Meghna Chakrabarti is the award-winning host and editor of On Point. Based in Boston, she is on the air Monday through Friday.
On Point has been frequently recognized for excellence in journalism under Meghna's leadership.
In 2023, On Point's series "Smarter Health won a first-place award from the Association of Health Care Journalists. The Alliance for Women in Media honored the show with two national Gracie awards in 2023: Best National Radio Investigative Feature for "An 'invisible epidemic': Survivors of domestic violence on living with traumatic brain injury" and Best National Public Affairs show for "Behind the decades-long fight to close the 'boyfriend loophole.'"
In 2022, On Point's episode "A Look Back at 1992 Los Angeles and America Since Rodney King" won the Gracie Award for Best News Documentary. The Alliance for Women in Media also gave Meghna an honorable mention for best nationally syndicated non-commercial correspondent/host. On Point's episode on Los Angeles since Rodney King also won a 2022 regional Edward R. Murrow award for best news documentary.
In 2021, On Point won a National Edward R. Murrow award for best news documentary for "What the President Knew." The show examined presidential decision-making before 9/11 and the COVID pandemic.
Chakrabarti is the former host of Radio Boston, WBUR’s acclaimed weekday local show. She's the former host of Modern Love: The Podcast, a collaboration of WBUR and The New York Times (2016-2020) and was the primary fill-in host for Here & Now, NPR and WBUR's midday show. She reported on New England transportation and energy issues for WBUR’s news department.
Chakrabarti has won awards for individual reporting from both the Associated Press and the Radio Television News Directors Association for her writing, hard news reporting, and use of sound. The Asian American Journalists Association awarded Chakrabarti and her team the national excellence in radio/audio award for Radio Boston's special series on the eviction crisis in East Boston.
A former fellow at the Metcalf Institute for Environmental Reporting, Chakrabarti holds bachelor’s degrees in civil and environmental engineering from Oregon State University (summa cum laude), as well as a master’s degree in environmental science and risk management from Harvard University, and an MBA with honors from Boston University. She is the mother of two bright sparks, and the lucky spouse of a wise and patient man.
Recently published
The hidden chemistry at the heart of the Milky Way
Scientists have taken the largest ever image of the Milky Way. The image shows spectacular detail of our home in the universe, and offers scientists a color-coded guide to some...
What Democrats could learn from the GOP
The Republican Party has a highly sophisticated online and social media operation. Meanwhile Democrats focus on their traditional political talking points. Could the Dems take a page out of the...
When thinking ‘inside the box’ is better
You’ve heard the phrase "think outside the box." But what if constraints and limitations actually make us happier and more creative?
Why authoritarians put their faces on everything
Dictators and authoritarian leaders often plaster their faces across the country they control. Is this happening in the United States?
Roundup transformed farming in the U.S. Could it change regulation too?
The Supreme Court will soon rule on who gets to decide when a product needs a cancer warning – and who can sue if they’ve been exposed. At the center...
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The 'how' behind the sub-two hour marathon
History was made in this year’s London marathon when two runners broke the iconic two-hour barrier. Was it the shoes? The nutrition? The training? These specific elite athletes?
Why you’re thinking about the Supreme Court in the wrong way
Political partisanship is one way to measure how the Supreme Court justices think about how their rulings affect the nation. SCOTUSblog editor Sarah Isgur says another, she believes more important...
Inside the life of a 'degenerate' sports gambler
More than half of men under 50 in the U.S. have an open online sports book. Public health experts warn it's easier than ever to get addicted to gambling. Atlantic...
Who's a 'domestic terrorist' in Donald Trump's America?
President Trump is directing the Justice Department to treat beliefs like "anti-Americanism, anti-capitalism, or anti-Christianity" akin to domestic terrorism. Can the president criminalize beliefs?
Why California wants folic acid in its corn tortillas
In 1998, the FDA required folic acid be added to breads and pastas but not corn masa, a staple in Latino communities. Folic acid is known to prevent neural tube...