Up To Date

Darryl Burton was exonerated, but found even more hurdles outside of prison trying to find housing and a job. Burton is the co-founder of Miracle of Innocence, a Missouri nonprofit that provides legal aid and reentry services, which is holding its ninth annual fundraiser in September.

On “Burn Again,” his second solo record as Warren Burns, Kansas City folk artist Danny Fischer works through difficult life experiences and comes out better on the other side. 

While some Kansas City businesses have reported sales slowed significantly during the tournament, others — like barbecue restaurants and local merch shops — have seen extreme demand from visitors. World Cup traffic has been highly dependent on what businesses sell and where they’re located.

Author Craig Fehrman will be at the Kansas City Public Library later this month for a conversation about his new book "This Vast Enterprise: A New History of Lewis & Clark."

One thing Sandy Spidel Neumann learned during her 40-year career in financial services is that you can’t throw money at a problem. The Kansas Democrat said she’ll use her business background to make data-informed decisions. Spidel Neumann is one of 11 candidates on the Aug. 4 primary ballot for the U.S. Senate.

Erik Murray, a U.S. Senate candidate from Kansas City, Kansas, hasn’t run for office before but touted his experience with federal policies around affordable housing tax credits and opportunity zones. He criticized Sen. Roger Marshall for simply “smiling and nodding” as President Trump grows the deficit.

New analysis from Ballotpedia suggests that Republicans in Missouri and Kansas are at risk of losing their supermajorities. KCUR's Up To Date spoke with political scientists on both sides of the state line about what it would ultimately mean and whether or not it is actually likely.

Nearly four and a half decades after the infamous "Disgrace of Gijón" effectively eliminated Algeria from the 1982 World Cup, the Algerians and Austrians are set to meet again on the final day of the group stage in Kansas City. 

Released this month, “J’Day” is Kansas City-based musician Jamogi Bridges’s first full-length album. Inspired by early-2000s pop and R&B, Bridges says he wants his songs to bring joy to listeners.

After Congress passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act this week, President Trump said he wouldn't sign it into law unless an unrelated bill focused on voting restrictions was also passed. Congresswoman Sharice Davids joined Up To Date to share her reaction to the situation and to discuss what could come next.

Doug Frost is one of only three people in the world to hold both the titles of master sommelier and master of wine. He joined KCUR’s Up to Date to share a selection of wines with connections to teams staying or playing in Kansas City during the World Cup.

If they heed the warnings, people in Kansas City have taken shelter more than usual this season — the 1,438 severe weather warnings issued so far is the most on record. But staffing cuts to the National Weather Service have resulted in less warning time for some storm systems.

With the World Cup underway in Kansas City, Oliver Wright — who makes videos on TikTok as @SideQuestDad — has become a local celebrity talking about soccer and living in the Midwest as a Brit. In particular, he’s been teaching visitors how to beat the oppressive summer heat.

De Soto Mayor Rick Walker says revenue from a planned $3 billion data center campus is an opportunity to grow the city. But one resident is concerned that leaders are moving too fast and not weighing the negative impacts on the community and environment.

John Dale, the longtime public address announcer for Sporting Kansas City, the Kansas City Mavericks and countless local sporting events, is now bringing his voice to World Cup matches at the stadium in Monterrey, Mexico.

First-term Kansas state Sen. Patrick Schmidt said the issues facing residents are greater than what can be addressed at the state level. Calling himself the “door-knockingest candidate in the race,” Schmidt is competing in the crowded Democratic primary for U.S. Senate.

Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe

A new report from Missouri State Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick paints a troubling picture of Missouri's financial future. He joined KCUR's Up To Date to discuss the budget cliff the state is facing and how he wants his fellow elected officials to respond.

World Cup recap

Eleven candidates are running as Democrats in the August 4 primary for U.S. Senate in Kansas. Christy Davis, a candidate from Cottonwood Falls, Kan., said the number of hopefuls is indicative of Republican U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall’s failure to represent Kansans. Davis said she’s the only candidate who served in a federal leadership role and with “experience cleaning up the messes of Donald J. Trump.”  

Youth soccer programs seem almost ubiquitous in modern America. But not that long ago, there weren’t many options at all for young athletes who wanted to play the sport. Bill Finn, who co-founded Brookside Soccer Club with two other local dads in 1977, joined KCUR’s Up To Date on Tuesday to talk about how it all got started.

NPR CEO Katherine Maher joined KCUR's Up To Date to discuss recent buyouts at NPR and an opportunity for public media to evolve into a broader community resource in the coming years.

The Crossroads Arts District is the metro’s biggest hub for creativity, and its restaurant scene is just the same, with innovative dishes available on seemingly every corner. Here’s where to find the best eats this neighborhood has to offer.

Two Kansas state senators and Overland Park’s mayor are facing off in the Aug. 4 primary election for Kansas governor. The gubernatorial candidates joined KCUR’s Up To Date live from the Overland Park Farmers Market to discuss how they’d address issues affecting Kansans if elected governor. 

Rev. Adam Hamiliton thinks that faith can play a role in turning the political tide towards Democrats during the midterm elections. The Leawood pastor spoke with KCUR’s Up To Date about the issues important to him in his run for a Kansas U.S. Senate seat, and about bridging the divide in Washington.

Last weekend, the Overland Park Farmers Market reopened after a major $33.92 million renovation project. The Parks & Recreation director of Overland Park, Bryan Toben, joined KCUR's Up To Date to explain what went into the project and what the visitors can expect.

For more than 35 years, Cliff Middleton has been fighting to free his father from a Missouri prison for a crime they say he didn’t commit. In 1991, Ken Middleton was convicted of murdering his wife in their Blue Springs home, but the Georgetown University Law Center program “Making an Exoneree” reinvestigated and noted glaring discrepancies with his case.

The streetcar’s 3.5-mile Main Street extension opened in October 2025, and another extension to CPKC Stadium opened last month. A team is now studying extending the north-south line farther, to North Kansas City. The Kansas City Streetcar Authority will host two open houses this month for residents to learn more.

For Kelly Hunt, writing music starts with a visual process. For some other artists, just fiddling around with an instrument leads to a chord progression that sets the music writing process in motion. The 780 Songwriters Circle, a quarterly event in Lawrence, brings together artists to share what goes into creating a song and album, and when they know a track isn’t coming together. 

An ordinance proposed by Mayor Quinton Lucas and 6th District City Council member Johnathan Duncan would restrict practitioners from receiving payment for practices that increase the risk of suicide and depression. It’s intended to avoid challenges stemming from a U.S. Supreme Court ruling and a lawsuit from the Missouri Attorney General.

Kansas’ Ogallala Aquifer has been losing water for decades. And while dedicating funding to a strategic water plan was a priority of Kelly’s during the 2026 legislative session, no measure passed. But she’s optimistic the state will continue to make progress after she leaves office in January.

Looking for a chaotic murder mystery or a meditative summer beach read with LGBTQ+ characters? Three Kansas City book experts share a range of selections in honor of Pride Month.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids says she’s hearing from Kansas residents who are struggling to make ends meet. Speaking on KCUR’s Up To Date, Davids said the Trump administration’s war with Iran is contributing to the high cost of living.

Parkville and North Kansas City are among the fastest-growing communities in the metro, with populations increasing by more than 20% since the last census. KCUR’s Up To Date spoke with their mayors about what’s fueling this surge and how it’s impacting their cities.

The deadline to file as a candidate for governor of Kansas was Monday, June 1. A last-minute filing shook up the Democratic field, while there's a clear frontrunner among the seven Republicans in the running.

Henner, best known for her role in the 1970s sitcom “Taxi”, has a highly superior autobiographical memory, which allows her to remember vast portions of her life in vivid detail. She’s in Kansas City to star in “Cactus Flower” at the New Theatre & Restaurant, and will perform her “Memory Girl” cabaret June 8.

The critically acclaimed new album “Little Wide Open,” is the work of Overland Park musician Kevin Morby. He’s on tour, traveling across the country and overseas, but stopped to join KCUR’s Up To Date for another episode of our KC Soundcheck series ahead of his performance at the Uptown Theater.

Jason-Flor Sisante has always been enamored by outer space. Now, as a member of the United States Navy's aerospace medicine program, he hopes to take his talents as a medical professional into the cosmos.

Voters will see two controversial constitutional amendments on Missouri’s statewide ballot in August. Amendment 4 would make it much harder for citizens to change the constitution through the initiative petition process, while Amendment 5 seeks to expand sales taxes. And while primary elections tend to have lower turnout, these ballot questions could completely reshape the state’s politics.

Cynthia Newsome

Kansas City’s Blue River Biosolids Facility is using an innovative wastewater treatment process to convert sewage into energy and fertilizer while cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

Research from the University of Kansas found that cynicism toward news outlets can make people more likely to believe misinformation. In contrast, a healthy level of skepticism toward media institutions can help people determine when information is trustworthy.

People are being fleeced out of millions of dollars through cryptocurrency scams. Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway has filed a suit against one crypto ATM company that she says is knowingly enabling scams on their kiosks.

Digital fraud is costing Americans billions. After Patrick Coughlin’s mother was the target of an urgent and emotional fake kidnapping scam, the cybersecurity expert with his brother built a free website to help others identify the red flags of fraud.

Crispin Rea, Kansas City's 4th district at-large councilmember, recently announced that he is running to become the mayor of his city on the 2027 ballot. He joined KCUR's Up To Date to discuss what his priorities would be as mayor, including improving public safety, increasing economic opportunities and "getting the basics right."

Kauffman Foundation Entrepreneurial Study

Nate Bukaty, who calls games for Major League Soccer on Apple TV and previously served as a television announcer for Sporting KC, is out with a new book titled "Perfect Pitch: How Kansas City Became the Heart of American Soccer and Landed the World Cup." He'll speak at a Rainy Day Books event with the book's co-author Rustin Dodd on May 28th.

Nearly 10% of Kansas City bus riders will lose access to key routes starting Sept. 6, as KCATA cuts seven weekday lines and two weekend routes. Officials say funding challenges have pushed the system into a “death spiral” of declining service.

A month before the beginning of the World Cup, an event called "KC for the W" will be held at CPKC Stadium on May 18 to celebrate the women who are leading the way in telling sports stories in our region and beyond. Kansas City native Becky Sullivan, a sports reporter for NPR, will be featured on a speaking panel.

Television writer and director Michael Schur and sportswriter Joe Posnanski will be in Kansas City on May 21st for a Rainy Day Books event promoting their new book "Big Fan: Two Friends, 81,589 miles, and the Wild, Wonderful Sports We Love.