Tested - podcast cover

Tested

Dave DeWitt, Leoneda Inge, Will Michaels, Charlie Shelton-Ormond, Jason deBruyn, Rusty Jacobs, Naomi Prioleau, Celeste Gracia, Kamaya Truitt, Anisa Khalifawww.wunc.org

Tested is a hard look at how North Carolina and its neighbors face the day's challenges. Hosted by journalists Dave DeWitt and Leoneda Inge.

Episodes

Introducing The Broadside: weekly news and stories from the South

From news to arts and culture, The Broadside dives into issues that might not be on a front page, but deserve a closer look. Along the way, host Anisa Khalifa explores the nuances of our home—and how what happens here ripples across the country. Find The Broadside every Thursday wherever you listen to podcasts.

Sep 28, 20232 min

In a split second

During a Sunday morning in Wilson, NC, Chris Breslin was standing on a pitcher’s mound at his son’s little league game when he heard three sounds close by he’d never heard before. Then everybody on the field hit the ground.

Aug 23, 202218 min

Some NC Teachers Won't Be Back This Fall

Teachers are leaving in large numbers in some North Carolina school districts. They say they’ve been working with low pay and high expectations for years. But when the pandemic put their routines on pause, they had time to think about their priorities. Host Liz Schlemmer heard stories from three teachers this summer.

Aug 18, 202218 min

Emmett Till and the Warrant

This month marks 67 years since Emmett Till was brutally lynched for allegedly whistling at a white woman. Activists in North Carolina are joining the calls for authorities to serve a nearly 70-year-old arrest warrant against the woman who accused him.

Aug 04, 202216 min

'Only Thing I Had To Fight With Was The Truth'

In this rebroadcast from January 18, 2022, Howard Dudley and Joe Neff, former investigative reporter for the News & Observer , recount Dudley’s wrongful conviction.

Aug 02, 202221 min

After SBC sexual abuse reckoning, is there hope for real change?

In May, an explosive report on sexual abuse perpetrated by clergy in the Southern Baptist Convention made national headlines. Now, survivors of abuse and their advocates are continuing to question what this means for one of the country’s largest Christian denominations. Host Anisa Khalifa talks with Jules Woodson, a survivor of clergy sexual abuse, and Kate Shellnut, senior news editor at Christianity Today magazine.

Jul 28, 202230 min

Darryl Hunt's Burden

In this rebroadcast from March 31, 2022, host Will Michaels speaks with Phoebe Zerwick, former reporter with the Winston-Salem Journal, about her new book chronicling Darryl Hunt's story of wrongful conviction, "Beyond Innocence."

Jul 26, 202236 min

WUNC Politics Podcast: The Morale of Public School Teachers

A notable number of North Carolina public school teachers are leaving. In Durham, one in five educators is departing, and other local districts are experiencing higher than usual turnover. On this episode of Tested, we’re featuring the Politics Podcast from WUNC, which recently spoke with several teachers about their reasons for leaving the classroom, while others explain why they have stayed.

Jul 21, 202227 min

Diving With a Purpose

In this rebroadcast from February 15, 2022, host Leoneda Inge talks with Tara Roberts, explorer with National Geographic, about Roberts work diving and documenting the wreckage of slave ships. Special thanks to National Geographic for providing some of this episode’s audio.

Jul 19, 202216 min

James Richardson and 'The Shooter in the Video'

On June 30, 2009, in Greenville, N.C., two men were shot and killed outside a nightclub. Murder charges against James Richardson relied heavily on a surveillance video. But evidence that has come to light since then casts doubt on his conviction. Host Will Michaels speaks with Pam Kelley, a freelance journalist who recently wrote about the case for The Assembly.

Jul 14, 202222 min

Reducing the Harm of Fentanyl

In this rebroadcast from February 10, 2022, host Jason deBruyn speaks with Louise Vincent with N.C. Survivors Union and Michelle Mathis with Olive Branch Ministries about how test strips and other harm reduction strategies could save lives.

Jul 12, 202217 min

Embodied: Accessing Abortion Care In A Southern State Where You Still Can

As Anita Rao’s home state becomes the nearest safe provider for millions of people, she's observing how abortion providers in North Carolina are preparing for the spike in demand. She reconnects with one of them, Dr. Rathika Nimalendran, who has been providing access to abortions in North Carolina for years, to talk about what action she's taking in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Jul 07, 202231 min

Who Bans Books and Why?

In this rebroadcast from February 1, 2022, host Anisa Khalifa takes a look into who bans books, why, and what kind of impact it has on our communities.

Jul 05, 202223 min

What the end of Roe v. Wade means for North Carolina

WUNC health and data reporter Jason deBruyn talks with Claire Donnelly, health reporter for WFAE, about abortion policy in North Carolina and what lies ahead in the wake of the Supreme Court's ruling. Part this episode contains audio from WRAL

Jun 28, 202214 min

Give Sarah Keys Her Flowers Now

In this rebroadcast from November 24, 2021, host Lindsay Foster Thomas showcases WUNC military reporter Jay Price’s recent story about the seminal court case Keys v Carolina Coach Co , and the work of middle school social studies teacher Rodney Pierce in amplifying Keys’ legacy.

Jun 21, 202215 min

A fresh start for Black farmers

Leoneda Inge hears from Black farmers in the Triangle about their perseverance to bounce back during the pandemic and help the Black agricultural community.

Jun 16, 202213 min

The Hows, Whens, and Ifs of Offshore Wind

Host Celeste Gracia talks with fishermen, wind energy advocates and state regulators about the questions that remain in North Carolina's advancements toward offshore wind farms.

Jun 07, 202218 min

The pomp and joy of a HBCU graduation

Leoneda Inge reflects on her son's recent college graduation and speaks with Rebecca Stallworth Inge about being celebrated as the oldest graduate at Shaw University in the Class of 2022

May 26, 202214 min

How Consequential Are The 2022 Primaries?

This year’s primary elections in North Carolina were supposed to be in March. But a group of voters challenged the latest round of redistricting in court, arguing Republicans gave themselves an illegal partisan advantage. Now the new maps are in place, and the elections are set. They just need candidates.

May 17, 202220 min

Health Care Without Abortion Care

There's been a lot of talk about the political ramifications of the U.S. Supreme Court potentially overturning Roe v. Wade, but we wanted to explore what the decision would mean for women's health, particularly in North Carolina.

May 12, 202217 min

Living with long-haul COVID-19

Life is getting back to normal. But some doctors estimate that 30% of people who contracted the coronavirus will experience symptoms associated with "long-COVID." Some have had to drastically change their lives to deal with these symptoms, and doctors are still learning about how to treat these patients.

May 03, 202226 min

Schools Are Not Back To Normal

Teacher turnover. Burnout. Short-staffed schools. After two years in a pandemic, for many people, life is getting back to normal. But schools are not back to normal.

Apr 21, 202214 min

The birth of bluegrass

Among aficionados and fans of bluegrass, it's generally accepted that this quintessentially American genre of music was born in Nashville, Tennessee and was introduced by Earl Scruggs. But it's Kentuckian Bill Monroe who is known as the "Father of Bluegrass," not Scruggs. And just before Monroe went to the Grand Ole Opry, in 1939, he was performing regularly for a live 15-minute show called Mountain Music Time on WWNC, in Asheville, North Carolina.

Apr 19, 202217 min

Elizabeth City One Year After Andrew Brown's Death: Part 2

It was one year ago that sheriff’s deputies in Pasquotank County shot and killed Andrew Brown, Junior in Elizabeth City. Today, the small town in eastern North Carolina is at a crossroads. Elizabeth City and its surrounding community are on the brink of local elections that could determine which road they take.

Apr 14, 202219 min

Elizabeth City One Year After Andrew Brown's Death: Part 1

It was one year ago that sheriff’s deputies in Pasquotank County shot and killed Andrew Brown, Jr. The deputies were trying to serve arrest warrants on drug charges. They repeatedly fired into Brown’s car as he tried to steer it away from his home in Elizabeth City, N.C. Over the next two episodes of Tested, we'll take you down Highway 17 to where Elizabeth City stands one year later.

Apr 12, 202212 min

How Does NC Fit In To Offshore Wind Development?

Anyone who’s been to the Outer Banks knows that it’s windy out there. Like, really windy. That wind might be rough for beachgoers or kayakers, but it's great for producing electricity through offshore wind farms.

Apr 07, 202212 min