Michael Edward Miller

Woolly Adelgids Threaten Thousands of Signal Mountain & Cumberland Hemlocks

Michael Edward Miller — Tue, 21 May 2013 22:05:19 +0000

Eastern hemlock trees atop Signal Mountain and across the Cumberland Plateau are common right now, but many could die off in the next few years. The woolly adelgid, a tiny, invasive insect species originally from Asia, is spreading through the forest and slowly killing hemlocks. Dr. Jennifer Boyd from the Signal Mountain Tree Board says, “This is really all we've talked about for the past couple of months.” In this segment, we hear about potential solutions.

Can A Backyard Feed A Whole Family? Suburban Homesteaders Try

Michael Edward Miller — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:48:35 +0000

Homesteading dates back to the pioneer days (remember Little House On The Prairie?), when families grew much of their own food on their own land. In the modern version, homesteaders avoid grocery stores by planting backyard gardens and raising pigs, rabbits and other animals for meat. In this segment, WUTC visits Monica and Byron DeLoach, homesteaders who live in North Georgia.

Oscar Hank Will, author of Plowing with Pigs and Other Creative, Low-Budget Homesteading Solutions, also joins in the conversation.

Photojournalist Don Dudenbostel’s Appalachian Adventures

Michael Edward Miller — Fri, 17 May 2013 20:58:49 +0000

Don Dudenbostel’s photographs are featured this May in the River Gallery's exhibition Defining Roots. Dudenbostel's photos document disappearing, hidden and infamous aspects of Appalachian culture. Throughout the past few decades, he has photographed snake handlers, moonshiners (particularly legendary moonshiner Popcorn Sutton), cockfighters, Ku Klux Klan members and neo-Nazis. “I try never to influence my images with personal feelings,” he says in this interview.

Chattanooga Podcast ‘Another Story’ Delivers Compelling, True Tales

Michael Edward Miller — Wed, 15 May 2013 16:13:06 +0000

Ben Schnell, creator and host of Another Story, joins WUTC for an interview. Schnell’s podcast features local people telling true, personal stories. Schnell culls some of the stories from a monthly storytelling competition at The Camp House. Other stories come from interviews Schnell conducts. The free podcast is available through iTunes, and Schnell has also created a Soundcloud page.

Rambles With Roy: One Of NPR’s Funniest Southern Voices Cuts Loose

Michael Edward Miller — Fri, 10 May 2013 19:41:09 +0000

Roy Blount, Jr. is a prolific Southern author and a panelist on NPR’s Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me! Often funny, occasionally cantankerous, he joins WUTC’s Michael Edward Miller for a loose, meandering chat. Blount discusses his books, being a Southern expat and participating in the Celebration Of Southern Literature.

Punk Musician/Author Ian Svenonius Visits Chattanooga May 10

Michael Edward Miller — Wed, 08 May 2013 15:07:41 +0000

Ian Svenonius is coming to the Winder Binder Gallery & Bookstore in downtown Chattanooga on Friday, May 10^th, to promote his book Supernatural Strategies for Making a Rock ‘n’ Roll Group. The book is a music-industry satire. The publisher says, “Pretending to be a ‘how-to" guide for aspiring rock stars, this book fuses a meticulously researched sociopolitical examination of the history of rock and roll music with the author's trademark humor and cutting wit.”

Is Nuclear Energy Clean? This Group Says Yes

Michael Edward Miller — Tue, 07 May 2013 19:12:34 +0000

Darren Gale is a speaker with Clean Energy America, a group that sends nuclear experts around the county to talk with people about nuclear energy. In this segment, WUTC’s Michael Edward Miller and Darren Gale discuss the reasons why Gale's group says nuclear power is “clean,” and why people are concerned about the safety, cost and future of nuclear power and nuclear waste.

Pulitzer Prize-Nominated Ecological Author Speaking At UTC May 3rd

Michael Edward Miller — Wed, 01 May 2013 17:30:27 +0000

David George Haskell, a University of the South biology professor and author of the Pulitzer Prize-nominated ecological memoir The Forest Unseen: A Year’s Watch In Nature, will speak at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga on Friday, May 3^rd at 7:30 p.m. in the Benwood auditorium. WUTC's Michael Edward Miller interviewed Haskell last year about his book:

Sangria On The Southside: Music, Dancing & More May 3rd

Michael Edward Miller — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 15:33:10 +0000

A ticket to Sangria on the Southside comes with unlimited food and drinks--and benefits local Latino outreach organization La Paz Chattanooga. The event will feature performances from the Calo Gitano flamenco dance company, food from Taqueria Jalisco, Mexican beer, and (of course!) sangria. David Martin from La Paz joins WUTC to discuss the event, which will take place Friday, May 3^rd from 7 – 11 p.m. at the Lindsay Street Hall.

Red Cross Presents Free Tornado Movie Screening + Tornado Preparedness App

Michael Edward Miller — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 18:18:28 +0000

Want to get ready for severe weather season? There’s an app for that. In this segment, WUTC’s Michael Edward Miller speaks with Greg Waite, the Community Chapter Executive for the American Red Cross of Southeast Tennessee about the free Tornado Warning App. The local Red Cross is also partnering with other organizations to present a free screening of ‘Tornado Alley 3D’ at the Tennessee Aquarium’s Imax Theater on Saturday, April 27th at 10 a.m.

‘She Who’: Dorothy Allison On Writing, Teaching & Her Next Novel

Michael Edward Miller — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 20:52:49 +0000

In this interview, celebrated Southern author Dorothy Allison looks back on her novel Bastard Out Of Carolina, which was published more than twenty years ago (and was nominated for a National Book Award). Readers discover (or re-discover) it every year--it’s both wildly humorous and shockingly brutal. In this interview, Allison talks about using her own family legends as source material. Allison also talks about leaving the South, teaching young writers, and discusses her long-in-progress new novel She Who.

Maurice Manning’s Poetry Explores Changing Southern Landscapes

Michael Edward Miller — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 19:22:55 +0000

Kentucky native Maurice Manning is in Chattanooga for the Celebration of Southern Literature (April 17 – 20), where he was inducted into the prestigious Fellowship of Southern Authors. In this segment, Manning reads a selection from his new yet-to-be published book, talks about working Southern characters and narratives into his poems, and explains why he never met another living poet until he was in college.

A Conversation With Playwright Katori Hall

Michael Edward Miller — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 19:42:11 +0000

Memphis native Katori Hall is an actress, writer and playwright. She's won numerous awards, and her play The Mountaintop ran on Broadway, starring Samuel L. Jackson and Angela Bassett. Katori Hall is in Chattanooga for the Celebration of Southern Literature, which takes place April 17th, 18th and 19th. In this interview, Hall discusses how The Mountaintop humanizes Martin Luther King, Jr., how she joined the Fellowship of Southern Writers, and what she'll be doing at the Celebration.

Fans Welcome At Celebration Of Southern Literature April 18 - 20

Michael Edward Miller — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 21:41:05 +0000

This biennial literary gathering used to be called the Conference On Southern Literature. It draws major Southern authors. But it's also open to fans--in fact, fans have always been welcome to attend. This year, organizers have changed the event's name to the Celebration of Southern Literature to emphasize that the public is welcome. Executive Director Susan Robinson expects the event to draw more than forty authors and a thousand fans to the Tivoli in Chattanooga.

Arthur Golden (Finally!) Has A New Novel Coming Out. Here's What He Told WUTC.

Michael Edward Miller — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 20:24:03 +0000

In 1997, Arthur Golden's smash bestseller Memoirs Of A Geisha was published. Since then, Golden's fans have eagerly awaited a follow-up. Golden says his new novel, set in 19th-century Amsterdam and North America, will be published next year. He stopped by WUTC recently and gave details about the story (and why he's taken so long writing it.)