NPR: Airborne

Airborne

Nothing but food, folks and fun at the NPR launch celebration for Tell Me More.

Lee Hill, NPR

OK -- Day 2 -- we all made it in. Still running on adrenalin, I think.
Did I mention we had a lovely little party yesterday..in our studio? Perhaps I shouldn't admit this since drinks and food are normally strictly VERBOTEN anywhere near the equipment...but it was a special occasion. Thank you, NPR. (Thankfully they got the horrible kegger smell out of there by the time we arrived this morning. Nothing more disgusting at 6:30 am than the smell of an old party. Not that there was liquor or anything...)

So, for DAY 2, we have a nice potpourri for you. Dallas District Attorney Craig Watkins came on to tell us about his decision to allow some 400 cases to be reviewed post conviction to see if DNA testing might make a difference...not a typical decision for a prosecutor...we also started our series on hip hop today..with a chat with one of the leading ladies of Rap -- Mc Lyte (remember "RuffNeck"? or "Cappucino"?). Lyte was one of the few to speak about messed up attitudes toward women back in the day, so we wanted her take on where hip hop and rap are going in these days of post-Imus scrutiny. Look for additional segments in the next couple of days...here's a hint on one: on what other show are you going to hear the President of a leading women's college with a video dancer/model?

And, can I let you in on an internal debate we've been having? We thought the interview with DA Watkins was interesting in its own right but we know there's another side to the story. We have been pursuing a Colorado judge who questions whether the wrongful conviction issues is really that big of a deal...but he is on the bench everyday and we haven't been able to get him to sit still for an interview. So...we decided to go deep with one guest, knowing we're pursuing the other side, and knowing that I'm going to ask both sides the questions that need to be asked. Others would argue that you should hold off until you can hear both sides at once, but we think that means that in effect one side can veto the other...We're curious where you come out on this question...when you know it's a two-sided question, can you have a satisfying discussion with one side?

So, tell me more...

Michel Martin

4:28 PM ET | 05- 1-2007 | permalink

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4:28 PM ET | 05- 1-2007 | permalink

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Listening to your May 1st show and the business about offensive language, there is one aspect that I have not heard mentioned anywhere. You can't
get away from it in public. Period. If you're in a gas station pumping
gas, on the street waiting to cross to the other side, or in a car waiting at a light, someone invariably will pull up with their radio or CD blasting away, with Mo-Fo this and Ho that, and graphic sexual descriptions of what they want their B**ch to do to them, or what they are going to do with
them. I have a young granddaughter and there's no way I want her to hear
this, but how do you avoid it when people think it's their "right" to play
this crap as loud as they can? The community needs to get a grip and take
back their neighborhoods from this mind-rot. Everybody has a right to listen to what they want, PRIVATELY, if it's obscene and offensive to the general public.

Sent by Bev Hearn | 5:20 PM ET | 05-01-2007

You can have a satisfying discussion with one side of the story. However, I believe it is important to try to offer the other side an equal chance to get aired. If both sides have a chance to get heard without the competing with the other, than that allows both sides to stand better on their own.

Sent by Steve Petersen | 7:57 PM ET | 05-01-2007

I don't see a cumbersome amount of comments, which may show that the average reader sees my point before I write it here, but what politicians or grandmothers might misunderstand is that fighting for censorship in music is like a "Witch-Hunt" from the Dark Ages.

You can't solve racism or violence by trying to strangle the music business or deny people the right to say what they feel. Yes, I understand that some are only saying it for money or for ego, but the truth is, I listened to multiple types of music when I was younger and I have yet to treat my girlfriend like a B*%ch. Simply put, speak to children and forget about the CD's or DVD's that make you uncomfortable in the living room when you listen or watch them with your family. You would be surprised what they understand and what you used to expect at a younger age.

Sent by Joseph Harris, 24, BA Journalism | 8:25 PM ET | 05-01-2007

Regarding Bev Hearn's comment: In a community's quest for moral gentrification, who gets to decide what is obscene and offensive? I do not think that it is healthy for a society to begin to try and discern what is 'suitable' for what is heard at the gas station. True enough, blasting a radio so that everyone can hear is not considerate, but not because of the content of what is heard, but because it invades others personal space.

The parameters of debate on this issue are skewed, I feel, because there will always be a place in the world for art, music, literature, et al that certain sects of society will consider offensive. The energy is best channeled into investigating the need for consuming such things at all.

Sent by Tim Dickson | 11:48 AM ET | 05-02-2007

Michelle,

Your show is a breath of fresh air. Tonight's conversation with a former and current rap vixen, suffused with the wisdom of Dr. Johnetta Cole was insightful and helpful. That segnment needs to be played on hip hop stations around the country.

Sent by nat irvin | 8:45 PM ET | 05-02-2007

I've been listening to the show as a podcast since January and I
listened to the first show in the Tell Me More format today, and I loved
it. You all are doing a great job. It is fresh and interesting.

Keep up the good work!

Sent by Mia B. | 9:13 AM ET | 05-07-2007

No comments about the Mocha Moms BMI discussion. My school does this, and it is kind of irritating. Not only am I supposed to teach my kids the things the teachers don't have time to (thus spending at least 1 hour a day with homework with my FIRST GRADER), now they are going to harrass me about diet.

When my kids teachers stop giving them so much homework, then I will have more free time to think about diet.

Sent by Scott K. | 6:56 PM ET | 05-07-2007

Thank you for introducing your listeners to the Mocha Moms. For all Working Mocha Mothers that are considering staying home, can you feature a discussion on legitimate work from home opportunities. I noticed there were alot of links to these types of jobs on the Mocha Mom website and on the websites of their affiliates, but I wasn't sure which ones I could actually trust.

Thanks Again!

Sent by Curry Greene | 3:12 PM ET | 05-14-2007

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'Tell Me More' with Michel Martin

"Nothing is assumed." That's the unofficial motto of Tell Me More, the new Monday-Friday talk show with host Michel Martin. Grounded in lively interviewing and compelling storytelling, the program seeks to present diverse new voices, cross borders, challenge conventional wisdom and discover how other people think.