Best Fresh Air From WHYY Podcasts (2024)

1
Police Procedural 'Homicide' (Finally) Comes To Streaming 46:36

14m ago46:36

46:36

Homicide: Life on the Streets, the critically acclaimed police procedural set in Baltimore, is coming to streaming (Peacock) for the first time. The show, which ran for seven seasons, is based on a book by David Simon, from before he created The Wire. In an appreciation of the show, we're listening back to interviews with some of the people behind …

1
On The Road With Harris/Walz 46:05

30m ago46:05

46:05

As democrats prepare for their national convention in Chicago next week, we take stock of a presidential race transformed. New Yorker staff writer Evan Osnos tells us about the enthusiasm and energy he's seen on the campaign trail with Vice President Kamala Harris and running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. Later TV critic David Bianculli review…

1
How American Lobbyists Threaten Democracy 44:02

1h ago44:02

44:02

Casey Michel shines a light on Americans lobbying for foreign governments in Washington, in many cases representing brutally repressive regimes and countries that oppose U.S. interests. Laws requiring registration of lobbyists and disclosure of their efforts have been little-enforced, and thus ignored by countless agents who've reaped huge profits …

1
Safiya Sinclair On Cutting Herself Free From Rastafari Roots 43:59

19m ago43:59

43:59

Poet and writer Safiya Sinclair grew up in a devout Rastafari family in Jamaica where women were subservient. When she cut her dreadlocks at age 19, she became "a ghost" to her father. Her memoir, How to Say Babylon, is out in paperback. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy…

1
An Informant Exposes The Inner Workings Of The Ku Klux Klan 43:09

17h ago43:09

43:09

Joe Moore, a former Army sniper turned FBI informant, shares how he infiltrated the KKK and helped foil a plot to assassinate then Sen. Barack Obama. Moore explains how hate groups are growing. His new book is 'White Robes and Broken Badges.' Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy…

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Best Of: How 1982 Sci-Fi Changed The Game / Singer Brittany Howard 48:04

3d ago48:04

48:04

In 1982, eight science fiction films were released within eight weeks of each other. Chris Nashawaty, author of The Future Was Now, tells Tonya Mosley how those movies shaped the genre and the movie industry. Plus, Brittany Howard, the former Alabama Shakes singer/guitarist, tells Terry Gross that growing up, she was told repeatedly she didn't look…

1
Revisiting The Final Months Of WWII 45:03

5d ago45:03

45:03

We commemorate the 79th anniversary of the atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, by revisiting a haunting question: Was the U.S. decision to destroy two Japanese cities with atomic weapons really necessary to end World War II? Author Evan Thomas discusses the motivations of key U.S. leaders, and of Japanese commanders and diplomats. His book is T…

1
'Sing Sing' Offers a Glimpse of Life Behind Bars 43:38

5d ago43:38

43:38

Filmmaker Greg Kwedar and formerly incarcerated actor Clarence "Divine Eye" Maclin discuss their new film, which centers on the real-life Rehabilitation Through the Arts program founded at Sing Sing prison. Plus, Justin Chang reviews the film Good One. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy…

1
Black Doctors Consortium Founder Serves Vulnerable Communities 43:31

6d ago43:31

43:31

When the pandemic hit, Dr. Ala Stanford set up shop in parking lots, churches and mosques where she provided tests and vaccines to underserved Philadelphia communities like the one she grew up in. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

1
Migrants Risk It All On The Treacherous Darién Gap 44:32

7d ago44:32

44:32

Each year, nearly half a million migrants cross the perilous stretch of jungle between South and Central America. Many face snakes, flash floods, sweltering heat, sexual violence, and death. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Caitlin Dickerson talks to Tonya Mosley about what she saw and the migrants she followed for the September Atlantic cover sto…

1
A Brain Surgeon Opens Up About Life In The O.R. 44:41

8d ago44:41

44:41

Dr. Theodore Schwartz has been treating neurological illnesses for nearly 30 years. He says being a brain surgeon requires steady hands — and a strong bladder. His new book is Gray Matters. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

1
Best Of: Comic Nikki Glaser / 'Hacks' Co-Creator Paul W. Downs 49:09

10d ago49:09

49:09

Comic Nikki Glaser talks with Terry Gross about finding the line between offensive and funny, hurt feelings, and why she started making jokes about sex. Her new Emmy-nominated stand-up special on HBO is Someday You'll Die. Ken Tucker reflects on the New York Dolls' album Too Much Too Soon for its 50th anniversary. Paul W. Downs co-created the accla…

1
Remembering Freedom Singer Bernice Johnson Reagon 46:20

11d ago46:20

46:20

We go into the Fresh Air archive to remember two remarkable women: Bernice Johnson Reagon was one of the powerful singers who helped galvanize the civil rights movement in the 1960s, as a member of the Freedom Singers quartet. She died July 16 at the age of 81. Also, we remember writer Gail Lumet Buckley, the daughter of singer Lena Horne, who chro…

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Brittany Howard On Prince, Break-Up Songs, And Her Haunted House 43:34

14d ago43:34

43:34

Grammy-winning singer, guitarist and producer Brittany Howard fronted the band Alabama Shakes before going solo. She talks with Terry Gross about growing up biracial in a small Alabama town, living in a haunted house, and writing break-up songs for her new album, What Now. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR P…

1
The 8 Sci-Fi Movies Of 1982 That Changed Everything 43:46

13d ago43:46

43:46

In 1982, eight science fiction films were released within eight weeks of each other: E.T., Tron, Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan, Conan the Barbarian, Blade Runner, Poltergeist, The Thing, and Mad Max: The Road Warrior. Entertainment writer Chris Nashawaty talks to Tonya Mosley about how those movies shaped the genre and the movie industry. His book is…

1
How 'Hacks' Comes Together — Over Email 45:47

14d ago45:47

45:47

Paul W. Downs co-created the HBO Max show with his wife, Lucia Aniello and their friend and collaborator, Jen Statsky. The three met at the Upright Citizens Brigade. Downs talks with Ann Marie Baldonado about how they came up with the idea for Hacks, tackling cancel culture, and how his wife continued directing the show while she was in labor. Hack…

1
Comic Nikki Glaser Doesn't Know Why Anyone Would Want To Be Roasted 45:15

15d ago45:15

45:15

The comic made headlines after the roast of Tom Brady. She spoke with Terry Gross about finding the line between offensive and funny, hurt feelings, and why she started making jokes about sex. Her new Emmy-nominated stand-up special on HBO is Someday You'll Die. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Poli…

1
Best Of: 'Wicked' Director Jon M. Chu / Stunt Performer-Turned-Filmmaker David Leitch 48:47

19d ago48:47

48:47

Jon M. Chu, the director of Crazy Rich Asians and In the Heights is now directing the film adaptation of the broadway musical Wicked. We'll talk about making movies, and being raised by immigrant parents who owned a Chinese restaurant in Silicon Valley. Also, we hear from stunt performer-turned-director David Leitch. He directed the film The Fall G…

1
Remembering Comic Bob Newhart 45:38

21d ago45:38

45:38

We remember comic and actor Bob Newhart, who died last week at the age of 94. In his stand-up comedy and hit TV series, some of the laughs came from his an awkward, stammering way of speaking. "It isn't an affectation. It's the way I speak," he told Terry Gross in 1998. Also, Justin Chang reviews Deadpool & Wolverine. Learn more about sponsor messa…

1
Will Hezbollah And Israel Go To War? 44:29

22d ago44:29

44:29

Hezbollah, the militant group based in Lebanon, shares Hamas' goal of destroying the state of Israel. We'll talk with New Yorker staff writer Dexter Filkins, about his reporting trip to both sides of the Lebanese/Israeli border. Israel and Hezbollah have escalated their shelling and bombing attacks on each other. Filkins says that's leading to fear…

1
'Wicked' Director Jon M. Chu On The Hard Work Of Creativity 45:28

23d ago45:28

45:28

Chu takes his inspiration from his dad, a Chinese immigrant who worked both the front room and the kitchen of their family-run restaurant: "The guy that in the back of the kitchen, that was my hero." The director of Crazy Rich Asians and In the Heights talks with Terry Gross about growing up in Silicon Valley, seeing Wicked for the first time, and …

1
The Dictator Playbook 44:52

24d ago44:52

44:52

Autocracy, Inc. author Anne Applebaum says today's dictators — including Putin and Xi — are working together in a global fight to dismantle democracy, and Trump is borrowing from their playbook: "We're going to have to defend and protect our political system if we want to keep it." Also, David Bianculli reviews the Apple TV series Time Bandits. Lea…

1
A Former Stunt Performer Shares Tricks Of The Trade 46:45

25d ago46:45

46:45

Filmmaker and stunt coordinator David Leitch says it's easier to do stunts himself than direct his stunt performer friends. "You are responsible for their safety," he explains. "Your heart goes through your chest." His film The Fall Guy is about the unknown performers who put their lives on the line. He talks with Terry Gross about barrel rolling c…

1
Best Of: A Life Of Self-Contempt / Character Actor Julianne Nicholson 48:15

26d ago48:15

48:15

Humorist/writer Shalom Auslander's new memoir is a satirical look at all the ways a sense of "feh," which is Yiddish for "yuck," has made its way into his psyche and every aspect of his life. Auslander has written extensively over the years about growing up in a dysfunctional ultra-Orthodox Jewish family. His new memoir, aptly titled Feh, is about …

1
Remembering Shelley Duvall / Sex Guru Dr. Ruth 46:45

26d ago46:45

46:45

We remember actress Shelley Duvall, who died at the age of 75. Best-known for her role in The Shining, Robert Altman films and her own series about fairytales. She spoke with Terry Gross in 1992 about working with the two directors. Also, we remember the famous sex therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer. And TV critic David Bianculli reviews the new Apple T…

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Fresh Air From WHYY Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen

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Fresh Air

NPR

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Fresh Air From WHYY

Fresh Air From WHYY

1
Police Procedural 'Homicide' (Finally) Comes To Streaming 46:36

1
On The Road With Harris/Walz 46:05

1
How American Lobbyists Threaten Democracy 44:02

1
Safiya Sinclair On Cutting Herself Free From Rastafari Roots 43:59

1
An Informant Exposes The Inner Workings Of The Ku Klux Klan 43:09

1
Best Of: How 1982 Sci-Fi Changed The Game / Singer Brittany Howard 48:04

1
Revisiting The Final Months Of WWII 45:03

1
'Sing Sing' Offers a Glimpse of Life Behind Bars 43:38

1
Black Doctors Consortium Founder Serves Vulnerable Communities 43:31

1
Migrants Risk It All On The Treacherous Darién Gap 44:32

1
A Brain Surgeon Opens Up About Life In The O.R. 44:41

1
Best Of: Comic Nikki Glaser / 'Hacks' Co-Creator Paul W. Downs 49:09

1
Remembering Freedom Singer Bernice Johnson Reagon 46:20

1
Brittany Howard On Prince, Break-Up Songs, And Her Haunted House 43:34

1
The 8 Sci-Fi Movies Of 1982 That Changed Everything 43:46

1
How 'Hacks' Comes Together — Over Email 45:47

1
Comic Nikki Glaser Doesn't Know Why Anyone Would Want To Be Roasted 45:15

1
Best Of: 'Wicked' Director Jon M. Chu / Stunt Performer-Turned-Filmmaker David Leitch 48:47

1
Remembering Comic Bob Newhart 45:38

1
Will Hezbollah And Israel Go To War? 44:29

1
'Wicked' Director Jon M. Chu On The Hard Work Of Creativity 45:28

1
The Dictator Playbook 44:52

1
A Former Stunt Performer Shares Tricks Of The Trade 46:45

1
Best Of: A Life Of Self-Contempt / Character Actor Julianne Nicholson 48:15

1
Remembering Shelley Duvall / Sex Guru Dr. Ruth 46:45

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