On this episode of Big Rube's Philly, Reuben Harley meets up at the gym with Sam Wood, CEO of the creative marketing agency, Inzpire. Hear why this body-building chief executive says, "You can do anything you want, as long as you don't let your mind get in the way."
Jul 02, 2025•8 min•Season 1Ep. 1675
The second annual Philly Youth Music Fest is on July 15. It's organized by youth, features youth bands and is geared towards a youth audience--all to provide mentorship and true connection. Visit this story for free tickets.
Jul 01, 2025•5 min•Season 1Ep. 1674
... but not anymore. Ali Velshi breaks down the monumental ruling to undermine "nationwide injunctions" and explains why we now need to look elsewhere for checks and balances on presidents.
Jun 30, 2025•7 min•Season 1Ep. 1673
Ahead of the 2023 mayoral election, we asked citizens to play the role of employer. Now we're once again inviting Mayor Parker to appear before you, her employers. Here's how you can participate.
Jun 27, 2025•5 min•Season 1Ep. 1672
The AI revolution is upon us, and it will certainly have an impact on local governance. “Let’s have an open conversation about its use,” says this week’s podcast guest, Rochelle Haynes, Managing Director of Bloomberg Philanthropies’ What Works Cities initiative at Results for America. “A lot of fears out there are about losing jobs,” she continued. “But we need to show people that this is about making your job more effective. The human touch is still needed. AI is just the tool to [streamline] t...
Jun 26, 2025•49 min•Season 1Ep. 1671
On this episode of Guest Commentary, we look at Trump’s health secretary purging the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee (including a renowned CHOP immunologist). He claimed they were in the pocket of the pharmaceutical industry. But who is really conflicted?
Jun 25, 2025•7 min•Season 1Ep. 1670
On this episode of Guest Commentary, a Philly-born scientist explains what is actually at stake for the town she loves
Jun 24, 2025•5 min•Season 1Ep. 1669
The US makes up 80% of the entire world's biomedical research. Donald Trump's slashing of NIH funding is setting the country on track for a "lost generation of scientists." The amount of money being taken from cancer research alone, is 18x smaller than the proposed tax breaks for the top .001% in Trump's budget bill. Ali Velshi explains.
Jun 23, 2025•8 min•Season 1Ep. 1668
The winds of Philadelphia politics often follow those of the Big Apple. Will the showdown between the old pol Cuomo and the socialist Mamdani foreshadow change here?
Jun 20, 2025•8 min•Season 1Ep. 1667
Almost no Black people on No Kings Day. Almost no White people on Juneteenth. Citizen writer Malcolm Burnley asks, can we show up together before it’s too late?
Jun 19, 2025•7 min•Season 1Ep. 1666
On this episode of Guest Commentary, we hear from the president of The Community Grocer, who says the fed’s proposed $300 billion SNAP rollback would hurt hungry Pennsylvanians and erase $5.3 billion in economic benefit
Jun 18, 2025•4 min•Season 1Ep. 1665
Crime and poverty have plagued Philadelphia since William Penn’s day. Philly gun violence interrupter Mazzie Casher has historic yet modern solutions. He visits with Citizen writer Malcolm Burnley to discuss some of them.
Jun 17, 2025•22 min•Season 1Ep. 1664
A South Carolina woman is held in jail without bond for 22 days following a natural miscarriage. It took 13 months for her to finally be cleared by a jury. Ali Velshi breaks down why this moment is "the most dangerous chapter of the post-Roe era."
Jun 16, 2025•5 min•Season 1Ep. 1663
Cherelle Parker’s budget boiled down to jobs versus housing. Did she and City Council make the right bet?
Jun 13, 2025•7 min•Season 1Ep. 1662
Philadelphia’s first “school street” pilot closed its dropoff and pickup street to vehicular traffic. It was as great as you might imagine. Diana Lind tells us why.
Jun 12, 2025•6 min•Season 1Ep. 1661
On a special interview edition of Big Rube's Philly, Reuben Harley visits with the iconic Bumi Fernandez-West about the event that has started summer in the city for the last fifty years: Odunde.
Jun 11, 2025•7 min•Season 1Ep. 1660
Legendary law professor, Temple dean and First Deputy City Solicitor Carl Singley joins James Peterson for a special CitizenWURD episode about the enormous amount of executive orders coming from Donald Trump.
Jun 10, 2025•23 min•Season 1Ep. 1659
Ali Velshi breaks down the escalating situation in Los Angeles and details the dangers of federalizing a state's National Guard.
Jun 09, 2025•5 min•Season 1Ep. 1658
For the second time in three years, the School District of Philadelphia was defrauded out of hundreds of thousands of dollars. What’s really going on?
Jun 06, 2025•6 min•Season 1Ep. 1657
While Washington implodes and other cities resist, Riverside, CA Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson is moving ahead with an ambitious tech agenda — and battling youth homelessness in her city. “I feel positive about the direction California is taking,” says Riverside, CA Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson, our guest this week on How To Really Run A City. In the wake of reduced support from Washington, D.C., she optimistically declares, “We’ll find our way forward. We’ll keep fighting.” In this episode, former A...
Jun 05, 2025•40 min•Season 1Ep. 1656
Grammy award-winning Philadelphia guitarist Randy Bowland shaped Hollywood’s next breakout star in his iconic Sinners role
Jun 04, 2025•7 min•Season 1Ep. 1655
A memorial that’s part shiva, part reunion, part performance and part open house
Jun 03, 2025•5 min•Season 1Ep. 1654
What can you do to preserve democracy? Ali Velshi draws on the history of resistance and civil disobedience to demonstrate the small things anyone can do to resist the backslide into authoritarianism.
Jun 02, 2025•9 min•Season 1Ep. 1653
On this episode of Citizen WURDs, James Peterson sits down with Jennifer Boisseau and Theresa Byrd, the Hair Nerds, who use their hairstylist skills to restore dignity and bring joy to patients at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
May 30, 2025•16 min•Season 1Ep. 1652
Immigrant small businesses help power Philadelphia. But tariffs — and deportations — could devastate many of them
May 29, 2025•5 min•Season 1Ep. 1651
The fallout from SEPTA's budget deficit will impact the entire state. On this episode of Guest Commentary, the CEO of Brandywine Realty Trust wants every Pennsylvanian to see that SETPTA doesn't just survive, it thrives.
May 28, 2025•6 min•Season 1Ep. 1650
Join us for part two of the fascinating conversation between Ambassador David Cohen, now back from Canada, and Citizen co-founder Larry Platt. They talk about real diplomacy on the world stage and why diversity is so important for our city, state and nation.
May 27, 2025•26 min•Season 1Ep. 1649
In a post-Roe world, Ali Velshi explains, choices around pregnancy in America can now be criminalized and life-threatening.
May 26, 2025•5 min•Season 1Ep. 1648
Political reform is bubbling up in other cities. Here? Maybe not so much. An election post-mortem
May 23, 2025•8 min•Season 1Ep. 1647
Philly punk rocker Ron Gallo once avoided social media. Now he’s made it the stage for his most unseriously serious music yet, attracting both worldwide fans and MAGA haters
May 22, 2025•11 min•Season 1Ep. 1646