New England Public Radio

The Short List: Warren’s Competition, ‘Pioneer Valley’ v. ‘West Mass,’ No More High-Fives In Noho

NEPR'S WEEK IN REVIEW

What made The Short List this week?

  • Ardent Trump supporter Massachusetts State Representative Geoff Diehl is considering running against Senator Elizabeth Warren in 2018.
  • Should the long standing moniker Pioneer Valley be changed to West Mass?
  • Educators and police in Northampton, Massachusetts, are trying to come up with new ways to engage students after a program called “High Five Friday” was stopped due to concerns about some children’s reactions to law enforcement.

Click the audio player above to hear New England Public Radio’s Susan Kaplan explore these issues with Ron Chimelis of the Springfield Republican and Matt Szafranski of Western Mass Politics & Insight.

The Short List: Springfield Police Take The 5th, Immigration Repercussions, Super Bowl 51

What made The Short List this week?

  • Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni will not pursue charges against police officers accused of beating four men outside a bar in Springfield. Gulluni said there was clear evidence of the April 2015 assault, but he could not prove the officers committed it. (MassLive)
  • President Trump’s executive order last Friday temporarily banned travel for many immigrants from seven countries, and all refugees. This led to a whole lot of public outcry and legal action. Some students from Massachusetts were affected. We reported on one graduate student who was held up because he went back to Iran to get married. (NEPR)
  • And Super Bowl Sunday is this weekend. We get predictions from our panel, and talk about the few die-hard Patriot’s fans are chagrined that Brady, Belichick and Kraft are friendly with President Trump.

Click the audio player above to hear New England Public Radio’s Susan Kaplan explore these issues with Ron Chimelis of the Springfield Republican and Greenfield Recorder columnist Chris Collins.

The Short List: Baker Vetoes Pay Hike, Sanctuary Mayors Take A Stand, Warren Supports Trump Housing Nominee

What made The Short List this week?

  • The Massachusetts legislature overwhelmingly passed a bill giving themselves, judges and other state workers, including the governor, a big hike in pay. Governor Baker opposes the measure, but lawmakers are likely to override his veto.
  • President Trump, as he said he would, has signed an executive order instructing federal agencies to cut grants for so-called “sanctuary cities.”Cambridge, Somerville, Boston, Northampton, Holyoke and Amherst are among those included.
  • A rally this week outside of Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey’s Springfield offices was held to encourage them to resist approving Trump’s nominees. And then the next day, Warren voted for Ben Carson to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Click the audio player above to hear New England Public Radio’s Susan Kaplan explore these issues with Ron Chimelis of the Springfield Republican and Natalia Munoz of  WHMP’s Vaya Con Munoz.

The Short List: Warren Grills Carson, Massachusetts Standard Time, Under The Radar

NEPR's Week In Review

What made The Short List this week?

  • Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren sought assurance from U.S. Housing Secretary appointee Ben Carson that the Trump family would not financially benefit from HUD grants at his Confirmation Hearing this week. She wasn’t assured.
  • The state has a commission looking at time: getting rid of “springing forward” and “falling back.” Are there benefits?
  • And the panel looks at two stories that they believe flew under the radar this week.

Click the audio player above to hear New England Public Radio’s Carrie Healy explore these issues with Rick Hurst of The African American Point of View and Mike Dobbs of the Reminder newspapers.

The Short List: Craigslist Marijuana Sales, Sheriff Offers Prisoners For Wall Building, Millennial Politicians Try To Build Clout

NEPR'S WEEK IN REVIEW

What made The Short List this week?

  • The legalization last month of small amounts of recreational marijuana in Massachusetts has been a bit bumpy. It’s still illegal for individuals to sell pot. But we reported this week about a salesperson openly trying to work around the law in a Craigslist ad. (NEPR)
  • Bristol County Sheriff Thomas Hodgson’s offered his inmates to help President-elect Donald Trump fulfill a campaign promise. (WBUR)
  • The 190th session of the Massachusetts state legislature was called to order this week. All 160 state representative s and 40 state senators were sworn into office. Among them a good number of millennials — but do they have any clout? (WMP&I)

Click the audio player above to hear New England Public Radio’s Susan Kaplan explore these issues with Cynthia Simison of the Springfield Republican and Matt Szafranski  from Western Mass Politics & Insight.

The Short List: Looking Back At 2016 And Ahead To 2017

What made The Short List this week?

  • Last year, our panelists predicted that casinos — in Connecticut and Springfield — would dominate the headlines in 2016. Were they right?
  • In 2016, what most surprised our esteemed journalists? On-schedule construction and the big league defeat for charter schools.
  • From backyard gardening to big Holyoke political changes to Gov. Charlie Baker’s political fortunes (or misfortunes), what’s on the docket for 2017?
  • And over the next year, our panel vows to write better headlines, avoid shaky sourcing and do a better job of covering that most important of local institutions — the school committee.

Click the audio player above to hear New England Public Radio’s Susan Kaplan explore these issues with Matt Szafranski of Western Mass Politics & Insight and Mike Dobbs of the Reminder newspapers.