Melissa Toufanian

Aaron Kleinman

Richard Chew

Matthew Botvinick

On today's show Mike Nellis fills in for Joan and his guests are
– Aaron Kleinman, Heartland Signal‘s senior political analyst and author of the “Radio Free America” newsletter
– Melissa Toufanian, former State Department deputy assistant secretary who served on the communications team for the original Iran nuclear deal under President Obama, and now serves as managing director at Navigator Research
– Richard Chew, host of “Chew’s Views,” weekday mornings from 6:00 to 8:00 a.m. Central on WCPT, AM 950 The Progressive Voice of Minnesota, KFNN 1510 AM Phoenix, and Atlanta's WMLB AM 1690; the show also airs on WARR in Warren County, North Carolina
– Matthew Botvinick, world-renowned AI researcher and neuroscientist who is senior fellow at Yale Law School, a member of the technical staff at Anthropic, and author of "AI and Political Freedom: The Risk to Democracy and How to Respond" (2026)

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

 

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On today's show <a href="https://endlessurgency.com/">Mike Nellis </a>fills in for Joan and his guests are &ndash; Aaron Kleinman, <a href="https://heartlandsignal.com/">Heartland Signal</a>&lsquo;s senior political analyst and author of the &ldquo;<a href="https://radio-free-america.beehiiv.com/">Radio Free America</a>&rdquo; newsletter &ndash; Melissa Toufanian, former State Department deputy assistant secretary who served on the communications team for the original Iran nuclear deal under President Obama, and now serves as managing director at <a href="https://navigatorresearch.org/">Navigator Research</a> &ndash;&nbsp;Richard Chew, host of &ldquo;<a href="https://heartlandsignal.com/programs/chews-views/">Chew&rsquo;s Views</a>,&rdquo; weekday mornings from 6:00 to 8:00 a.m. Central on WCPT, <a href="https://www.am950radio.com/">AM 950 The Progressive Voice of Minnesota</a>, KFNN 1510 AM Phoenix, and Atlanta's WMLB AM 1690; the show also airs on WARR in Warren County, North Carolina &ndash;&nbsp;Matthew Botvinick, world-renowned AI researcher and neuroscientist who is senior fellow at Yale Law School, a member of the technical staff at Anthropic, and author of "<a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691291215/ai-and-political-freedom?srsltid=AU7gw4XZGx4o2oiJPtCkcYTyNZpAHm3j0ehyw3LF5c3jjT5p_Q1_H_mb">AI and Political Freedom: The Risk to Democracy and How to Respond</a>" (2026)
Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (<a href="http://heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive">heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive</a>).
&nbsp;
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From Heartland Signal and WCPT AM 820 in Chicago, here are full episodes of "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" (weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central), a topical and interactive talk show that focuses on national, state and city politics.  

A veteran Chicago broadcaster, Joan talks to politicians and professors, activists and authors, candidates and correspondents, as well as listeners who call in to share their views on the news of the day. Her goal is to Edify, Entertain and Elect — Democrats, of course.    

Joan Esposito has hosted WCPT's afternoon show since 2019. Prior to that she spent 20 years as a Chicago television anchor and reporter for WGN Channel 9, ABC7 and NBC5, and had a stint as managing partner at media trainer J2SC.  Joan is a long-time member of the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). 

From Heartland Signal and <a href="https://heartlandsignal.com/wcpt820/">WCPT AM 820</a> in Chicago, here are full episodes of "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" (weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central), a topical and interactive talk show that focuses on national, state and city politics. &nbsp;
A veteran Chicago broadcaster, Joan talks to politicians and professors, activists and authors, candidates and correspondents, as well as listeners who call in to share their views on the news of the day. Her goal is to Edify, Entertain and Elect &mdash; Democrats, of course. &nbsp; &nbsp;
Joan Esposito has hosted WCPT's afternoon show since 2019. Prior to that she spent 20 years as a Chicago television anchor and reporter for WGN Channel 9, ABC7 and NBC5, and had a stint as managing partner at media trainer J2SC. &nbsp;Joan is a long-time member of the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA).&nbsp;

Joan Esposito (Full Episodes)

From Heartland Signal and WCPT AM 820 in Chicago, "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" (weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central) is a topical and interactive talk show that focuses on national, state and city politics. A veteran Chicago broadcaster, Joan talks to politicians and professors, activists and authors, candidates and correspondents, as well as listeners who call in to share their views on the news of the day. Her goal is to Edify, Entertain and Elect — Democrats, of course.    

Joan Esposito has hosted WCPT's afternoon show since 2019. Prior to that she spent 20 years as a Chicago television anchor and reporter for WGN Channel 9, ABC7 and NBC5, and had a stint as managing partner at media trainer J2SC.  Joan is a long-time member of the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). 

From Heartland Signal and <a href="https://heartlandsignal.com/wcpt820/">WCPT AM 820</a> in Chicago, "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" (weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central) is a topical and interactive talk show that focuses on national, state and city politics. A veteran Chicago broadcaster, Joan talks to politicians and professors, activists and authors, candidates and correspondents, as well as listeners who call in to share their views on the news of the day. Her goal is to Edify, Entertain and Elect &mdash; Democrats, of course. &nbsp; &nbsp;
Joan Esposito has hosted WCPT's afternoon show since 2019. Prior to that she spent 20 years as a Chicago television anchor and reporter for WGN Channel 9, ABC7 and NBC5, and had a stint as managing partner at media trainer J2SC. &nbsp;Joan is a long-time member of the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA).&nbsp;