Kai Wright is host and managing editor of The Stakes, a podcast about social change, produced by the Narrative Unit of WNYC’s newsroom.
He was also the host of the podcasts The United States of Anxiety, Caught, and There Goes the Neighborhood, as well as a co-host of Indivisible, a live national call-in show that WNYC convened during the Trump administration’s first 100 days.
Kai’s journalism has focused on social justice throughout his career. He is a columnist and former editor for The Nation, as well as the former editorial director of Colorlines. As a fellow of Type Investigations, he covered economic inequality, access to healthcare, and racial inequity for years. Kai is the author of Drifting Toward Love: Black, Brown, Gay and Coming of Age on the Streets of New York.
Shows:
Kai Wright appears in the following:
The System is Broken. But That Means We Can Fix it.
Wednesday, April 03, 2019
Coming up on The Stakes podcast, host Kai Wright and team identify what's not working about our society and imagine ways to do it better.
Episode 11: Kirsten Gillibrand's Path to Power
Thursday, November 15, 2018
As we head towards 2020, what can Senator Kirsten Gillibrand's rise within the Democratic Party tell us about the relationship between gender and power in American politics?
Midterm Reactions, Bob Dylan & a New Musical, Online Hate
Wednesday, November 07, 2018
Kai Wright, Nancy Solomon & Lawrence Levy on midterms. Kimber Sprawl, Jeannette Bayardelle & Todd Almond on “Girl from the North Country.” Kara Swisher on online hate.
Episode 9: What Does the Right Kind of Woman Sound Like?
Monday, November 05, 2018
Shrill, strident, bossy. These are the misogynistic slurs women often face when they run for elected office. So what should power sound like?
Episode 8: The Right Kind of Woman
Wednesday, October 31, 2018
Stacey Abrams of Georgia and Mikie Sherrill of suburban New Jersey are both Democrats fighting their way into Republican territory, but in very different ways.
Episode 7: The Women of Texas's Secret Resistance
Thursday, October 25, 2018
A group of women in rural Texas share a secret: they’re progressive, and they’re organizing. Membership is by-invitation-only, and they’ve sworn not to discuss the group with outsiders.
The First Queer Woman in Congress
Monday, October 22, 2018
The first woman ever elected to Congress was queer. So why isn't that ever really mentioned anywhere?
Episode 6: Ida B. Wells
Thursday, October 18, 2018
Journalist and activist Ida B. Wells is in some ways a forgotten figure, but she was unwavering in her mission: calling America out on racial injustice.
I've Done My Work: Ida B. Wells and The Women Pushing Back Today
Tuesday, October 16, 2018
Watch a live episode of The United States of Anxiety as WNYC’s Kai Wright talks with guests Paula Giddings, Jamilah Lemieux, Linda Sarsour and Saily Avelenda.
Women in the Senate
Thursday, October 11, 2018
In all of U.S. history, only 52 senators have been women. Listen as they share their stories and offer tips for future leaders.
The Brian Lehrer Show Live: Midterms Preview, Ask a Reporter, Immigration Under Trump and Leading Through Disruption
Wednesday, October 10, 2018
Brian talks with New Jersey Public Radio's Nancy Solomon, WNYC's Kai Wright and Yasmeen Khan, International Rescue Committee's David Miliband and economist Stephen J. Harper.
Episode 5: The Original Nasty Woman
Wednesday, October 10, 2018
Jeannette Rankin had a belief: That having women in elected office is essential to the health of our democracy. But how important is it?
Midterms Preview: New Jersey and Beyond
Wednesday, October 10, 2018
"The level of engagement and activism...is like nothing I have ever seen in my career as a reporter in 30 years."
Episode 4: The 'Indoor Man' and His Playmates
Tuesday, October 02, 2018
Playboy wasn’t just about the pictures. Hugh Hefner’s magazine helped create the notion that women were there for the taking.
Episode 3: The Pedestal
Tuesday, September 25, 2018
In Tennessee, the women's suffrage movement collided head on with an effort to preserve white supremacy.
The Anita Hill Effect
Friday, September 21, 2018
Looking back on the "Year of the Woman," and the political collaboration — and backlash — that followed.
Hilton Als & Bill Cunningham's Style, Kavanaugh Update, Brooklyn Book Festival
Thursday, September 20, 2018
Hilton Als on Bill Cunningham’s memoir. Kai Wright on Kavanaugh. Emma Straub on the Brooklyn Book Festival.
Episode 2: We've Been Here Before
Tuesday, September 18, 2018
This episode is about “The Year of the Woman” – but not 2018. Barbara Mikulski and three female senators elected in 1992 look back at the start of the modern era of women in politics.
Kavanaugh Allegations Bring Echoes of Anita Hill
Tuesday, September 18, 2018
Kai Wright, host of WNYC's The United States of Anxiety, examines how new sexual assault allegations brought against Brett Kavanaugh echo the 1991 Clarence Thomas hearings.
