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

28:51

What’s the song of your year?

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/19

Music can provoke powerful emotional responses. Sometimes your favorite song, or album played on repeat, can be just what you need to get through. What song or album has helped you get through this year? What music have you had on repeat? OPB’s Prakruti Bhatt will join us to talk through the year in music.

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23:53

What does drug re-criminalization and deflection look...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/19

Earlier this year, Oregon lawmakers passed a bill to implement new criminal penalties for drug possession and end the state’s three-year experiment with drug decriminalization. The legislation also allows law enforcement in counties that have opted into the program to deflect drug users away from the criminal justice system and into treatment as a way to avoid charges. In Multnomah County, 127 deflections have been initiated since the program started in September. Portland

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32:53

Remembering the grace and power of poet Nikki Giovanni

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/18

Earlier this month, the celebrated and prolific poet, author and professor Nikki Giovanni died at the age of 81 from a third bout of cancer, according to Virginia Tech. She taught at the university for 35 years as an English professor before her retirement in 2022. Giovanni published her first collections of poetry, “Black Feeling Black Talk” and “Black Judgment,” in 1968, and was a leading figure in the Black Arts Movement that emerged during the Civil

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20:52

As the monarch butterfly gets federal protection...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/18

U.S. Fish and Wildlife are proposing federal protections and label the Western monarch butterfly as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The federal agency will be accepting public input until March 12. At the same time, a federal grant of $300,000 was awarded to the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation to aid in habitat restoration. The Portland nonprofit will be using the funds to continue offering free kits containing milkweed and wildflowers for community

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16:25

New holiday movie puts spotlight on La Grande

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/17

If you’re not a fan of traditional holiday movies, “Breakup Season” might be for you. It follows a young couple that plans to spend Christmas together, only to break up on the first night of their vacation. A snowstorm makes travel impossible, meaning they’re stuck together for the holiday. The movie was entirely filmed in Eastern Oregon, featuring shots of downtown La Grande and the surrounding snow-capped hills and valleys. Filmmaker H. Nelson Tracey

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15:03

Why Portland’s District 1 voter participation lagged...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/17

Earlier this month, the City of Portland and Multnomah County released data and survey results about Portlanders’ experience with ranked choice voting. According to the survey, 91% of voters said they understood how to fill out their ranked choice ballots. But only 55% of voters in East Portland’s District 1 turned in those ballots, compared to rates of turnout that ranged from 74 to 76% for the other three districts. District 1 voters were also more likely to turn

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21:09

Portland City Administrator Michael Jordan agrees to...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/17

During an interview on “Think Out Loud” last month, Portland Mayor-elect Keith Wilson said that he was “an admirer” of Interim City Administrator Michael Jordan when describing whom he would want to hire to oversee the day-to-day operations of city bureaus. Outgoing Mayor Ted Wheeler announced Jordan’s appointment in May as part of the voter-approved changes to Portland’s new form of governance and elections using ranked choice

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20:05

Oregon sees growth in outdoor industry, worth over $8...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/16

New federal data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis found that Oregon’s outdoor industry continued to see growth last year, earning more than $8 billion. Kate Porche is the director for Oregon State University’s Center for the Outdoor Recreation Economy. Randy Rosenberger is an economics professor in OSU's department of forestry. They both join us to break down the growth the industry has seen and what its future may look like.

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15:57

In Oregon and across the country, a chain of...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/16

Acadia Healthcare runs methadone clinics around the country and the clinics bring in millions of dollars in annual revenue. A New York Times investigation found that the for-profit company is accused of failing to provide counseling, falsifying records and enrolling patients who aren’t addicted to opioids. The company already faces federal investigations over practices at its psychiatric hospitals. Jessica Silver-Greenberg is a business investigations reporter for The New

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16:59

New Vancouver Police Chief Troy Price on officer...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/16

Last week, Troy Price was sworn in as the new chief of police in Vancouver. A 27-year veteran of the department, he takes the helm a month after Vancouver voters rejected a proposition that would have helped fill staffing shortages. Proposition 4 would have raised property taxes starting next year to pay for hiring 80 fulltime sworn officers and other police positions, along with funding for new equipment, technologies and investments in other areas. As the city’s

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20:00

Kids Unlimited founder and former student reflect on...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/13

Tom Cole moved to Southern Oregon in 1995 with the thought of starting a new regional chapter of Big Brothers, Big Sisters. Instead, what he saw around Medford made him realize the community was full of families whose children weren’t getting the educational support they needed, many of them low-income and from households that didn’t speak English.In 1998, Cole piloted an after-school program at one school, serving 50 students with a $500 grant. Since then, his

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19:45

Salem-Keizer schools join forces to provide mental...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/13

This fall, the Meadowlark Day Program held an official ribbon cutting ceremony, to celebrate the unique mental health program for Salem-Keizer students in need. Trillium Community Health Plan and the school district had an existing partnership to provide lower levels of mental health care in some schools. But for some kids, their challenges from depression, anxiety, PTSD and other disorders are so steep as to make it impossible for them to be able to get any educational benefit

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12:46

Corvallis senior care center faced numerous abuse...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/13

Willamette Springs Memory Care, a senior living facility in Corvallis, was under 'enhanced supervision' by the state, but continued to operate. As reported in Willamette Week, within the past two years the facility has been cited with upwards of 50 instances of abuse. In September, the Oregon Department of Human Services considered removing the facility's license. However, last month the facility passed its latest inspection, removing admission restrictions and regulatory

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27:03

Brown Branch Big Band swings into the holidays

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/12

For the fourth year in a row, jazz fans can find the holiday music they’re looking for at Portland Center Stage next week. Local musicians and bandleaders Domo Branch and Charlie Brown III will direct a 15-piece lineup of regional and national musicians performing traditional scores with a modern twist. Domo Branch, drums, and Charlie Brown III, keyboard, join us to play some songs and talk about their collaboration. The Brown Branch Big Band plays Dec. 16 and 17 at

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25:54

Oregon State University professor was a cultural...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/12

Disney’s long-awaited sequel to its smash hit, “Moana,” is already one of the top-grossing movies of the year after its premiere at the box office just two weeks ago. Moana, however, is not your typical Disney princess. In fact, she forcefully pushes back on that characterization during an exchange with Maui, the Polynesian demigod, with whom she teams up on journeys of adventure and self-discovery.For “Moana 2,” Disney once again sought guidance

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16:17

OSU-invented bracelets help measure chemicals and...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/11

From office settings to plastic recycling, workers were exposed to at least 14 chemicals in their daily lives, according to a new study from the International Pollutants Elimination Network. To measure exposures, participants in the study wore silicone bracelets which are able to mimic skin. This technology was invented at Oregon State University and has been used not only to measure human exposures to pollutants, but for animals such as cats and dogs as well. Kim Anderson is

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10:57

Legislature holds special session to address wildfire...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/11

Oregon lawmakers will have a one-day special session this week before the legislature begins officially in January. The governor has called them there to allocate over $200 million dollars in emergency spending for this year’s unprecedented wildfire season. We’ll get a preview of the session with OPB’s Dirk VanderHart and April Ehrlich.

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25:48

Portland band The Dandy Warhols have been rocking for...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/11

You may know them best for the songs they released in the '90s, but Portland rockers The Dandy Warhols have been going strong for 30 years, and have just released their 12th studio album. The new album includes collaborations with The Pixies’ Frank Black, Blondie’s Debbie Harry and Guns N’ Roses’ Slash. We talk to keyboardist Zia McCabe about the band’s legacy.

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17:24

In Bend and beyond, drag queen Pattie Gonia advocates...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/10

As a drag queen, environmentalist and community organizer, Pattie Gonia uses her platform to advocate for inclusive outdoor spaces. From mountain biking to skiing, she shares her love of the outdoors and has built a sizable following on social media.Pattie Gonia is based in Bend and she joins us with more on connecting with nature … in heels.

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17:20

University of Washington study finds big risks,...

Think Out Loud ·

2024/12/10

Whether it’s smartphones or sneakers, toys or tents, about 80% of commercial goods are transported to markets around the world using giant container ships. As global shipping routes grow to meet increasing demand, so too does the likelihood of fatal collisions with whale species whose ranges overlap with them.Researchers at the University of Washington led a team of international scientists who measured, for the first time, the risk of ship strikes worldwide among

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