Ellie 2.0 Radio

Ellie 2.0 Radio – April 13, 2024

Ellie 2.0 Radio – April 6, 2024

With this week’s tragedy of 7 World Central Kitchen workers being killed by Israeli Defense Forces in Gaza, we revisit an idealist, Chef Jose Andres, whom I highlighted in April 2020, and the incredible work that WCK is doing across the world. The Big Interview is with Kelsey Waits, who shares about Stardust Farm, an…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – March 30, 2024

Our featured idealist is Siddharth Kara, the author of Cobalt Red: How the Blood of the Congo Powers Our Lives (St. Martin’s Press, 2023), a NYT bestseller, and who has journeyed to more than 50 countries to document modern day slavery and human exploitation. You won’t want to miss the clip of Siddharth talking about…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – March 23, 2024

This show’s featured idealist is unsung hero Clyde Kennard, who the State of Mississippi Sovereignty Commission targeted and framed for a theft crime when Clyde persistently attempted to integrate the University of Southern MS in the late 1950’s. After wrongfully serving two years in prison, and after an outcry from civil rights leaders, including Dr.…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – March 16, 2024

Our featured idealist of the week is Greg Carr, a philanthropist who has invested $100 million of his own money to rehabilitate Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique. The Big Interview is a reprise with Staphanie Glaros, who talks about One Small Step, an initiative of StoryCorps. In my C-Block I share about the very successful…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – March 9, 2024

It’s an Ellie Talking Head show!! We don’t have a guest, and instead you get me for the entire show! Today our featured idealist is Col. Ben Jonsson, who has been singled out for a “promotion hold” by MO. Senator Eric Schmitt because Col. Jonsson’s had the audacity to write a letter telling white Air…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – March 2, 2024

In the A-Block, I revisit a recent featured idealistic organization, PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), and how it’s now the subject of a “Demand for Information” from Texas Attorney General, who seeks detailed personal information about Texas PFLAG members who are transgender or who have trans kids/youth. This is all about Texas’…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – February 10, 2024

Ellie 2.0 Radio – February 3, 2024

t’s a live show! Our featured idealist is Laura Belin, the curator of the Bleeding Heartland blog that covers Iowa politics. Laura and I talk about legislation introduced at the behest of Gov. Reynolds which seeks to require transgender people who’ve transitioned genders to list both an M and F on their driver’s license. Ugh.…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – January 27, 2024

Our featured idealist of the week is Jeanne Manford, who in 1971 wrote a letter to the NY Post telling the world the she loved her gay son who had been the victim of a homophobic attack. As a result of the positive outpouring to that letter, Jeanne would go on to found PFLAG—Parents and…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – January 13, 2024

This week’s featured idealist is Zyahna Byrant who, as a 15-year-old, launched a petition to remove Robert E. Lee’s statute in Charlottesville VA in 2017. That led to a city commission recommending the statute’s removal, which in turn led to the “Unite the Right” rally with the Tiki Torch white supremacists marching through the city.…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – January 6, 2024

We start off “Tumultuous ‘24” with our featured idealist, Medgar Evers, an idealist who worked to desegregate Mississippi in the 1950s and early ‘60s until he was assassinated in July 1963. His murderer wouldn’t be brought to justice until 1996. The Big Interview is with Heather Tran of A Better Society, a small Chanhassen MN…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – December 23, 2023

It’s the last “fresh” show of 2023 and our featured idealist is Stephen Ritz, a South Bronx educator who created the “Green Bronx Machine” centered around exciting students about growing plants. His idea has taken off and earned him and his school national accolades—along the way, it raised student attendance and grades. The Big Interview…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – December 16, 2023

This week’s featured idealist is Rashida Tlaib, who represents Michigan’s 12th District in the House. She’s been a fierce protector of Palestinian rights, for which she was censured last month. (For the record, I believe that Israel has the right to exist, and I don’t put up with antisemitism.) The Big Interview is with Mikki…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – December 9, 2023

Our featured idealist is none other than the immortal John Lennon, who was shot and killed 43 years ago yesterday. His song, Imagine, is the idealist’s anthem! In my C-Block, I interview Hal Sansoney, the producer, director and performer for Trans Voice Cabaret, that’s opening at the Mixed Blood Theater. In my C-Block, I talk…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – December 2, 2023

It’s another Ellie’s Talking Head show! Our featured idealist is Majorie Kelly, who has written and spoken extensively on changing America’s capitalist system to end “financial extraction” where only the rich get richer. Instead, she favors community-based ownership where everyone is lifted up. I also highlight Frank Bruni, a NYT columnist and author who recently…

Ellie Krug with Matt – November 20, 2023

Ellie Krug, host of Ellie 2.0 Radio every Saturday at 10 AM on AM950 joins Matt to mark today’s Transgender Day of Remembrance.

Ellie 2.0 Radio – November 18, 2023

It’s a live Ellie’s Talking Head show! I begin by highlighting the sad state of legalized discrimination against transgender people in America today. From there, I pivot to talk about a November 16 piece by Tom Nichols in The Atlantic titled, “Trump Crosses a Crucial Line,” re: Trump’s use of the word, “vermin,” in his…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – November 11, 2023

Our featured idealist is the late Matthew Perry, who tried to help others who struggled with drug and alcohol addictions, just like he struggled. The Big Interview is with Bob Roepke, the former mayor of Chaska MN, who talks about the importance of feeling a sense of connectedness through “community.” In my C-Block, I talk…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – October 29, 2023

This week’s featured idealist is the one and only James Baldwin—an extraordinary writer and an advocate for Black folks at a time when doing so put him at risk professionally and personally. The Big Interview is with Marshall Tanick, a Twin Cities lawyer-writer who talks about how Edward Blum and his organization, Alliance for Equal…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – October 21, 2023

We begin our 300th (!!) show by acknowledging the on-going horror of what is occurring in Israel and Gaza following the horrendous October 7 terrorist attack. Relatedly, for this week’s featured idealist, I highlight Rachel Corrie, a 23-year-old American college student who was killed in 2003 as she attempted to protect the Gaza homes of…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – October 14, 2023

A live show! The Big Interview is with Robert Shetterly, who founded the portrait-story initiative, “Americans Who Tell the Truth,” which highlights Americans who have spoken truth to power. Also, courtesy of transgender blogger Erin Reed, we play a clip of a young Utah transgender girl speaking truth to her local school board re: the…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – October 7, 2023

Our featured idealist of the week is Laphonza Butler, the newly appointed U.S. Senator from California, who succeeds the late Diane Feinstein. The Big Interview is with Juliany Taveras, the playwright for the world premiere of Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress, which opens at Children’s Theater Company on October 14 (note: I’m a CTC…

Ellie 2.0 – September 29, 2023

This week’s Ellie’s big interview is with John Blake of CNN!

Ellie 2.0 Radio – September 9, 2023

This week’s featured idealist is Robert Shetterly, a Maine artist who’s painted 260 portraits of living and deceased Americans who spoke truth to power—this is all part of an initiative titled “Americans Who Tell the Truth.” The Big Interview is with Pam Hrick, executive director and legal counsel for LEAF, a Toronto nonprofit that works…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – August 26, 2023

David Hogg, a young (only 23 years old) idealist who survived the shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School on Valentine’s Day 2018, and who later became a gun control advocate, is this week’s featured idealist. The things that he’s accomplished so far have been incredible! The Big Interview is with Jen Perez of Red,…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – August 18, 2023

Our featured idealist is the late Father Charles Strobel, a Nashville priest who conceived of “Room in the Inn,” where houses of worship provide safe sleeping spaces for those who are experiencing homelessness. His idea has rippled to hundreds of congregations across the U.S. The Big Interview is a reprise of my July 2022 interview…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – August 12, 2023

We begin by talking about Ohio’s rejection of Issue 1, which would have raised the threshold for passage of citizen-initiated ballot measures from 50% to 60%. An architect of that victory was the idealistic Red, Wine, and Blue, which works to mobilize suburban women to vote left. The Big Interview is with Deepinder Mayell, the…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – August 5, 2023

This week’s idealist is someone you would never suspect—the one and only recently passed Tony Bennett. You’ll have to listen to the show to understand why—and you’ll get a musical reward as well! The Big Interview is with writer and journalist Rod Farlane,who talks about his work in giving voice to those who are often…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – July 22, 2023

This week’s featured idealist is Cornel West, who’s a prime example of idealism in a vacuum—his quest for the presidency via a third party could siphon off just enough votes to give Donald Trump the White House for the second time. Ugh. The Big Interview is with James Finn, author of, “My Neighbors Ended Free…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – July 15, 2023

We start with James Barlow, who posted on TikTok about encountering a transgender woman at the Landmark truck stop in Clyde Texas—his message was affirming and kind, and incredibly idealistic! The Big Interview is with Marissa Held-Nordling, the owner of Little Roos children’s boutique in Chaska MN, which held a Drag story time on July…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – June 24, 2023

Our featured idealist organization is ProPublica, an online news source, which in 16 years of existence, has won 6 Pulitzers for quality, in-depth reporting. Most recently, ProPublica journalists have broken stories about S. Ct. Justices Thomas and Alito and their “trips” funded by billionaire conservatives who have business before the Court. Ugh. The Big Interview…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – June 17, 2023

It’s Pride Month and I start with a historical overview of how June came to be the month of Pride. The Big Interview is with Sarah Hempel, a married lesbian mother of twins who, along with a straight cisgender ally, started a LGBTQIA+ social group in Waconia, MN. In my C-Block, I talk about my…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – June 10, 2023

Ellie 2.0 Radio – May 20, 2023

Ellie 2.0 Radio – May 13, 2023

Our featured idealist is Pussy Riot, the Russian music/performance group that is a big thorn in Vladimir Putin’s side. The Big Interview has me speaking to Bethany O’Neil and Cresston Gackle, attorneys who wrote about how MN’s system of selecting juries, which often fails to reflect the diversity of the community, perpetuates bias against criminal…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – May 6, 2023

It’s a Live Show! I begin by talking about recently presenting in Albert Lea MN and discuss how greater/rural MN is becoming more diverse; as a consequence, those with power (usually white, Christian men) need to cede some power in order to make their communities more inclusive and welcoming. I also talk about the Dylan…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – April 22, 2023

We begin with highlighting the idealists who are working against efforts to marginalize transgender people with an update on NE state legislator Michaela Cavanaugh and a story about MT state legislator, Zooey Zephyr, the state’s only trans person in the legislature, who spoke up against efforts to pass a gender affirming care ban. As a…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – April 2, 2023

I begin with talking about sociologist/Princeton University professor Matthew Desmond and his book, Poverty, By America. His thesis is that paying low-income wages subsidizes the lifestyles of well-off Americans. The Big Interview is with Jennifer Pizer, the Chief Legal Officer of Lambda Legal, who talks about that organization’s great work in representing LGBTQ+ people for…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – April 2, 2023

I begin with talking about sociologist/Princeton University professor Matthew Desmond and his book, Poverty, By America. His thesis is that paying low-income wages subsidizes the lifestyles of well-off Americans. The Big Interview is with Jennifer Pizer, the Chief Legal Officer of Lambda Legal, who talks about that organization’s great work in representing LGBTQ+ people for…

Ellie 2.0 Radio March 25 2023

It’s a live show with the esteemed Thom Hartmann as our guest! As usual, Thom shares his insight and ideas about where America presently stands and where it might be headed. In my C-Block, I talk about my recent experience in speaking in Delano, MN, a small town in greater MN where my Gray Area…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – March 18, 2023

Ellie 2.0 Radio – March 4, 2023

We start out with featuring the idealistic MSNBC host Chris Hayes and his meteoric rise in broadcast journalism (he is the youngest person to ever host a news show) and my belief in his honesty. The Big Interview is with Emily Strasser, author of Half-Life of a Secret: Reckoning with a Hidden History, a fascinating…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – February 25, 2023

Ellie 2.0 Radio -February 13, 2023

This week’s featured idealist is LeBron James, who just broke the NBA scoring record. In August 2018, I shared about the “I Promise” school his family foundation helped to create in LeBron’s hometown of Akron, Ohio. Today we revisit how that initiative is impacting hundreds of students who might otherwise get lost in the educational…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – January 27, 2023

To commemorate World Holocaust Remembrance Day, we begin with a story about CANDLES (Children of Auschwitz Nazi Deadly Lab Experiments), a nonprofit in Terre Haute IN and the stories of three Holocaust survivors who lived in Terre Haute. It’s quite a collective story about survival and idealism, with the survivors believing that if their personal…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – January 21, 2023

Ellie 2.0 Radio – January 14, 2023

It’s a live show! We begin with an interview of Lehman Riley, the author of the Papa Lemon children’s books series—stories that seek to teach children the basics about respect, equality, allyship and how not to bully. Lehman is a magnetic personality who goes into the classrooms to help children get excited about learning and…

Ellie 2.0 Radio – January 7, 2023

We start off the brand new year with our featured idealist, Hakeem Jeffries, the newly elected House Minority Leader, who’s proven to be determined and persistent in his professional and political careers. The Big Interview is with Greg Anderson, the curator of the podcast, Living in Carver County, who talks about the need to get…

Brian Rusch