STL on the Air 📻

The holidays are here, and so are those sometimes awkward holiday dinners that can often turn bitter if divisive issues come up. Host Don Marsh discusses the best ways to approach these holiday-time conversations with Dr. Marva Robinson, a licensed clinical psychologist in St. Louis. 

The world of recycling is a global one, with lots of moving parts. But in places like St. Louis, it all still starts with local residents and what they put in their neighborhood recycling bins. At least that's where one regional organization is putting renewed focus as they try to spread a consistent message.

Host Don Marsh talks about the Lemp family’s legacy and their mansion as portrayed in the Big Muddy Dance Company’s new production, "Lemp Legends: A Ghost Story," with the organization's executive director Erin Warner Prange.

St. Louis Public Radio economic development reporter Melody Walker goes behind the headlines with host Don Marsh to discuss the official dedication of the long-awaited trolley. 

Dr. Sonny Saggar, owner of Downtown Urgent Care, has practiced medicine in the St. Louis region for many years but grew up in England. He’s worked in hospital emergency rooms in both countries.

Witnessing famines, children starving to death, makeshift doctor’s offices and refugee camps, former St. Louis reporter Farrah Fazal details harrowing stories of people stuck in conflict zones and those trying to make it to host Don Marsh.

Doris Kearns Goodwin is an award-winning American biographer, historian, and political commentator that specializes in analyzing the administrations of United States presidents, which she refers to as "her guys." Host Don Marsh talks to Goodwin about her perspective on the current state of political affairs. 

About four years ago, Carol Shepley was busy putting the final touches on her visually oriented history of St. Louis as the city celebrated 250 years. But there was still much more St. Louis history yet to be told, including about the tragedy and unrest that rocked the region that same month that she finished her book.

On Tuesday's St. Louis on the Air, host Don Marsh spoke with jazz critic for NPR's Fresh Air Kevin Whitehead. Whitehead is the author of "Why Jazz: A Concise Guide," and his upcoming book, "Play the Way You Feel," will be released in 2019.

Much has changed about the nature of warfare in the 100 years since the end of World War I, including the percentage of American adults who have served in the U.S. military. "I'm of the over-75 generation, [and] 52 percent of us are veterans," historian James Wright said on St. Louis on the Air. "The Vietnam generation, about 37 percent are veterans. And of course the current generation, in their 20s and early 30s, it's about 2 percent … it's clear which way this demographic is moving."

Host Don Marsh talks to Mark Trout, president and CEO of the Missouri Civil War Museum, about the history and influence of the Jefferson Barracks Military Post, the oldest operational military installation in the region.

For decades, R. Buckminster Fuller was known around the globe for his scholarship and his vision of a future that could work for everyone aboard what he described as “spaceship earth.” By the middle of the 20th century, he saw two possible destinations on humanity’s horizon – utopia or oblivion – and his lectures and writings still resonate today.

Host Don Marsh goes behind the headlines with the Riverfront Times’ Danny Wicentowski about his newly published deep dive into the memorable life of Allen Barklage, a legendary St. Louis helicopter pilot.

St. Louis Public Radio's Abigail Censky takes a close look at how things turned out this week for the record number of women candidates running for office in Missouri.

Host Don Marsh talks to St. Louis Symphony Orchestra's new music director Stéphane Denève about his "musical marriage" with the organization. 

Host Don Marsh discusses a new law that entails new Medicare cards to prevent the risk of medical identity theft.

Five new places in the spotlight this month include 58hundred, Poke Munch, The Baked Bear, Thai Table and Sze Chuan.

Jason Rosenbaum and Jo Mannies as well as University of Missouri-St. Louis political scientist Anita Manion offered their perspectives on this week’s midterm election results.

On Tuesday's St. Louis on the Air, Jim DeFelice discussed The Pony Express, an enduring icon of the American West. DeFelice's book, “West Like Lightning: The Brief, Legendary Ride of the Pony Express" takes a detailed approach to the history and legacy of the classic symbol.

On Tuesday's St. Louis on the Air, host Don Marsh explored the advent of gene-editing technology with three guest, each of whom have a different perspective on the burgeoning technology.