The Roundtable

Grassland Bird Trust is a nonprofit land trust conserving critical habitat for endangered, threatened and rapidly declining grassland birds. The group has conserved over 250 acres of prime habitat in the heart of the Washington County Grasslands Important Bird Area (IBA) since their founding in 2010.GBT owns and manages 78 acres at their Alfred Solomon Grassland Bird Viewing Area in Fort Edward, located in the heart of the Washington County Grasslands IBA. This area supports 10 of 11 of New York's most imperiled grassland bird species.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are Professor of History and International Relations at Vassar College Bob Brigham, Editor at large, columnist, and editorial writer at The Times Union Jay Jochnowitz, Associate Professor of Music at Vassar College Justin Patch, and Diplomat in Residence at Bard College Donna Welton.

This week's Book Picks comes from Cheryl McKeon from The Book House in Albany and Marketblock Books in Troy, NY Suzanna Hermans from Oblong Books in Rhinebeck and Millerton, NY.

Mystery novelist Alison Gaylin has built a career exploring obsession, secrets, and the dark corners of modern life. An Edgar Award winner known for novels like 'The Collective and If I Die Tonight,' Gaylin has also stepped into the world of Robert B. Parker, continuing his beloved Sunny Randall series.In 'Robert B. Parker's Booked,' Boston private investigator Sunny Randall is hired by a bestselling author to uncover the identity of an online reviewer whose brutal takedowns are threatening careers. But when the critic turns up dead, the literary feud becomes a murder case tangled in grudges, publishing politics, and social media fury.

James Lasdun's latest is 'The Family Man: Blood and Betrayal in the House of Murdaugh,' turns to the real-life Southern saga that captivated the country. Lasdun digs beneath the headlines surrounding disgraced attorney Alex Murdaugh, tracing generations of privilege, power, corruption, and violence in South Carolina's Lowcountry.The result is part true-crime page-turner, part portrait of a family dynasty collapsing in public. His novels, memoir, poetry, and short story collections have won many awards, and his essays have appeared in the New York Times, the London Review of Books, and The New Yorker, among other publications.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are Executive Director of Communities for Local Power and former White House Advance Lead Anna Markowitz, The Empire Report's JP Miller, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute Robert Pondiscio, and Former Mayor of the City of Albany Kathy Sheehan.

Dr. Jessica B. Harris is a renowned culinary historian, James Beard Cookbook Hall of Fame winner, and star of the Netflix docuseries ‘High on the Hog.' Her latest book is ‘Braided Heritage: Recipes and Stories on the Origin of American Cuisine.' Joe Donahue spoke with her in a WAMC on the Road and CulinaryArts@SPAC event in Saratoga Springs, New York in March.

In 'Dispatches from Grief: A Mother's Journey Through the Unthinkable,' author and journalist Danielle Crittenden chronicles the devastating loss of her daughter and the difficult path that followed.The memoir blends personal reflection with broader questions about mourning, resilience, and how people survive unimaginable heartbreak.Rather than offering easy answers, Crittenden explores grief in all its unpredictability — the shock, isolation, memory, and moments of grace that can emerge even in profound sorrow.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are Lecturer of Cognitive Sciences at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and former Fulbright US Scholar to Egypt Jackie Berry, Senior Fellow, Bard Center for Civic Engagement Jim Ketterer, and Political Consultant and lobbyist Libby Post.

Each weekday morning, The Roundtable's Joe Donahue is joined by various experts, journalists, educators, and commentators to discuss current events. On Roundtable Panel: The Week in Review, we feature your favorite panelists discussing news items from the previous week.

Mark Frost has long moved between worlds television, film, and fiction co-creating the landmark series ‘Twin Peaks' and writing acclaimed novels that blend history with imagination. Now he turns to one of the most enigmatic figures of the 20th century in his new work of historical fiction ‘The Yankee Sphinx.' Mark Frost will appear at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum in Hyde Park, New York, on Wednesday, May 13. He will discuss and sign his new historical novel, ‘The Yankee Sphinx: An FDR Novel.'

In 2018, Gemma Correll had a panic attack that lasted for weeks. She began navigating anxiety -- her new book is a graphic memoir called ‘Anxietyland.'Gemma Correll is an award-winning cartoonist, writer, and illustrator. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, NPR, Elle, and Forbes, among many others.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are Professor Emeritus of Russian at Hofstra University, and the author of ‘Illiberal Vanguard: Populist Elitism in the United States and Russia' (University of Wisconsin Press), Alexandar Mihailovic, Co-founder and Executive Director of Seeing Rainbows (a trans-led arts and mutual aid organization) maayan nuri hed, and Siena University Professor of Economics Aaron Pacitti.

In the new book ‘Won't Back Down: Heartland Rock and the Fight for America,' music journalist Erin Osmon takes a closer look at the genre often seen as quintessentially American. Popularized by artists like Bruce Springsteen and Ton Petty, Heartland Rock has long told stories of labor, longing, and life on the margins. But Osmon argues that beneath those familiar themes lies a more complicated history one in which these songs had been used to express both solidarity and division.

Sepideh Moafi recently starred as Dr. Baran Al-Hashimi on the riveting medical drama, ‘The Pitt,' and is known for her roles in ‘The L Word: Generation Q' and ‘The Deuce.'She is returning to her theater roots this year in ‘New Born,' a play composed of three monologues written by Ella Hickson.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are a former NY elementary teacher and now 2nd year PhD student at RPI Sophia Acquisto, Senior Fellow for Health Policy at The Empire Center for Public Policy Bill Hammond, and Diplomat in Residence at Bard College. She retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2025 after over 30 years in public service. Her last post was ambassador to the SE Asian country, Timor-Leste Donna Welton.

'Diamond Fever!' is a bit of a departure from Steve Sheinkin's other books and is perfect for emerging readers. Both shorter and faster paced, it also features an engaging mixture of prose and comics from renowned illustrator Jon Chad. With these additions, readers will fully immerse themselves in the Great Diamond Hoax of 1872, a time full of deception, fortune, and greed.Steve Sheinkin and Jon Chad will be at Northshire Bookstore in Saratoga for a talk and signing about 'Diamond Fever' on Monday, May 18, 2026, at 6:00pm. northshire.com. You're listening to the RT on WAMC.

So, what can we do to feel better about our relationship with money? Financial expert and strategist Lev Mandel has a new book and a workbook out called ‘Money is Weird.' It offers a place to unpack your history, explore habits, and experiment with new ones; maybe even feel ok about it all. To actually feel confident and safe about your relationship with money.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are public policy and communications expert Theresa Bourgeois, Former Vice President for Editorial Development at the New York Press Association Judy Patrick, and the founder and director of the Volunteer Literacy Project. She is also a columnist for The Free Press and a Greene County resident Larissa Phillips

This week's Book Picks comes from Cheryl Cornwell from Northshire Bookstore in Saratoga Springs, NY and Manchester Center, VT and Matt Tannenbaum and Shawnee Tannenbaum from The Bookstore in Lenox.

Berkshire Concert Choir, a 100+ voice community chorus based in Pittsfield MA, will perform 'Questions and Answers: American Echoes,' which addresses the American experience through the lens of a diverse program of music that asks and answers questions on May 9th and 10th.On the surface "Q & A" music has the fun of a puzzle, but the program digs deeper into the essential American freedom to question and to hold diverse perspectives, through choral classics, pop and rock from Marvin Gaye, Dolly Parton, and Creedence Clearwater Revival, to Civil Rights era classics from Bob Dylan and Pete Seeger.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are Joseph Palamountain Jr. Chair in Government at Skidmore College Beau Breslin, an author, lawyer, consultant, public speaker, and entrepreneur. Her most recent book is: Race Rules: What Your Black Friend Won't Tell You Fatimah Gilliam, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute Robert Pondiscio.

Kelley Drahushuk of Spotty Dog Books and Ale joins us to talk about how we can turn personal memories into watercolor landscapes. Earlier we provided three audience members with art supplies to show off their talents.We will talk to them as we discuss good art supplies and all the possibilities that await us in creating art. We will discuss how you can create a watercolor painting based on your own interpretation of the landscape and how we can blend artmaking with reflection, places, people, and moments into expressive works on paper.

The book, ‘Drawn by the River,' explores the rich relationship between comics and the Hudson River Valley. In it, Moira Fitzgibbons connects comics, cartoons, and animation to the region's artistic legacy - from Hudson River School landscapes to its industrial past - revealing a layered creative ecosystem.She traces the influence of the Western Printing facility, the success of local creators behind ‘ElfQuest,' and the ways landscape itself shapes visual storytelling.

As we mentioned earlier in the program, The Olana State Historic Site operates through a public-private partnership. The property is preserved and run by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and The Olana Partnership. They also work closely with regional historical and conservation groups in the area.In that vein, we are joined now by New York State Commissioner of the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Kathy Moser and President of Scenic Hudson Ned Sullivan. Scenic Hudson has long been considered a leader in safeguarding the Hudson Valley's irreplaceable landscapes.

Historian Victoria Johnson has a gift for uncovering the human stories behind American culture. In her new book, ‘Glorious Country: How the Artist Frederic Church Brought the World to America' and America to the World, she turns to Frederic Church, the Hudson River School painter whose sweeping landscapes helped define a young nation's sense of itself.Johnson traces Church's global travels - from the Arctic to South America - and shows how his art connected American audiences to a wider world.

Today marks the 200th Anniversary of Frederic Church's birth, and we are here to explore the creation, creativity, landscape, preservation, and importance of the home and gardens in history and in the Hudson Valley.The Olana State Historic Site operates through a public-private partnership. The 250-acre property is run by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and The Olana Partnership.Our first guests this morning are President of the Olana Partnership Sean Sawyer and Consulting Senior Curator and Chair of The Church 200 Committee Dr. Elizabeth Mankin Kornhauser. She has lead planning efforts for this national celebration, the 200th anniversary of the artist Frederic Church's birth.

Each weekday morning, The Roundtable's Joe Donahue is joined by various experts, journalists, educators, and commentators to discuss current events. On Roundtable Panel: The Week in Review, we feature your favorite panelists discussing news items from the previous week.

When the Supreme Court handed down its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson, the landmark case overturning Roe v. Wade, it marked a turning point in the lives of millions of Americans. It was also the culmination of a decades-long movement whose grievances were embodied by the man who wrote the court's opinion: Samuel Anthony Alito Jr.Prize-winning journalist Peter Canellos will tell us about his new book:‘Revenge for the Sixties: Sam Alito and the Triumph of the Conservative Legal Movement.' It is the first-ever biography of the most pivotal Justice on the Supreme Court whose decisions, like the overturning of Roe, will drive the reshaping of America.

This Sunday, May 3 at 3pm, Albany Pro Musica and Orchestra Pro Musica will fill the Troy Savings Banks Music Hall with a special season-ending presentation of ‘This Luminous Earth.' The performance will include Jake Runestad's EMMY®-Award winning ‘Earth Symphony,' and Morten Lauridsen's sublime ‘Lux Aeterna'.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are Professor of Theatre at Siena University Mahmood Karimi Hakak, Professor in the History Department at John Jay College of Criminal Justice (CUNY) Allison Kavey, CEO of The Business Council of New York State Heather Mulligan, and Former Vice President for Editorial Development at the New York Press Association Judy Patrick.

Woodstock Fringe in collaboration with the Phoenicia Playhouse presents a new cabaret show performed by our pal, Wallace Norman, this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. With music direction and arrangements by Paul Duffy and stage direction by Hank Neimark, ‘Songs Mostly of the Theatre: A Stroll Down a Dusty Musical Road' is a personal show for Wallace. In it, he revisits his most important musical influences and mentors.Music performed will include songs from the musical theatre, traditional songs, and a set of songs written for Wallace from his Off-Off Broadway days, and a set of songs by the great Jacques Brel.The performances will happen at Phoenicia Playhouse in Phoenicia, NY this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.We are joined by Wallace Norman, Hank Neimark, and President of the Board of the Phoenicia Playhouse Michael Connor.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are public policy and communications expert Theresa Bourgeois, Corporate Attorney with Phillips Lytle LLP Rich Honen, Former Mayor of Albany, Kathy Sheehan, and Associate Professor in the department of sociology at Vassar College Catherine Tan.

WAM Theatre's first mainstage production of 2026 is ‘Rooted,' by Deborah Zoe Laufer.WAM Theatre presents ‘Rooted' at the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre at Shakespeare& Company in Lenox, Massachusetts May 1 through May 16. For ticket and showtime information visit wamtheatre.com.

Here's something to celebrate: tonight - and for the next several months, at least - the astounding Amber Gray will be leading “The Time Warp” at Studio 54 in Roundabout Theatre Company's revival of Richard O'Brien's ‘The Rocky Horror Show.' We speak with Gray about her affinity for freaks and weirdos, longtime love of Rocky Horror, how she found her voice in 'Comet,' and what it felt like when the 'Warriors' asked her to come out and play.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are Lawyer, negotiator, and advisor to companies, nonprofits, law firms, and business leaders; Founder of the strategy consulting firm The Azara Group and author of “Race Rules: What Your Black Friend Won't Tell You” Fatimah Gilliam, Dean of the College of Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity at the University at Albany Robert Griffin, Lecturer of Cognitive Sciences at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and former Fulbright US Scholar to Egypt Jackie Berry, and Investment Banker on Wall Street Mark Wittman.

This week's Book Picks comes from Drew Broussard and Nora Taylor from Rough Draft Bar & Books in Kingston, New York and Lily Bartles from Open Door Bookstore in Schenectady, New York.

Journalist Noam Scheiber has spent years chronicling the shifting terrain of American labor and politics. In 'Mutiny: The Rise and Revolt of the College-Educated Working Class,' he turns to a surprising constituency - degree-holders who feel economically and culturally unmoored. Blending reporting and analysis, Scheiber examines how this group is reshaping institutions, challenging elites, and redefining what it means to be “working class” in 21st-century America.Scheiber covers worker and labor issues for the NYT.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are Tetherless World Professor of Computer, Web and Cognitive Sciences at RPI and Director of the RPI-IBM Artificial Intelligence research collaboration Jim Hendler, Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute Robert Pondiscio, and Founder and Director of the Volunteer Literacy Project and columnist for The Free Press Larissa Phillips.

Since 2003, Capital Region Language Center has been bridging cultures and connecting communities through language. It serves all ages and language levels with about 25 part-time teachers offering in-person classes at their location just off Wolf Road in Albany, New York; offsite at schools, organizations, or businesses; or online. Learning options include one-on-one or group classes so that everyone can access language learning in a way that works for them.Our guests to today are Founder and Director of Capital Region Language Center Kim Andersen, Korean teacher Sonya Kim, Japanese teacher Yoko Segerstrom, and Spanish teacher Miriam Rogers.

On Sunday, May 3 at 2 p.m., renowned scholar and curator Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett will explore what it means to put Yiddish on display in The Yiddish Book Center's 2026 Melinda Rosenblatt Lecture. Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett is University Professor Emerita and Professor Emerita of Performance Studies at New York University and Ronald S. Lauder Chief Curator of the Core Exhibition at POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews, in Warsaw and she joins us now.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are Diplomat in residence at Bard College Ambassador Frederic Hof, Senior Fellow, Bard Center for Civic Engagement Jim Ketterer, Political Consultant and lobbyist, Libby Post, and Arthur Zankel Chair in Management for Liberal Arts at Skidmore College where she teaches International Affairs and Business Management Pushkala Prasad.

Each weekday morning, The Roundtable's Joe Donahue is joined by various experts, journalists, educators, and commentators to discuss current events. On Roundtable Panel: The Week in Review, we feature your favorite panelists discussing news items from the previous week.

Bob Spitz has built a reputation for capturing the lives of iconic lives of artists with depth and narrative drive. Most notably and his bestselling biography ‘The Beatles,' now he turns his attention to another seismic force in music history, The Rolling Stones. In this new biography Spitz traces the band's evolution from scrappy blues devotees to 1960s London to global rock titans with the focus on the creative tensions, cultural impact, and enduring mystique of figures like Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. The book offers a vivid portrait of a band that didn't just define an era but continues to shape an era. Bob Spitz is the award-winning author of the biographies ‘the Beatles,' ‘Led Zeppelin,' ‘Dearie: The Remarkable Life of Julia Child' and many other non-fiction books including a screenplay. The new book is ‘The Rolling Stones: The Biography' it is published by Penguin Press.

There aren't many contemporary poets who have name recognition beyond poetry circles, but Ada Limón, a MacArthur fellow and former two-term poet laureate of the United States, certainly does. Limón is one of the most decorated poets working today. A winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award and the recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship, a finalist for the National book Award, and the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award as well as the Griffin Poetry Prize. Her latest project is the book ‘Startlement: New and Selected Poems' and it is published by Milkweed Editions.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are Former EPA Regional Administrator, President of Beyond Plastics, professor at Bennington College and author of the new book "The Problem with Plastic" Judith Enck, Senior Fellow for Health Policy at The Empire Center for Public Policy Bill Hammond, Former Mayor of the City of Albany, Kathy Sheehan, and Siena University Professor of Economics Aaron Pacitti.

The Writers Resist Revival was founded by a group of local writers to blend community spirit, creative energy, great writing, and powerful performances into protest against oppression and authoritarianism. The last was held in 2017, but now they are back! On Sunday April 26th the Writers Resist Revival will be held from 5- 8pm, doors open at 4pm, at the Bearsville Theater.

TOGETHER is a new theatrical collaboration between Sonia Friedman and Hugh Jackman, with Director Ian Rickson. Audible Theatre and TOGETHER are presenting a series of productions in repertory at Audible's Minetta Lane Theatre in New York City, one of which is Tom Noonan's ‘What Happened Was…' This production, the first major New York revival in nearly 30 years, is directed by the aforementioned Ian Rickson, and stars Corey Stoll and, our guest, Cecily Strong.

Tonight at 7:30, BEATrio is playing at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall in Troy, New York. BEATrio is a super-group partnership between banjoist and multi-genre impresario Béla Fleck, virtuoso Colombian harpist Edmar Castañeda and sensational Mexican jazz drummer Antonio Sánchez released an album last year, also called ‘BEATrio' that was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album. In advance of the show at the music hall tonight, Béla joined me to talk about BEATrio and his upcoming album with Renée Fleming.

The Roundtable Panel: a daily open discussion of issues in the news and beyond. Today's panelists are public policy and communications expert Theresa Bourgeois, Publisher Emeritus of The Daily Freeman Ira Fusfeld, The Ulster County Comptroller and the former president and CEO of the Community Foundations of the Hudson Valley March Gallagher, and Investment banker on Wall St. Mark Wittman.

Yaddo is the leading nonprofit retreat for artists and writers, who come from all nations and backgrounds to live and work in their supportive community.Here are some cool facts – artists from Yaddo in Saratoga Springs NY have won 90 Pulitzer Prizes, 36 MacArthur Fellowships, 73 National Book Awards, 75 Emmy honors, 48 Grammy Awards, 14 Oscars, 19 Tony Awards, and a Nobel Prize in Literature.Yaddo, founded in 1900 and home to its first group of residents in 1926, marks its centennial season. All year, Yaddo will be celebrating the tenure of Yaddo President Elaina Richardson, who announced in December that she will step down after 25 years of extraordinary leadership.