The News for 11/15/25
The content you hear on this program has not been reviewed by WRFL prior to broadcast and is produced under the discretion of its host DJs, and does not reflect the views of the University of Kentucky, WRFL, or its underwriters.
We’ll get back to the music on 120 Minutes in just a moment, but first, it’s 12:30 and it’s time to check the news, for this week, November 15th.
The Lexington Herald-Leader reports Friday that a University of Kentucky professor is now suing UK after it reassigned him and launched an investigation into him in July following comments he made related to advocating for the dismantling of Israel as a nation-state. The lawsuit filed in federal district court Friday by the tenured professor, Ramsi Woodcock, said his suspension “violates his First Amendment right of freedom of expression and his right to procedural due process,” discriminates against him, threatens the principles of the U.S. government, and degrades UK’s quality of education.
Woodcock said he was blocked from teaching two courses this fall and it’s caused a chilling effect within UK’s College of Law, preventing students and other faculty from speaking out. He said, “The problem here is that the university is abusing anti-discrimination structures that were put in place to address real problems of discrimination in order to engage in political persecution of speech,” alleging that UK’s investigation into him is unprecedented and that he was suspended because the administration “disagrees with the content” of his views on Israel and Palestine. The American Association of University Professors sided with Woodcock when he was reassigned this summer, according to the Herald-Leader. More on this story, including UK’s response, is available at kentucky.com.
Also in higher education news, the New York Times reported Thursday that the Texas A&M University System Regents have voted to restrict speech around race and gender in its classes. Texas A&M will now “ban advocacy of race or gender ideology, or topics related to sexual orientation or gender identity.” Texas A&M had previously fired a lecturer for teaching a course that recognized the existence of nonbinary gender, a move that led the president of Texas A&M to step down in September.
Meanwhile, the New York Times also reported on Friday that Indiana University removed a professor from teaching a graduate course in Social Work because she showed a graphic to her class citing Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan as an example of covert white supremacy. The professor, Jessica Adams, was removed after a complaint was filed under a new Indiana state law adopted last year that reflects efforts by IU officials to conform to the Trump administration’s priorities, the Times said. As we previously told you about on the show, Indiana was also the university that abruptly shut down the print edition of its student newspaper last month after 158 years. The recent moves have caused concern among faculty and supporters of academic freedom, according to the Times.
In other news, the federal government shutdown ended this week after 43 days when eight Senate Democrats defected and voted with the Republicans to reopen the government despite not receiving any major concessions that would have prevented the price of healthcare premiums from increasing dramatically next year, according to the Associated Press. Polls show the government shutdown was politically hurting Trump more than the Democrats, leading many on the left, including The Daily Show’s Jon Stewart on Monday, apoplectic at the Democrats for caving, alleging that the entire shutdown was for nothing and “I can’t f—ing believe it.”
Finally tonight, Lexington Herald-Leader columnist Linda Blackford wrote Tuesday about the U.S. Supreme Court declining an attempt by former Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis to overturn same-sex marriage in the United States. Blackford said that Davis and her team of lawyers are expected to try to delay paying out the $360,000 in damages that a jury ordered her to pay to plaintiffs who sued her for denying their marriage licenses. Davis herself has been married four times and has been challenging the law since 2015. Blackford said, “Here in Kentucky, I think there’s a majority of people who are tired of hearing about Kim Davis. Ten years is a hell of a long 15 minutes of fame. She needs to pay the bill and go home.”
And that’s… the news.
The News for 11/8/25
The content you hear on this program has not been reviewed by WRFL prior to broadcast and is produced under the discretion of its host DJs, and does not reflect the views of the University of Kentucky, WRFL, or its underwriters.
We’ll get back to the music on 120 Minutes in just a moment, but first, it’s 12:30 and it’s time to check the news, for this week, November 8th.
The Kentucky Kernel reported Tuesday that a group called Peaceful Bluegrass Resistance led a walk through campus earlier this week and said they were in protest against the University of Kentucky’s restrictions on free speech and constitutional rights. The organization vocalizes its support to UK faculty, staff and students who feel “pressured by UK’s administration to remain silent,” according to the Kernel. Its founder told the Kernel that UK’s actions are a “bend to the knee” toward the Trump administration and Project 2025 and go against the image and values that Kentucky should portray. Over the past year, UK has taken a litany of anti-diversity and anti-speech actions in what its administration says is an effort to comply with federal and state laws, most recently freezing the accounts of what it calls “identity-based” student organizations that are primarily run by minorities and preventing preferred name and gender updates on student records, as the Kernel reported last month.
In other news, elections were held across the country this week on Tuesday. As reported by the New York Times, democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City. Democrats were also elected as the governors of New Jersey and Virginia by wide margins over Republicans whose campaigns focused on anti-trans attack ads, and California’s proposition 50, which will redistrict the state with up to 5 extra seats in Congress for Democrats to counter against gerrymandering by Texas and other states, passed in a 2-to-1 landslide. These election results come on the heels of a new Washington Post poll out this week that shows Trump is underwater with the public on nearly every major issue. In commentary Tuesday night on MSNBC, anchor Chris Hayes expressed surprise at how he says major institutions and corporations continue to be compliant and surrender to a president that is unpopular and only won his own election by 1 1/2 percentage points last year.
New York Times columnist M. Gessen wrote on Friday about the Supreme Court this week allowing Trump’s executive order to go into effect that requires U.S. passports to list the earliest assigned sex at birth of the person rather than their current or accurate sex or gender. Gessen said, “But if the new rule weakens passports’ manifest function, it greatly strengthens their other function: as a tool to enforce a gendered social hierarchy and to punish those who do not conform to it.”
In media news, The Guardian reported last week that the widely respected CBS News anchor John Dickerson is leaving the network after 16 years. His departure follows the recent appointment of right-leaning contrarian Bari Weiss as the new editor-in-chief of CBS News by David Ellison, the new billionaire CEO of Paramount Skydance. CBS News also laid off 100 employees last week in what The Guardian refers to as a bloodbath.
Here at home, Lexington Herald-Leader columnist Linda Blackford wrote on Wednesday that the federal government shutdown for the past month has restricted access to SNAP, the most basic aid to help people buy groceries. The temporary closure has sparked lawsuits, strained local food banks, and put 600,000 of Kentucky’s most vulnerable citizens at more risk of hunger and malnutrition, Blackford said. She also reported that the Center for Economic Policy estimates as many as 114,000 Kentuckians could lose SNAP benefits altogether soon thanks to Trump’s 2025 budget bill. Last year, Trump got 64% of the vote in Kentucky.
Finally tonight, ABC News reported Friday that the death toll has now risen to 13 after a UPS plane departing the Louisville airport crashed and went up in flames earlier this week. Although unrelated, this comes at the same time that the Federal Aviation Administration is gradually reducing air traffic at dozens of the nation’s busiest airports by 10%. NPR reported on Friday that Thanksgiving air travel, which can be a headache any year, it says, is “one big question mark as the shutdown stretches on.”
And that’s… the news.
The News for 10/25/25
The content you hear on this program has not been reviewed by WRFL prior to broadcast and is produced under the discretion of its host DJs, and does not reflect the views of the University of Kentucky, WRFL, or its underwriters.
We’ll get back to the music on 120 Minutes in just a moment, but first, it’s 12:30 and it’s time once again to check the news, for this week, October 25th.
The New York Times reported on Wednesday that 7 of the 9 universities pressured by the Trump administration to sign a compact to receive federal funding have rejected it. Of the universities targeted, only the University of Texas system appeared to be willing to accept the compact that would prevent certain teaching that goes against conservative ideas. Meanwhile, the University of Virginia, although it rejected the compact, struck a separate deal with the Trump administration this week that at least temporarily removed the threat of federal investigations, but in exchange, UVA had to agree to end any admission-related programs that promote racial diversity.
In other news, the Lexington-Herald Leader reported on Monday that thousands of people attended Lexington’s No Kings rally last Saturday at the Courthouse Plaza downtown, which was just one of over 2,500 demonstrations across the country last weekend that attracted a total of an estimated 7 to 10 million people. Attendees reported a cathartic atmosphere at the events, being surrounded by a sea of other people in their local communities who oppose the litany of oppressive actions being taken by the Trump administration.
After the No Kings rallies last weekend, Trump posted an AI-generated fake video of himself wearing a king’s crown and dropping large amounts of feces on American people and cities, and then he proceeded in real life this week to demolish the entire East Wing of the White House, which was originally built in 1902, to make way for his gold-themed ballroom, according to the Associated Press.
This comes at a time when the federal government continues to be shut down, many federal workers are going without pay, SNAP benefits are under threat starting in November, the National Guard has been deployed by Trump in multiple U.S. states against the will of their governors, and his ICE and Border Patrol agents continue to target largely people of color in cities across the country.
According to CNN, a new poll released this week by PRRI shows that 56% of Americans agree with the statement that Trump is a “potentially dangerous dictator whose power should be limited before he destroys democracy”, with only 41% disagreeing with that statement.
Following up on some news that we told you about on the show a couple of weeks ago, the students behind the former WCSB radio station that was abruptly shut down after 50 years by Cleveland State University earlier this month have received some critical support from their city. ABC News 5 Cleveland reported on Tuesday that the city council unanimously passed a resolution urging CSU to give the station back to the students and community. However, the CSU administration responded by saying it has no such plans. The students have launched a website where they plan to share further developments, at xcsb.org.
If you missed our show last week, we also brought you some important news about UK stopping financial support for what it calls “identity-based” student organizations that are primarily run by minorities, as well as ending gender-inclusive housing, and halting any updates to students’ preferred name or gender and pronouns in university records. That news was originally reported by the Kentucky Kernel, and more details can be found on their website at kykernel.com.
Finally tonight, some music news, we’re sad to report that Dave Ball, the electronic music pioneer who was one half of the British synth-pop duo Soft Cell, died at his home in London on Wednesday at the age of 66, according to Soft Cell’s website. At the end of the show tonight at 1:45, we’ll be airing a cult classic from Soft Cell.
And that’s… the news.
The News for 10/18/25
The content you hear on this program has not been reviewed by WRFL prior to broadcast and is produced under the discretion of its host DJs, and does not reflect the views of the University of Kentucky, WRFL, or its underwriters.
We’ll get back to the music on 120 Minutes in just a moment, but first, it’s 12:30 and it’s time once again to check the news, for this week, October 18th.
The Kentucky Kernel reports Friday that the University of Kentucky has quietly pulled support from identity-based student organizations, eliminated gender-inclusive housing, and halted preferred name and gender updates on student records—all without formal announcement. Students discovered the changes only after their organizations’ bank accounts were frozen and their housing and name and gender update requests were denied.
The Kernel cites a recent meeting of engineering students where minority groups were told they’d lose access to funding, faculty advisors, and dedicated space. UK says these moves are due to Kentucky House Bill 4 and federal guidance, but students say the cuts disproportionately target and eliminate minority-led groups.
Trans and nonbinary students at UK who relied on gender-inclusive housing now face uncertainty—and in some cases, potentially unsafe living situations, where they’ll be housed only by assigned sex at birth, even if their physiology or identity has changed.
UK’s registrar has also stopped allowing preferred name or gender updates in student records and class rosters, forcing students to be outed to professors and classmates unless they’ve completed an exhaustive legal process, which most younger students have not. Students who tried to make changes after Friday, October 10th were denied.
Despite the sweeping impact, UK has yet to publish any policy or notify students directly. Faculty say students are overwhelmed and confused while calling for basic clarity, the Kernel reported. A joint statement from affected student organizations is reportedly in the works.
In other news, the Indiana Daily Student reported Wednesday that Indiana University in Bloomington abruptly shut down its physical paper this week, which had been in print since 1867. It started Tuesday when IU fired its director of student media after he refused a demand from the administration to stop printing news that doesn’t directly promote university events. IU then ended all printing of the Daily Student after 158 years. Student editors called it unlawful censorship and said, “To cut print entirely is a clear, blatant reaction to our protests.”
Also this week, The Wrap reported Wednesday that NBC News laid off its reporters who covered news affecting minority groups—Black, Asian, Latino, and LGBTQ communities. 150 employees were laid off, and the editorial teams for those verticals were dissolved.
The Associated Press reported Wednesday that dozens of reporters from major news outlets turned in their access badges and walked out of the Pentagon, refusing new restrictions imposed by the Trump administration. This effectively removes journalists who cover the U.S. military from the seat of its power.
The New York Times reported Friday that MIT and Brown—2 of 9 universities targeted by Trump to sign a compact securing federal funding—rejected the proposal, which would have required them to abolish units that go against conservative ideas.
Finally tonight, in an op-ed Thursday for the Lexington Herald Leader, Georgetown professor Robert Curran addressed the current situation, saying, “An administration that lives by violence and intimidation is no longer making even a token effort to disguise their ultimate goal – to make America white again by whatever means it takes.” There will be another series of No Kings protests held across the country on Saturday, that’s later today. Lexington’s protest will be held downtown at the Courthouse Plaza, on the corner of Limestone and Main Street, starting at 1pm.
And that’s… the news.
The News for 10/11/25
The content you hear on this program has not been reviewed by WRFL prior to broadcast and is produced under the discretion of its host DJs, and does not reflect the views of the University of Kentucky, WRFL, or its underwriters.
We’ll get back to the music on 120 Minutes in just a moment, but first, it’s 12:30 and it’s time to check the news, for this week, October 11th.
The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported on Wednesday that WCSB, which was the student-run radio station at Cleveland State University for the past 50 years, was abruptly pulled off the air last Friday when CSU’s board of trustees transferred the ownership of WCSB’s frequency in Northeast Ohio to a company called Ideastream Media, which immediately replaced the human-curated programming of the station with an automated loop of jazz music. Ideastream had made a deal with CSU to offer internships, and in exchange, CSU handed over control of the FM station, ending 50 years of local music history in an instant with no warning.
The students at WCSB who operated the station were blindsided by the news, with Cleveland State only informing them of the shutdown in a brief Zoom call that happened after they had already pulled WCSB’s programming off the air. The sudden cancellation sparked outrage in the community at CSU and around Cleveland, with multiple protests and events mourning the loss of WCSB being held this week. For its part, the CSU administration seemed not to care, with CSU president Laura Bloomberg issuing a statement that said the Ideastream deal is part of CSU’s strategic plan.
At a time when many other organizations have begun to capitulate to increasing political pressure, WCSB was known for standing strong in its beliefs. The former station’s Instagram account, now known as XCSB Cleveland, showed that the organization valued giving back to the community, specifically making a point of offering local music events at no cost to attendees, and members of the organization were outspoken about political issues.
WCSB’s general manager was an out trans woman, and the station appears to have prided itself on publicly standing up for the rights of minorities, often using its platform to directly challenge anti-diversity actions taken by CSU as a result of recent legislation in Ohio, as well as holding advocacy events around campus for various social causes. At this time, it’s unclear whether the public disconnect between WCSB and Cleveland State’s administration had anything to do with it getting abruptly pulled off the air.
WRUW, another radio station in Cleveland run by Case Western Reserve University, has vowed to help fill the void left behind by the loss of WCSB, offering to share available time slots with its former members.
In other news, Kentucky’s House Bill 4, passed earlier this year, continues to rear its head in new and interesting ways as the University of Kentucky sent out a government-mandated voluntary survey to all staff members on Thursday about “Intellectual Freedom and Viewpoint Diversity”. However, the survey only contains 4 multiple-choice questions about the level of exposure to and freedom to express ideological and political viewpoints, with no delineation between what kind of viewpoints those might be, and no opportunity for respondents to elaborate. According to the trade publication Insight into Academia, a professor at the University of Louisville said “poorly constructed surveys can lead to misleading data and policy decisions based on unreliable findings.”
Finally tonight, the New York Times reported on Wednesday that Donald Trump once again renewed his attacks on free speech this week, bragging in extraordinary and false remarks that he “took the freedom of speech away”, at the same time that his ICE and Border Patrol agents continue to terrorize people in Chicago and arrest journalists for reporting on the scene. He claimed that he signed an executive order making it a crime punishable by a year in prison to set fire to an American flag. “But the actual order he signed, prepared by his legal staff, said nothing of the sort. Instead, it acknowledges a 1989 Supreme Court ruling that protesting government policies, even if onlookers may find that conduct offensive, is political expression protected by the First Amendment.”
And that’s… the news.