The Week in Philly from KYW Newsradio

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“Big Brother really is watching today” - New uses of facial recognition technology Jan 05, 2023

Show notes

Facial recognition technology has been used for security purposes for decades. But today, businesses are using it to track and identify consumers and employees in ways that many people aren’t aware of - even at grocery stores and convenience stores. Many people are understandably concerned about their privacy, so we asked Samuel Hodge Jr., professor of Legal Studies at Temple University, to explain how this technology works, how it’s being used, and what laws exist around it. We also get into the margin of error in this technology, especially for people of color, women, and older people.

What broke Southwest Airlines? Jan 03, 2023

Show notes

At one point last week, 84% of Southwest Airlines flights through Philadelphia were canceled, and nationally, they were canceling two to three thousand flights a day - right in the middle of the holidays. The airline is back to normal operation now, but what happened? What pushed Southwest to this breaking point, and what can they and other airlines learn from this? Dr. Benjamin Altschuler, Associate Professor of Travel and Tourism at Temple University, helps us explain this travel fiasco.

"I don't think I'll be remembered long": Angelo Cataldi reflects, looks ahead Dec 29, 2022

Show notes

Angelo Cataldi expects the next phase of his life to be tough, at least the transitional part. For the last 30-plus years, he’s dominated Philadelphia sports talk radio as the morning show host on Audacy’s WIP, setting the agenda every day for what fans talk about around the water cooler. But within a matter of weeks, his legendary run will be over. He’s retiring the week after the Eagles’ season ends. In a heartfelt, honest, and revealing conversation, Cataldi chats with one of his former interns, KYW Newsradio’s Dave Uram, about the ups and downs of an impactful yet imperfect career, and what he thinks he might do next.

“I’m here to finish the job”: Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney reflects on a(nother) tough year Dec 27, 2022

Show notes

Does Jim Kenney really want his job? Philadelphia’s mayor brought this question upon himself on July 4th, when he said during a media briefing, “I’ll be happy when I’m not Mayor and I can enjoy some stuff.” The comments came in response to a non-fatal shooting incident during the city’s Fourth of July celebration, but those words have dogged Kenney ever since. So, how much truth was there to what he said? KYW Newsradio City Hall Bureau Chief Pat Loeb asks Kenney about that night and more in her annual year-end sit down with the Mayor, who was eager to defend his record despite gun violence continuing to roil the city.

Democrats consider shifting primary schedule: will it matter? Dec 22, 2022

Show notes

Back in 2020, the South Carolina primary altered the trajectory of Joe Biden's presidential hopes. Now, halfway through his first term, the Palmetto State is on Biden's mind again, as he pushes fellow Democrats to make South Carolina the first stop on their 2024 primary tour. Would the shuffle make sense? What advantage would it give Democrats? Dr. David Barrett, Professor of Political Science at Villanova University, takes a look at this idea by diving into the history of presidential primaries, while forecasting why a potential change in the party's traditional primary itinerary could pose some complications.

Diamond, gold, and lasers: the makings of a nuclear fusion breakthrough Dec 20, 2022

Show notes

Given the way things have gone the past year, fuel independence sounds pretty good right about now, doesn’t it? That’s just one of several major implications behind a recent nuclear fusion breakthrough at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California. But for all the promise this discovery brings, there could be some pitfalls, too, according to Dr. Christopher Peters, a teaching professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at Drexel University. And for anyone out there who thinks we'll be able to start implementing this technology soon, you might want to temper your expectations.

Is ChatGPT really the end of education? Dec 15, 2022

Show notes

ChatGPT is the latest demonstration that AI can impersonate a human extremely closely. The chatbot can have text conversations and even write letters and poems - or term papers. Some people are concerned that this could be an easy way for students to get around doing their own work, but there are a lot of potential benefits to this type of language modeling technology - like helping businesses and voice transcription. Dr. Jake Williams, Associate Professor of Information Science at Drexel University, explains the technology behind ChatGPT, its pros and cons, and how else it could be used in the future.

Is it cheating or creativity? Examining the history of cheating in baseball. Dec 13, 2022

Show notes

Every sport has its cheating scandals, but it seems to be a regular thing in baseball. The rules keep evolving to prevent cheating - but that begs the question, is it really cheating if there wasn’t a written rule against it when it happened? Some types of cheating can ruin a baseball career, but others are overlooked or even glorified. Dan Levitt is the co-author, along with Mark Armour, of a new book about the history of cheating in baseball called “Intentional Balk”. Dan talks with us about how cheating has changed over the years, how baseball fans view different types of cheating, and what cheating could look like in the future with developing technology.

Find out more about “Intentional Balk”, including where to buy it, at intentionalbalkbook.com.

“We’re losing the battle:” how to combat the decline of life expectancy in the U.S. Dec 08, 2022

Show notes

New data on life expectancy in the United States is out, and the trend isn’t good. Since 2014, when life expectancy in the country reached its peak of 78.9 years, Americans have experienced the most dramatic decline in life expectancy - down 2.8 years to 76.1 years - in over a century. What are the causes behind this alarming dip? Which demographics are affected the most? Is there anything we can do to make up the gains in healthy living that have now been lost? Dr. Joshua Sharfstein is the Director of the Bloomberg American Health Initiative at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and helped author a new report of recommendations to improve life expectancy in America. He shares some of the key findings in the report, which you can read here: https://americanhealth.jhu.edu/

Fear, anger, and revenge: why youth voters were motivated for the 2022 midterms Dec 06, 2022

Show notes

Just how strong was youth turnout in the 2022 midterm elections? About 27% of voters 18-30 years old hit the polls, marking the second-best showing for that age group in more than three decades. While the issues influencing the youth vote were clear, less obvious is whether or not the next election cycle will yield a similar dynamic. Ben Berger, Associate Professor of Political Science at Swarthmore College, helped mobilize students on Swarthmore’s campus through a non-partisan initiative. He looks at why this specific demographic was so motivated, and what both political parties might be able to do to influence youth voters in 2024, 2026, and beyond.

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