WYPR: Maryland Morning with Sheilah Kast Podcast

When controversy erupts over big developments in Baltimore, developers often counter with this tantalizing promise: "We've got JOBS!" Today, "The Lines Between Us" investigates. Reporter Melody Simmons looks at recent projects to see how often developers’ promises of jobs become reality for city residents. Then, we'll home in on the westside Superblock development and talk to a city councilman, a pastor who negotiated a jobs agreement with the developer, and the developer himself. Then, from homelessness, addiction, and incarceration to recovery and independent living. The director of Marian House tells Tom Hall how her organization is helping women find stability.

Today, on The Lines Between Us, how transportation can help—or hinder—a move into the middle class. Where do public transit and job opportunities intersect? Then, Tom Hall talks to two representatives from organizations helping individuals build their wealth and assets, despite their limited income.

Can human traffickers be discouraged by the threat of law enforcement seizing the proceeds? Delegate Kathleen Dumais of Rockville has proposed an asset forfeiture bill three years running; it has died in committee. We discuss her chances of it passing this session. Do you see purple? As the Ravens get ready for the Super Bowl, our in-house amateur economists analyze fluctuations in the Purple Economy. The American Library Association announced some prestigious children’s literature awards this week. Librarian Paula Willey tells us what won and what was skipped.

Anthony Anderson of East Baltimore was tackled by a city detective during an arrest four months ago. As a result of injuries during that arrest, Anderson died that night in police custody. State's Attorney Gregg Bernstein announced last week there will be no charges against the police officers involved in the arrest. We asked him why. What do you get when you give a police scanner an ambient soundtrack? Eric Eberhardt, creator of the website “You Are Listening To Baltimore” told us on Maryland Morning. Historian Taylor Branch identifies 18 essential moments in the Civil Rights movement in his his new book "The King Years".

Will "health enterprise zones" address healthcare inequalities in Maryland? We learn what they are, and examine some of the inequalities that exist around the state. Then-It's been more than 200 years since elk were a part of the wildlife scene in Maryland. Now, the state is examining whether it would work to re-introduce the eight-foot long mammals back to the state. We talk about it with a biologist of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. Plus-MICA professor Raoul Middleman's new show at the C. Grimaldis Gallery unveils a 43-year-old suite of Mae West drawings. Middleman gives Tom Hall a tour and reflects on the development of the burlesque in his style. (Hint: it involves an 85-year-old man in diapers riding a unicycle.) And-Be our guest...as Tom and J. Wynn Rousuck have a conversation about beauty and beasts, "The Book of Mormon," and more from the Hippodrome's 2013-2014 season.

Governor O'Malley is taking a third shot at pushing a wind-energy bill through the General Assembly. Should Marylanders subsidze one of first wind farms off the east coast? We ask Malcolm Woolf, former director of the Maryland Energy Administration. And trend stories in the media tell us that online dating is hurting monogamy .. and the so-called "sexting app" called Snapchat is erasing what's left of modesty among American teenagers. What else is the Internet ruining? We ask our social media analysts, Nathan Jurgenson and P.J. Rey. Plus, singer-songwriter Victoria Vox brings her ukulele … for a performance and a conversation with Tom Hall.

Low-doc, no-doc, and other risky loans helped cause the housing collapse. A new federal consumer agency has adopted a rule aimed at squeezing this kind of lending out of the market. Will it keep banks from making mortgage loans to people who can't afford them? We ask a University of Maryland business school teaching fellow with decades of experience working for lenders, assessing risk. Then, the TEDxBaltimore conference hosts a full day of talks Friday by Baltimore-area thinkers, activists, and artists. We talk with the three youngest presenters, all Baltimore City Public School students. And, John Waters partners with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra to narrate a concert production of Hairspray.

The Baltimore Ravens are going to the Super Bowl. They'll square off against the San Francisco 49ers in New Orleans on February 3rd. Tom Hall talks with Mark Hyman about last night's AFC Championship game and looks ahead to the Super Bowl. In Washington, President Obama is getting ready for the celebration of his second inaugural. But his wax figure is here in Baltimore. We check in with those gathering at the Great Blacks in Wax Museum, talk with NAACP lobbyist Doc Cheatham, and talk to some Maryland inauguration attendees catching trains at Baltimore's Penn Station. Maryland Morning theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck and Tom Hall converse about Everyman Theatre's production of "August: Osage County." Many discussions have focused on the influence of music in the struggle for racial equality, but what was the role of media and visual culture during the civil rights movement? To discuss this, Tom talks with Dr. Maurice Berger, research professor at The University of Maryland, Baltimore County and author of the book "For All the World to See: Visual Culture and the Struggle for Civil Rights." Dr. Berger also curates a traveling exhibition of the same name.

This week on "The Lines Between Us," those who are unemployed and underemployed in the Baltimore region describe the psychological toll of financial instability. Then, Dr. Steven Shapiro, clinical supervisor of mobile treatment services at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, discusses the ways unemployment, underemployment and poverty impact the mental health of those who face it on a daily basis. Plus, Tom talks to two servicemen about the ways military service can increase the economic and educational opportunities for some Baltimore residents.

President Obama is set today to lay out his proposals to cut gun violence. At a conference at Johns Hopkins, experts have been sharing ideas for curbing gun violence. We’ll get suggestions Stephen Teret, Director of the Center for Law and the Public's Health at Hopkins. Then, the latest installment in our series "Flags of Maryland." Today, why a Baltimore Presbyterian church decided to hang a gay pride flag, and a Dickeyville resident on the Missing in Action flag she flies in honor of her dad, who went missing before she was born. And--tired of magazines telling you to "lose weight now!"? Nutritionist Monica Reinagel tells Tom Hall about research that says losing weight is a long-term endeavor.

Baltimore is continuing its drive to end chronic homelessness with a new initiative aimed at finding permanent homes for the city's 75 most vulnerable homeless people. We talk about it with Olivia Farrow, director of the Mayor's Office of Human Services and Gabby Knighton, outreach coordinator in the city's Homeless Services Program. Then, think you’re too young for a living will? Dan Morhaim is a doctor, a legislator and the author of The Better End: Surviving (and Dying) on Your Own Terms in Today's Modern Medical World. He tells us why making end-of-life plans is smart at any age. And, Tom Hall talks with Dan Fesperman about his latest spy thriller, The Double Game.

Governor O'Malley's proposed 2013 budget is due on Friday. Revenue forecasts are higher this year, but the state transportation fund is in need of money for new projects. We talk with UMBC political science professor Roy Meyers about what will get funded--and what might get ignored. Can we use social media to predict how bad a flu season will be? The Baltimore-based tech startup “SickWeather” says yes. Nathan Sterner talks about the company’s predictions, and other tech news, with Andrew Zaleski, reporter for the tech news site Technically Baltimore. Everyman Theatre's founding artistic director Vincent M. Lancisi leads Tom Hall on a tour through Everyman's new downtown location.

This week on The Lines Between Us—the path to a paycheck. Certain neighborhoods in Baltimore city are dealing with consistently high unemployment, such as the Oliver neighborhood where every fourth person is looking for work. We ask: what training programs exist to connect the unemployed to jobs—and ideally, jobs they enjoy? And, in the weeks before his death, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke out on behalf of laborers in Memphis. A play now at CENTERSTAGE imagines a conversation Dr. King had with a maid the night before he was assassinated. Tom Hall discusses King's legacy with the play's director, Kwame Kwei-Armah.

1-8-13: Maryland Morning with Sheilah Kast Podcast

Since Facebook announced a new tool that allows users to announce their status as organ donors, there has been a spike in numbers of organ donors. We talk with transplant surgeon Andrew Cameron about this new trend. Every year millions of Americans take part in the time-honored tradition of crafting a New Year's resolution, but only a small percentage of resolvers actually succeed in accomplishing their goal. What separates the successful resolvers from the unsuccessful resolvers? Sheilah speaks to Dr. John C. Norcross, a leading authority on behavior change who has studied New Year's resolutions for 30 years. Maryland Morning theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck brings us her review of "Mixed Doubles: An Entertainment on Marriage" at the Performance Workshop Theatre in Baltimore. Sister Maura Eichner taught Creative Writing and Literature at Notre Dame of Maryland for 50 years before she died in 2009. She also wrote hundreds of poems, many of which have been collected in a book called After Silence. Tom Hall talks with an editor of the book and one of Sister Maura's former students.