Perspectives Show

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August 28, 2010

This week Perspectives examines people who grew up within the series' listening area, then left, and may or may not return. Hank Greenwald was raised in the Rochester, New York, suburb of Brighton, attended Syracuse University, and became a nationally known sportscaster for, among others, baseball's Yankees, Giants, and A's. He speaks from his home in San Francisco. Doug Gamble was born in Montreal, moved to Hamilton and Toronto, Ontario, and in 1980 relocated to Southern California, becoming a writer for Ronald Reagan, Bob Hope, and Phyllis Diller. From Carmel, Gamble discusses how today's Canada more resembles 1980 America than does today's USA. Meghan Wier grew up in the Rochester suburb of Fairport, attended Ithaca College, formed an Upstate New York web design development company, then became a professional business blogger in South Carolina. Why did they leave? What would it take for them to return home? This week, on Perspectives.

August 21, 2010

This week Perspectives devotes the entire hour to a friend listeners know and love: Radio. Bruce DuMont's last name is synonymous with electronic media, his uncle having developed the cathode ray tube and founded the DuMont Television Network, a post-World War II industry pioneer. In the last thirty years Bruce DuMont has begun the syndicated weekly radio series, Beyond the Beltway, opened the Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago, and founded its National Radio Hall of Fame -- the world's only such shrine. Next year the Museum will open its new headquarters. DuMont discusses radio's future, present dominated by political talk and niche programming, and a past from Graham McNamee to Jack Benny and Bob Hope that one writer called "the kingdom of art." This week, radio, on Perspectives.

August 14, 2010

This week Perspectives recalls the legendary career of Mitch Miller: born, Rochester, New York, July 4, 1911; died, recently, at 99; conductor, musician, producer, the man who revolutionized the recording industry, discovered Tony Bennett, Rosemary Clooney, and Patti Page, and made Sing Along With Mitch a 1960s network TV institution. Bonnie Boyd is Professor of Flute at the Eastman School of Music, from which Miller graduated in 1932. She recalls her fellow Eastman graduate, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra musician, colleague, and friend. Tom Hampson is among Upstate New York's leading musical authorities and host, WXXI AM and FM Radio's From The Jazz Cellar, heard each Saturday and Sunday evening. He examines how Miller transcended genre and medium, became what Bennett called "the first real producer," and emerged as a megapopular recording and television star. This week, Mitch Miller's extraordinary life, on Perspectives.

August 7, 2010

This week Perspectives examines intriguing books for August as Americans hit the beach, road, and backyard. Mark Bauerline is Professor of English at Emory University and director of a National Endowment for the Arts report on reading, or lack thereof. He discusses his book, published by Penguin: The Dumbest Generation: How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future. Roxanne Orgill is the author of a book about a 1930s and '40s America when radio was king: Dream Lucky, published by Smithsonian Books under the rubric Harper Collins. She recalls an age when the culture literally swung. Fifty-two years ago the New York Giants and Baltimore Colts played a National Football League title game that began professional football's coming of age as Big-Game America. Author Mark Bowdoin details his book, published by Atlantic Monthly Press: The Best Game Ever: The Birth of the Modern NFL. This week, suggested reading, on Perspectives.

July 31, 2010

This week Perspectives sings a little traveling music: Travel within and just beyond the Empire State. Mike O'Brian is YNN Television Rochester, New York's "Getaway Guy." He details his new book, The Getaway Guy: Road Trip Getaways with Mike O'Brian. 50 Fun-Filled Getaways in and around New York State from Jamestown's Lucy-Desi Museum via Buffalo's Naval and Military Park to Watkins Glen, Cooperstown, and Saratoga Springs. On September 19-24, visitors from 18 countries will travel to Rochester for the 23rd annual World Canals Conference. Chairman Thomas Grasso examines the conference's three objectives: using canals to spur economic development; revitalizing the waterfront; and utilizing the nonpareil legacy of New York's Erie Canal. As Jackie Gleason would say, "And away we go!" This week, travel, on Perspectives.

July 24, 2010

This week Perspectives presents something it hasn't in the seven-year history of the series: the verbatim rebroadcast of a past program. A week ago the show featured a segment on the Buffalo Bills, including its 1960s quarterback, Jack Kemp. Afterward numerous listeners contacted us to ask if we could reair a program originally broadcast upon Kemp's death in May 2009. The broadcast explores Kemp's two careers. Columnist and author Scott Pitoniak recalls Kemp's gritty leadership of the two-time 1960s American Football League champion Bills. Then, Kemp's close friend, Bills teammate, and former Erie County Executive Edward Rutkowski details his rise from Western New York Congressman to one of America's leading political figures: a rarity in today's politics, a healer, not hater. This week, at listeners' request: A salute to Jack Kemp, 1935-2009, on Perspectives.

July 17, 2010

This week Perspectives presents its annual summer look at sport. Scott Pitoniak is perhaps Rochester, New York's, most decorated sportswriter: author of 13 books, longtime former Gannett News Service columnist, and reporter covering the Buffalo Bills since 1985. He discusses his new book, Buffalo Bills Football Vault: The First 50 Seasons 1960-2009, a coffee-table type book which explores the Bills' good, bad, ugly, and above all, fascinating history. Sports editor of the St. Louis Globe-Democrat.com, Rob Rains has written 28 books, including with or about Mark McGwire, Jack Buck, and Ozzie Smith. Rains details his new novel, The Curse: Cubs! Cubs Win! Or Do They? about the beloved Chicago Cubs, whose last world title was in 1908. The show will also examine the state of baseball, the World Cup, and Lebron James's NBA signing. All this, on this week's Perspectives.

July 10, 2010

This week Perspectives devotes the entire show to the economy: Is it moving forward, stuck in neutral, or careering in reverse? Two writers for the Buffalo News examine employment statistics, economic growth, consumer confidence in the Obama Administration, and the possibility of a "double-dip" recession, among other issues. Bob McCarthy, News political reporter and columnist, explores whether the state of the economy will hurt the Democratic Party locally and nationally. David Robinson, the newspaper's economics reporter and columnist, details why lower unemployment, a "lagging indicator," so far has not followed economic recovery. This week, "It's the economy, stupid!" on Perspectives.

July 3, 2010

This week Perspectives salutes three movers and shakers, dreamers and doers, who helped change Upstate New York -- and helped Upstate change the world. Nora Bredes heads the Susan B. Anthony Center of Women's Leadership at the University of Rochester. She details Anthony, who pioneered, among many other things, equal pay for equal work, eight-hour work day, and women's right to vote.  Kathy Connor is the curator, George Eastman Collection of the George Eastman House in Rochester, New York. She recalls Eastman, the father of modern photography, who called it "a mirror with a memory." Catherine Clinton is the author of numerous books, including Harriet Tubman: The Road to Freedom." She explores Tubman, who helped rescue Southern slaves, remove them to safety, and was called during her life the most famous American woman in the world. This week: Upstate New York movers and shakers, on Perspectives.

June 26, 2010

This week Perspectives examines a timeless theme: What character is, and does. Historian Harry Turtledove, author of the acclaimed book about the Civil War, Fort Pillow, recalls what Abraham Lincoln faced as the 16th President prepared to issue the Emancipation Proclamation freeing the slaves. Author and Theodore Roosevelt scholar Edward Renahan details TR's life based on right, wrong, and being "in the arena," especially his Bull Moose third-party attempt in 1912 to win the Presidency. Douglas Porch is an historian, author of numerous books, and affiliated with the Naval Center in Monterey, California. He explores Great Britain's gallantry in World War II: alone, besieged, and inspired by Winston Churchill's leadership, winning the Battle of Britain against Nazi Germany -- and helping to save the Free World. This week, character, on Perspectives.

June 19, 2010

This week Perspectives celebrates an American Original: Samuel Langhorne Clemens -- Mark Twain. This year marks a trilogy of anniversaries: the 175th year of Twain's birth; 100th, death; and 125th, release of the classic Huckleberry Finn. In particular, the program examines his longstanding ties to Upstate New York, where Twain lived most of his final forty years and is buried. Barbara Snedecor is Director of the Center for Mark Twain Studies in Elmira, New York. She details the Center, its resources, attractions, lure to scholars, and why Twain so loved the Southern Tier. Michael Kiskis, perhaps America's leading Twain scholar, is the Leonard Tydings Grant Professor of American Literature at Elmira College. He recalls Clemens' extraordinary life -- and voluminous body of work. This week, Mark Twain, on Perspectives.

June 12, 2010

This Saturday, June 12, former President George H.W. Bush turns 86 years old. On his birthday, Perspectives recalls the man whose foreign policy President Obama says he admires. Roman Popaduick is former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, now Executive Director of the George Bush Presidential Library Foundation, and author of the book, The Leadership of George Bush: An Insider's View of the 41st President. The show will devote the entire hour to Bush's Presidency, including the dissolution of the Soviet Union, fall of the Berlin Wall, collapse of Communism, reunification of Germany, and Gulf War to rid Kuwait of Saddam Hussein. It will also recall Bush's "No new taxes" pledge, domestic agenda, loss to Bill Clinton in the 1992 Presidential campaign, later friendship with Clinton, and Obama's view of his foreign policy.  All on this week's Perspectives.

June 5, 2010

This week Perspectives examines digital's role in the transformation of the photographic industry -- and how its lessons can be applied to today's Internet transformation of the news industry. Our guest for the entire hour is a man who lived through the former, and now studies and comments upon the latter: Mike Benard, 1993-2006 Director of Communications and Public Affairs and Vice President of the Eastman Kodak Company -- and now involved as a speaker and discussion leader with the American Press Institute and International Newsmedia Marketing Association. This week, what print journalism can learn from photography, termed by George Eastman "a mirror with a memory." All on Perspectives."

May 29, 2010

This week Perspectives looks at Western New York, New York State, and national politics. Bob McCarthy, columnist of the Buffalo News, examines President Obama's recent trip to Buffalo. What was it designed to do? Is Obama's presence a help, or hindrance, to Democrats in the region? Fred Dicker is the New York Post columnist and State Editor. He explores Andrew Cuomo's official candidacy for Governor, announced this week. What are the presumptive Democratic candidate's strengths and weaknesses? Can any Republican be remotely competitive against him? Tom DeFrank is the Washington Bureau Chief of the New York Daily News. He details the national political landscape. Is the reemergence of illegal immigration as an issue a plus for the Republicans, or Democrats? Why did the state of Arizona recently pass immigration legislation? Politics, on this week's Perspectives.

May 22, 2010

This week Perspectives explores the senses of hearing, seeing, and smelling. Dr. James Willey is the esteemed composer and Distinguished Teaching Professor of Music Emeritus at the State University of New York at Geneseo. He compares teaching and composing; if you compose with the heart and/or brain; and what musical forms have affected his career. Dr. Kathryn White is Managing Director, Low Vision Services, at the Association of the Blind and Visually Impaired. She examines its history; link to Goodwill Industries International; Reachout Radio; and diseases like glaucoma. Walter Nelson is Agriculture and Horticulture Program Leader of the Cornell Cooperative Extension. As spring blooms, he details how and when to plant, prune, and mow; what flowers are especially popular in Upstate New York; and the services provided by his regional institution. This week, the senses of hearing, seeing, and smelling on Perspectives.

May 15, 2010

This week Perspectives explores three sides of print journalism. Melissa Chesse, Associate Professor of the Magazine Department at the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, details the state of the American magazine: today's special-interest niche v. yesterday's general-interest audience. Lee Capulla, Dean of the Jandoli School of Journalism and Mass Communication at St. Bonaventure University, examines newspapers: where they're headed; how they should adapt; and what the printed page can do that television cannot. Finally, Rick Wolff, author, WFAN New York talk host, and Vice President and Executive Editor of Warner Books, looks at the the book's strengths and weaknesses: How has the market changed? Do major publishers have a near-monopoly?  Are readers better off than, say, a quarter-century ago? This week: print journalism, on Perspectives.

May 8, 2010

This week Perspectives details two great American liberal rhetoricians: Franklin Roosevelt of New York and Adlai Stevenson of Illinois -- the former four times winning the Presidency; the latter, losing twice. William Leuchtenburg, Distinguished Professor of History Emeritus at the University of North Carolina, is arguably the Nation's leading Roosevelt scholar. He examines FDR's nonpareil ability to make Presidential language personal and persuasive. Like Leuchtenburg, David Greenberg is the author of numerous books: also, Professor of History, Journalism, and Media Studies at Rutgers University. He details how Stevenson used rhetoric to move millions -- but was not able to defeat rhetorically-challenged Dwight Eisenhower in the 1952 or 1956 Presidential campaign. In the near future, Perspectives will devote an entire show to President Obama's language. This week, it etches two skilled liberal predecessors.

May 1, 2010

This week Perspectives puts a new twist on the term town/gown: how gown, a college education, affects town, a graduate's career. David Turner, a 1972 graduate of the State University of New York at Geneseo, is Managing Director, Head of Private Equity, Guardian Life Insurance Company of America. He explores how public education helped forged his rise. Ed Randall is an ESPN TV/Radio and Sirius XM Satellite Voice, long-time host of Ed Randall's Talking Baseball, and recently-named New York Yankees post-game TV announcer. He etches his education at Fordham University, a private religious college. Kenneth Adams, a Middlebury College graduate, former head of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, and now President and CEO of the Business Council of New York State, recalls the effect of his private school education. This week: town/gown, from all perspectives, on Perspectives.

April 24, 2010

This week Perspectives examines a major problem getting worse: New York State's property tax. Kent Gardner is President of the Western New York-based Center for Governmental Research. He details property tax's burden: incredibly, Western New York boasts America's highest 16 counties in terms of tax based on the percentage of home value. George Convoy is President of the area's Brighton Securities, a leading financial investment firm. He examines the effect of New York's tax structure, especially its
property tax, on people's capacity to buy and sell a home. An old baseball adage said of Washington, "First in war, first in peace, and last in the American League." This week's program examines a State that is first in property taxes, and increasingly trailing in ability to pay. All on Perspectives.

April 17, 2010

As economic malaise continues to cloak New York State, this week's Perspectives examines how the Empire State has reacted to past economic crises. David Schreve is an economic historian and former Professor of History at the University of Virginia. He recalls the Depression and how 1929-33 New York Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt responded. Fred Siegel is an historian, writer for publications including The Wall Street Journal, and author of numerous books including a biography of Rudolph Giuliani. He discusses the New York City of the mid-1970s, almost going bankrupt, and how that contributed to a nearly insolvent State. All on this week's Perspectives.

April 10, 2010

This week Perspectives presents a grand slam, touchdown, he shoots, he scores program, addressing three things at the front of Western New York's sports parade. Pete Weber is the former Voice of the National Hockey League Buffalo Sabres, now equally popular as TV broadcaster of the Nashville Predators. He etches the upcoming postseason playoffs, and whether the Sabres can win their first Stanley Cup. Scott Pitoniak is an award-winning columnist and author of 14 books, including this summer's hailing the fiftieth anniversary of football's Buffalo Bills. He details the upcoming National Football League draft, suggesting whom the Bills should draft: quarterback Jimmy Clausen of Notre Dame. Jim Mandelaro is the award-winning Rochester, New York, Democrat & Chronicle columnist and co-author, with Pitoniak, of the new book Silver Seasons and a New Frontier: The Story of the Rochester Red Wings, published by Syracuse University Press. He celebrates the opening of the baseball season, asking if Upstate New York's most popular team, the New York Yankees, can win their 28th World Series. All on this week's Perspectives.

April 3, 2010

This week Perspectives devotes its entire hour to a month that changed, perhaps saved, America: April 1865. Gary Gallagher, Professor of the History of the Civil War at the University of Virginia, recalls the four-year conflict that preceded it. Donald Miller, Professor of History at Lafayette University, etches the month that forged the war's close. Jay Winik, author of the best-selling book April 1865: The Month That Saved America and frequent contributor to television's History Channel, suggests how the month changed us, then and now. T.S. Eliot said that April "is the cruelest month." This week Perspectives recalls an April that remains unforgettable.

March 27, 2010

Recently Perspectives has devoted several shows to larger-than-life New Yorkers: the way we were. This week it devotes the entire hour to the way we are. Our guest is the author of The Way We'll Be: The Zogby Report on the Transformation of the American Dream -- John Zogby, America's pre-eminent pollster and President and CEO of Zogby International, located in his home town of Utica, New York. NBC's Tom Brokaw says, "John Zogby always knows the pulse of America." Zogby will discuss that pulse politically, domestically, and internationally. How do Americans regard President Obama? Does either party grasp the middle class? What is the health of U.S. peacemaking in the Middle East? How has the health care debate changed America at home? This week, the man who regularly examines America shares his findings with us, on Perspectives.

March 20, 2010

This week Perspectives continues its look at larger-than-life New Yorkers. Raised in Brooklyn, Shirley Chisholm became a New York City educator, New York State legislator, first black woman elected to the U.S. Congress, then first black candidate for U.S. President in 1972. Her Congressional successor, Edolphus Towns, representing New York's Tenth District, recalls a true pioneer for her race and sex. Robert Kennedy was a crime-busting lawyer, 1961-64 Attorney General, 1965-68 New York U.S. Senator, and might-have-been President. Jeff Shesol is a former Speechwriter to former President Bill Clinton, now member of the West Wing Writers, and author of several books, including the widely-praised book Mutual Contempt about the animus between Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson. He etches Kennedy the person and politician; RFK's 1968 Presidential campaign and assassination; and answers the question, "What kind of a President would Kennedy have been -- and what does he mean today?" This week, two extraordinary New Yorkers -- on Perspectives.

March 13, 2010

In a still larger-than-life Empire State, this week's Perspectives explores two larger-than-life New Yorkers. Mario Cuomo was New York's only three-term Democratic Governor, a man The Boston Globe called "America's most gifted philosopher-politician." Two guests -- Sandy Frucher, former aide and President and Chief Executive Officer of the Philadelphia Stock Exchange and the distinguished New York Post columnist and State Editor Fred Dicker -- recall the presence who said you govern with prose but campaign with poetry. Ethel Merman was an authentic legend, nonpareil Voice, and for decades Broadway's brightest star. Said Irving Berlin: "You'd better not write a bad lyric for Merman because people'll hear it in the second balcony." Producer, lyricist, and musical historian John Kenrick remembers the incomparable Merm. This week: larger-than-life New Yorkers on Perspectives.

March 6, 2010

This week Perspectives explores celebrities from Upstate New York. As a child, Irving Crain of Livonia, New York, near Rochester, got a toy billiards table. A love of pool made Crain a memorable adult. His life is profiled by Mike Shamos, curator, Billboard Achieve, a non-profit Pittsburgh organization, and Distinguished Career Professor, School of Computer Science, at Carnegie-Mellon University. Sober or playing drunk, television actor Foster Brooks was unforgettable. Former Buffalo News critic Tony Violanti, entertainment critic of the Ocala, Florida, Star-Banner, examines a life largely forged by Buffalo. Cab Calloway was born in Rochester in 1907. The great pioneer and showman is profiled by the musical historian Charles Mancuso, author of numerous books including Music And the Underdog. This week, Upstate New York celebrities, on Perspectives.

February 27, 2010

This week Perspectives addresses issues of concern to Western -- indeed, Upstate -- New York. Recently, David Paterson formally announced his candidacy for a full term as Empire State Governor. New York Post columnist and state editor Fred Dicker examines Paterson's odds. Americans have done surprisingly well at the 2010 Winter Olympics Games in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Buffalo News sportswriter Bucky Gleason reports from the Olympics site, citing reasons for U.S. excellence and asking if they're permanent. Finally, diabetes is a cruel and confusing disease. Sally Norquist, certified diabetes educator at Rochester, New York's Highland Hospital's Diabetes Health Source explores what the disease is -- and how we can combat it. This week, important Upstate issues, on Perspectives.

February 20, 2010

This week Perspectives explores a timeless literary tradition: the art form of anthology. Les Pickel is the editor of numerous anthologies and Associate Publisher of Warner Books. He explains what anthology is, how fiction and nonfiction differ, and how the art form works. Andrew Blauner heads Blauner Books and edited the anthology Coach: 25 Writers Reflect on People Who Made a Difference. Its contributors included such writers as George Plimpton, Pat Conroy, and Frank Deford. Blauner discusses how to choose an anthology's contributors so that they complement one another. Otto Penzler founded the Mysterious Press, wrote The Encyclopedia of Detection, and has edited the annual Best American Mystery Series Stories of the Year. The listener will hear him define what comprises a best-of-fiction book. This week: the anthology, on Perspectives.

February 13, 2010

This week Perspectives examines issues that affect children. Stephen Cook is Assistant Professor, General Pediatrics, at Golisano Children's Hospital in Rochester, New York. He explores the burgeoning issue of childhood obesity: What causes it? How can we stem its growth? Richard Whitmire is the author of the new book, Why Boys Fail: Saving Our Sons From an Educational System That's Leaving Them Behind. Why are boys falling behind in reading and writing skill? How can we reverse a troubling gender gap? Rick Wolff is an author, WFAN Radio New York talk host, and what Sports Illustrated terms "America's leading expert on sportsparenting." He describes how parents often act like juveniles: insulting, even attacking, coaches and friends of their own children. This week, issues affecting kids, on Perspectives.

February 6, 2010

This week Perspectives explores The Generation Gap: how people of different ages are alike and different. Dr. Sarah Atkinson is Medical Director of Upstate New York's Finger Lakes Clinical Research. She examines people of elementary through college age. What are they taught v., say, a quarter- and half-century ago? What is the effect? Dr. Robert Wuthnow is Professor of Sociology at Princeton University: also, author of numerous acclaimed books, including After the Boomers. He describes generations from World War II through Baby Boomer to today's. How have their values and priorities changed, for better and/or worse? This week, The Generation Gap on Perspectives.

January 30, 2010

This week Perspectives explores debate. Buffalo News Washington Bureau Chief and columnist Jerry Zremski debates the effect of President Obama's recent State of the Union address. Will it U-turn his Presidency, easing Obama's winter of discontent? On the eve of the Indianapolis-New Orleans Super Bowl, award-winning columnist and author of 13 books Scott Pitoniak debates whether football is America's favorite sport -- and/or New York State's. George Cook is Executive Professor of Marketing and Psychology at the University of Rochester's Simon School of Business. He details New York Governor David Paterson's current proposal to let grocery, convenience, and other food stores sell wine: until now, a privilege reserved only for liquor stores. This week, Perspectives surveys debate.

January 23, 2010

This week Perspectives examines the innovation of faith, hope, and charity. Faith: In 1988, HOK Sport architectural firm designed Buffalo's then-Pilot Field. Now the firm, renamed Populous, has built the new park of the Rochester Red Wings' parent club, the Minnesota Twins. Senior principal Earl Santee describes how. Hope: On January 28, Dr. Robert Atkinson, founder and President of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation in Washington, D.C. will speak at a seminar at the Rochester Institute of Technology. He previews how Western New York can forge an innovation economy. Charity: The State University of New York at Geneseo is known as one of America's leading public colleges. President Christopher Dahl details a pioneering mission that may make it among the most compassionate, too. For four years SUNY at Geneseo students and local Livingston County residents have traveled at their own expense to Biloxi, Mississippi, to help repair homes still ravaged by 2005's Hurricane Katrina. This week, on Perspectives.

January 14, 2010

This week Perspectives previews 2010. First, Buffalo News business reporter David Robinson analyzes the state of Western New York's economy. Where is it weak, and strong? How can small business, in particular, revive? Next, the program features Joseph Spector, reporter for Albany, New York's Gannett Newspapers, exploring what polling data calls the dysfunctional state of Empire State government. Who will win races for Governor, each U.S. Senate seat, New York's Congressional delegation, and the State Senate and Assembly? Finally, Thomas DeFrank is Washington Bureau Chief  of the New York Daily News. He previews Barack Obama's upcoming State of the Union address. Having plunged  in most national polls since taking office, how can the President begin his comeback and what will it rest upon? All this on this week's Perspectives."

January 9, 2010

This week Perspectives explores three issues that concern each New Yorker. 
E.J. McMahon, Executive Director of the Empire Center for New York State Policy, discusses taxes, especially property taxes, and his Center's new report on how to cut $30 billion from the State deficit. Steve McLaughlin is meteorologist of the National Weather Service in Buffalo. He examines whether January, not April, is the cruelest weather month, and the influence of the "Lake Effect" on Western New York. Robert Gerace is Adjunct Professor, Counter Terrorism, in the College of Civil Engineering and Environmental Management at Rochester Institute of Technology. He details the current state of airline and airport security and whether America is safe or not, and why. This week, on Perspectives.

January 2, 2010

This week Perspectives looks at careers: how they differ, and are alike. Peter King is a nationally-known CBS Radio News correspondent. He discusses covering events from NASA's Columbia accident to Hurricane Katrina to the Super Bowl and Michael Jackson's death. Joseph Rulison is managing director/market manager for Rochester, New York's J.P. Morgan private wealth management. He explores how to make and keep money in a difficult regional and national economy. Finally, Buffalo's Kevin Dillon is New York State Supreme Court Justice. He examines the law: defense lawyer v. district attorney; who should enter the legal field; and what traits are essential to succeed.

December 26, 2009

This week's Perspectives looks back at 2009. Buffalo News columnist Bob McCarthy explores the biggest, best, and worst Western New York stories. New York Post columnist and state editor Fred Dicker examines New York State, including its capital: Just when you thought things couldn't get more dysfunctional, they did. Brian Tumulty of the Washington Bureau of Gannett News Service looks at the national landscape, especially spending, taxes, health care, and Barack Obama's falling polls. A look back at 2009 on this week's Perspectives."

December 19, 2009

This week Perspectives examines character. Martin Medhurst is a Baylor University scholar and editor of The Rhetoric and Religion book series. Exploring a Pew Forum poll on Religion in Public Life, he examines the extent to which America uses faith as a guide to life. Mike Isenberg is a Fox Television Emmy Award-winning producer. He discusses his book, The Longest Year, in which his family relied on character to confront adversity: the approaching death of his father. Nicholas DiFonzo is Professor of Psychology at the Rochester Institute of technology and author of the book, The Watercooler Effect. He ponders the fall from grace of golfer Tiger Woods -- and why character counts. All in this week's Perspectives.

December 12, 2009

This week Perspectives focuses upon turning the corner. Recently, the Labor Department announced a drop in the U.S. unemployment rate from 10.2 to 10 percent. David Robinson, economics writer for the Buffalo News, explores whether the national economy has turned the corner. A new Siena Research Institute poll details the attitude of New York State residents toward the economy. Director Douglass Lonnstrom explains whether the Empire State is showing consumer confidence -- and if not, why. Pete Weber once broadcast the Buffalo Bills, Bisons, and Sabres. Now Voice of the National Hockey League Nashville Predators, he examines Sabres goalie Ryan Miller, Western New York's growing interest in the team, and whether the Sabres have turned the corner toward their first Stanley Cup. All on this week's Perspectives.

December 5, 2009

If Virginia is the Mother of Presidents, New York is the Mother of First Ladies. This week Perspectives completes its look at the eight U.S. First Ladies born in the Empire State, focusing on three. Author and Vanity Fair writer Sally Bedell Smith discusses the grace and courage of Jacqueline Kennedy, who entered the White House at age 31. Pamela Reeves, biographer and Associate Editor of Scripps-Howard Media, explores America's perceived grandmere Barbara Bush, the wife of one President and mother of another. Finally, in an interview he gave Perspectives host Curt Smith not long before his death, Michael Deaver, former aide to President Ronald Reagan, recalls his good friend Nancy Reagan. In particular, Deaver details how Mrs. Reagan's image changed during and after her husband's Presidency. This week, on Perspectives.

November 28, 2009

To celebrate Thanksgiving, Perspectives hails things we should be thankful for.  Matthew Silverman discusses resilience, embodied by the hero of every dog that is under: the 40th anniversary of the 1969 New York Mets' stunning world championship. Silverman's new book, The Miracle Has Landed, recalls The Amazin' Story of How the 1969 Mets Shocked the World. This year marks another anniversary: 1939's legendary film Gone With The Wind. Author Sally Tippett Rains discusses abundance, the lack of which the movie poignantly portrays. Her new book examines the novel of the same name: The Making of a Masterpiece: The True Story of Margaret Mitchell's Gone With The Wind. Finally, this Thanksgiving celebrates the second chance. In the Buffalo Bills' 50th year, Associated Press sportswriter John Wawrow explores new hope for Upstate New York's favorite football team: coach Dick Jauron's firing, temporary new coach Percy Fewell's hiring, and what owner Ralph Wilson is likely to do to restore the Bills to competitive status. This week, things to be thankful for on Perspectives.

November 21, 2009

If Virginia is the Mother of Presidents, New York State is the Mother of First Ladies. This week Perspectives begins a series on American First Ladies born in the Empire State. Dan Preston is editor of the James Monroe Papers at the Monroe Museum in Virginia. He recalls Elizabeth Monroe, arguably more popular in France than America. Vassar College educator and author Rebecca Edwards remembers the megapopular Francis Cleveland, America's youngest-ever First Lady at the age of 22. Finally, David Roosevelt, author of the book Grandmere, explores his grandmother, the inimitable Eleanor Roosevelt, who held her job longer -- and changed it more -- than any First Lady had, or likely will. This week: American First Ladies born in New York, on Perspectives.

November 14, 2009

Barack Obama has said he admires the foreign policy of former President George H.W. Bush. This week Perspectives uses a new insider's book to examine arguably America's last nonpartisan President. Roman Popadiuk was Bush's Deputy Assistant, Deputy Assistant for Foreign Affairs, and the first U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine. His book, The Leadership of George Bush: An Insider's View of the 41st President, is among the first intimate looks at Bush the President and man. Among the events discussed: the fall of the Berlin Wall, Communism's decline, the Soviet Union's collapse, the invasion of Kuwait to defeat Saddam Hussein, the 1992 election, Bush's domestic agenda, and to what extent time has altered America's and the world's view of his Administration. This week, on Perspectives.

November 7, 2009

This week Perspectives examines trauma. Dr. Lawrence Aber is Professor of Applied Psychology and Public Policy at New York University: also, chair, its Institute for Human Development and Social Change. He addresses the varieties and effects of childhood trauma, as he will at a November 12 symposium at Rochester's Mt. Hope Family Center. Wendell Cox, co-author of a revealing new Empire Center for New York State Policy study, explores the trauma of New York State losing both income and population. Finally, Jerry Zremski, Washington Bureau Chief of the Buffalo News, examines which political party should feel traumatized after the recent local, state, and national election, and why. This week, trauma, on Perspectives.

October 31, 2009

This week Perspectives explores "what happens when." Scott Pitoniak is one of America's finest sportswriters. He examines what happens when you change jobs in a given field: in the award-winning Pitoniak's case, from Gannett Company columnist to prolific author and internet columnist. Dr. Ernest Balajthy is Professor of Education and Program Director, Reading and Literacy, at the State University of New York at Geneseo. He dissects a new report in Futurist Magazine on how much Americans don't read.  Finally, John Zogby is the President and CEO of Zogby International: arguably America's most famed pollster. He tells the amazing story of joining former pro basketball star Manute Bol's heroic effort to build 41 schools for children in Manute's native war-torn Sudan. This week: "What happens when," on Perspectives.

October 24, 2009

This week Perspectives examines three famed generals who helped the United States win World War II. Kip Muir, historian at Virginia Military Institute, recalls "Blood and Guts," the theatric and controversial George S. Patton. Author and historian Michael Schallert recounts the flamboyant and eloquent Douglas MacArthur, who famously said "I shall return," and did. Samuel Brenner of Brown University details Dwight D. Eisenhower, five-star General, head of the 1944 "Operation Overlord" invasion of Europe, and future United States President. Three extraordinary men, leading America to victory in the world's first global war: this week, on Perspectives.

October 17, 2009

This week Perspecives explores "What next?" Buffalo News columnist Bob McCarthy explores why and how Buffalo, New York, downtown development is singing a nautical theme, including a Bass Pro Shop. Western New York commentator and political activist Bill Nojay discusses why any development theme for neighboring Rochester has proved elusive. Finally, Thomas Hahn, Professor of English, University of Rochester, etches how "what next?" can involve a rear-view mirror: an upcoming October 22-25 Flower City conference on the legendary character Robin Hood. This week, "What next?" on Perspectives."

October 10, 2009

This week Perspectives examines behavior: acting heroically, and abysmally. First, famed historian Arthur Herman discusses his dual biography of two heroic men: Gandhi and Churchill: The Epic Rivalry That Destroyed an Empire and Forged Our Age, published by Random House. Then, historian Fred Siegel, Visiting Professor at St. Francis College and contributing writer to the Manhattan Institute's City Journal, details New York State government acting abysmally in its capitol. Albany. This week, contrasting behavior, on Perspectives."

October 2, 2009

This week Perspectives examines character: what it is, and does. Historian Harry Turtledove, author of numerous books, including Fort Pillow, recalls the challenge Abraham Lincoln faced as he prepared to free slaves in the Civil War. Edward Renehan, author and CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Association in Oyster Bay, New York, describes TR's valiant third-party attempt in 1912 to win the Presidency. Douglas Porch, historian and author of many books, details Great Britain's finest hour: the island nation fighting Nazi Germany alone in 1940-41 -- and ultimately, helping to save the Free World. All on this week's Perspectives.

September 26, 2009

This week Perspectives explores corruption: its different kinds, and which are on the rise. Richard Rosenbaum is former Chairman of Monroe County's and New York State's Republican Party, and author of the new book, No Room For Democracy: Thr Triumph Of Ego Over Common Sense. He discusses among, other things, whether some Democrats are corrupt to support taxpayer-funding of the controversial group ACORN: The Association of Community Organizers for Reform Now. Ted O'Brien is the former Chairman of Monroe County's Democratic Party and now Monroe County legislator. He suggests why noncompetitive political districts abet corruption, and what alleged police corruption in Greece, New York, might say about the Republican Party. This week, corruption on Perspectives.

September 19, 2009

This week Perspectives examines the family: more exactly, three aspects we might not usually consider. Carroll Doherty, Associate Director, Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, examines whether senior citizens are turning against President Obama's health care proposal. Tony Silvia, Professor, Department of Journalism and Media Studies at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg, explores the issue of nepotism, having written a new book Fathers and Sons In Baseball Broadcasting. Finally, Greg Franklin, an adoption lawyer and member, American Academy of Adoption, examines global and domestic adoption, what is involved with each, and what prospective adoption parents should keep in mind. This week, the family, on Perspectives.

September 12, 2009

This week Perspectives explores a variety of careers. Peter King of CBS Radio News is among America's finest broadcast journalists. He details covering events from NASA and Space Shuttle flights to Hurricane Katrina. Kevin Dillon of Buffalo is New York State Supreme Court Justice. He examines what it takes to succeed in the law, including traits needed to be a district attorney and defense counselor. Joseph Rulison is Managing Director/Market Manager for J. P. Morgan Private Wealth Management in Rochester. He suggests what it takes to make and expand wealth in a difficult economy. This week, careers, on Perspectives.

September 5, 2009

This week Perspectives hosts a Labor Day weekend salute to the work ethic. Neal Johnson is President and Chief Executive Officer of the New York State Special Olympics. He details how it began, what it does, and how it embodies working for a higher cause. Karen Smith-Bogart was once Senior Vice-President at the Eastman Kodak Company in Rochester, New York. Now a small businesswoman in California, she discusses the start-up company, what skills an entrepreneur should have, and how education can complement work. Kent Gardner is President of Western New York's Center for Governmental Research. Among other issues, he explores whether the Empire State's fiscal policies reward, or penalize, those who toil and aspire. This week: the work ethic, on Perspectives.

August 29, 2009

This week Perspectives examines September's song of politics. Bob McCarthy, long-time political columnist of the Buffalo News, explores if the political landscape has changed enough to make the Republican Party successful in Western New York. Fred Dicker, political columnist and state editor of the New York Post, asks whether Governor David Paterson, his approval rating in the 20s, has passed the political point of no return. Jerry Zremski is the News' Washington Bureau Chief. He looks at the ongoing debate over health care. How has President Obama's falling popularity affected the dialogue? What is at stake, politically and economically? Which major party has more to gain, or lose? All on this week's Perspectives.

August 22, 2009

Historically, the Governor of New York State strides a national stage, crowded with precedent and superlative. This week Perspectives examines three Governors who changed the Empire State. Franklin D. Roosevelt led America's then-most populous state from 1929-33. Professor Bernard Bellush of the City University of New York etches how FDR presaged in Albany the New Deal he later brought to Washington. From 1943-55, Thomas E. Dewey gave New York a pioneering 486-mile Thruway, State University of New York, first state civil rights legislation, and yearly balanced budget. Richard Norton, author of Thomas E. Dewey and His Times, tells how. As 1959-74 Governor, Nelson A. Rockefeller swelled New York spending, taxes, business regulation, and government influence. His counsel, Robert Douglass, explores why -- and to what effect.  This week, three Governors who changed New York State on Perspectives.

August 15, 2009

The Bible tells of a prodigal son who leaves his family, then later surprisingly returns. This week's Perspectives etches three sons and daughters raised in the series' listening area who have left and may or may not return. Meghan Wier grew up in Western New York, helped found a local web design development company, then became a professional business blogger in South Carolina. Raised in Hamilton and Toronto, Doug Gamble moved to Southern California 29 years ago, becoming a columnist, lyricist, and writer for Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bob Hope, and Phyllis Diller. He explores reasons for possibly returning to Southern Ontario. Hank Greenwald grew up in the Rochester suburb of Brighton, graduated from Syracuse University, then became a nationally-known sportscaster. A long-time San Francisco resident, he notes differences among games he has broadcast, and places he has lived. All on this week's Perspectives.

August 8, 2009

This week Perspectives examines quality. It begins with Ted O'Brien, former Democratic Party chairman of New York's Monroe County. Now a County legislator, O'Brien talks about today's quality of political life. Jim Ranney is News Director of WNED, Buffalo's National Public Radio affiliate. He discusses radio trends and programming -- and why some broadcasters feel they have to fall to meet their audience, not asking the audience to rise to meet them. Finally, Kevin Doran is Rochester's WROC-TV CBS affiliate news anchor. He recalls the recently deceased Walter Cronkite: particularly, how Cronkite showed that a broadcaster can respect his audience -- and still keep his audience.  Quality, on this week's Perspectives.

July 25, 2009

Last year, "Perspectives" examined how to build a baseball park, home, and mall. This week it etches how to build inside: to cope. Dr. Suzanne Sachnowitz is the author of "Til Death: A Story of Survival and Renewal." She explores coping with ultimate tragedy: the death of a spouse. Rebecca Hagelin, the author of the book "Home Invasion: Protecting Your Family in a Culture That's Gone Stark-Raving Mad," suggests how a family can nurture self-denial, work, responsibility, and courtesy.  One of author Christina Hoff Sommers's most noted books is "One Nation Under Therapy." She argues that therapy can be a ladder -- but, more often, a crutch. This week: Coping, on "Perspectives."

July 18, 2009

This week "Perspectives" three cases of betrayal. In 1957, two baseball teams left New York for California, breaking the hearts of millions of people in New York City and Upstate New York. The Huffington Post columnist Robert E. Murphy discusses his new book, "After Many A Summer: The Passing of the Giants and Dodgers and a Golden Age In New York Baseball."  This week Republican Senators on the Senate Judiciary Committee questioned President Obama's Supreme Court nominee, Sonia Sotomayor. Political pollster and consultant Fritz Wenzel explores how they did.  Has the GOP betrayed, or kept faith with, its electorate? The madness of the last month in Albany, New York, has astounded those who thought they had seen it all -- and hadn't. Fred Dicker is columnist and state editor of the New York Post. He etches the plots and counterplots of New York Senate Democrats to keep their majority -- and Republicans to seize it. This week: Betrayal, on "Perspectives."

July 11, 2009

This week "Perspectives" conducts its annual tour of varied cultural and historical sites in and near New York State. Jim Mossgraber is Chief Operating Officer of the Genesee Country Village and Museum in Mumford, New York, between Buffalo and Rochester. He explores how telling biography can enhance American history. Dave Kaplan is Director of the Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center in Montclair, New Jersey. He explains how amid U.S. economic trouble, a one-man shrine can arise and thrive. Libby Nord is Creative Director of the Lucy-Desi Museum in Jamestown, New York, the home town of the late Lucille Ball. She discusses how the Museum and Playhouse honor Lucy and Desi Arnaz -- the Queen of Comedy and television pioneer, respectively, who gave the world I Love Lucy. All on this week's "Perspectives."

July 4, 2009

As newspapers slash or eliminate book reviews, this week's "Perspectives" tries to fill the void. Noted sports author Rob Rains examines "Tony LaRussa: Man On a Mission" -- perhaps baseball's best and most misunderstood manager. A new religious study portrays an America overwhelmingly Christian -- but liberal Protestantism in freefall.  Syndicated columnist William Murchinson discusses his new book: "Mortal Follies: Episcopalianism and the Crisis of Mainline Christianity." Burt Solomon is a long-time correspondent for National Journal. His new book on America's 32nd President is perhaps relevant to the 44th: "FDR vs. the Constitution: The Court Packing Fight and the Triumph of Democracy." Solomon etches what Barack Obama might learn from Franklin D. Roosevelt. All on this week's "Perspectives."

June 27, 2009

This week Perspectives celebrates summer's start with summer reading. Mike Isenberg is Emmy Award-winning Fox TV coordinating producer and author of The Longest Year: One Family's Journey of Life, Death, and Love.  He tells how his family responded to his dad's fatal prognosis of pancreatic cancer. Jayson Stark, ESPN.com senior baseball writer and frequent ESPN TV contributor, is the author of Worth the Wait:  Tales of the 2008 Phillies. He explores what sports can mean to any title-winning town. Randi Minetor has written 23 travel guides in the last four years, most about national parks and national historic sites. She details how to brave such a heavy writing load -- and what New York State historic sites have to offer.  Reading, on this week's Perspectives."

June 20, 2009

This week "Perspectives" examines the art form of teaching. Brian Brooks is the Principal of Walt Disney Elementary School in the Rochester, New York, suburb of Gates-Chili. He looks at the ideal teacher, and the priorities of elementary school students. James Williams is Superintendent of the Buffalo, New York, Public Schools. He details how teaching high school students has changed since Williams' career began forty years ago. Dennis Showers is Professor of Education at the State University of New York at Geneseo. He explores the attributes needed today to teach college students. This week: Teaching, on "Perspectives."

June 13, 2009

This week "Perspectives" examines the past as prologue, recalling how New York State reacted to two economic crises: one similar to, the other greater than, the current downturn.  Economic historian, former University of Virginia Professor, and former Congressional candidate David Schreve retrieves the early 1930s Depression -- and how then-New York Governor Franklin Roosevelt vigorously responded.  Noted biographer and City College of New York historian Fred Siegel details a more recent crisis: the stagnant mid-1970s, when the Empire State and its largest city nearly went belly-up.  Today, with New York in even worse economic shape, Siegel suggests what lessons we should learn.  All on this week's "Perspectives."

June 6, 2009

This week "Perspectives" explores life's two certainties: death and taxes.  Art Wheaton is Industry Education Specialist at the Buffalo office of Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations.  He discusses an event that not long ago would have seemed unthinkable:  General Motors, dying as we know it -- bankrupt, at age 101.  Jay Gallagher is Gannett News Service Albany Bureau Chief and columnist.  He details how soaring New York State property taxes, exacerbated by sales and income tax, are taking a sledgehammer to the great middle class.  This week, death and taxes on "Perspectives."

May 30, 2009

This week "Perspectives" examines the state of each major political party.  Fritz Wenzel is a veteran journalist, former aide to famed pollster John Zogby, and now a Republican consultant and head of the opinion firm Wenzel Strategies.  He explores the incredibly shrinking Republican Party -- or is it?  Out of power in New York State and the Nation, is the GOP out of gas? Hank Schoenkopf is one of America's leading Democratic consultants.  He discusses if the Obama Administration can help the Democrats make their getting that is good even better.  Albany and Washington, D.C. are now one-party cities.  Can a popular President make the U.S. in essence a one-party country?  This week, politics on "Perspectives."

May 23, 2009

This week "Perspectives" links yesterday, today, and tomorrow.  Thomas Grasso, President of the Canal Society of New York State, conjectures what might have happened if the early-19th Century Erie Canal had bypassed Buffalo and Rochester, as it nearly did.  Burt Nadler, Director of the Career Center at the University of Rochester, describes the effect of the recession on 2009 college graduates -- and the world they will encounter.  Finally, Bill Nojay, former Chairman of the Rochester Genesee Regional Transportation Authority, examines a crucial upcoming decision for the state's third-largest city:  Whether to build a $230 million downtown Renaissance Square.  Yesterday, today, and tomorrow on this week's "Perspectives."

May 16, 2009

This week "Perspectives" explores history.  Jeff Shesol is a former Speechwriter to President Clinton, member of the West Wing Writers Group, and author of the book  "Mutual Contempt: Lyndon Johnson, Robert Kennedy, and The Feud That Defined a Decade."  He discusses how memorable speech lines from Patrick Henry to Barack Obama have shaped American history, as shown in the new book, "The Final Four of Everything."  George Borelli is a former long-time political writer and columnist for the Buffalo Courier-Express and News.  He explores how Western New York history changed in the four decades (1950s to '90s) he covered politics.  Jim Mossgraber is the Chief Operating Officer for the Genesee Country Village and Museum in Mumford, New York, between Buffalo and Rochester.  He discusses the challenges historic institutions face amid America's economic downturn.  History, on this week's "Perspectives."

May 9, 2009

This week "Perspectives" salutes Jack Kemp, 1935-2009: athlete, politician, household name, family man.  Kemp, 73, died last week of cancer.  First, Scott Pitoniak, award-winning columnist and author of many books about the Buffalo Bills, recalls the talented, fearless 1960s quarterback of the two-time title-winning Bills.  Next, Kemp is remembered by his ex-teammate and political aide, former Erie County Executive, and close friend Ed Rutkowski.  Rutkowski examines Kemp's riveting political career:  nine-term Western New York Congressman, father of supply-side economics, 1988 Presidential candidate, 1989-93 Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, and 1996 Republican Vice-Presidential nominee.  This week, we remember Jack Kemp, on "Perspectives."

May 2, 2009

This week "Perspectives" explores the food of New York State.  Patrick Hooker, New York State Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets, discuses the importance of food safety. Alexa Gifford, Executive Director of the New York Wine and Culinary Center, details how good wine can make food taste even more superb. Art Rogers, owner and executive chef of "Lento," a leading Upstate New York restaurant, examines why buying local means eating better. All on this week's "Perspectives."

April 25, 2009

As newspapers slash or eliminate book reviews, this week's "Perspectives" picks up the torch.  Noted sports author Rob Rains examines "Tony LaRussa:  Man on a Mission" -- perhaps baseball's best and most misunderstood manager:  genius and/or martinet?.  A new religious study portrays an America overwhelmingly Christian -- but liberal Protestantism in freefall.  Syndicated columnist William Murchinson discusses his new book:  "Mortal Follies:  Episcopalianism and the Crisis of Mainline Christianity."  Burt Solomon is a long-time correspondent for National Journal.  His new book on America's 32nd President is perhaps relevant to the 44th:  "FDR vs. the Constitution: The Court Packing Fight and the Triumph of Democracy."  Solomon etches what Barack Obama might learn from Franklin D. Roosevelt.  All on this week's "Perspectives."

April 18, 2009

This week "Perspectives" describes April showers: several things that currently rain on Upstate New York's parade.  Bob McCarthy, the popular columnist of the Buffalo News, examines the Empire State's increasingly dysfunctional Democrat and Republican politics.  Pete Weber is the former Voice of the National Hockey League Buffalo Sabres and currently Nashville Predators.  With the Sabres and American Hockey League Rochester Americans missing the playoffs, he notes how hard it is to be a hockey fan, now that April's here.  Ronald Rochon is Dean of Buffalo State College's School of Education and Associate Vice-President of Teacher Education. He details the Center for Excellence in Urban and Rural Education.  Its goal:  Help students who are often overlooked.  All on this week's "Perspectives."

April 11, 2009

This week "Perspectives" examines teaching:  the art form, and art.  Brian Brooks is the Principal of Walt Disney Elementary School in the Rochester, New York, suburb of Gates-Chili.  Among other things, he discusses Francis Xavier's phrase, "Give me a child until he is seven, and you may have him afterward."  James A. Williams, who in 1970 began a career as a teacher, counselor, administrator, and author, is the Superintendent of the Buffalo, New York, public schools.  He details how teaching high school students has changed.  Finally, Dennis Showers, Professor of Education at the State University of New York at Geneseo's School of Education, suggests what is required to become a truly gifted college teacher.  This week, teaching, on "Perspectives."

April 4, 2009

This week "Perspectives" celebrates the opening of a new baseball season by recalling two of its greatest legends: each, born outside New York State; both, becoming institutions within it.  For decades, Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees announcer Red Barber, born in Mississippi, was heard in every Upstate New York burg.  Barber's later role on National Public Radio cemented his legacy.  Pat Hughes, radio Voice of the Chicago Cubs, recalls a man impossible to forget.  Born in Missouri, Yogi Berra lived the American Dream: an immigrants' son, then Yankees player and manager, and ultimately perhaps America's most quoted personality.  Allen Barra, contributing writer to The Wall Street Journal, details his new book, Yogi Berra:  Enternal Yankee, describing baseball's most beloved man.  Join us as we salute the 2009 season by hailing Red Barber and Yogi Berra on "Perspectives." 

March 28, 2009

This week "Perspectives" asks whether New York State is becoming California. Joe Mathews is Los Angeles Times contributing editor, political biographer, and Irvine Senior Fellow at the New America Foundation.  He explores what California may portend socially and culturally.  Fred Dicker, New York Post columnist and state editor, examines the striking political parallels between the bicoastal now- and once- most populous states.  Finally, E.J. McMahon, Director of the Empire Center for New York State Policy and Senior Fellow, Manhattan Institute, asks what economic lessons California teaches -- and whether the Empire State is learning them.  Even California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger proclaims his state "close to fallling off the cliff."  Is New York State following its policies -- and fate?  All on this week's "Perspectives."

March 21, 2009

This week "Perspectives" recalls how New York State has reacted to past economic crises -- specifically, in this show, the Great Depression and mid-1970s.  David Shreve is an economics historian, past candidate for United States Congress, and former Professor of History at the University of Virginia.  He relates how Franklin Roosevelt, then Governor, responded to the Depression, auguring many of the programs FDR later brought to the Presidency. Fred Siegel is the Professor of History at The Cooper Union in New York City, frequent contributor to the Wall Street Journal and New York Post, among others, and author of four books, including Giuliani, New York City, and the Genius of American Life.  He details the mid-1970s fiscal crisis that almost bankrupted New York City and ravaged New York State.  All this on this week's "Perspectives."

March 14, 2009

This week "Perspectives" examines events and personalities that may change Western New York.  Bill Nojay, former Chairman of the Rochester Genesee Regional Transportation Authority, explores whether Rochester should build a downtown Renaissance Square and/or a multi-modal transportation center? Cathy Woodruff, reporter for the Albany Times-Union newspaper, details a proposed high speed and/or light rail train between Buffalo and New York City.  John Wawrow, a sportswriter for Associated Press, relates the Buffalo Bills' surprising signing of controversial receiver Terrell Owens.  Why was he signed? What are the potential pros and cons?  All on this week's "Perspectives."

March 7, 2009

This week "Perspectives" examines reading, writing, and arithematic.  Joseph Flaherty is founder and president of the Rochester, New York, Writers and Books, among Upstate New York's leading literary groups.  He details the state of reading in America. Bill Kauffman is author of eight books, including the current "Forgotten Founder, Drunken Prophet:  The Life of Luther Martin."  He explores the craft of writing.  Charles Brown heads the Rochester Area Colleges Center for Excellence in Math and Science, a group of 19 post-secondary educational institutions in West and Central New York.  He asks whether America is proficient in math and science.  All this on this week's "Perspectives."

February 28, 2009

This week "Perspectives" examines news up-close and personal in Western New York.  Peter Iglinski is Executive Producer of News and Public Affairs at WXXI Radio in Rochester.  Among other things, he talks about what news means to the listener -- and area.  Jim Ranney is News Director of WNED Buffalo.  He discusses the role of news in the Niagara Frontier -- and how Buffalo has abided the last-year loss of Jimmy Griffin, Tim Russert, and recent airplane crash victims.  All on this week's "Perspectives."

February 21, 2009

This week "Perspectives" examines the concept of rebirth.  Scott Hetsko, WROC CBS-TV Rochester Meteorologist, explores why February and early March weather is so volatile:  65 degrees one day: snow, the next.  Josh Whetzel is play-by-play broadcaster of baseball's Rochester Red Wings and basketball's University of Buffalo Bulls.  He suggests why, especially in the frigid Northeast, the coming of baseball -- the summer sport -- denotes the rebirth of spring.  Brock Yates, a resident of Wyoming, New York, between Buffalo and Rochester, is the legendary Car & Driver Magazine editor, author, screenwriter, racer, and television commentator.  He details how the auto industry hopes to be reborn -- and what challenges confront it.  All on this week's "Perspectives."

February 14, 2009

This week "Perspectives" continues its recurrent series on United States Senators from the Empire State. Joseph Mercucio, president, National Political Services, Inc., is among America's leading political consultants. He addresses the career of liberal Republican Jacob Javits, U.S.Senator 1957-81. George Marlin is former New York City Conservative Party Mayoral nominee; former executive director of the New York and New Jersey Port Authority; and author and leading conservative activist.  He recalls James Buckley,U.S. Senator 1971-77, especially Buckley's historic 1970 upset victory as Conservative Party candidate that augured Richard Nixon's landslide 1972 Presidential victory.  All on this week's "Perspectives."

February 7, 2009

This week Perspectives explores three well-known New Yorkers in the news. Nearly half-a-century after her death, Eleanor Roosevelt still looms large in the Empire State's consciousness. Scholar Allida Black, Editor of the Eleanor Roosevelt Papers at George Washington University in Washington, examines the woman Adlai Stevenson called "First Lady of the World."  David Paterson has been New York's Governor less than a year.  Gannett News columnist and Capital Bureau Chief Jay Gallagher examines the man who created a firestorm by recently naming Kirsten Gillibrand Hillary Clinton's successor as New York's Junior U.S. Senator.  Finally, Brian Tumulty, reporter in Gannett's Washington Bureau, explains what the new Senator and former U.S. Congresswoman brings to her office: strengths and weaknesses, past record and future potential, and why she was chosen over other candidates.  All on this week's Perspectives.

January 31, 2009

This week Perspectives examines two noted United States Senators from New York State.  First, the program recalls 1959-65 Senator Kenneth B. Keating with Upstate conservative activist Bill Nojay, who once ran for Keating's U.S. Congressional seat. Then, author and former Presidential speechwriter Jeff Shesol explores the man who succeeded Keating in the Senate from 1965-1968, former Attorney General and 1968 Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy. Join us on Perspectives for a look at two public figures whose legacy endures.

January 24, 2009

This week Perspectives details the state of New York State's economy.  Robert Ward, Deputy Director of the Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government in Albany, examines the Empire State's economic strengths and weaknesses.  Fred Dicker, New York Post columnist and State Editor, explores what the State Assembly and Senate are doing to help the economy -- or not.  Jim Milroy is Assistant Vice President for Budget and Governmental Relations at the State University of New York at Geneseo.  He etches perhaps the brightest spot in a dismal economy:  higher education's growing role.  This week, the state of the State's economy, on Perspectives.

January 17, 2009

This week "Perspectives" explores a rite dating back to George Washington:  The Inauguration of an American President.  On January 20, Barack Obama takes the oath of office.  William Leuchtenburg, Distinguished Professor of History Emeritus at the University of North Carolina, is America's leading scholar of Franklin Roosevelt.  He examines FDR's four Inaugural Addresses in 1937, 1941,  1945, and especially 1933.  Raymond Price was Richard Nixon's Chief Speechwriter, author of the book "With Nixon," and former President of the Economic Club of New York.  Price recalls the two Inaugurals he helped Nixon write:  1969's and 1973's.  Robert Schlesinger of U.S. News & World Report is the author of the recently published book, "White House Ghosts:  Presidents and their Speechwriters."  He looks at the last Democratic President, Bill Clinton, and how Obama rhetorically compares with him.  Join us on this week's "Perspectives" as America makes history.

January 9, 2009

This week "Perspectives" profiles two freedom fighters from Upstate New York.  Frederick Douglass, the famed U.S. abolitionist, women's suffragist, editor, author, orator, diplomat, and reformer, spent much of his life in Rochester.  Frank Faragasso, official historian, National Capitol Parks East in Washington, recalls the man who said, "I would unite with anybody to do right and with nobody to do wrong." John Brown, who lived in North Elba, in eastern New York, is the abolitionist who advocated and practiced armed insurrection as a means to end all slavery.  Historian David Reynolds, author of "John Brown, Abolitionist:  The Man Who Killed Slavery, Sparked the Civil War, and Seeded Civil Rights," examines the man still deemed a madman by some and martyr and visionary by others.  This week, two Upstate New Yorkers who forged the America in which we live, on "Perspectives".

January 3, 2009

This week "Perspectives" salutes a famed son and daughter of the same Upstate New York town:  Auburn, an hour and two hours east of Rochester and Buffalo, respectively.  William Seward was a United States Senator, New York's 12th Governor, and America's 24th Secretary of State.  Peter Wisby, Director of the Seward House in Auburn, recalls the legend known as Abraham Lincoln's "Right-hand Man" and the person who helped purchase Alaska.  Auburn's iconic daughter was Harriet Tubman, a freedom-fighter, abolitionist, and founder of the Underground Railroad.  America's leading Tubman biographer, Kate Clifford Larson, is the author of "Bound for the Promised Land:  Harrriet Tubman, Portrait of an American Hero."  She explores how 2009 will have special meaning for Tubman's amazing life.  All on this week's "Perspectives."

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