Nightside With Dan Rea

Jill Kornetsky’s story is not your average tale about a woman from New England. Jill is one of a handful of Americans who the Taliban allow to live and work in Afghanistan. The young woman is a Harvard-trained laboratory scientist, a Brandeis-trained social scientist, and a US Department of State and Melikian Center Graduate Fellow in Persian Language and Culture, who founded the non-profit organization, Homestead Afghanistan. Her mission is to “address the urgent need to generate employment, increase incomes at the family level, and improve the safety, security, and resilience of Afghanistan’s rural communities.” Jill joined us on NightSide to discuss her unique calling in life and what her non-profit is trying to achieve in Kabul, Afghanistan.Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset! 

We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!Combatting High Food Prices with a Free app (called Flashfood) that’s partnering with groceries stores to offer nutritious food at affordable prices. Esther Cohn - VP of Communications & Public Affairs at Flashfood joined Dan.James Brown Saves Boston Tribute Concert to be held April 5th at Prince Hall in Dorchester! Tony Wilson – aka Young James Brown -James Brown impersonator/performer checked in.MBTA's South Coast Rail Is Up and Running After 34 Years In The Making. Nichole Davis – WBZ NewsRadio Anchor stopped by!Beth Israel performs its first robot-assisted live liver transplant! Dr. Martin Dib – surgeon involved in the procedure and director of Beth Israel’s living liver transplant program explained.Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

Recent polling shows a conservative shift among our youngest voters, Gen Z, particularly among young men. What can the Democratic Party do to regain voters? Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has been rallying with Sen. Bernie Sanders trying to reach disenchanted Democrats. Do you think AOC is a good leadership choice for the Democratic Party to try to bridge the gap between voters and regain some of their base? Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

Recent polling shows a conservative shift among our youngest voters, Gen Z, particularly among young men. What can the Democratic Party do to regain voters? Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has been rallying with Sen. Bernie Sanders trying to reach disenchanted Democrats. Do you think AOC is a good leadership choice for the Democratic Party to try to bridge the gap between voters and regain some of their base?Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

The Boston City Council is toying with the idea of a new food delivery tax, that’s part of the city’s efforts to crackdown on food-app delivery drivers and their “dangerous” and at times “unlawful” driving. The Council is weighing an amendment to Boston Mayor Wu’s “road safety and accountability for delivery providers ordinance” that would add a 15-cent delivery fee per order for national third-party food delivery companies like Uber Eats, Grubhub, and others that operate in Boston. Opponents of the measure fear the tax would hurt consumers and restaurants. *The MA Restaurant Association declined our invitation to join. & Boston City Councilor Sharon Durkan did not return our request to join.*Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!Mark Epstein – Author of "Cape Dreams: A Season with the Brewster Whitecaps" joined Dan.New Analysis: NH Women's Pay Gap Larger Than National Average. Jessica Williams - Policy Analyst for New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute checked in.Abby Foster – Vice President of Policy and Advocacy for REAL (The Retail Advancement Energy League) on how consumers can save money by shopping for better electric rates, and why Mass. should keep this important consumer savings tool!Most workers say they’ve been ‘catfished’ into taking a job! With Meridith Elliott Powell – Turn Uncertainty into Opportunity.Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

For this week’s last broadcast hour of NightSide, we talk about dead retail chain stores that you wish you could revive! Which chain do you miss and why? Is it The Christmas Tree Shops? How about Bradlees or even Ames?Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

Get ready to talk about hidden restaurant gems and tasty food in and around the Boston area! Do you frequent a hidden restaurant that you’d like to recommend? Are you looking for a great Italian or Mexican place to eat? NBC 10 food writer Mark Hurwitz joined us to talk about hidden restaurants in Boston.Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

According to the 2025 World Happiness Record, published by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford, Finland is the happiest country in the world for a straight eighth year. The United States falls to its lowest-ever position in the happiness ranking at 24. Why do you think America isn’t higher up on the list? What are the contributing factors in society to happiness? What do you think we can we do in the U.S. to improve our "happiness"? Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!Amid Skyrocketing Antisemitism, New Provocative Billboards Raise Awareness. Two new billboards in Cambridge. Archie Gottesman – Co-Founder of JewBelong – the group who put up the billboards joined Dan.Does sleeping on an idea work?  Adam Horowitz- Former postdoctoral associate at MIT & sleep expert has the answer.Private equity exec and Mass. native William Chisholm purchases Celtics for record $6.1 billion. Bob Ryan – Retired Boston Globe Sports Columnist reacted. State Representative Kip Diggs along with the Cape & Islands Veterans Outreach Center is hosting A Salute to Women Veterans event in honor of Women’s History month. Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

The President signed an executive order aimed at dismantling the U.S. Department of Education. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told the media that the department will be “much smaller than it is today” however “when it comes to student loans and Pell Grants, those will still be run out of the Department of Education.” While Trump has made his intention to close the DOE clear, to fully dissolve the department would require an act from Congress. Do you think education oversight should return to the states?Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

The President signed an executive order aimed at dismantling the U.S. Department of Education. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told the media that the department will be “much smaller than it is today” however “when it comes to student loans and Pell Grants, those will still be run out of the Department of Education.” While Trump has made his intention to close the DOE clear, to fully dissolve the department would require an act from Congress. Do you think education oversight should return to the states?Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

It’s a nightmare on Blake Street, in the town of Waterbury, Connecticut where one local law enforcement officer says it’s “the worst treatment of humanity” he’s ever witnessed in 30 years of law enforcement. A 32-year-old man was rescued from his stepmother’s home, claiming he has been held captive in a room for two decades. The emaciated man set fire to his bedroom in the house in an attempt to be rescued from the debilitating conditions he was being held under. Dan discussed the details of this harrowing story!Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!FDA recalls some acne treatment products over benzene levels. What to know about benzene. Farah Moustafa, MD, Dermatologist and Director of Laser and Cosmetics at Tufts Medical Center joined Dan.Spring Clean Your Goals - Top trends, tips, and tools for tidying up all areas of your life. With Nick Burns – Google Tech Expert.Dustin Dunbar – The “Alcohol Matrix” - a web of lies and illusions that kept Dustin (and many others trapped) for years. Overcoming alcoholic addiction and your path to recovery. Author & psychologist Dustin Dunbar stopped by.Dina Readinger is co-author of Healing Healthcare: Evidence-Based Strategies for Mending our Broken System checked in with Dan.Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

The story out of Houston of the undocumented parents of a 10-year-old U.S. citizen battling brain cancer has gained national attention. The undocumented parents were detained at a border patrol checkpoint in Texas and removed from the U.S. to Mexico following the parents’ decision to take their children with them rather than separate. The family filed a complaint against Customs and Border Protection and are seeking humanitarian parole to return to the U.S. with their daughter so she can continue brain cancer treatment. Dan believes the Trump Administration should focus on criminals who are here illegally instead of separating migrant families such as this Houston family.Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

Earlier this week Israel launched “extensive” airstrikes in Gaza, reportedly killing hundreds of Palestinians and shattering a roughly two-month ceasefire with Hamas. The White House confirmed that the Trump Administration was consulted by the Israelis on their attacks in Gaza. Israeli Consul General to New England Benny Sharoni joined Dan to discuss the latest in the Israel/Hamas conflict.Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset! 

Trooper Michael Proctor, the lead investigator in the Karen Read case, has been fired, and dishonorably discharged by the Massachusetts State Police. The state police trial board found Proctor guilty of three charges of unsatisfactory performance and one charge of consumption of alcohol while on duty. Proctor’s family released a statement saying he is "human not corrupt, not incompetent in his role as a homicide detective, and certainly not unfit to continue to be a Massachusetts State Trooper.” Do you agree or disagree?Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!Managing Long Covid & One Woman’s Battle Combatting Long Covid. How she discovered Pain Reprocessing Therapy to rewire her brain.-She now runs a business called Less Stress Studios where she helps people with Long Covid, Anxiety, Depression & more! Ellen Alden – Founder of Less Stress Studios joined Dan.Alexa is getting creepier. Take this one step to improve your privacy. With Shira Ovide – Washington Post tech writer.Processed meats don’t just affect your heart. They may worsen cognition, too. Anahad O’Connor – Washington Post Health columnist explained.March is National Problem Gambling Awareness Month. Recent study finds gambling rates and the intensity of monthly gambling in the Commonwealth have increased. Marlene Warner – CEO of the MA Council on Gaming and Health checked in.Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

President Trump and Russian President Putin had a lengthy telephone call primarily about “the need for peace and a ceasefire in the Ukraine war.” According to the White House, "the leaders agreed that the movement to peace will begin with an energy and infrastructure ceasefire as well as technical negotiations on implementation of a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea, full ceasefire, and permanent peace." The negotiations will begin immediately. What are your thoughts on a bilateral relationship between the United States and Russia. Do you trust Putin/Russia? President Trump? Either of them?Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!

President Trump and Russian President Putin had a lengthy telephone call primarily about “the need for peace and a ceasefire in the Ukraine war.” According to the White House, "the leaders agreed that the movement to peace will begin with an energy and infrastructure ceasefire as well as technical negotiations on implementation of a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea, full ceasefire, and permanent peace." The negotiations will begin immediately. What are your thoughts on a bilateral relationship between the United States and Russia. Do you trust Putin/Russia? President Trump? Either of them?Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the NEW iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!