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On Point
Weekdays at 7pm on RADIO IQ
Hosted by Meghna Chakrabarti

On Point unites distinct and provocative voices with passionate discussion as it confronts the stories that are at the center of what is important in the world today. Leaving no perspective unchallenged, On Point digs past the surface and into the core of a subject, exposing each of its real world implications.

Each hour of the broadcast opens with a news brief analyzing the day's biggest stories, followed by an in-depth conversation decoding a single topic with newsmakers, thinkers, and callers, and closes with compelling personal reactions to news and important issues, including radio diaries, excerpts from speeches, or special series segments.

 

On Point episodes
  • TOPSHOT - Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg arrives to testify before a joint hearing of the US Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee and Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, April 10, 2018 in Washington, DC. Zuckerberg, making his first formal appearance at a Congressional hearing, seeks to allay widespread fears ignited by the leaking of private data on tens of millions of users to British firm Cambridge Analytica working on Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
    Your data, the U.S. government and the 'new American surveillance state'
    Your exact location, what apps you use, the last thing you bought online. Your data is for sale – and the U.S. government is buying it. About: On Point is WBUR’s award-winning, daily public radio show and podcast. Every weekday, host Meghna Chakrabarti leads provocative conversations that help make sense of the world.
  • An empty vaccine waiting room in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne.
    The ethical dilemma of involuntary mental health treatment
    Several states have changed policy in recent years to make involuntary commitment easier for people with severe mental illnesses. But forced treatment still raises civil rights questions, with some saying it can harm patients. About: On Point is WBUR’s award-winning, daily public radio show and podcast. Every weekday, host Meghna Chakrabarti leads provocative conversations that help make sense of the world.
  • VANDALIA, OHIO - MARCH 16: Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump greets Ohio Republican candidate for US Senate Bernie Moreno during a rally at the Dayton International Airport on March 16, 2024 in Vandalia, Ohio. The rally was hosted by the Buckeye Values PAC. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
    Battleground: How the outcome of the Ohio Senate race affects us all
    The 2024 Ohio senate contest could determine the balance of power in of the U.S. senate. What’s at stake in Ohio? Karen Kasler, Christopher Devine and Tim Ryan join Anthony Brooks. About: On Point is WBUR’s award-winning, daily public radio show and podcast. Every weekday, host Meghna Chakrabarti leads provocative conversations that help make sense of the world.
  • CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE - JANUARY 23: Voters cast their ballots in the New Hampshire presidential primary election at The Barn at Bull Meadow on January 23, 2024 in Concord, New Hampshire. With Florida Governor Ron DeSantis dropping out of the race two days earlier, Republican presidential candidates former President Donald Trump and former UN Ambassador and former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley are battling it out in this first-in-the-nation primary. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
    How the 2024 U.S. presidential election could be stolen
    There are several perfectly legal ways to steal a U.S. presidential election, according to election law expert Lawrence Lessig. Lessig says the U.S.’s election and legal systems are vulnerable – and need immediate correction. About: On Point is WBUR’s award-winning, daily public radio show and podcast. Every weekday, host Meghna Chakrabarti leads provocative conversations that help make sense of the world.
  • TOPSHOT - Former US President Donald Trump sits in New York State Supreme Court during the civil fraud trial against the Trump Organization, in New York City on January 11, 2024. Trump's legal team will deliver closing arguments January 11 in the fraud case after the judge barred the former president from using the trial finale as an election campaign grandstand. (Photo by Peter Foley / POOL / AFP) (Photo by PETER FOLEY/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
    The Jackpod: How it looks to a Republican
    On Point news analyst Jack Beatty reviews the evidence that former President Donald Trump’s multiple criminal prosecutions are politically motivated. About: On Point is WBUR’s award-winning, daily public radio show and podcast. Every weekday, host Meghna Chakrabarti leads provocative conversations that help make sense of the world.
  • ALEXANDRIA, VA- OCT 05: Middle school cross-country runners take off in a group training session (girls and boys run together) at Sandburg Middle School in Alexandria, Virginia on October 05, 2023. Fairfax schools launched middle school athletics to support students. This will be the first time the school division has offered this age group a chance to participate in extracurricular sports programs. School leaders hope that the introduction will help boost mental and physical health among students. (Photo by Michael S. Williamson/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
    The high cost of the youth sports arms race
    Youth sports are supposed to be about fun and team spirit. But now, kids are training year-round and joining expensive travel leagues earlier. It’s costing families, and kids too. About: On Point is WBUR’s award-winning, daily public radio show and podcast. Every weekday, host Meghna Chakrabarti leads provocative conversations that help make sense of the world.
  • WHEAT RIDGE, CO - OCTOBER 31: Megan Nix share a quiet moment with her daughter Anna Wiedel (16 months) at their home October 313, 2016 in Wheat Ridge. Anna has CMV, a virus contracted in utero that caused her to be born deaf. Nix is writing about how CMV is more prevalent than anyone knows, and how doctors are not warning pregnant mothers. (Photo By John Leyba/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
    Rebroadcast: The little-known virus behind a majority of nongenetic birth defects
    One virus causes more birth defects in American babies than any other nongenetic disease – but most don’t know it exists. We hear a mother’s journey to understand her daughter’s diagnosis of congenital CMV. About: On Point is WBUR’s award-winning, daily public radio show and podcast. Every weekday, host Meghna Chakrabarti leads provocative conversations that help make sense of the world.
  • US President Joe Biden joins Israel's Prime Minister for the start of the Israeli war cabinet meeting, in Tel Aviv on October 18, 2023, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. US President Joe Biden landed in Tel Aviv on October 18, 2023 as Middle East anger flared after hundreds were killed when a rocket struck a hospital in war-torn Gaza, with Israel and the Palestinians quick to trade blame. (Photo by Miriam Alster / POOL / AFP) (Photo by MIRIAM ALSTER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
    Democrats consider changing course on Israel support
    President Biden told Israel the humanitarian situation in Gaza is unacceptable and an immediate ceasefire is essential. Meanwhile, U.S. weaponry continues to flow to Israel. Could Biden back up his tough talk and curtail military aid? About: On Point is WBUR’s award-winning, daily public radio show and podcast. Every weekday, host Meghna Chakrabarti leads provocative conversations that help make sense of the world.
  • The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution (Chinese: _____), was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976. Set into motion by Mao Zedong, then Chairman of the Communist Party of China, its stated goal was to enforce socialism in the country by removing capitalist, traditional and cultural elements from Chinese society, and impose Maoist orthodoxy within the Party. The revolution marked the return of Mao Zedong to a position of political power, after he lost most of his political influence after his failed Great Leap Forward. Using only his name and credibility, he used the controlled anarchy of the cultural revolution to remove his inner-party opponents, most notably China`s president Liu Shaoqi. The movement brought chaos, as social norms largely evaporated and the previously established political institutions disintegrated at all levels of government. The Revolution was launched in May 1966. Mao alleged that bourgeois elements were entering the government and society at large, aiming to restore capitalism. He insisted that these 'revisionists' be removed through violent class struggle. China's youth then responded to Mao's appeal by forming Red Guard groups around the country. The movement then spread into the military, urban workers, and the Communist Party leadership itself. It resulted in widespread factional struggles in all walks of life. In the top leadership, it led to a mass purge of senior officials who were accused of deviating from the socialist path, most notably Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping. During the same period Mao's personality cult grew to immense proportions. The Cultural Revolution damaged the country on a great scale economically and socially. Millions of people were persecuted in the violent factional struggles that ensued across the country, and suffered a wide range of abuses including torture, rape, imprisonment, sustained harassment, and s
    China’s divided memory of the Cultural Revolution
    "3 Body Problem," a Netflix adaptation of the Chinese sci-fi novel by the same name, is causing controversy in China for its depiction of the Cultural Revolution. How do the Chinese people see this crucial period of their history? About: On Point is WBUR’s award-winning, daily public radio show and podcast. Every weekday, host Meghna Chakrabarti leads provocative conversations that help make sense of the world.
  • Group of young adults, photographed from above, on various painted tarmac surface, at sunrise.
    How to become a 'supercommunicator'
    As humans, we have conversations all the time. But research shows we actually aren’t very good at communicating. Journalist Charles Duhigg shows us not only how to become a communicator -- but a 'supercommunicator.' About: On Point is WBUR’s award-winning, daily public radio show and podcast. Every weekday, host Meghna Chakrabarti leads provocative conversations that help make sense of the world.
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