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The Brian Lehrer Show

Friday, June 27, 2008
  • Barack Obama
    (Getty Images)

    U-N-I-T-Y

    Will the symbolism of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton’s appearance in Unity, NH rub off on the actual campaign? And speaking of getting along, why is it that US unhappiness is at a fifteen year high, and just what does the nation of Bhutan have to teach us about being gloomy? Plus: the new agreed-upon New York City budget; HIV testing services in the Bronx; BlackBerry addiction; and on this first day of summer for public school teachers and students, what are your plans for the summer?

Together At Last

After a long and sometimes bitter primary season, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are making their first joint campaign appearance in the general election today. Despite the symbolic choice of venue -- Unity, NH -- the party still has healing ahead. Joining us to review the campaign appearance are Josh Rogers, reporter for New Hampshire Public Radio, and Rebecca Traister, staff writer at Salon.

New City Budget

WNYC reporter Bob Hennelly was up all night analyzing the details of the city budget. He lets us know what he discovered.

The National Happiness Index

Bhutan, the landlocked kingdom on the Himalayas, began an innovative measure of its people's well-being: an index known as the Gross National Happiness. But how is happiness best measured? As Bhutan is featured in this year's Smithsonian Folklife Festival, we ask Kinley Dorji, Editor-In-Chief of Kuensel (Bhutan's first newspaper), and Preston T. Scott, a curator of the Festival program Bhutan: Land of the Thunder Dragon.

Smithsonian Folklife Festival

Bronx Gets Tested

More people die from AIDS in the Bronx than in any other New York borough. That's one of the reasons why the New York Health Department is announcing an initiative to get all Bronx adults tested within the next three years. Candia Richards Clarke from Bronx AIDS Services explains the plan.

Follow-Up Friday: Blackberry Overtime Blues

Earlier this week we spoke to Maggie Jackson about her book Distracted, which knocks multitasking. Then we learned about a squabble between ABC News and the Writers Guild of America East over whether employees should be paid for time spent on their Blackberrys outside of work hours. Penelope Trunk, who writes the Brazen Careerist blog, joins us to look at whether handheld email machines are a perk or a pain.

Open Phones: Summer Vacation

City schools out for summer! That's what most New York students are cheering today, so are you prepared? Tell us what your plans are!

Uncommon Indicators

The Brian Lehrer Show

The Brian Lehrer Show wants to hear how the economy is affecting the little things in your daily life. Share your stories and photos of the downturn.

Just Launched! The Uncommon Economic Indicators Video Contest. All the details here!

The Rocky Road Ahead

The Brian Lehrer Show

Ray Young, the chief financial officer of General Motors, talks about GM’s bankruptcy.

Then, Damon Lester, president of the National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers, and Greg Williams, former owner of the recently closed Huntington Chevrolet in Huntington Station, NY., discusses the effect GM’s bankruptcy has had on dealerships and their employees.

Tweet If You Use Twitter

The Brian Lehrer Show

Farhad Manjoo, Slate's technology columnist and the author of True Enough: Learning To Live in a Post-Fact Society talks about what Twitter means and how different groups use it.

What's your take on Twitter? How do you use it? Comment below!

Don't Say That, Literally

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John Flansburgh of the band They Might Be Giants discusses the running list the band keeps of "things we can no longer say." (a few examples: "my bad" "don't go there" "one hundred and ten percent" and "voted off the island")

What would be on your list of banned words or phrases? Comment below!

From Denmark with Love

The Brian Lehrer Show

Jesper Grunwald, senior managing editor with the Danish Broadcasting Corporation, talks about the Danish economy, biking to work, and why the Danes are allegedly the happiest people in the world.

Squatting, Then and Now

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As former squats in the East Village make the transition to coops, making homes from abandoned housing is again an issue. Andrew Reicher executive director of Urban Homesteading Assistance Board, Frank Morales an Episcopal priest involved in East Village/Lower East Side squatting and homelessness activism since the late '70s, and Rob Robinson, a leader of the Housing Campaign of Picture the Homeless, discuss the return of squatting.

Video Picks

The Brian Lehrer Show

Check out some recent video clips of interviews with guests and Brian Lehrer's weekly Web video picks.