Episodes

  • John U. Bacon

    John U. Bacon
    Feb 6 2026
    Our guest is John U. Bacon, author of The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Currently on the New York Times nonfiction bestseller list, the book recounts the story of the sinking of the freighter in the waters of Lake Superior, resulting in the deaths of the 29 crewmen, on November 10, 1975. This is part one of two “Vital Voices” programs with John Bacon.
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    18 mins
  • Taylor Branch

    Taylor Branch
    Jan 27 2026
    Pulitzer-Prize-winning historian and biographer Taylor Branch is featured in a discussion with East Tennessee State University history professor Dr. Daryl Carter, recorded at the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Prayer Breakfast in Johnson City, Tennessee. Branch is one of the most prolific chroniclers of the American civil rights movement and the leadership of Dr. King.
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    18 mins
  • Willa Johnson

    Willa Johnson
    Jan 20 2026
    We remember the 2022 floods in Eastern Kentucky with flood survivor and documentary filmmaker Willa Johnson, a native of Letcher County, Kentucky.
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    18 mins
  • Dr. John Shelton Reed

    Dr. John Shelton Reed
    Jan 14 2026
    One of the world's leading experts on the cultures of the American South, Dr. John Shelton Reed, takes a look at a classic New Orleans cocktail.
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    18 mins
  • Dr. Kristen Scarpato (Part Two)

    Dr. Kristen Scarpato (Part Two)
    Jan 8 2026
    Prostate cancer has been in the news lately, with President Joe Biden's diagnosis and the death of Major League baseball star Ryne Sandberg. We continue our conversation on the subject with Dr. Kristen Scarpato from Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
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    18 mins
  • Dr. Kristen Scarpato

    Dr. Kristen Scarpato
    Dec 31 2025
    The detection and the treatment of prostate cancer are discussed in this edition of "Vital Voices," with Vanderbilt University urologist Dr. Kristen Scarpato.
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    18 mins
  • Cheryl Bennett

    Cheryl Bennett
    Dec 26 2025
    A project is underway to document the history of mills that once operated in Washington County, Tennessee. Our guest is Cheryl Bennett, who is heading up the research from her home in the community of Broylesville.
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    18 mins
  • Curtis Buchanan

    Curtis Buchanan
    Dec 17 2025
    We visit the workshop of Curtis Buchanan in Jonesborough, Tennessee, to learn about the making of Windsor chairs, an art passed down from the 18th century.
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    18 mins