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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Missouri's health department found that the vast majority of maternal deaths were preventable, and resulted from a lack of care in the months after birth. Cardiologist Dr. Anna Grodzinsky navigated her own high-risk pregnancies, and she explains what our medical system is missing. -
Republican leaders in the Kansas Legislature want to follow the lead of states like Texas and Missouri by gerrymandering the state's congressional maps to favor Republicans. U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, a Democrat who represents the state's 3rd district, says the idea of splitting up Johnson County is "ludicrous." -
National Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated from September 15 to October 15. Consul Soileh Padilla Mayer, who leads the Mexican Consulate in Kansas City, is spending this month making sure that Latino residents are being treated fairly around the metro, especially as the Trump administration ramps up deportation efforts. -
Jackson County residents will decide Tuesday, Sept. 30, on whether to recall County Executive Frank White Jr. Proponents and opponents shared their perspectives ahead of the vote, and explain what will happen if White gets recalled. -
When Overland Park-raised journalist Dave Jorgenson was hired at The Washington Post, reaching a younger audience was his mission. So he created the newspaper’s TikTok, dressed up in costumes, and delivered the headlines in a different way. He spoke with KCUR's Up To Date about how he got his start, and his new company Local News International. -
A new three-part investigative series from The Kansas City Star highlights the rise of the drug 7-OH — a highly concentrated opioid-like substance derived from kratom — and the role of a Kansas City company in its growing popularity. -
Scott Poore, founder of On A Mission KC, helps overlooked pets find a home and provides resources for rural animal shelters. It recently earned him the Spirit of Service award from the Kansas City Animal Health Corridor, which came with a check for $20,000 to continue his work. -
Kevin Willmott is best known for his Oscar-winning movie “BlacKkKlansman.” But his breakout film “CSA: Confederate States of America” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival nearly two decades ago — and marked a turning point in his career. Willmott credits festival founder Robert Redford, who died this week, with helping thousands of filmmakers like him. -
President Donald Trump’s travel ban and delays in visa applications have blocked some international students from coming to the U.S. to study this fall. International students contribute more than $40 billion to the U.S. economy and could equate to a billion dollar loss to schools and the local communities they serve. -
NPR fans will recognize Bill Kurtis from the weekend game show “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me!” But his nearly six-decade career in journalism launched in Topeka, Kansas, when he warned viewers about an incoming tornado.
