#PodcastsToGetYoLife: NPR
NPR is a national treasure. ❤ ❤ ❤ At least to me. I even donate to my local station, WBUR, which is saying a lot., even though I might not be able to contribute a lot (right now at least). I am not exaggerating when I say my house in the morning would be sad without any Morning Edition blaring. My boyfriend, however, would probably be a lot more content. My love for talk radio and podcast is in my blood. My dad is not only a talk radio listener enthusiast, but for many years had his own radio show, now turned into a podcast (not featured here). NPR has everything. News, stories, information. As someone who LOVES learning those are probably the three most important criteria for me. If you don’t tune in and turn on the radio the old school way, do not fret! NPR has turned their shows into podcasts. You’ll be the one at the party telling your friends, “Did you hear about…” and they’ll be feeling like they gotta get their life.
Snap Judgement
I am sure many of you have heard about The Moth. If you are a fan of The Moth, I think you will love this show. Interesting story how I got hooked. It was a Saturday evening last summer, and my boyfriend and I were waiting in a parking lot to meet up with his family to celebrate graduations with ice cream. We got there early, and I changed the station from music to NPR. It turned out that they air Snap Judgement Saturday evenings in Boston. The first episode we ever heard has still turned into our all time favorite. We were entranced listening to the true story of Ben Holmes, a guy who faked his death for 20 years because these local mobs were after him. It’s one of those stories where you just CANNOT make this stuff up. You think you know what happened, but you have no idea. If you listen to one episode, make it this one. All of their stories are true, and yet you’ll be saying, “How can that be real?!”
This American Life
I know. This American Life is a CLASSIC. Ira Glass, blah blah blah. Who doesn’t love Ira Glass? Everyone loves Ira; he’s a legend. Similar to Snap Judgement, there are some stories where you are like, “Is this real life?!” Are those not the best kind of stories? How do they find these stories? Stories can make you think differently about your opinions. I am still in awe of a story they did awhile back on busing. I had strong feelings about the METCO program here in Boston, leaning towards opposing it because I feel like our BPS schools should be good enough where no one has to leave. I still feel that way, but this story brought up so many complexities and nuances I couldn’t help but feel like, maybe there’s not one right way when it comes to school reform. In many ways, it left me speechless, for many reasons, which is hard to do. The story I am referring to is called, “The Problem We All Live With.”
Hidden Brain
I am not even going to lie. I GEEKED when I realized this was a podcast. I thought Shankar Vedantam was just NPR’s social science correspondent who was occasionally on Morning Edition. I always perked up when I heard him in the morning, and then I finally realized he hosts his own podcast. It was like the clouds parted and the sun shined down upon me, and I heard Arielle from The Little Mermaid singing. I love psychology and understanding human behavior to address complex questions. Which is EXACTLY what this podcast does. I am gonna get so jazzed about the topics I just CAN.NOT. The latest episode talks about the scarcity trap, and I loved a recent episode asking what happens when we empathize with our enemies? OMGAWD. Too many amazing topics that I cannot go on cause I might not stop.
Code Switch
This show is not afraid to exist in the gray. There is so much I appreciate about this show, but it’s that. You might need to listen to get what I am talking about, but the primary hosts are Shereen Marisol Meraji, and Gene Demby hold a space on the airways where NOTHING about race and identity is off limits. They feature stories and guests with multiple points of view. I guarantee that when you tune in your will learn and, most importantly, you’ll question what you knew.
It can be interesting at times to listen to the comments that white people write into the hosts, who are all people of color. There was an episode about having to pause to give a descriptor to white folks so they understand something that might be common knowledge to people of color. The hosts grappled with if they wanted to do that and whether it took away from the experience of others who listen to the show. This show is not only necessary but fun! That says a lot about the hosts’ ability to navigate these conversations, while they balance a wide variety of entry points and viewpoints from a diverse audience. Many, many props to these hosts who, again, are holding a much-needed space.
Props to NPR for always producing quality stories and curating a space for dialogue and exchange of knowledge that doesn’t happen in the mainstream media. We all need reliable sources of information to get yo’life in this world of #alternativefacts. What you are offering is a variety of perspectives.
It’s not too late to #trypod this month of March and share a podcast you love with us or someone else in your life! What are some of your fav NPR podcasts?!
About The Author
Leora Viega Rifkin is Chief of Possibility for BREAD (Boston’s Racial + Economic Activated Dialogue) & the Accelerate Boston Coordinator for Epicenter Community. She holds her master’s degree in Applied Positive Psychology from UPENN. Most importantly, she believes in people & the power of love.
