In Focus with Carolyn Hutcheson

Hate crimes are getting a lot of attention in the news, and the U.S. Department of Justice has a United Against Hate Initiative to educate communities about hate crimes and hate incidents.  Jonathan Ross, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Middle District of Alabama, joins Justin Jones, Special Council to the U.S. Attorney for Civil Rights and Outreach in the Middle District, in a conversation with Carolyn Hutcheson, In Focus host, about the initiative and how to report hate crimes and hate incidents.

Kristy Meanor, Artistic Director of the Wetumpka Depot Players, talks with Carolyn Hutcheson, In Focus host, about the upcoming play, "Doubt - A Parable," winner of the Pulitzer Prize.  They also discuss the Penguin Project, which will bring children with disabilities starring roles in a Christmas play. The young actors are paired with mentors of the same age.

Artificial Intelligence is online, and Amanda Senn, Director of the Alabama Securities Commission, talks with Carolyn Hutcheson, In Focus host, about precautions to take when encountering it, especially in the financial sphere.

Hybrid Warfare could be a factor in the political polarization griipping the U.S. today, according to the co-editors of the book, "The Challenge to NATO, Global Security and the Atlantic Alliance." Troy University Political Science Professors Michael Slobodchikoff and Doug Davis talk with In Focus host Carolyn Hutcheson about NATO, its mission and its adversaries.Brandon Stewart is the third co-editor of the book, which features chapters by notable contributors.  This interview is the second of a two-part program in The Storyline book series on In Focus.

Historian Dale Cox talks with In Focus host Carolyn Hutcheson about Two Toed Tom, an enormous alligator from the 1920s and purported to still be alive in a lake in the Florida Panhandle.  The story of Two Toed Tom is taken from a chapter in Cox's classic book, "Two Egg, Florida."  Cox is host of the Two Egg TV channel and author of books featuring historical stories and locations in the South.

Montgomery's Cloverdale Playhouse is celebrating late summer with several events in August.  Artistic Director Sam Wootten and renowned actor and Founding Director Greg Thornton, talk with In Focus host Carolyn Hutcheson about the community roots with the Montgomery Little Theatre and its volunteer traditions. 

School districts have been targets of data breaches, so Amanda Senn, Director of the Alabama Securities Commission, talks with Carolyn Hutcheson,In Focus host, about how students and parents should safeguard information they post on electronic media.

The NATO Summit in Lithuania in July brought attention to the Atlantic Alliance, in light of Putin's invasion of Ukraine and Sweden's application to join NATO. Troy University Political Science Professors Doug Davis and Michael Slobodchikoff, along with Assistant Professor Brandon Stewart, are editors of the timely book, "The Challenge to NATO, Global Security and the Atlantic Alliance."  Professors Davis and Slobodchikoff talk with Carolyn Hutcheson, In Focus host, in this first of two interviews about the future of NATO and U.S. interests in Europe.

Martin McCaffery, Director of the Capri Theatre in Old Cloverdale, talks with Carolyn Hutcheson, In Focus host, about Montgomery's 1941 movie theater as the oldest continually operating movie theater in Alabama.  Renovations have moved from the interior to the exterior, with the newest project of the nonprofit Capri Community Film Society targeting replacemet of the marquee, to conform to a Forties style of design.  The theater will feature two fall film festivals in its ongoing movie schedule. 

Jack Galassini, Founder and CEO of the nonprofit Alabama Council on Compulsive Gambling, talks with Carolyn Hutcheson, In Focus host, about the scope of gambling addiction in Alabama - it could affect as many as 60,000 in the state.  A growing concern is about young people getting involved online gambling through video gaming using credit cards.