The WNBA and the History of Women’s Professional Basketball with Sarah Fields

In this episode, we explore the power of language – both the words we use and the larger context of narratives and stories we tell. My guest is Karen Yin – author of The Conscious Style Guide, and founder and curator of ConsciousStyleGuide.com — which has been called “A timeless, indispensable guide for anyone who wants to communicate with sensitivity and compassion.” (Photo Credit:Paul Beauchemin)

In this episode, we explore the recent history of women’s sports, particularly basketball, in college and professionally -including in the 90’s, when the first women’s professional league was established - the American Basketball League or ABL, followed closely by the WNBA. With increased attention and interest on women’s college basketball, and an acknowledgement of the high level of play and skill, the hope is that women’s basketball, soccer, and other sports, will get the attention and fan base they have deserved for years. But women’s sports have been in the spotlight before. How is this moment similar, and different, to what we have seen in the past. My guest is Sarah Fields, Professor of Communication at the University of Colorado, Denver; and President of the North American Society for Sport History. (photo courtesy Tulane Public Relations)

Welcome to News in Context. I’m Gina Baleria. In this episode, we explore how bridging by building relationships and being curious can connect people across differences - as well as provide lessons for news organizations that seek to inform. My guest is Monica Guzman, Senior Fellow for Public Practice at Braver Angels; and author of I never thought of it that way: How to have fearlessly curious conversations in dangerously divided times.

Welcome to News in Context, I’m Gina Baleria. In this episode, we talk with New York Times columnist David Brooks, about his new book - How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen. Brooks has been discussing politics and policy in the Times and on NPR for years. But as the social fabric of the U-S began to fray in recent years, he became more and more interested in how to weave community across differences and points of privilege as a way to strengthen that fabric. His latest book offers stories, tips, and examples to help all of us practice seeing the humanity in others and contribute toward strengthening our communities.

In this episode, we explore the importance of strong neighborhood and community relationships to the health of nations… and discuss how many neighborhoods in the U.S. don’t have strong local ties and need structural and systemic help. My guest is Seth Kaplan - Author of Fragile Neighborhoods Repairing American Society One Zip Code at a Time. Seth is also an international relations expert whose job is to help fragile states around the world. He consults with organizations such as the World Bank and U.S. State Department, and he teaches international relations at Johns Hopkins University. This is Civity Week on News in Context. Civity is a culture of deliberately engaging in relationships of respect and empathy with others who are different moving from Us vs. Them to We All Belong.

In this episode, we explore the persistent challenge of how to ensure that everyone has adequate housing. We discuss why the U.S. faces these issues, and what can – and can’t – be done at various levels of government. We also explore how we might re-frame the way we discuss housing and homelessness, to help us re-think solutions.   My guest is Tony Sparks, Associate Professor of Urban Studies & Planning Program in the Public Affairs & Civic Engagement (PACE) program at San Francisco State University.

In this episode, we explore how much of the information we get is mediated - edited - and we all get different edits based on what the algorithm thinks we want. This means we see and understand things differently, and that has contributed to polarization and othering. My Guest is Riaz Patel, executive producer and director focusing on reality shows with positive transformations. His show The Connect Effect seeks to counter the edits we all see by bringing people face-to-face, so they can build relationships without labels that define us in the media. This can help reduce polarization and increase connection.

In this episode, we discuss press freedom in the U.S. in the wake of a police raid of the local paper in Marion, Kansas. In that raid, officers confiscated most of the paper’s computers and other equipment, leaving its journalists scrambling to be able to publish. Press freedom advocates have criticized Marion’s police chief for using tactics generally seen in authoritarian countries. But there are concerns over other incidents across the country designed to intimidate and silence journalists. My guests are: Kirstin McCudden, Vice President of Editorial at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, and managing editor of the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker -AND- Seth Stern, Director of Advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation. Find resources and guides to protect your privacy and security at Freedom.Press - and see the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker at PressFreedomTracker.US   Image Courtesy U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, led by the Freedom of the Press Foundation and the Committee to Protect Journalists, in collaboration with leading press freedom groups.

In Part Two of my conversation with Chesa Boudin, we explore how his experiences as a child have informed his approach to criminal justice, and his efforts to seek reforms to how we engage with both the accused and the victims of crime. We also discuss the importance of communicating – both providing data and sharing stories – to help people understand context and demand policies that keep us all safer. And we touch on the challenges of actually implementing change in the face of the status quo. Chesa Boudin is former San Francisco DA and now founding executive director of the newly created Criminal Law & Justice Center at UC Berkeley School of Law.

Welcome to News in Context – I’m Gina Baleria. In this episode, we talk with former San Francisco DA Chesa Boudin, founding executive director of the newly created Criminal Law & Justice Center at UC Berkeley School of Law. We discuss Boudin’s new role at UC Berkeley, and his plans for advancing victim's rights, true justice for all, and criminal justice reform by seeking evidence-based solutions and researching what can work. We also explore how we could truly reform the U.S. criminal justice system to make it work for everyone - and how to navigate resistance to reform efforts. This is Part 1 of my interview with Chesa Boudin. You can hear Part 2 next week.