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Colin Kaepernick is still fighting – for justice and for his football career Sep 14, 2026

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It has been 10 years since former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick took a knee during the national anthem, in protest of police brutality against Black people. Once the season ended, Kaepernick never played in the NFL again.
"The NFL tried to send a very clear message that if you protest police killing Black folks, if you fight for a better society and better community, we're going to try to take your career from you," he tells Tonya Mosley. "I don't accept that that is going to be the end outcome of this, and will do everything I can to make sure that I change that narrative." Kaepernick has written a memoir called The Perilous Fight. It begins long before the anthem, with his experience as a Black boy adopted by white parents, learning to keep early experiences of racism to himself. He explains why, after all this time, he still wants to play in the NFL, and why he would keep his kids from playing the game.
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Best Of: Life in the Mojave Desert / Director of ‘The Uprising’ Sep 12, 2026

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Author Claire Vaye Watkins lives in the Mojave Desert, just like the protagonist in her new novel, Yellow Pine. In the book, it’s an area being developed by an energy company, wreaking havoc on the environment. The locals protest, but the novel explores whether they actually have the power to defeat a corporate project already underway. Watkins spoke with Terry Gross.
Director Paul Greengrass’s new film, The Uprising, examines what happens when people reach their breaking point. It takes us to 1381 when the peasants of England revolted against the king. Greengrass spoke with Tonya Mosley about how he first noticed the parallels to today during the pandemic.
Also, film critic Justin Chang reviews the class satire film Filipiñana.
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Stories of survival & loss at Ground Zero Sep 11, 2026

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For the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, we go into our archive for voices of those who were there. Deputy Fire Chief John “Jay” Jonas spoke with Terry Gross about being inside the North Tower when it collapsed. Firefighter Ken Haskell talks about losing his two brothers and his search at Ground Zero. Author (and former firefighter) Dennis Smith talks about the structure of the WTC itself, and how it contributed to deaths.
In the second half of the show, we hear from artists who processed the tragedy in poetry and music: Poets Sekou Sundiata and Robert Pinsky, saxophonist Sonny Rollins.
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How the WNBA became a political prop in the culture wars Sep 10, 2026

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Despite record viewership and attendance, and amazing talent across the league, the WNBA has been caught up in the national conversation about the culture wars. Sportswriter Sabreena Merchant says, “everything in the WNBA seems to take on a political lens far beyond what is actually happening on the court.” Merchant spoke with Fresh Air guest interviewer Sam Fragoso (host of Talk Easy) about the expansion of the WNBA, the race and gender politics consuming the narrative, and the departure of commissioner Cathy Engelbert. Merchant writes for The Athletic, from the New York Times.
Also, film critic Justin Chang reviews Practical Magic 2.
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How Sept. 11 changed American life Sep 09, 2026

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In his book Homeland: The War on Terror in American Life, Richard Beck looks at how the Sept. 11 attacks led to the expansion of government surveillance and a sharp increase in hate crimes against Muslim Americans. Beck also argues the War on Terror laid the groundwork for Donald Trump to become president and “impunity culture in American politics.” He spoke with Tonya Mosley.
Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews the novel Exit Party, by Emily St. John Mandel.
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Casey Gerald says ruining his reputation saved his life Sep 08, 2026

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A decade ago, Casey Gerald was running a celebrated nonprofit, giving TED talks, and on magazine covers as proof that the American dream still works. Then he shut it all down and disappeared from public life. Now, in a new book, The Great Refusal, he turns his leaving into an argument about the limits of the American dream.
Also, TV critic David Bianculli reviews SCTV, which is now available to stream on Netflix.
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Rosanne Cash on the gift her father, Johnny Cash, gave her Sep 07, 2026

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For Labor Day, we’re listening back to our 2009 interview with Rosanne Cash. When she was 18, in 1973, her father Johnny Cash gave her a list of 100 essential country songs he thought she should know. At the time, she knew that it was an important document, “but it took me, I think until now, to realize that he was really giving me himself, a part of his heart and soul.” She made an album out of some of those songs called The List.
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Best Of: ‘Wonder Man’ actor Yahya Abdul-Mateen II / John Coltrane centennial Sep 05, 2026

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Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is nominated for an Emmy for his performance in the Marvel series ‘Wonder Man,’ but two weeks after his nomination, Disney announced the series would not return for a second season. But getting laid off is how he found acting in the first place. “I keep on getting laid off and losing jobs. What up that? But you know, every time I do it, it turns into something better,” he tells Tonya Mosley.
Also, we’ll hear from saxophonist Ravi Coltrane, son of jazz great John Coltrane. This month marks the centennial of his father’s birth. He spoke with Terry Gross about this father's legacy.
Plus, Ken Tucker reviews a new album by the trio The Womack Sisters, granddaughters of Sam Cooke and nieces of Bobby Womack, and an album from Margaret Glaspy.
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Feminist Icon Gloria Steinem Sep 04, 2026

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Writer, activist and face of the women’s liberation movement Gloria Steinem died Wednesday at age 92. She spoke with Terry Gross several times over four decades, this remembrance pulls from three of those conversations: In 2015, Steinem talked about her unconventional childhood on the road with her parents, “My memory is that I learned how to read from ketchup bottles and labels and billboards along the highway,” she said. Steinem was a founding editor of Ms. magazine, the first feminist publication of its kind. In 1987, she spoke about the founding of the magazine and her early reporting. And in 1992, they discussed aging as she faced her golden years. You can find more Steinem tape in our archive.
Also, John Powers reviews the new film Coyote vs. Acme. which he calls a spoof of the classic legal thriller, like The Verdict or Erin Brockovich — but steeped in the surreal anarchy of Looney Tunes.
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Filmmaker Paul Greengrass on rage, rebellion and ‘The Uprising’ Sep 03, 2026

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Paul Greengrass’ new film, The Uprising, stars Andrew Garfield as a 14th-century peasant who, in the wake of the Plague, leads a revolt against the king. It's a history Greengrass grew up learning, and now sees parallels with Covid and Jan 6th. “People were left numb, and then this gathering rage …defenseless, and then suddenly you had this enormous rebellion,” he tells Tonya Mosley. Greengrass also reflects on his movie United 93, 25 years after the Sept. 11 attacks.
Film critic Justin Chang reviews the new drama Filipiñana.
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