North Korean missiles
This week, North Korea test fired more than half a dozen short and medium range missiles. One of those missiles could've reached the west coast of the United States had it not failed. Talks and sanctions about North Korea's nuclear program haven't yielded much in past years. A history professor at UAB who studied and lived in Asia tells WBHM's Steve Chiotakis that what complicates diplomacy is the history of bad blood between North Korea and its neighbors.
Faith-based Voting
It's been more than a year-and-a-half since the election of 2004, the campaign that brought moral values to the political lexicon. Polls showed a close race - and it was. But in exit surveys, a slim majority of voters said they chose to re-elect President George W. Bush because of moral issues - gays, abortion and integrity over his Democratic opponent, Senator John Kerry, who received votes for economic and foreign affairs issues. And that begs the question: does religion have a sustainable stranglehold on politics?
Regions and AmSouth
Two Birmingham banking behemoths say they will join forces for a merging of equals. Regions and AmSouth Banks have announced that, in a 10 billion dollar deal, they will combine to create one of the nation's largest banks. The Regions name will stay, but the AmSouth name, some overlapping employees and bank branches will go. The city is still feeling the effects of the Wachovia purchase of Southtrust Bank a couple of years ago. WBHM's Steve Chiotakis spoke with a financial and banking analyst about what's ahead.
Howell Raines
Howell Raines says his leaving The New York Times was part of a long journey that brought him back to doing what he wants to do: write and fish. Over four decades, Raines climbed the print journalism ladder, starting in Birmingham and making his way to The Times. He tells WBHM's Steve Chiotakis that his new book, The One That Got Away, uses some scaley metaphors to highlight those turn of events.
Technology and Trademarks
According to recent surveys, more than two-thirds of Americans have some sort of online access, whether at home or at work, and that means a wealth of information...and prose...and pictures...and art is available to anyone who seeks it. And that's creating a whole new world of problems in trademark and copyright realms. Now, intellectual property laws aren't something most of us spend much time thinking about as we tool around the web, but a new bill before Congress could change all that. WBHM's Steve Chiotakis explains, or, tries to explain.
Pardoning Rosa Parks
Alabama Governor Bob Riley has signed into law a bill that will pardon, if asked, civil rights pioneers who were arrested for violating segregation-era laws. Before the bill passed in the final hours of the regular legislative session, there was debate in the African-American community over whether those arrested did anything wrong. WBHM's Steve Chiotakis reports.
Legislative Review and Preview 2006/04/18
Lawmakers have wrapped up their annual regular session of the legislature with budget money, tax cuts and reform and other monetary, policy and social bills that have been debated and passed. Others, including a death penalty moratorium and abortion ban, have failed.
David Broder
Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and columnist David Broder has been an 'inside-the-beltway' observer for more than 40 years, working much of his career at The Washington Post. Broder was in Birmingham as part of a lecture series and forum agreement that the Post just initiated with Samford University. Lately, among other issues, he's been keeping up with the latest news from Iran and that country's proclamation that it is now a member of the group of nuclear nations with its enriched uranium program.
Whose Orders at abu Ghraib?
Internet news service Salon.com reports that the Deputy Chief of Staff for Alabama Congressman Mike Rogers has been reprimanded for his role in the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal. Christopher Brinson is also U.S. Army Reserve Captain Christopher Brinson and served as supervisor for many of the accused officers and soldiers stationed at the now-infamous and soon-to-be closing Abu Ghraib. WBHM's Steve Chiotakis spoke with national affairs reporter Mark Banjamin about the story.
Bibb County resolve
Authorities have made three arrests in the spate of fires that've befallen churches in parts of rural Alabama. 19-year old Ben Moseley, 19-year old Russell Debusk and 20-year old Matthew Lee Cloyd, all college students in the Birmingham area, face conspiracy and arson charges. But while investigators were trying to find the culprits, life went on in rural Bibb County - where half of the fires occurred. Many residents told WBHM's Steve Chiotakis that the crimes brought a new resolve to churchgoers.
The Learning Game
It's always seemed like a game to get children to learn. But the trend inside the classroom has been moving away from the traditional 'lecture and retain' methods and more toward educational programs that kids are likely to be interested in. Many of today's computer programs feature games that inspire competition and success. And that seems to be teaching a lesson to adults, as WBHM's Steve Chiotakis reports.
Highway Tango
When it comes to trucking safety, Alabama has been hauling up the rear in most categories: fatal accidents, inspections, traffic enforcement, number of state troopers. Over the past five years, the number of fatal car-truck crashes has remained steady, averaging around 137 each year and a recent poll by truckers in Overdrive magazine ranked Alabama the worst in truck inspections. The state hasn't done much to change those statistics. That means it's a 'drive at your own risk' mentality on Alabama highways, for car and truck driver alike. WBHM's Steve Chiotakis takes a look at how drivers of four- and eighteen-wheeled vehicles mix and mingle on the roads, and what can happen when things get ugly.
Medicare D
Enrollment for Medicare/Part D kicked off this week with benefits to begin after the first of the year. But seniors have lots of questions about the plan. And there was one place in Birmingham that featured some answers. WBHM's Steve Chiotakis spoke with Cooper Green Hospital's project manager Mark Sussman about the 2005 Health Fair and all the new information coming out about the new prescription drug program.
Anne Fadiman
The Hmong population have been emigrating to the United States for decades, basically forced to leave Laos after the Vietnam War because of their anti-Communist stand with the West. Over the years, they settled in different pockets around the country -- mainly northern California and the upper Midwest. And that's caused a culture clash in some communities, a clash that author Anne Fadiman describes in the book The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. WBHM's Steve Chiotakis spoke with Fadiman about the book and the little known-Hmong people and why many were forced to come to America in the first place.
Super Outbreak of ’74
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Remembering Rosa Parks
She's being remembered as the 'mother of the civil rights movement.' Rosa Parks died at her home in Detroit of natural causes at the age of 92. Fifty years ago, while living in Montgomery, she defied an order to give her seat up for a white man. She was arrested and a bus boycott ensued. WBHM's Steve Chiotakis spoke with the Reverend Abraham Woods, president of the Birmingham chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. He says Parks deserves her place in history for standing up by staying seated.
Birmingham Post-Herald
Friday's edition of the Birmingham Post-Herald will be the newspaper's last. The owner of the afternoon daily, E-W Scripps, says the economics were --quote-- 'no longer favorable' to keep publishing. The company says it's developed a severance package for the Post-Herald's 43 editorial department employees. Post-Herald editor and president Jim Willis tells WBHM's Steve Chiotakis it's been a heart-breaking day for employees.
Katrina-Alabama schools
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Animal Assisted Therapy
Nearly three-quarters of Americans have at least one pet. In the United States, more money is spent on dog and cat food than on baby food. And for centuries, doctors and researchers have tried to harvest this intangible love for animals in the healing process. Animals have been used to help patients recover from all kinds of ailments, diseases and surgeries - to lift spirits and bring a smile, to make patients feel better. Some studies show a more profound benefit: that animals help people become less anxious and perhaps even respond better to mental health therapy. As part of our yearlong Making Sense of Mental Health series, WBHM's Steve Chiotakis reports that for kids undergoing mental health treatment, the healing often begins on all fours.
Help for Honduras
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Ensley
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Mental Health Court
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Structure Savers
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Outside Inside Part 2
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Flu season
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Mental Health Stigma
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Smockers’ Christmas
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Economic Irony
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Bank Merger
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
John Grisham’s Mickey
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Education Budget Cuts
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
Christmas Tamales
NPR News and Classical Music for North Central Alabama
