

The Senate version of the federal tax overhaul repeals the mandate requiring Americans to buy health insurance. State Representative Tricia Farley-Bouvier, a Pittsfield Democrat, says 1.4 million women in Massachusetts could lose affordable contraception if the Republican-controlled Congress continues to chip away at the Affordable Care Act. Republican Governor Charlie Baker on Monday signed a bill ensuring no-cost contraceptives in Massachusetts – regardless of federal changes to the health care law. WAMC’s Berkshire Bureau Chief JD Allen spoke with Farley-Bouvier about the law.

CiderDays is an annual community celebration of all things apple in beautiful Franklin County, Massachusetts. 2017 marks their 23rd year with tours, cidermaking and tastings, workshops and much more in orchards and venues county-wide from Ashfield, Deerfield, Turners Falls, Charlemont and Colrain to New Salem and the towns in between.

Whether you are a cider aficianado (hard or sweet), make your own cider, are an orchardist, like hanging out in bucolic orchards, or just enjoy soaking up all the goodness of autumn in New England, CiderDays is a pretty cool event. To find out more – we welcome Al Sax from the CiderDays committee and home hard cider maker, April Woodard.

The 2010 Supreme Court decision commonly referred to as Citizens United  protected corporate rights to campaign spending.  Now, there is a national effort to pass a constitutional amendment that would overturn that decision and address the influence of money in politics.  Organizers in Massachusetts are beginning to gather signatures to place the amendment on the ballot, and Vermonter Ben Cohen of Ben & Jerry’s fame is helping.

Massachusetts has approved 14 new projects under its Economic Development Incentive Program. 

Democrats are looking forward to the next election.

In today’s Congressional Corner, Massachusetts Congressman Jim McGovern, a Democrat from the second district, wraps up his conversation with WAMC’s Alan Chartock.

The Charlemont Forum in Charlemont Massachusetts is an ongoing lecture series that explores the causes of and possible solutions for one aspect of the current divisions in American political culture. 

On Wednesday, July 5th at 7 p.m., The Charlemont Forum is hosting a community reading of Frederick Douglass' famous speech, "What to the Slave is the 4th of July."

The co-artistic directors of the Double Edge Theater of Ashfield, are partnering with the Charlemont Forum to choreograph an engaging event. Actors from the Double Edge Theater together with approximately nine other readers who have volunteered from the hill towns, will give a dramatic reading of this stirring speech, which dates back to 5 July, 1852. 

We are joined now by Bruce Lessels - a Charlemont Forum Board member and a Board member for the Double Edge Theater Company in Ashfield, Massachusetts.