The SMN Interviews: Jancee Dunn, Matt Markovich, Herb Weisbaum
Jan 20, 2024, 8:18 AM
Jancee Dunn of The New York Times (Photo: Getty Images)
(Photo: Getty Images)
The following is our weekly series highlighting the best interviews from Seattle’s Morning News on KIRO Newsradio.
Jancee Dunn, The New York Times
I’m always looking for unique ways to stay on top of health issues.
Last week, we interviewed a writer for The Washington Post who gave us a fascinating insight into a reduced sodium diet. Notably, reducing salt by just one teaspoon a day can have the same health effect as taking blood pressure medication — and that’s after just one week of reducing salt.
This week, we called up Jancee Dunn from The New York Times who is working on food mindfulness.
It’s common for us to know when foods make us feed bad. That’s more obvious as we’ll likely have a headache or stomach ache.
What’s less common, Dunn said, is looking back to note when foods make us feel good or energized.
“That was the exercise we did it was after three meals and say you have a snack in the afternoon, an hour and a half after you’ve eaten when digestion us underway just think back and rate on a scale from one to five how did the food make you feel?” Dunn suggested.
During the exercise, Dunn realized her breakfasts were leaving her hungry sooner, which lead to a second breakfast. That’s because she was eating cereals rather than adding a protein or even a complex carbohydrate to keep her going.
Listen to our interview to learn more about the “magic combination” for meals that will keep you energized and full longer.
More SMN Interviews: ‘Human jukebox’ Nikhil Bagga, Rep. Monica Stonier, Rob McKenna
Matt Markovich on the heated debate in Olympia over gas prices
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s plan to force gas and oil companies to reveal their pricing strategies has created a heated debate in Olympia.
We’re often joined on Seattle’s Morning News by KIRO Newsradio reporter Matt Markovich, who covers legislative issues and was there for the first public hearing on the plan.
The conversation about transparency is led by Inslee, who continues to deny that his Climate Commitment Act (CCA) contributed to Washington having some of the highest gas prices in the nation. We saw gas prices increase in our state around the same time gas and oil companies began buying their carbon credits to offset pollution under the governor’s CCA. Inslee insists that’s because these companies are gouging us.
“Senate Bill 6052 aims to address transparency issues related to petroleum supply and pricing in the state. It establishes a division within the Utilities and Transportation Commission to provide oversight and analysis of transportation fuel markets,” Markovich explains. “The bill requires the industry to submit monthly and quarterly reports on import and exports of petroleum products and other relevant information.”
The governor’s senior climate advisor admits the bill needs work, which opened the door for heated debate on the issue. You can listen to Matt’s rundown of what happened here.
ConsumerMan Herb Weisbaum on banks cashing in on overdraft fees
On Fridays, we’re joined by Checkbook.org Contributing Editor Herb Weisbaum. Most of us know him as the ConsumerMan, who has served the region for decades with the best consumer advice to save you money and keep you from falling victim to fraud.
This week, a lot of attention has been given to the Biden Administration’s proposal to rein in overdraft fees. Some financial institutions charge as much as $35 per overdraft, which far exceeds the bank’s cost when processing the overdraft.
“Clearly, it’s not the cost of doing business in many cases; it’s just a revenue stream for the banks, and that’s what the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) wants to limit,” Weisbaum said.
According to the CFPB, banks made nearly $9 billion in overdraft fees in 2022 alone.
The proposal from the Biden-backed CFPB would cap fees at $3 per overdraft, something Weisbaum thinks the banking industry will absolutely fight. But in light of the recent transparency around this issue, some banks have voluntarily either waived or lowered the fees.
Listen to more of our interview to learn which banks are easing rules around overdraft fees, and how you can set yourself for success to avoid them until this proposal becomes reality.
Listen to Seattle’s Morning News with Dave Ross and Colleen O’Brien weekday mornings from 5-9 a.m. on KIRO Newsradio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.
