Ben Kieffer
River to River HostExpertise: Interviewing, news and politics, scientific research, history and literature, all in order to help IPR listeners and readers better understand, appreciate and explore their state
Education: Bachelors degree from the University of Iowa
Favorite Iowa Destination: Anywhere where there's swimming, hiking or biking!
Experience:
- Has served as a talk show and podcast host for IPR and WSUI/KSUI
- Has been the host of River to River since 2007
- Hosted IPR's weekly live music/talk show Java Blend from 2000 to 2017
- Is a multi-award-winning host and reporter
- Has created and hosted many regular segments and series, including "Leaving Afghanistan," a series of interviews with US veterans of the Afghanistan War, "Politics Wednesday," "Big Brain," a talk show that tackled life's little questions, "News Buzz" and "Groove into the Weekend"
- Has interviewed major political candidates and elected leaders, including former US Ambassador to China Terry Branstad, former Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, former U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, Sen. Chuck Grassley, Sen. Joni Ernst, former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former Vice President Kamala Harris, among others
- Worked in Europe for more than a decade as a journalist, translator and consultant
- Reported firsthand in 1989 on the fall of the Berlin Wall and from Prague on the Velvet Revolution
- Hosted a weekly radio magazine about European politics, science and culture, carried by public radio stations across North America from 1990 - 1993
- Serves as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Iowa, teaching courses on interviewing techniques, radio journalism, politics and storytelling
- First started in public radio in the mid-1980s as a student announcer on WSUI
Contact Ben at bkieffer@iowapublicradio.org.
My Latest Stories
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Ben Kieffer talks with Rep. Ashley Hinson, Republican candidate for U.S. Senate. She discusses affordability, national security, healthcare and other key issues. The contest with Democratic nominee Josh Turek is one of the most competitive Senate races in the country. -
Ben Kieffer talks with Lindsay James, the Democratic candidate for Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District. James is facing Republican candidate Joe Mitchell in the general election. The two discuss affordability, the war in Iran, cancer rates in Iowa and other key issues. -
Ben Kieffer talks with 1st Congressional District candidate Democrat Christina Bohannan. Bohannan is running against incumbent Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. The two discuss affordability, immigration, healthcare and other key issues.
My Latest Podcasts
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A Senate permitting reform bill would change a 60-year-old law that lets tribes and preservation groups weigh in before federal projects disturb historic places. On this episode, we talk with Meskwaki Nation Tribal Historic Preservation Officer Tieranny Keahna and American Cultural Resources Association President Shawn Patch about what is at stake. IPR’s Gavin McGough and Rachel Cramer discuss the Dubuque Community School District's building consolidation plan, and how the USDA's new SNAP inventory rule could hurt smaller grocery stores and food-insecure Iowans. Health insurance expert Pete Damiano details what to know about changes in ACA open enrollment, and Studio One host Cece Mitchell grooves us into the weekend. -
Living with the fear of deportation is terrifying, and researchers found it can take a physical and mental toll on families. Host Ben Kieffer talks with Steph Conquest-Ware of NPR’s 'Midwest Newsroom' about the trauma a deportation caused a family in Des Moines. Then, we hear from public health researcher Bill Lopez, who studies these impacts of immigration enforcement. Later in the hour, Ben talks with a linguist who studies accent bias and an Iowa reporter who hides his Mississippi accent.
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After 16 years, Iowa has elected a Democratic governor. On this Politics Day episode, political scientists Jim McCormick and Donna Hoffman weigh in on Gov.-elect Sand's transition into office and what Iowa's new members of Congress face when they get to Washington, D.C. They also discuss President Donald Trump's mixed signals on his immigration policy following the election, the latest in the war in Iran and more.
