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Central Standard

Hidden Figures (Repeat)

In a show inspired by the film Hidden Figures, we hear local stories, like the story of Ed Dwight, a KCK native, came close to being the black man on a multiracial mission to the moon dreamed up by John F. Kennedy. This show has been rebroadcast, in 2020, as a tribute to the memory of NASA mathematician Katherine Goble Johnson, whose huge role in historic space launches was not well-known until Hidden Figures came out. She died this week at the age of 101.
 
Guests:
 

  • Ed Dwight, first African-American to train as an astronaut for NASA
  • Joanna Slusky, Assistant Professor, Department of Molecular Biosciences at KU
  • Russ Simmons, resident film critic
  • Shawn Edwards, Fox 4 News film critic and co-founder of the African-American Film Critics Association
People don't make cameos in news stories; the human story is the story, with characters affected by news events, not defined by them. As a columnist and podcaster, I want to acknowledge what it feels like to live through this time in Kansas City, one vantage point at a time. Together, these weekly vignettes form a collage of daily life in Kansas City as it changes in some ways, and stubbornly resists change in others. You can follow me on Twitter @GinaKCUR or email me at gina@kcur.org.
Melody Rowell is the lead producer for KCUR’s Central Standard. You can find her on Twitter at @MelodyRowell, or by email at melody@kcur.org.
As KCUR's health reporter, I cover the Kansas City metro in a way that reflects our expanding understanding of what health means and the ways it touches different communities and different areas in distinct ways. I will provide a platform to amplify ideas and issues often underrepresented in the media and marginalized people and communities in an authentic and honest way that goes beyond the surface of the issues. I will endeavor to find and include in my work local experts and organizations that have their ears to the ground and a beat on the health needs of the community. Reach me at noahtaborda@kcur.org.