Next Question with Katie Couric

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Abortion: The Body Politic, Part 3 Jun 23, 2022

Show notes

On Part 3 of Abortion: The Body Politic focuses on Roe and its unraveling. The last living Roe prosecutor, Linda Coffee, shares her recollections of that historic Supreme Court case and how she found out she had won. We learn of the immediate failings of Roe, especially for Black women, and the birth of the Reproductive Justice movement. Experts trace the politicization of abortion, the belated moral-issue grab by evangelicals, the violence that hit abortion doctors and clinics in the 1990s, and the anti-abortion strategy that forever altered American politics. We hear first-person experiences of long-time abortion doctors as well as fresh medical students who share why they felt inspired to join the cause. We also hear from two abortion storytellers about their experiences navigating a convoluted system that can be particularly apathetic to the needs of those seeking later abortions.

More information on this episode’s guests and resources:

Access Reproductive Justice

Boulder Abortion Clinic

The Bixby Center for Reproductive Health

Physicians for Reproductive Health

The Doula Project

Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast

Books and more

Roe v. Wade’s secret heroine tells her story [Vanity Fair]

Abortion and the Law in America: Roe v. Wade to the Present, by Mary Ziegler

Dollars for Life: The Anti-Abortion Movement and the Fall of the Republican Establishment, by Mary Zeilger

Reproductive Justice, by Loretta Ross and Rickie Solinger
Bad Faith: Race and the Rise of the Religious Right, by Randall Balmer

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Abortion: The Body Politic, Part 2 Jun 16, 2022

Show notes

In Part 2 of Abortion: The Body Politic, we step into the past, long before Roe, and trace the roots of today’s abortion’s debate to understand — if abortions have always happened and the majority of Americans have always believed they should be legally accessible — why is abortion such a contentious, even volatile, issue in this country. In this journey, a new narrative of reproductive resistance comes to the surface. Women, particularly Black, brown and indigenous, have always made choices that are best for their bodies, families, and lives — no matter the obstacles men have placed before them. In these stories of resistance we also hear first-hand accounts of surprising allies in underground abortion access, courage in the face of limited reproductive choices, and a relentless push for bodily autonomy. The illegal period before Roe is a mirror to our impending, post-Roe future. It’s vital that we pay attention.

More information on this episode’s guests and resources:

Guttmacher Institute

The Bixby Center for Reproductive Health

Grandmothers for Reproductive Rights

Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice

Boulder Abortion Clinic

Books and more:

Reproductive Justice, by Loretta Ross and Rickie Solinger

When Abortion Was a Crime: Women, Medicine, and Law in the United States, 1867-1973, by Leslie Reagan

The Janes, available to stream now on HBO Max
Defenders of the Unborn: The Pro-Life Movement Before Roe V. Wade, by Daniel K. Williams

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Abortion: The Body Politic, Part 1 Jun 09, 2022

Show notes

In Part 1 of Abortion: The Body Politic, we explore the current state of abortion access. Katie Couric visits two abortion clinics that straddle the Missouri-Illinois border. They are only 15 minutes but — because of Missouri’s state-imposed restrictions — worlds apart. We also find out what types of abortion are available today, how people access them, and what it is like to get an abortion in today’s charged climate. We hear from abortion fund organizers, doctors in restrictive and progressive states, and people from all over the country, many of whom are already living in a post-Roe world. We also find out what is at stake for the upcoming Supreme Court decision that is expected to reverse the landmark 1973 decision that guaranteed the right to a safe and legal abortion.

More information on this episode’s guests and resources:

Organizations:

Guttmacher Institute

ARC Southeast

Physicians for Reproductive Health

We Testify

Advocates for Youth

Books and more:

You’re the Only One I’ve Told: The Stories Behind Abortion, by Dr. Meera Shah

Abortion and the Law in America: Roe v. Wade to the Present, by Mary Ziegler

Unpacking the Roe draft bombshell with Mary Ziegler - Next Question with Katie Couric

The Body is Not an Apology, by Sonya Renee Taylor

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Coming soon … Abortion: The Body Politic Jun 02, 2022

Show notes

Forty-nine years ago, the landmark Roe v Wade decision guaranteed women the right to a safe, legal abortion. This June, the Supreme Court is expected to gut that historic ruling, triggering restrictive abortion laws in at least 23 states. While the United States is on the precipice of stepping back this women’s health right, the rest of the world has seen a trend of liberalizing abortion laws over the past 25 years. In this limited, narrative series from Next Question with Katie Couric, we explore the history — and future — of abortion in this country. In this 6-episode series, Katie takes listeners inside abortion clinics, front row at an abortion comedy show, and shares intimate, first-person experiences of people — from the illegal period to now — who have had abortions and the stories of those who have cared for them. There’s never been a more urgent time to understand how we got here and how reproductive rights can apply to everyone.

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Live … from the metaverse! May 19, 2022

Show notes

Suddenly it feels like everyone is talking about the metaverse, doesn’t it? But what exactly is the metaverse? Wikipedia describes it as “a network of 3D virtual worlds focused on social connection,” but the only real consensus seems to be that it’s going to be, well, huge. Google, Apple, Snapchat, and Microsoft have all made major investments and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg even renamed his company, Meta. For this episode of Next Question, Katie decides to find out what all the fuss is about firsthand and takes a trip into the metaverse with Wall Street Journal tech columnist Joanna Stern.

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Bonus: Melissa Gilbert goes 'Back to the Prairie' May 17, 2022

Show notes

You probably know Melissa Gilbert best from her time playing Laura Ingalls for nine seasons on the classic NBC television show, “Little House On the Prairie.” She’s done a lot since then – she’s continued to act, tried her hand at directing, served as the president of the Screen Actors Guild, and even briefly ran for Congress. But a dozen or so years ago, she left her native Los Angeles to live with her husband, the actor and director Timothy Busfield, in rural Michigan and eventually ended up settling in a rustic, fixer-upper cottage in the Catskills Mountains. It was a pretty radical lifestyle change for Melissa and it sparked a number of realizations about her old life – and the way she wants to live now. For this episode of Next Question, she sits down with Katie to talk about this new phase of her life, the challenges – and rewards – of growing older, and her new book, “Back to the Prairie.”

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All Hail the Jeanaissance! May 12, 2022

Show notes

If you’ve been watching TV lately, you’ve probably noticed that Jean Smart is having something of a moment. While she’s been working steadily and building an enviable acting career for more than four decades, her recent one-two punch as washed up Las Vegas comedian Deborah Vance on the HBO Max Series, “Hacks,” and as Kate Winslet’s mother, Helen Fahey, in “Mare of Easttown,” has finally and fully awakened the world to the genius that is Jean. For this episode of “Next Question,” she sits down with Katie to talk about her long career, what it feels like to receive all this dizzying attention at 70 years old, the recent and sudden loss of her husband of more than thirty years - fellow actor, Richard Gilliland - and the upcoming second season of “Hacks.”

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Unpacking the Roe draft bombshell with Mary Ziegler May 05, 2022

Show notes

Something major happened this week: A leaked draft opinion from the Supreme Court indicated the court will strike down Roe versus Wade. The landmark 1973 decision ruled that the Constitution protects a pregnant person’s liberty to choose to have an abortion without excessive government restriction. While that protection has been chipped away almost relentlessly for decades, resulting in abortion access that is very much dependent on your zip code, the overturning of Roe could be the most consequential opinion in decades. On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie talks with abortion law expert Mary Ziegler about the leak, the draft’s damning language, and the impact of the conservative court on rights beyond abortion. Katie also takes the opportunity to tease an upcoming, in-depth and intimate series on abortion — something she has been working on for months in anticipation of the official ruling expected in late June.

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Molly Shannon has got some unbelievable stories to tell Apr 28, 2022

Show notes

You probably know Molly Shannon best from her iconic Saturday Night Live characters - quirky Catholic schoolgirl Mary Katherine Gallagher, proud (and limber!) 50-year old Sally O’Malley, and Delicious Dish co-host Terri Rialto. There’s so much more to her story though. From losing her mom and sister in a tragic car accident at the age of 4 and growing up with her adventurous, fun-loving dad to coming into her own as a comedian and actor and becoming a mother herself, her life is proof positive that humor and joy can comingle with pain and sorrow. She shares it all in her new memoir, “Hello, Molly!” and in this week’s episode of Next Question. It’s a candid, heartfelt – and yes – very funny conversation you don’t want to miss.

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‘Addiction is a spectrum’: Meet the women centering themselves and rewriting the recovery narrative Apr 21, 2022

Show notes

There have been some scary headlines going around about the climbing rates of alcohol use, particularly among women, during the pandemic. One study found that heavy drinking among women increased 41 percent! What’s behind these numbers and how do women find the help they need? On this episode of Next Question with Katie Couric, Katie invites her friend and award winning broadcast journalist Elizabeth Vargas to co-host and help find some understanding about why women are drinking more than ever, why women drink, and what recovery looks like.. Elizabeth knows about this first hand and wrote about her issues around alcohol, addiction and anxiety in her memoir, Between Breaths: A Memoir of Panic and Addiction. Elizabeth and Katie talk to two women — Khadi Oluwatoyin and Emily Paulson who hit their own rock bottoms and not only found their way out, but also made recovery spaces for people like them — Black Girls Sober Club and the Sober Mome Squad, respectively. Katie and Elizabeth also talk to long-time clinical social worker and interventionist, Dr. Louise Stanger, on how to help someone you love who may be suffering through addiction. If you or anyone you love is struggling with alcohol use, you can call the national drug and alcohol treatment hotline at 1-800-622-HELP (4357).

Find out more about the people and organizations mentioned:

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