For the 100th episode of This American Life, a radio show about the pleasures of radio. About what makes radio so great, and what makes it so terrible.
The Invisible Leading The Blind
Jack Hitt talks about a radio station he chanced upon while on a long drive. The station seems to ignore the last six decades of broadcasting history and convention. Jack is the author of Off the Road: A Modern-Day Walk Down the Pilgrim's Route into Spain. (10 minutes)
The Radio Most People Listen To
How the science of radio enabled V103 to become tied for number one in the Chicago market. And how it cost DJ Ida Hackele her job. (18 minutes)
Noble Calling
Now in exile, Jose Ramos Horta spent two decades as the leading international spokesman against the invasion of his country by Indonesia. He won a Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts. And one day when peace finally comes to his country, East Timor, he will move on to his next dream: to be a radio talk host, just like Howard Stern. (10 minutes)
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Act Two: Taking a Big Pink Eraser to the Thin Blue Line
Michael May tells the story of Barry Cooper, a former crooked narcotics cop who has turned his interest elsewhere...to busting crooked narcotics cops.
Act One: The Red Velvet Underground
We begin our show with the most idealistic notion of Santa.
Act Two: Golden Peacock
We told Chicago playwright Jeff Dorchen about what the three boys in Act One said, and he created a brief original radio play picking up where they left off.
Staff Recommendations
The Giant Pool of Money
The surprisingly entertaining story of how the U.S. got itself into a housing crisis.
Dr. Gilmer and Mr. Hyde
Did a beloved family doctor with no criminal history suddenly up and strangle his own father?
