© 2026 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY
WEDW-FM · WNPR · WPKT · WRLI-FM
Public Files Contact · ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Treasuring the Wit and Wisdom of Molly Ivins

Molly Ivins (right) shares a laugh with the late Ann Richards, former Texas governor, in 1991.
Mark Perlstein
/
Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images
Molly Ivins (right) shares a laugh with the late Ann Richards, former Texas governor, in 1991.

Conventional journalism didn't quite fit Molly Ivins, the liberal political columnist and author.

Ivins, who died Wednesday of breast cancer at age 62, bedeviled politicians — especially those of her native Texas — with witty political critiques.

She started at The Houston Chronicle and The Minneapolis Star-Tribune, but by 1969, Ivins had had enough of conventional newspaper editors.

"I couldn't find any way to tell the truth in a regular newspaper," she said in a 2006 interview.

She went home to Texas, where she became editor of the independent political journal The Texas Observer in 1970. With her sense of humor and ability to tell stories, she made herself famous and the Texas legislature infamous.

Her book Molly Ivins Can't Say That, Can She? brought her national recognition. She later became a commentator for Morning Edition, and her syndicated column reached 340 newspapers, many in small markets around the country.

Diagnosed with cancer in 1999, she continued to write until her death.

Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Wade Goodwyn is an NPR National Desk Correspondent covering Texas and the surrounding states.

Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.