NPR: Reporting from the Windy City

Reporting from the Windy City

WE MADE IT!

First show from Chicago went off without a hitch - at least none that anybody outside of these four walls needs to know about.

Observations: cities are so full of dichotomies. You arrive some place as a tourist and what they say about the Midwest is really true. People really do seem friendlier, a little more likely to slow down and give you a hi. No disrespect to my coast but the vibe is different. And you're thinking about your fabulous shopping you can do and great food you're going to eat. And interesting people you're going to get to talk to (okay, no shopping, I'm on the wagon). And you pick up the paper and a 15-year-old has been shot to death on his back porch for no reason anybody can think of. He's not a gang banger, he's not involved in the trade and it's the second kid in a week. And you say to yourself, where am I in this? What's the truth of where I am that needs to be spoken?

There is no one answer. So today, multiple perspectives.

Our newsmaker interview with a name you know and a face you remember: Carol Mosley Braun. She was the first African American woman elected to the US Senate. She went on to become Ambassador to New Zealand ... funny coincidence. She decided to run for President in 2004 - that's the year Obama was elected to the Senate. If she had decided to run for her old seat against him, would he be a potential President of the United States? Worth considering. She claims she's a "recovering" politician BUT she did give us a little taste of her views about politics.

And ... reporters talk crime. It is for many papers and news outlets an entry level gig. But if you consider all the hot button issues that go into crime coverage, maybe that's not how it should be. Hear four reporters from different ethnic backgrounds talk about how THEY talk about crime.

Also ... trying to change the world one neighborhood at a time. Barack Obama got his start as a community organizer here in Chicago. Hear from the man who he recruited to replace him.

And tomorrow we visit with you from Wishbone restaurant. More great stories to tell from the Windy City.

Michel Martin

10:55 AM ET | 07-23-2008 | permalink

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10:55 AM ET | 07-23-2008 | permalink

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I'm and expat from Chicago currently living in London U.K. It's heartbreaking that so many black, young people are being killed and there appears to be neither a reason or an end to these tragic occurrences. I'm about to enter my fourth decade and either the media is focusing on the violence more or it is really just getting more violent on the Chicago streets, either way this is the worst that I have been aware of. I can postulate the cause from being everything from drugs to hip-hop but what evades me is a solution to stopping the violence without severely infringing upon residents civil rights. How do you stop violence without creating a Soviet style police state?

Sent by Christopher Valentine | 11:38 AM ET | 07-23-2008

I met Ms. Moseley Braun in March 2000 shortly after she was installed as ambassador to NZ, and within another few months she had been replaced. Why?

Sent by True_Liberal | 10:54 PM ET | 07-26-2008

Dear true liberal --
I think the reason Ambassador Braun was replaced is that she was appointed near the end of the Clinton administration, and all such appointees are expected to tender their resignations at the end of their administration's term. But it seems to me the thing to do is to ask her. so I will do so and get back to you ... sorry I am late in responding but we have been racing around like crazy ... trying to do the show and do the convention thing ... whew.

Sent by Michel Martin, host TMM | 12:30 PM ET | 07-28-2008

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"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.