



Elizabeth Bruenig on witnessing executions and opposing capital punishment
According to Amnesty International, 15 countries used the death penalty in 2024. The United States was one of those countries. Capital punishment is illegal in 23 states and isn’t used in some of the states where it is legal. But the United States still executed 25 people in 2024 and nearly twice a…

After #MeToo, what has changed?
Many people remember #MeToo from when it went viral in 2017. And before the hashtag, there was the Me Too movement, started by activist Tarana Burke 20 years ago as a way to support survivors of sexual violence, especially Black women and girls. This hour, we’re reflecting on what has changed sinc…

Our 2025 favorites: Often undervalued, student journalists play a vital role in our communities
The Disrupted team is welcoming the new year by choosing a couple of the episodes we loved from 2025. We have so many favorites that we couldn't reair all of them, but these are some of the ones that we wanted to listen back to. This week, producer Kevin Chang Barnum chose our episode on student jo…

Our 2025 favorites: Megan Greenwell on the ways private equity upends the lives of everyday people
The Disrupted team is welcoming the new year by choosing a couple of the episodes we loved from 2025. We have so many favorites that we couldn't reair all of them, but these are some of the ones that we wanted to listen back to. This week, host Khalilah-Brown Dean chose our interview with journalis…

Authors like Angeline Boulley and Ainissa Ramirez help young readers see a wider range of representation
The way people approach children’s books in the U.S. has changed a lot over time. Philosopher John Locke helped popularize the idea that learning to read should be fun with his 1693 treatise Some Thoughts Concerning Education. Fast forward 300 years and television series continued Locke’s legacy.…

Lizards, scallops and funding cuts: Connecticut biologists talk about our ever-changing world
Studying oysters can help us understand how Connecticut’s shoreline is changing. Studying lizards can help us understand the history of life on our planet. Biologists research living organisms. And in doing so, they help us understand not only ourselves, but also the way our lives are intertwined w…

John Maduko on CT’s state college system and Jamal Watson on the student debt crisis
For students and families, navigating the world of higher education isn’t easy. Some of the challenges, like student loan debt, have been going on for years. Other challenges come from more recent changes in how the federal government approaches universities. To explore these challenges, we're tal…

Connecticut leaders breaking barriers with historic firsts
Being the first person to do something isn’t easy. There’s no blueprint for what you are doing, no conventional wisdom to fall back on when all else fails. There is also the pressure of expectations and all the people who are counting on your success. But it’s a way to show people what is possible.…

Poet Tracy K. Smith on how poems get us through ‘Perilous Times’
When Tracy K. Smith served as Poet Laureate of the United States, she used her platform to bring people together. In 2018, she traveled the country for a series called American Conversations: Celebrating Poems in Rural Communities. At these events, she encouraged people to share their thoughts, reg…

Vanessa Priya Daniel on the three superpowers women of color bring to their leadership
In Unrig the Game: What Women of Color Can Teach Everyone About Winning, author Vanessa Priya Daniel writes about the challenges that women of color face. She includes a satirical section formatted like a job description, where she details the duties of women of color leaders. They include “Be lika…