Steve Kraske
Executive Producer and Host, Up to DateWhen I host Up To Date each morning at 9, my aim is to engage the community in conversations about the Kansas City area’s challenges, hopes and opportunities. I try to ask the questions that listeners want answered about the day’s most pressing issues and provide a place for residents to engage directly with newsmakers. Reach me at steve@kcur.org or on Twitter @stevekraske.
I got a call out of the blue one day from then-news director Frank Morris who asked if he would be interested in hosting a show. I didn't think I had the time, but thought it over and decided to give it a shot. Now, more than 20 years later, I'm glad I did.
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Kansas City Council voted last week to make Mario Vasquez, a longtime city employee, as the new city manager. Vasquez joined KCUR's Up To Date to discuss his new role and his vision for Kansas City. -
Thousands of military members are pending discharge from the military after President Trump's ban on transgender people was allowed to go into effect. One Army major stationed at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, tells Up To Date why she'll continue to resist the ban. -
Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson visited Kansas City on Thursday to accept the Good Neighbor Award from the Truman Foundation. She joined KCUR's Up To Date to discuss what it is like to be a justice in this politically-charged era of government as well as her bestselling autobiography "Lovely One." -
Arts organization in Kansas City are under financial pressure after the Trump administration rescinded grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. Spinning Tree Theatre is one of hundreds of organizations who were notified by email last week that their grant had been withdrawn. -
In "The Psychology of Liberty: Reclaiming Everyday Freedom," University of Kansas professor Dr. Barbara Kerr defines freedom as having the time to play, gossip and create in community — all activities our ancient ancestors prioritized. -
On Wednesday, cardinals — some of the highest-ranking clergy — will sequester to choose a new pope for the Catholic Church. Here's how the process works, and how it compares to the way it was depicted in the 2024 film "Conclave." -
President Trump signed an executive order directing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to immediately cut funding for NPR and its member stations. KCUR's general manager and interim director of content explain what we know about the impact to KCUR and Classical KC. -
The senior U.S. senator from Missouri is known for his raised fist in solidarity with Trump supporters on January 6, and he was the first Republican senator to object to the 2020 election results. He's also positioned himself as a champion of working class Americans. -
The changing political landscape around clean energy makes for an uncertain future for Kansas students training for jobs at the multi-billion-dollar Panasonic Energy plant in De Soto, Kansas. -
The ProspectUS plan lays out guidelines for the city to invest in the neighborhoods along Prospect Avenue — without displacing neighbors who live there.
