Say More

Say More

Big ideas and big debates, explained through intimate conversations with the compelling personalities who shape them. AI and biotech. Higher education and health care. Climate and sustainability. Politics and the media. Culture and culture wars. Hosted by Boston Globe columnist Shirley Leung.

Episodes

July 30, 2026 26 mins
Who was the first Masshole? It’s a question that dogged Boston Globe feature writer Billy Baker, resulting in some serious research. This week on Say More, Billy comes on the show with Globe reporter Emily Sweeney to discuss the origins and deeper meaning of the phrase. They discuss their Boston childhoods, the fading Boston accent, and how Good Will Hunting changed South Boston forever. Email us at saymore@globe.com.
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Maine keeps grabbing national attention. First it was the unexpected rise and fall of economic populist Graham Platner, a serious contender for Maine’s senate seat. Now begins the race to find a new nominee to run against incumbent Susan Collins, whose own campaign is being marred by the chaotic violence of federal ICE agents, including the tragic killing of a young man. On this month’s politics panel, opinion editor Ji...
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Chelsea High School in Massachusetts is around 90 percent Latino, and the city has been ground zero for ICE raids in the Boston area. On the 250th anniversary of America’s founding, we wanted to know how teachers were talking to their students about American history and how it relates to the American present. On this third and final installment of PATRIOTISM IS A VERB, host Anna Kusmer talks to Chelsea High history teacher By...
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If you ask Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley about her relationship with America, she doesn't mince words, “it’s complicated.” Pressley has come to develop strong feelings of patriotism that are rooted in love for American people and the promise of the American ideals of equality and justice. On this second episode of PATRIOTISM IS A VERB, Pressley discusses the verbs that are most patriotic to her: things like lawmak...
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This July 4th, liberals are faced with an awkward milestone. The country’s 250th anniversary requires our attention, and yet, the state of national politics brings only angst and despair. This month on Say More, we bring you the series PATRIOTISM IS A VERB, about the ways liberals who are uncomfortable with the idea of patriotism and reclaim their love of country. In this first episode, host Anna Kusmer talks to Yale Historia...
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Despite every prediction of endless traffic, grumpy residents and societal collapse, Boston hosting the World Cup has been downright delightful. The biggest surprise for many has been the Tartan Army, a truly shocking influx of Scottish fans in our streets, drinking all our beer and eating all our ranch dressing. This week on Say More, Shirley Leung talks to Globe NFL writer Ben Volin who has been moonlighting as the paper’s ...
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Scandal-ridden Graham Platner easily defeated Governor Janet Mills to become the Democratic nominee for US Senate in Maine. Will his controversies hurt him with voters? How has the Trump era changed the way voters respond to political scandal? This week on Say More’s politics panel, Globe opinion writer Abdallah Fayyad and Joan Vennochi compare Platner’s campaign to another scandalous Democrat in Boston, Rachael Rollins...
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Dr. Elisabeth Marnik is not your average immunologist.  Because she grew up unvaccinated, she has a special insight into why people choose to opt out of vaccine schedules and what can be done to build trust and increase vaccine acceptance. This week on Say More, Dr. Marnik, who is also the executive director of the Evidence Collective, sat down with Say More’s Anna Kusmer to talk about vaccine mandates, the limits of emp...
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Comedian Alex Edelman is always striving to be better. He spent his childhood going to a yeshiva Jewish day school in Brookline Massachusetts, and now performs comedy on the world’s biggest stages. He’s well known for an award-winning Broadway show “Just For Us,” which recounts his covert visit to a white nationalist meeting in New York City. His new show is called “What Are You Going to Do.” Thi...
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Dr. Khameer Kidia is a physician and mental health researcher at Harvard Medical School and University of Zimbabwe. He headlined the Globe’s Health Equity Summit this year, discussing the ways that Western psychiatry fails to meet the demands of our unequal world. On stage with Say More’s Anna Kusmer, Dr. Kidia talks about using the wisdom of grandmothers to help alleviate mental suffering in Zimbabwe and what he learne...
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In his final days, Massachusetts political legend Barney Frank had harsh words for the democratic party. This week on Say More’s political panel, Opinion writer Joan Vennochi, and Globe Ideas writer Abdallah Fayyad discuss the salience of Frank’s final message, and what democrats can learn from him. With Say More host Anna Kusmer, they then discuss the problem with the proposed rent control ballot measure in Mass, and e...
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Barney Frank, who died last week at the age of 86, was one of the most unique and entertaining politicians of his time. Frank got his start in politics right here in Boston working for Mayor Kevin White in the late 60s. Journalist Chris Lydon introduced them. He was a Boston Globe reporter at the time, and now hosts the show Open Source at WBUR. On today’s BONUS episode of Say More, Chris discusses the fateful day he brought ...
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American legend Johnny Appleseed was from here. He hailed from North Central Massachusetts, just a couple miles down the road from Isaac Fitzgerald, a contemporary writer whose first memoir “Dirtbag, Massachusetts” told the story of his misspent youth in the teenage pregnancy capital of the state. This week on Say More, Fitzgerald joins Anna Kusmer to discuss his new book, “American Rambler” which follows th...
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Asians are disproportionately gambling at Massachusetts casinos. They are also disproportionately addicted, in debt, and in trouble. A recent Globe investigation found that casinos have extensive strategies to target Asians and encourage them to gamble more than they can afford. While the state spends millions to help with gambling addiction disorders, most of the resources are not reaching Asian problem gamblers. Reporter Chris Se...
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We bring you a BONUS episode of Say More this week, because a debate is raging among Boston Globe columnists Larry Edelman and Shirley Leung. Larry wrote a column applauding Fidelity Investments for ordering its workers back to the office 5 days a week - saying this move is what’s needed to revitalize downtown Boston. Shirley wrote a rebuttal saying hybrid work is here to stay. Employees cannot go back to the way it was. Who ...
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You might know him from his best-selling book “Say Nothing,” about the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Patrick Radden Keefe, a staff writer at The New Yorker, writes nonfiction page-turners about crime and family secrets. Keefe’s new book “London Falling” employs his signature story-telling magic to unravel the story of a 19-year-old kid who fell to his death from a luxury apartment building in London. T...
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The Israeli-Palestinian conflict may be 5,000 miles away, but it’s also central to US politics at the moment, showing up in primary races across the country. Democrats are split, and many see it as a litmus test for other issues. This week on Say More’s political panel, opinion editor Jim Dao sits down with Ideas writer Abdallah Fayyad and editorial writer Shira Schoenberg to discuss American foreign policy, Trump&rsquo...
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If you lived around Massachusetts in the 1980s, you might remember hearing ads for 1-877-JOE-4-OIL. Joe Kennedy II dedicated much of his life to delivering discounted oil to families in need through his organization Citizens Energy. Now his son, former Massachusetts Congressman Joe Kennedy III is picking up the mantle, and helping the organization shift to renewables – think solar panels. The younger Kennedy joins Shirley Leu...
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For years, the New Bedford docks were home to one of the most notorious fraudsters in Massachusetts fishing history. His name is Carlos Rafael, but you might remember him as “The Codfather.” Besides being an exciting yarn full of conspiracy and crime, Carlos’s story ends up being a fascinating window into the challenge and perils of regulating fisheries in the US. This week on Say More, GBH News host and producer ...
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Murder makes demands. It’s a phrase underpinning THE KEEPER, the newest novel by Tana French, an author known best for her Dublin Murder Squad series. French was born in Vermont, but grew up all over the world. She landed, finally, in Ireland, where she fell in love with the humor and story-telling culture. This week on Say More, French talks to host Anna Kusmer about her latest trilogy which melds together western and myster...
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