Podcast
Rooted
Episodes
- How are churches using AI to reach Gen Z?
Can AI help fill church pews without replacing the people in them? Paris Alston talks with Rev. Chris Hope about his new app “100 Days,” an AI-powered tool designed to support new…
- Why are curves celebrated on some women but stigmatized on others?
In this episode created by GBH News interns, Ava Francin and Autumn Greene, Rooted explores the psychology of the BBL. Host, Paris Alston discusses the obsession with the butt and…
Chains to Change Part 2: What hidden Black history still lives across Boston today?Part 2 of Chains to Change follows the fight for freedom through the experiences of Black Bostonians who served their country, built strong communities, and challenged the barriers…
Chains to Change Part #1: How did Black Bostonians help shape America's fight for freedom?Produced by The Loop Lab and hosted by GBH News Rooted, Chains to Change uncovers the stories that often get left out of Boston's revolutionary narrative. As America marks 250 year…
Why are Black men still the most misunderstood voters in America?For decades, Black men have been treated as one voting bloc—but the reality is far more complex. This week on Rooted, Tyree Rush sits down with Michael Bland, executive director of…
Has Black music been exploited for decades—and who really deserves the credit?Award-winning composer and vocalist Candice Hoyes joins Paris Alston to explore how Black artists can preserve, reclaim, and honor their musical legacy. From the story of “Hound Do…
Should Black women be on PrEP? Why HIV prevention is still failing the women most at riskDespite major advances in HIV prevention, Black women remain disproportionately affected and often overlooked in conversations about PrEP. In this episode of Rooted, researcher Dr.…
Can 300,000 voices redefine democracy for Black America?Alexsis Rodgers explains how the Black Census Project is helping Black communities turn their experiences into real policy change. Instead of just counting people, it asks what the…
Is the World Cup in the U.S. covering up serious human rights issues?Political activist Ajamu Baraka and the Black Alliance for peace is calling for a boycott of the U.S.-hosted World Cup arguing the tournament is helping “normalize” global human ri…
- Is the DNC 2024 autopsy a warning sign for Black voters?
In an exclusive sit down with Rooted, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley breaks down the Democratic Party’s 2024 election autopsy and what it reveals about shifting Black voter support,…
- For Black women farmers, tending the land is ancestral and healing
A lineage rooted in soil stretches from ancestral farmland to modern city plots, where Black women are reclaiming their role as stewards, healers, and innovators. Generations of kn…
Can kink be the safest space for Black disabled women?Rooted digs into the overlooked intersection of Black womanhood, disability, and sexual autonomy—spaces where desire is policed, consent is unevenly taught, and safety is too often…
What does 'AI literacy' really mean for the future of work and education?As Boston Public Schools moves to introduce AI literacy districtwide, Rooted examines what artificial intelligence education really means for Black and brown students whose futures…
Can the World Cup really unite Haiti while the U.S. bans Haitians?Can the World Cup really unite Haiti while the U.S. bans Haitians?
Is gaming’s “woke” backlash hiding a bigger race problem?As Black “blerd” culture pushes further into the mainstream, questions about who gets to belong and who gets left out are becoming impossible to ignore. From toxic gaming environme…
Is Don Lemon redefining what a Black journalist can be?Paris Alston sits down with longtime journalist Don Lemon for a candid conversation about truth‑telling in a political era that punishes it. Lemon opens up about his arrest during…
Is anyone actually 100% Black? Henry Louis Gates Jr. on DNA, race, and powerParis speaks with renowned historian and public intellectual Henry Louis Gates Jr. about race, identity, and how history continues to shape American life. Gates challenges long‑hel…
Why do we exist? Dr. Hakeem Oluseyi on the universe, Black representation, and access to scienceParis sits down with acclaimed astrophysicist and NOVA’s Particles of Thought host Dr. Hakeem Oluseyi for a wide‑ranging, thought‑provoking conversation that bridges cutting‑edge s…
What the capture of Maduro reveals about U.S. fear of Black sovereigntyFour months after the capture of Venezuela’s president Nicolás Maduro, debates over corruption and authoritarianism have dominated headlines. On Rooted, scholars Dr. Layla Brown, D…
Why does America celebrate Black music 50 years late?In this episode of Rooted, we ask what it really means to make jazz now. From Boston jazz clubs and basement jam sessions to TikTok lives and global stages, Grammy-nominated saxoph…
