Bennett Purser joined KCRW's Press Play in 2020 as a lucky producer who found a job during the COVID-19 pandemic and recession. Before joining the station, he spent two years as a producer for APM's Marketplace, covering business and economics. He started his journalism career at Utah Public Radio, and moved to Los Angeles in 2018 to intern for NPR's Morning Edition. In his free time he likes traveling, concerts, live storytelling and rollerblading on the strand.
Bennett Purser on KCRW
More from KCRW
LA seed bank works to save CA’s diverse plants from extinction
Mental HealthThe California Botanic Garden in Claremont has a Noah’s Ark of native plants. That’s where freezers preserve seeds from plants that might go extinct.
Lensa AI: Reinforcing old beauty standards, sexualizing women’s bodies?
TechnologyLensa AI allows users to upload selfies and transforms them into fantastical portraits. Some women say it's returning sexualized versions of their photos.
You know gay rights are mainstream when Biden picks up the Rainbow flag
NationalLarry Gross, author of the LGBTQ civil rights treatise, “Up From Invisibility,” honors the achievement of the new same-sex marriage law with only feint appreciation for the president…
Will the end of Title 42 force Biden to reform immigration?
PoliticsPanelists discuss the imminent end of a policy that turns away asylum seekers, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s plea to Congress, and what Elon Musk’s decision with Twitter…
Ex-CIA Agent John Kiriakou: The Deep State’s Attack on Dissent Beginning With MLK
NationalThe FBI, CIA, NSA and other agencies have historically exploited their power but their limits appear boundless in the modern age.
Video games as a high school sport? It’s happening in LA
SportsCoach Gabriel Giangualano and junior Max Abrahamson are leading the St. John Bosco High School esports team. Ralph Lawler was the LA Clippers’ announcer for 40 years.
Rants and raves of 2022
PoliticsPanelists discuss their political lessons from 2022, the biggest moments, and what they’re tracking as we head into 2023.
Another mass shooting in California. Can anything stop the violence?
PoliticsPanelists discuss recent mass shootings in California, Florida’s ban of a high school Advanced Placement course on African American studies, and relating to people with different…
SoCal solar industry’s future may be dimmer due to CA rule changes
Climate changeRooftop solar is about to get more expensive, so local solar installers are busy but expecting tough days ahead. The Imperial Valley is known for agriculture.