The Brian Lehrer Show
Brian Lehrer leads the conversation about what matters most now in local and national politics, our own communities and our lives.
Episodes
Jonathan Dekel-Chen, visiting professor at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs and Jaser AbuMousa, senior fellow at the Middle East Institute and senior policy advisor at the International Peace Institute, both suffered major traumas on October 7th, 2023 and its aftermath. They discuss their personal devastation, as well as why they are engaging in dialogue and what they hope for in Palestinian and Isra...
Sam Levine, Commissioner of the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP), touts the city's settlement with DoorDash over worker pay, plus recounts his testimony before the City Council on artificial intelligence.
Photo: A Doordash delivery person rides their bike on Church Avenue in the Flatbush neighborhood of Brooklyn on December 04, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
Timmy Facciola, founder of the local news outlet Judge Street Journal, which focuses on New York politics, unpacks Mike Lawler and Cait Conley's positions on AI and data centers.
Photo: People protest artificial intelligence and data centers ahead of a New York City Council Committee hearing on the risks and regulation of artificial intelligence. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
The New York Times recently released a list of the top 100 television series of the 21st century as compiled by many influential TV figures. Listeners call in to share their own favorites.
Photo: (L-R) Actors Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul and Dean Norris accept the Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series award for 'Breaking Bad' onstage during the 20th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on Janua...
Timmy Facciola, founder of the local news outlet Judge Street Journal, which focuses on New York politics, talks about the how Mike Lawler is positioning himself in relation to President Trump on issues like immigration and antisemitism, and how Cait Conley is framing her policy positions in relation to the left wing of the Democratic Party.
Photo: U.S. President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump pose for a photo with Rep. M...
Rose Broderick, disability in health care reporting fellow at STAT News, shares her reporting on major federal rollbacks of landmark disability protections such as Section 504, as well as broader trends in federal disability rights.
Photo: Disability rights activists and caregiving advocates hold a vigil in front of the US Capitol to urge Congress to include full federal funding for home and community based care services in Presiden...
Bhaskar Sunkara, president of The Nation, founding editor of Jacobin, publisher of Catalyst: A Journal of Theory and Strategy, former vice-chair of the Democratic Socialists of America and the author of The Socialist Manifesto: The Case for Radical Politics in an Era of Extreme Inequality (Basic Books, updated 2026) and co-author of The Blueprint: How Socialism Can Work in the Real World (Verso, 2026) talks about today's socialism ...
Alexandra Tremayne-Pengelly, an assistant editor at The Atlantic, talks about her recent article in The Atlantic on "upgrade holdouts" as listeners share the old tech they hold onto, and why.
Photo by AIDEPCUL, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International via Wikimedia Commons.
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Timmy Facciola, founder of the local politics news outlet Judge Street Journal, talks about several key affordability issues that came up in the debate between U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler and his Democratic challenger Cait Conley, including energy, tariffs, and housing.
Photo: Cait Conley, who is challenging U.S. Representative Mike Lawler to represent New York’s 17th Congressional District, speaks to supporters on September 16, 202...
New York Times Magazine writer Nikole Hannah Jones's article about her family's experience with New York City public schools has brought the system's persistent segregation and inequality back into the forefront of education conversations. Alex Zimmerman, reporter at Chalkbeat, New York talks about the issues her article brought forth, her challenge to the mayor to do something and what the city does say it's doing to address the l...
New York laws present unique challenges for the prosecution of sex crimes. Santul Nerkar, courts reporter for The New York Times, discusses how these laws exacerbate the already complicated legal case for Cornell's Jane Doe.
Photo: A student walks past Cornell Police headquarters on the Cornell University campus on September 30, 2026, in Ithaca, New York.. (Photo by Spencer Platt via Getty Images)
Moira Donegan, columnist at Guardian USand co-host of the podcastIn Bed With The Right, talks about the Cornell fraternity rape lawsuit, the cycle of outrage and inaction she says follows cases like it, and why they keep happening.
Photo: Photo: Students walk on the campus of Cornell University on September 29, 2026, in Ithaca, New York. (Photo by Spencer Platt via Getty Images)
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Three of our favorite segments from the week, in case you missed them.
Nikole Hannah-Jones on Hard School Choices (First) | Ask Mayor Mamdani (Starts at 24:59) | Millennial Optimism (Starts at 58:23)
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Gov. Hochul announced that she is appointing New York's Attorney General Letitia James to oversee the Cornell sexual assault case that's been headline news. Jon Campbell, Albany reporter for WNYC and Gothamist talks about why the governor made this move and what comes next.
Photo: Cornell University from atop McGraw Tower looking southeast, 2006. (sach1tb, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic, via Wikimedia Commons)&...
Jon Campbell, Albany reporter for WNYC and Gothamist talks about the relationships that Gov. Hochul and Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman have with President Trump.
Photo: US President Donald Trump greets New York Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman on stage as he delivers remarks at the Nassau County Police Academy Center for Training and Intelligence in Garden City, New York, on August 14, 2026. (Kent Nishimura ...
New York City Department of Parks & Recreation Commissioner Tricia Shimamura reflects on her first summer as Parks commissioner and talks about her priorities for the department.
Photo: Washington Square Park sidewalk surrounded with park benches and green landscaping in Washington Square Park in New York City on a rainy spring day. (Boogich via Getty Images)
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Lindsay Owens, the executive director of the Groundwork Collaborative and the author of Gouged: The End of a Fair Price–and What That Means for Your Wallet (Viking, 2026) talks about the proliferation of "junk fees" and the hidden risks of loyalty programs, plus the use of data and algorithms to hike prices.
Photo: A shopper opens an empty wallet inside a shopping mall, visually representing the financial strain and reduced sp...
Casey Michael Henry, writer, talks about his recent New York Times Magazine essay on nostalgia for the optimism of millennial culture.
=> "Things Are So Bad, People Are Longing for Cringey Millennial Culture" (New York Times Magazine, Sept. 22, 2026)
Photo: Hipster girl blows big bubble from bubble gum in 2016. (nemke via Getty Photos)
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Every Thursday from 1 to 2 PM on WNYC, through Election Day, WNYC senior political reporter Brigid Bergin hosts a pop-up local politics call-in show called Who's Running This Place. You can find out more on WNYC.org, and stay tuned to this podcast feed. We'll be sharing Brigid's conversations here every Thursday evening.
New York Assemblymember Alex Bores discusses his efforts to sound the alarm about the risks that come with ...
Jack Arpey, New York State politics reporter for Spectrum News 1 New York, talks about the issue of utility rates in New York State and what Gov. Kathy Hochul and her Republican challenger Bruce Blakeman are promising to do to lower costs.
"As politicians squabble over utility rates, how much power does a governor have?" (Spectrum News 1 New York, Sept 17)
Photo: Person adjusting a wall thermostat with dollar sign symbol on t...
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