The Philadelphia Citizen podcast offers spoken versions of articles, deeper dives into the political, social and cultural workings of our city, explainers on the issues of our day, interviews, conversations and solutions. Lots of solutions. All to help you become a better citizen of your city.
The principals of two high schools set to merge aren't just waiting to see what happens next to displaced students and staff, they're reaching out early to ease the transition
Philly saw an outbreak of measles in 1991 centered around certain religious communities. What have we learned since? Not much. In fact, things have gotten worse.
In the wake of a high-stakes state visit by the Chinese president, Ali Veshi breaks down the many gifts to China that are Donald Trump's foreign bungles.
Meet the next generation of man's best friend (some with lasers some with thermal sensors, some with machine guns). Brought to you by Philly's brightest tech minds.
On a special live episode of How To Really Run A City, former Mayor Michael Nutter takes us inside his new Impact Scholars Program at the University of Pennsylvania. His co-host, former Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, as well as former Tulsa Mayor GT Bynum are this year's inaugural scholars. "The idea is to match young people who want to go into public service with those who have served but are not yet finished," Nutter told the crowd. "We should not leave that knowledge and expertise on the bench." Join us (and Penn Impact Scholars students) for a driving discussion about the power of today's leaders to lift the innovators of tomorrow. As cities go, so goes the nation!
Trump's Secretary of Health and Human Services seems to have stopped pushing vitamin A to treat measles. Paul Offit, CHOP's renowned immunologist, wonders if this reversal will come in time to save PA from an even more massive outbreak?
On this episode of Ideas We Should Steal, Philadelphians flush 310 tons of what could be money-making compost every year. Will fears of forever chemical contamination prevent us from cashing in?
The rising cost of diesel fuel is wiping out the already thin margins that farmers across the country have been operating under. Some farmers are fearing they won't be able to pay basic bills. Ali Velshi explains how this puts America's food security at serious risk.
On a special episode, Roxanne Patel Shepelavy sits down with personal finance guru Jean Chatzky, author of The Forever Paycheck, who offers listeners the reassurance that your retirement savings can last the rest of your life, provided you structure your funds properly. Join us for a rousing conversation in front of a live audience.
On this episode of Guest Commentary, an environmental researcher explains why we must consider illicit drugs and climate change as an interlocking challenge facing Philadelphians in need
On this episode of Big Rube's Philly, style iconoclast and Philly transplant Charlie Lichtenfels shares their "Swamp Yankee" style, vintage records and classic 90s looks with the OG entrepreneur, chef and photographer
For more than 30 years, YouthBuild Philadelphia has helped young adults reconnect with school after dropping out. Now, it's launched an evening program to capture those still left behind.
Donald Trump is being told that his Iran War will extend throughout his entire second term. A new front with Houthi rebels in Yemen is creating a more powerful Iran than ever before.
On a special episode of Guest Commentary, former U.S. rep and Under Secretary of the Army, Patrick Murphy, believes the courage and solidarity all Americans demonstrated in those dark times twenty-five years ago are needed today
For more than a decade, Penn researchers have found that greener neighborhoods are less violent. Now, Pew is helping PHS double down on this confirmed hypothesis.
A new WHYY-TV show is teaching young viewers how to be a better part of their neighborhoods. It's the latest in a long lineup of thoughtful Philly public television aimed at educating our kids.
Penn professor and bestselling author Angela Duckworth just released her newest book: Situated. "Much of human behavior is rooted in our immediate circumstances," Duckworth says. She goes on to discuss her previous book, Grit, and how Situated completes the explanation for why people succeed.
63 years after the 1963 March on Washington led by Martin Luther King Jr., voting rights advocates again filled the National Mall to make their collective voices heard. Ali Velshi has a few thoughts.
Our Trump-like DA indicted himself last week in the court of public opinion by coming up short on public virtue. From Larry Platt, an offer to help.
Monday night was Tynan's last broadcast and it was the end of a local news era
On this episode of Ideas We Should Steal, we look at states — New Jersey, for example — that launched programs offering free at-home post-baby visits for every new mom. Could we do the same in Philly?
World renowned eyewear vendor Julian Emami talks the business of celebrity fashion with brand marketer, chef and photographer Reuben "Big Rube" Harley
The link in Lancaster County between unvaccinated rates and the first two U.S. measles deaths this year is "clear." Ali Velshi weighs in.
Larry Platt writes investing in arts and culture drives local economies and brings us all together, so why is Philadelphia lagging so far behind other cities?
Organizers from the Philly Black Workers Project joined Dr. James Peterson for the Citizen segment of Evening WURDs to discuss a recent Citizen article about the exploitative nature of the temp worker industry
Food insecurity directly impacts neighborhood violence. Fighting hunger should be a vital part of our anti-violence strategy.
Why the City's support of Center City's Meantime on Market — now extended until the year's end — is money well spent
A new survey from the University of Pennsylvania revealed that 61% of Americans oppose data centers being built in their area. Ali Velshi breaks down why.
In this episode of Business For Good, one Southampton company is tackling a growing problem in pediatric care: getting children developmental therapy when they need it, regardless of language, insurance or distance
As Philly road rage has hit the Schuylkill River Trail, one local cyclist calls for her fellow riders to show some decorum.
Who are all those people standing outside City Hall with their bicycles?
On this episode of Citizen WURDs, Dr. James Peterson is joined by Natalie Shieh and Sarah Maginnis who dissected the wage tax and talked about how they're boosting urban development in order to make the city more affordable for everyone.
On this episode of Citizen of the Week, one veteran from West Philly felt left out of the parenting equation twenty-two years. Today, he's turned thousands of local dads into successful child-rearers. For even more information about Daddy University, visit this story on the web.
Military stockpiles of defensive and offensive missiles are dwindling. It would take four to five years to restock our supplies. Ali Velshi investigates the growing crisis.
To combat wartime food prices in the 1910s, the federal government actively promoted local food markets. Modern urban thinkers build on these ideas to reinvent grocery stores and combat food deserts.
CNN's Michael Smerconish moderated a panel at the Promise of Democracy 250th Summit recently. It focused on how the country can overcome the widening divisions shaping American public life, and the cultural and community tensions that have resulted.
We consider our animals to be part of the family. Then why, asks a former pet insurance professional, don't we plan ahead for their medical care?
One restaurant in Kensington is participating in the Pay-What-You-Can movement that lets customers decide how much they want to pay for their meal. It's a no-judgment way of making finer dining accessible to anyone.
Donald Trump keeps telling Americans we're in a "golden age" of economic prosperity. Ali Velshi breaks down the reality.
The highly contagious disease is sweeping the United States. Philly currently has zero confirmed cases — a stark difference from the city's major outbreak 30 years ago. Are we more prepared this time around?
A long-time university president calls for a constitutional convention on higher education in the city known for revolutions. Penn, et al, are you listening?
Thirty percent of all breast cancer patients experience a potentially deadly recurrence. Scientists at Penn are finding ways to prevent dormant cells from waking up.
This time, we take a lightning look at takeaways from Governor Shapiro's FY27 budget
In this episode of Guest Commentary, a local political activist has an idea we should steal to bring power back to the people
Take in the most notable changes to Mayor Parker's FY27 budget in this lightning episode.
In court documents, the Trump administration admitted to terminating federal clean energy grants "to states that awarded electoral votes to Kamala Harris in the 2024 election." Ali Velshi weighs in.
"The problems we have as a country don't go away because the federal government leaves the stage," says Mary Ellen Wiederwohl, CEO of Accelerator for America, on the latest episode of How To Really Run A City. "All this stuff lands on the front steps of City Hall." And then what? That's what hosts Kasim Reed (former mayor of Atlanta) and Michael Nutter (former mayor of Philadelphia), along with Citizen Co-founder Larry Platt, explore with Brown University Professor Marc Dunkelman, author of the new book, Why Nothing Works: Who Killed Progress — and How to Bring It Back. "We need to rethink the balance between our impulse to empower central authority and the attempts to ensure that power doesn't do damage," says Dunkelman. Dunkelman highlights the push and pull of centralized power in U.S. politics, tracing a line from the Progressive Era of the late 19th century to the destructive anger of modern MAGAism. Reed weighed in with his experience. "Fair is harder," he says. "I believe in action-oriented leadership. Move faster. Be decisive. Be more inclusive, yes, but by god, do something." Join us for an unvarnished discussion about why trust in both politics and infrastructure continues to be broken in this country, along with steps we can take to actually make things work. As Dunkelman says, "There's a fantasy that if you just get everyone around a table, they will eventually come to an agreement. The truth is, we need deciders. That's why we have elections." As cities go, so goes the nation!
Research shows Americans are spending less time with the folks next door than just a decade ago. Roxanne Patel Shepelavy joined the hosts of WHYY's Studio Two to discuss ways we can turn this trend around.
What the LeBron James' era says about a city finally learning to believe in itself
On this episode of Big Rube's Philly, the city's favorite entrepreneur, brand marketer, chef and photographer caught up with fashion and artistic icon Bariq Cobbs who's dressed the Fresh Prince, TLC and LeBron James. Cobbs collabed with Nike and Nordstrom and toured the world exhibiting his paintings.
Donald Trump's ICE crackdown is increasingly violent, provoking widespread backlash after two traffic stop killings in one month. This is how a president with a private police force and "acting with total impunity" behaves.
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