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

8:23

Latest updates about Border Patrol shooting of 2...

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/09

Yesterday afternoon, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent opened fire on a man and woman during an attempted traffic stop in East Portland, according to local and federal law enforcement officials. Responding to a report of a shooting, Portland Police found the man and woman who were shot and applied first aid before the two were transported to local hospitals for treatment. U.S. Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said the Portland

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16:46

What is the point of an art critic? Oregon arts...

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/08

Do we need art critics? If you ask Bob Hicks, executive editor of Oregon ArtsWatch, he says “critic” is a dumb word. As he argues in his recently published piece, the role of art criticism isn’t to be the final say in whether a piece of work is good or bad, but rather to be the start of a conversation. At the same time, arts journalism as a whole has faced a number of setbacks in the industry this year, including the Associated Press ending its book reviews,

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20:36

Cannabis and hemp industry might be looking at a sea...

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/08

Last month, President Trump signed an executive order seeking to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule III drug. Cannabis is currently Schedule I, alongside drugs the DEA defines as having no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. Trump’s order fast-tracks the reclassification, and it could significantly change the industry, opening new doors for cannabis research and easing a punishing tax burden faced by businesses that grow and sell the product. The

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15:06

What Harney County officials and residents think...

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/08

On Jan. 2, 2016, a dozen armed anti-government militants led by Ammon Bundy and his brother, Ryan, took over the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters outside of Burns in Harney County. The 41-day siege at the bird sanctuary in rural Eastern Oregon attracted national and international media attention. On Jan. 26, one of the militants, Arizona rancher Robert “LaVoy” Finicum, died during an armed confrontation with the FBI and Oregon State Police. Law

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16:23

New director of University of Oregon’s Jordan...

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/07

In September, Olivia Miller returned to Eugene to start her new position as the executive director of the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art at the University of Oregon. She earned a master’s degree in art history from UO in 2009 and most recently served as the director of the University of Arizona’s Museum of Art in Tucson.Miller curated two exhibits at UA’s art museum that featured works selected from Schnitzer’s vast art collection, including “The

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19:07

Oregon ecologist on state's efforts to create safe...

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/07

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife estimates 14.5 million wild vertebrate animals are killed on Oregon’s roadways each year. Data shows it’s difficult to control driver behavior with things like road signs and traffic regulations. A more effective way to mitigate animal fatalities is by redirecting the animals themselves. Wildlife crossings — human-made structures that allow animals to safely pass through habitats near roadways — have been a

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16:52

State program helps Oregonians with brain injuries...

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/07

According to the Oregon Health Authority, nearly 35,000 Oregonians visited emergency rooms in 2023 for issues related to a brain injury. These injuries can result in a range of symptoms, from confusion and short-term memory loss to depression, anger issues and lack of impulse control. Depending on the severity of the injury, survivors may need access to resources such as employment and housing assistance in addition to medical and mental health services. Oregon launched a

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23:07

Portlander combines art and activism to advocate for...

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/06

It’s estimated that more than 80,000 Oregonians are living with disabilities related to a brain injury. That includes Portlander Cheryl Green, who sustained a brain injury in 2010. Since then, Green has showcased the experiences of brain injury survivors through a number of projects, including a podcast, documentary film, short videos and her work as a self-described “access artist.” She’s also advocated for their needs as a member of the Oregon Brain

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13:51

Astoria library remodel honors legendary female...

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/06

The Astoria library reopened in the fall of 2025 after a major renovation. When discussions about remodeling the library surfaced, it begged the question: What exactly does a community need from a public space? The same kinds of questions were posed when the original library was designed.Trailblazing Astorian architect Ebba Wicks Brown, the first woman in Oregon to receive an architectural license, designed the original Brutalist-style building in 1967. Rachel Jensen, the

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15:14

It’s been one year since Portland welcomed its new...

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/06

It’s been one year since Portland welcomed its new 12-member city council, which was a part of a major voter-approved overhaul of the city’s government. Since January 2, 2025, the city has seen 48 council meetings, more than 190 pieces of legislation passed and nearly 40 resolutions. The new council has seen some wins, such as broader representation on the council and bureaucracy for bureaus moving more quickly. But has also brought challenges, such as ethical

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52:10

Portland author says we can harness our grief about...

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/05

Wildfires, extreme heat, ice storms and other weather events have Oregonians thinking about climate change in a much more personal way. We talk with clinical psychologist Thomas Doherty, who helps people cope with anxiety, depression and other mental health issues brought on by the climate crisis. His new book, “Surviving Climate Anxiety,” teaches how to cope and heal from the psychological impacts of our environmental crisis.

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52:28

10 years after the armed occupation of Malheur...

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/02

On Jan. 2, 2016 a dozen armed men took over the headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Eastern Oregon. Today we listen back to a documentary OPB reporters made about the 41 days that followed.

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52:12

Searching for slave shipwrecks and healing

Think Out Loud ·

2026/01/01

In 2016, Tara Roberts was living in Washington D.C. and working at a nonprofit when she visited the National Museum of African American History and Culture and a photograph she saw there changed her life. The image was of Black scuba divers from the group Diving with a Purpose which searches for and documents slave shipwrecks around the world. Roberts quit her job, learned to scuba dive and chronicled the work of these scuba divers. Her book about that journey is “Written

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52:57

Poets Reginald Dwayne Betts and Mai Der Vang in...

Think Out Loud ·

2025/12/31

What can animals teach us about ourselves? That’s part of what poets Reginald Dwayne Betts and Mai Der Vang are both exploring in their new collections. “Doggerel” is Bett’s collection about the relationship between dogs and their humans. “Primordial” by Der Vang tells of a nearly extinct deer-like creature that lives in the jungles of Laos. They spoke to OPB’s Jenn Chavez at the 2025 Portland Book Festival.

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52:14

Summing up the biggest Pacific Northwest news of 2025

Think Out Loud ·

2025/12/30

It was a big year in news for the Pacific Northwest. The president attempted to send the National Guard into Portland, plans for a potential ICE facility caused unrest in Newport, and communities across the region saw an uptick in aggressive immigration enforcement activity.Meanwhile, a significant road funding bill died — then was resurrected — in the Oregon Legislature. And the deadline for Mayor Keith Wilson’s pledge to end unsheltered homelessness in

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46:52

Inside ICE Detention in Tacoma

Think Out Loud ·

2025/12/29

The immigration detention center in Tacoma, WA is one of the largest detention centers in the country. This prison-like facility has rapidly filled to capacity as a new era of ICE enforcement gains steam and brings profound changes for people locked inside detention — many who are longtime residents of Oregon and Washington. Today we bring you a documentary from our partners at KUOW Public Radio in Seattle called “Inside ICE Detention” which opens a window into

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52:05

Authors Kristen Arnett and Jess Walter at the...

Think Out Loud ·

2025/12/26

Sometimes laughter can be the best way to make it through difficult times. And a good joke can go a long way to connecting with another person, no matter how different they are. Those are themes in the two new books “Stop Me if You’ve Heard This One” by Kristen Arnett and “So Far Gone” by Jess Walter. OPB’s Jess Hazel talked to Walter and Arnett about their books at the 2025 Portland Book Festival.

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52:29

Leni Zumas and Cleyvis Natera in conversation at the...

Think Out Loud ·

2025/12/25

What does survival look like if it comes at the expense of freedom? How can we build safe places in an increasingly unstable world? These questions are at the heart of two new books by authors Leni Zumas and Cleyvis Natera. Zumas’s book “Wolf Bells” tells the story of an intergenerational group home determined to make a space for people who fall through capitalism’s cracks. Natera’s book “The Grand Paloma Resort” tells the story of staff

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52:25

Author Emma Donoghue talks about her novel 'The Paris...

Think Out Loud ·

2025/12/24

Irish-Canadian author Emma Donoghue is perhaps best known for her novel “Room,” told from the perspective of a 5-year-old boy held captive with his mother. Most of Donoghue’s work, however, is rooted in historical fiction. She frequently writes about characters and perspectives that are often erased from history. Her latest novel, “The Paris Express,” tells the story of a fateful disaster on a French train in 1895. Donoghue spoke to OPB’s

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52:34

Owyhee Canyonlands protection effort remains in limbo

Think Out Loud ·

2025/12/23

The Owyhee Canyonlands area encompasses millions of acres along the Owyhee River on the borders of Oregon, Idaho and Nevada. The land is rugged and remote and beautiful, and efforts to to protect it in some way have dragged out for years. There were pushes for the last two Democratic presidents to designate the area a national monument and most recently, a bill to protect over 1 million acres of the land as wilderness failed in Congress at the end of last year. We traveled to

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