Leah Landry

WRVO will air the first debate between Republican John Katko and Democrat Colleen Deacon on Thursday, October 20 at 6 p.m. Grant Reeher, host of “The Campbell Conversations," will be moderating the hour-long debate.

Additional broadcasts occur over the weekend, on Saturday, October 22 at 6 a.m. and Sunday October 23 at 6 p.m. Audio and a full transcript will be available online (on "The Campbell Conversations" page) Thursday, October 20 at 6 p.m.

For the month of October, "On the Media" presents "Busted: America's Poverty Myths; The Distorted View of Poverty in America and the Media's Role in Framing the Issue." Listen each Saturday during "On the Media" at  3 p.m. That's Saturday, October 1 through Saturday, October 29.

Episode 1 - The Poverty Tour; October 1

NPR News is providing live coverage of all three Presidential debates and one Vice Presidential debate this fall. Special coverage begins at 9 p.m. each night on WRVO, without any interruption. Following the debate, NPR's Robert Siegel and reporters will provide analysis and fact-checking.

You listen to WRVO every month, every week, many even every day. You rely on 89.9 FM, our app, website or other transmitters across upstate New  York for your news and information.

And we rely on you in return.

Listeners and area businesses make up the largest source of WRVO Public Media's funding -- the money we use on a daily basis to bring you the programs you appreciate.

Thank you for your interest in David Sibley's visit to Syracuse. Unfortunately, tickets are sold out. Please call (315) 312-3690 to be added to our waiting list.

The WRVO News and programming teams took home multiple awards at the 38th Annual Syracuse Press Club Awards and Scholarship Dinner on April 30, 2016, for work completed in 2015.

Nearly 180 people attended the awards ceremony, which honors journalists, photographers and others in the fields of radio, television, and digital content -- both professionals and students.

Winners in Radio | Work completed in 2015

Spot news

Starting at 4 p.m. today our system will undergo an upgrade that affects our ability to take donations as well as our ability to sell tickets to station events (including our evening with David Greene, host of Morning Edition). We hope to have the system back online later this evening, barring any complications with the transition.

Check back after 6 p.m., or again tomorrow to donate or purchase tickets.

Join us on Public Radio Presents for "A Life Sentence: Victims, offenders, justice and my mother," this Sunday night.

Jay Allison, a co-producer of this piece, says: "This is a story about a terrible crime and everything that followed. It's an intensely personal documentary, but it extends into public life and into the heart of our political and correctional systems. Some stories take a long time. This one is an hour long, took two and a half years to produce, after 20 years of living with it."

Thank you to everyone who helped make Foneless February a success! We've spent the last month accepting donations quietly online and by mail, to keep our phones quiet and to keep our programming uninterrupted. Many of our long-time members, and even new listeners, stepped up to make a difference (donations collected during February will be used to entice others to donate during our fundraiser in March).

We're keeping the phones quiet this February, once again, to cut down on on-air fundraising in March.

WRVO is making a silent request for contributions. That means all of your favorite programs with no interruptions at all, but we need your help to make this month a success. "Foneless February" helps make our spring fundraiser shorter because any donation received will reduce on-air fundraising heard in the future.

Join us on WRVO as we prepare for the 2016 election, both on a regional and national level. Reporters at NPR have been on the road with candidates, conducting interviews and gathering details of their plans for the nation.

As part of this coverage, we will offer on-air specials leading up to Election Day, including:

The Iowa Caucus

WRVO Public Media will air the first joint interview with Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner and Onondaga County Executive Joanie Mahoney this weekend during "The Campbell Conversations." This is the first joint interview between Mahoney and Miner since a public dispute (and lawsuit) over county tax breaks given to a developer the city of Syracuse alleges it had previous arrangements with.

Join us on Thursday, December 31 for a special from the Political Junkie himself, Ken Rudin!

As 2015 draws to a close, Political Junkie Ken Rudin remembers the lawmakers and newsmakers from the world of politics who passed away this year. Ken interviews their colleagues, friends and the journalists who covered them, to reflect on their passions and chronicle their accomplishments.

You made a difference! Yesterday, on Giving Tuesday, WRVO was able to raise $4,640 from generous listeners and members (46 of them to be exact). Thank you so much!

Join us this week on Public Radio Presents for a special from our friends at Marketplace! The "Marketplace Weekend" team takes a look at where the holidays meet money in "Marketplace Takes Care of Holiday Business" this Sunday, December 6 at 7 p.m.

In this special, we explore the intersection between the holidays and money, tell some stories, and help you financially navigate the holiday season -- figuring out how to make your cousins get along is up to you.

Join us on Sunday, December 13 for "RISK!" with true stories perfect for the holiday season.

"RISK!" is the show where people tell true stories -- true stories they never thought they'd share with anyone. Writers, actors and ordinary people tell their most intimate secrets. It's hilarious, heartbreaking, and often wonderful. Some stories are told on stage at live shows and others are radio pieces.

Get ready for some laughs the weekend before Christmas! Tune in for "Right Between the Ears," a Christmas special on Sunday, December 20 at 7 p.m.

This hour-long live sketch comedy show includes a spoof of the classic "It's a Wonderful Life," updated for our economically-challenging times; commercials for Jiffy Pants, the popcorn you make in your pants; and a special episode of Pimp My Turkey, where the turkey goes home with a 500-horsepower police interceptor engine.

This production of "A Christmas Carol" returns to the heart of the 1843 story, mining the dark veins of what Charles Dickens called "a ghost story of Christmas."

Join us on Thursday, December 24, Christmas Eve, at 8 p.m. for a new, but old, rendition of "A Christmas Carol" with a cast of seasoned New York actors.

"Politics Takes a Holiday" one more time this New Year with the Capitol Steps -- faster than Joe Biden deciding whether to run for president!

Tune in Thursday, December 31 at 7 p.m. for the Capitol Steps annual year-in-review, and boy has it been quite the year! With jokes more powerful than the wind it takes to finally blow off Donald Trump's hair -- you'll be laughing (and maybe crying) in no time.

Giving Tuesday is a global day of giving fueled by the power of social media and collaboration on Tuesday, December 1. Found on Twitter with the hashtag #GivingTuesday, the day kicks off the charitable season. You've likely heard of Black Friday, maybe even Plaid Friday, and Cyber Monday -- so why not try Giving Tuesday this year? Celebrate giving and philanthropy with a donation to WRVO Public Media.

The staff at WRVO is giving you a bit of a break this afternoon! You heard us during Morning Edition asking for your contributions, but you won't hear us today during "The Diane Rehm Show," "Fresh Air," or "Q," because we're fundraising free until later this afternoon.

Donate now, to support the news and entertainment programming you hear on WRVO.

If you haven't heard, today is the first official day of our fall fundraiser. We kicked the day off with a bang, asking for $20,000 in donations from 7-8 a.m. It was a fast-paced hour of matching dollars and phones ringing off the hook. We were able to reach our goal in that first hour, and you won't hear us fundraising on-air for the rest of the day.

It's time to get out your dictionaries and brush up on those "hot words" for the SAT I, because "Says You!" is coming to Syracuse this fall.

Get tickets!

WRVO Public Media is looking for motivated students who would like to intern this fall and/or next spring.