Press Play with Madeleine Brand
What Bill Cosby's mistrial says about celebrity, race and gender
After 52 hours of deliberation, the jury in Bill Cosby’s sexual assault case failed to reach a verdict and a mistrial was declared. Cosby could face a new trial as soon as October. His defense team says he is vindicated. But prosecutors are calling for more women to step forward.
By Madeleine Brand • • 50m ListenPhoto: Actor and comedian Bill Cosby arrives on the tenth day of his sexual assault trial at the Montgomery County Courthouse in Norristown, Pennsylvania, U.S., June 16, 2017. Jurors continued to deliberate on a verdict for a fifth day. (REUTERS/Tom Mihalek)
In this episode
5 storiesSCOTUS hears potentially landmark case on election gerrymandering
The Supreme Court is taking up a case on gerrymandering and whether the Republican Party has unconstitutionally drawn districts to prevent Democrats from winning in Wisconsin. The case could affect the 2020 elections.
Read the story9 minNew coffee shop in Boyle Heights draws anti-gentrification protests
Boyle Heights has become a flashpoint in the gentrification debate. Art galleries there have faced anger from the community, and now protesters are opposing a new upscale coffee house called Weird Wave Coffee Brewers. Two of the shop owners are white and one is Salvadorian.
Read the story8 min‘Fantasy Life’ chronicles dreams and downfalls of baseball players
In 2002, photographer Tabitha Soren found 21 men who were on the brink of becoming professional athletes. They were members of Oakland A’s draft class. Soren followed their careers and lives for a decade. But the call to join the big leagues never came for most of the players. Age, injury, or not being good enough ended their childhood dreams.
Read the story13 minWhy Bill Cosby’s case has race, gender and celebrity echoes of the O.J. Simpson trial
After 52 hours of deliberation, the jury in Bill Cosby’s sexual assault case ended in mistrial Saturday , after the jury found itself deadlocked. Cosby could face a new trial as soon as October. His defense team says he is vindicated. But prosecutors are calling for more women to step forward.
Read the story9 minHow Juneteenth became a celebration for the end of slavery
On June 19, 1865, Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to tell the state’s slaves that the Civil War was over. That was more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation officially ended slavery in America. Juneteenth became a day to celebrate freedom. Some call it the real Independence Day for America. Others have never heard of it.
Read the story8 min
