PODCAST

Think Out Loud

Oregon Public Broadcasting

OPB"s daily conversation covering news, politics, culture and the arts. Hosted By Dave Miller.

news

All Episodes

14:33

Predatory towing harmed residents of low-income...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/08

An ombudsman investigation in Portland found evidence of predatory towing at a group of apartment complexes in the Cully neighborhood. The report says towing practices financially and emotionally harmed residents, most of whom identify as low-income and Latino. It also found that the influx of towing impacted clients and staff at a nearby county-run health clinic and community center. Tony Green is a deputy ombudsman for the city of Portland. He conducted the investigation and

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11:09

Correctional health care provider again destroys...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/07

For a third time, a federal judge has ruled that Wellpath — one of the nation’s largest for-profit providers of health care to people in prisons and jails — wrongfully deleted emails connected to in-custody deaths. Wellpath operates in at least 10 correctional facilities in Oregon and Washington, and has purged email evidence in at least three wrongful death cases in the Pacific Northwest. Criminal justice reporter Conrad Wilson joins us to discuss the cases.

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13:10

Exposure to radon may raise risk of childhood...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/07

Radon is a naturally occurring, invisible and odorless gas released from the decay of radioactive metals like uranium found in soil, rocks and groundwater. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, it’s also the second-leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S., and claims more than 20,000 lives annually. Homes are a major source of radon exposure which testing kits can be used to monitor and determine whether to do mitigation by increasing ventilation or sealing

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28:18

US Rep. Andrea Salinas and GOP challenger Mike...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/07

Among the U.S. Congressional races that are being closely watched in this year’s general election is Oregon’s 6th Congressional District. It stretches from the suburbs southwest of Portland down into Salem, and includes all of Yamhill and Polk counties, along with portions of Marion, Washington and Clackamas counties. Voters cast their ballots for the first time in this district in 2022 when they narrowly elected Democratic state Representative Andrea Salinas over

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18:39

Portland Fermentation Festival celebrates second year...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/04

The Portland Fermentation Festival – also known as “Stinkfest” – is a celebration of all things fermented, from kimchi and kombucha to pickles and miso. Started in 2009, the festival returned last year after taking a three-year hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic. Once attendees pay admission, all of the featured fermented products are free to sample, trade and take home. We’ll talk with the three “Stinkfest Queens” who organize the

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16:12

How architecture could help save Portland’s downtown

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/04

As buildings like the Keller Auditorium and iconic Portland sights such as the Burnside Bridge are approaching a remodel, could a fresh new look save Portland’s downtown? As argued in The New York Times, cities across the country and world are finding hope in new architecture. Tim Eddy is the founding principal architect and president of Henneberry Eddy. He joins us to share his thoughts on the role architecture plays in downtown revitalization.

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9:05

Checking in on Salem’s downtown

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/04

Salem’s downtown has seen some local businesses shut their doors in recent years, but the Salem Reporter found that the economy is still strong there. Currently the vacancy rate for store fronts stands at 3.8%, and about half of the available spaces have new tenants within 6 months. Abbey McDonald is the homelessness and housing reporter for the publication. She joins us to share more.

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11:20

Exhibit in Beaverton features traditional kapa art

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/03

Native Hawaiian and former Oregonian Lehuauakea has created 10 kapa paintings and digital art posters that will be on display this weekend at the Patricia Reser Center for the Arts in Beaverton. Kapa is a textile made from the bark of certain trees after going through a process involving soaking and beating to create the fabric. Lehuauakea’s work for this exhibit focuses on belonging, especially at a time where there are more native Hawaiins living on the U.S. mainland

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15:59

the Oregonians helping archive the history of...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/03

Names like Lonnie Mayne, Buddy Rose and Dutch Savage may not be familiar to some today, but for fans of Portland’s professional wrestling scene of the 1960s to early '90s, these were some of the headliners that sold out the old Portland Sports Arena. As first reported in Slam Wrestling, two Portlanders have been working to preserve the history of the Pacific Northwest wrestling scene and making sure these names and more aren’t forgotten. Rich Patterson is one of

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16:20

How Multnomah County overdose deaths are trending...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/03

After years of steep increases, overdose death rates appear to be dropping nationwide. Data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show a 10% decrease in the number of deaths from drug overdoses across the country from April 2023 to April 2024. That number varies significantly by state — while many Eastern states saw double-digit decreases, Oregon saw a 22% increase over that 12-month period.Still, some local health officials say they’re

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21:43

Week Without Driving challenges driver-centric...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/02

The fourth annual Week Without Driving challenge kicked off on Monday. The event was created in 2021 by Disability Rights Washington to highlight the barriers nondrivers face, including those who have disabilities, with using public transit or sidewalks and bike lanes to get around. This year the challenge has expanded to all 50 states with the help of dozens of local and state organizations. And while it’s open to anyone, the organizers hope to recruit elected officials

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8:17

Director of Oregon Water Resources Department has a...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/02

Last month, the Oregon Water Resources Commission voted to change the state’s groundwater rules. The new rules would require new water users to prove the water is available before the state will issue permits for wells. Ivan Gall was appointed to head the Water Resources Department last spring. He joins us to talk about the new rules and other challenges facing water resources in Oregon.

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14:28

Agency that approves energy rate hikes in Oregon...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/02

The Oregon Public Utility Commission has approved rate hike upon rate hike in recent years, and consumers are feeling the pinch. Currently, the list of requests for rate hikes includes those from Idaho Power, which serves about 20,000 customers in Oregon; Portland General Electric, which last had a rate case in 2023; and Northwest Natural and Pacific Power, which both last had a request before the PUC in 2022-2023.Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler wrote the agency a formal letter of

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43:11

‘Hush’ - The State of Oregon v. Jesse Lee Johnson

Think Out Loud ·

2024/10/01

On March 20, 1998, police in Salem, Oregon, discovered the body of 28-year-old Harriet Thompson inside her apartment. Within a week, they arrested Jesse Johnson for murder. Johnson drifted west after a troubled childhood in Arkansas and a stint in prison there. In Salem, he was known around town as a homeless drug user. A random encounter with Thompson the week before she was killed changed Johnson’s life forever.Today we’ll listen to the first episode of OPB’s

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14:40

The Department of Energy promised a tribal nation...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/09/30

Washington’s Yakama Nation received both a grant and a $100 million federal loan to build a large solar project. Held up by a series of bureaucratic hurdles, the funding could expire before the government lets the tribal nation access the money. OPB Investigative Editor Tony Schick joins us to explain how bureaucracy is getting in the way of progress.

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30:02

Remembering ‘Dangerous Writing’ author and teacher...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/09/30

Portland writer Tom Spanbauer is being remembered -- on social media, in articles and in countless conversations with those who knew and loved him, were taught by him or simply loved his books. He died of heart failure on Saturday, Sept. 21 at age 78, after living with Parkinson's for the last eight years, according to his husband, Michael Sage Ricci.Spanbauer was born in Idaho. He moved around the country in his 20s and 30s, but settled in Portland in 1991. Since that time he

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23:59

Hanford through the lens of geologic time

Think Out Loud ·

2024/09/27

Brue Bjornstad has loved rocks since he was a kid, growing up on the East Coast. But his real love and expertise is the Missoula Floods – cataclysmic events that scoured the Columbia Basin, and laid thick deposits of sediments in other areas, washing all the way down the Columbia Gorge and out to the Pacific. These floods also shaped the Hanford area. The lava flows and uplifted mountains also still drive how clean up proceeds at the Hanford nuclear reservation. Bjornstad

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20:53

Hanford Challenge is a watchdog nonprofit focused on...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/09/27

The Hanford nuclear reservation produced more than 400 billion gallons of contaminated waste over its decades of operation. Workers have been sickened over the years, and some have successfully sued the Department of Energy with help from watchdog groups, including Hanford Challenge. The nonprofit advocates for whistleblowers and workers on the site, and monitors the clean up process, which has been going on for decades. The State of Washington and federal agencies including the

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13:21

Winemaking is central to the Hanford region

Think Out Loud ·

2024/09/26

JJ Williams is the third-generation of his family in the wine business out of Red Mountain – one of the world’s premier viticultural areas outside of Richland, WA. But before the wine business, his family first put down roots in the Mid-Columbia region to work at Hanford. During the Manhattan Project, Williams’s great grandfather worked at the site, and then his grandfather worked on what’s called the Fast Flux Test Facility. It’s September now and

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11:17

Hanford radiation effects on people and the environment

Think Out Loud ·

2024/09/26

We’ve talked a lot this week about life and work specifically at Hanford, but not all of the waste stayed there. In the rush to process plutonium at Hanford, plant operators expelled radioactive byproducts into the local atmosphere and waterways. People who were affected by these radioactive toxins call themselves “Downwinders.” Northwest Public Broadcasting reporter Anna King, who has been reporting on Hanford for over 20 years, joins us to talk about the

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