John O'Brien
Producer, Speakers Forum
About
John O’Brien produces Speakers Forum at KUOW. He learned to love radio as a child waking up one summer morning to the harmonies of Simon and Garfunkel. As a teenager, he would drive the back roads of Indiana and Michigan late at night listening to vintage radio theater. The question of whether or not he had the legal right to drive then remains a mystery. Only The Shadow knows. Inspired by a chance meeting with Noah Adams, he learned to make radio as an intern on KUOW’s The Conversation with Ross Reynolds. John has been recording talks for Speakers Forum since 2007. Early on he learned Seattle is a Mecca for any touring speaker because Seattleites read so much, support a wide variety of venues and ask smart questions. He says that makes his job easy and always interesting. John is a graduate of St. Johns College in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Podcasts
Stories
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Speakers Forum
How a UW course captured the impact of an unprecedented year
Reflections on 2020 help point to bridges forward
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KUOW Newsroom
‘As a police officer, I have to be able to say I am sorry’
'Every one of these situations, you could see yourself there.'
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Speakers Forum
Gather ‘round for a roguish, timeless Christmas tale
A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story of Christmas
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KUOW Newsroom
Will there be repercussions for frivolous Trump election lawsuits? UW law professor says yes
‘In about 10 minutes, I identified at least eight separate sections of those rules that one or the other, or all of these lawyers have violated.’
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Speakers Forum
Jill Lepore on the ethically challenged birth of the computer age
'These men are going out to build a machine to understand how humans think and feel and would behave, and they don’t understand their wives and they don’t understand their children.'
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Speakers Forum
Where a booming oil market meets wind and solar alternatives, geopolitics happens
‘Peak oil, at this point, it looks like it’s around 2030, which used to sound far away, but it isn’t anymore.’
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KUOW Newsroom
Ways to give amid spiking food insecurity: money, food, time
‘Last year, 1.1 million Washingtonians had turned to a food pantry for hunger relief and food assistance. This year, we expect that that number has doubled to 2.2 million, or approximately a third of our state.’
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Speakers Forum
The 'Seattle Process' in 2020. Are we becoming ungovernable?
‘Seattle is not silent. Seattle is not submissive. Seattle is not unthinking. Seattle will not be exploited, and Seattle is not obedient.’
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Speakers Forum
Connection and restoration in the PNW, Ampersand-style
‘If you want to take up space, first see how small you are.’
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KUOW Newsroom
Promising vaccine results amid spike in COVID-19 cases
The pharmaceutical company Pfizer, has released promising news in regards to a Covid-19 vaccine. During the companies' COVID-19 vaccine trials, early analysis shows their vaccine is more than 90% effective at preventing the virus. This news is timely as the United States and Washington State are currently heading into the biggest surge of coronavirus cases yet. Dr. Vinay Gupta is a pulmonologist and critical care physician at the University of Washington. He joined us to discuss the potential Covid-19 vaccine and rising cases in Washington state.