Nikole Hannah-Jones made an argument 10 years ago in The New York Times Magazine that became famous. She wrote about choosing a public school for her daughter, Najya, in one of the most racially and e...

Our fellowship program focuses on every facet of producing this show.

People braving the true final frontier — the gap between people born at slightly different times. Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription. (00:00:00) Prologue...

Cryptic messages on a cell phone and a teeter totter at a construction site: these are clues people found, trying to make sense of a death. Host Ira Glass talks to a guy about a crazy experiment he ...

As the new school year begins, we have stories today from all over the country about people lurching their way through their middle school years – the years when you're figuring out so, so much. We go...

Our fellowship program focuses on every facet of producing this show.

Moments when it seems obvious what to do for someone else, so of course you jump in and try to help — and what happens after that.  Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium...

Moments when it seems obvious what to do for someone else, so of course you jump in and try to help — and what happens after that.  Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium...

Moments when it seems obvious what to do for someone else, so of course you jump in and try to help — and what happens after that.  Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium...

Podcast Episode · This American Life · August 24 · 59m

Life aboard an aircraft carrier stationed in the Arabian Sea supporting bombing missions over Afghanistan.

The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln has been in the news over an extra-long deployment that's taking a toll on its crew. Back in 2002, we explored life aboard another aircraft carrier, the USS Jo...

Not long ago, I was reading, in a magazine profile, a physical description of a person “who has a prodigious white beard, wavy gray bangs, and dark, beetling eyebrows.” A photo of the person was…

Labels are powerful. They can distill you down to a single word. They can get stuck on you without your permission. And sometimes, when they get taken away, they can upend your entire life. On this ep...

Labels are powerful. They can distill you down to a single word. They can get stuck on you without your permission. And sometimes, when they get taken away, they can upend your entire life. On this ep...

Labels are powerful. They can distill you down to a single word. They can get stuck on you without your permission. And sometimes, when they get taken away, they can upend your entire life. On this ep...

We head to some of the happiest places on earth: amusement parks! Ira Glass takes us behind the scenes at Worlds of Fun in Kansas City, where the young staff – coached by a funny, fun-loving boss just...

Life Partners are essential to funding This American Life. You’ll listen ad-free, get regular bonus episodes, and more. Most importantly, you’ll help make sure the show stays in production, making the...

People dealing with new, glaring, massive changes happening right where they live. Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription. Prologue: Rick Cole, a city counci...

People dealing with new, glaring, massive changes happening right where they live. Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription. Prologue: Rick Cole, a city counci...

People dealing with new, glaring, massive changes happening right where they live. Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription. Prologue: Rick Cole, a city counci...

Life Partners are essential to funding This American Life. You’ll listen ad-free, get regular bonus episodes, and more. Most importantly, you’ll help make sure the show stays in production, making the...

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered everyone over 30 in the military to have their testosterone tested. That inspired us to rerun this classic episode where everyone at This American Life teste...

People on journeys they did not intend! Or agree to! Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription. Prologue: A woman on a nighttime bus ride wakes up to discover t...

People on journeys they did not intend! Or agree to! Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription. Prologue: A woman on a nighttime bus ride wakes up to discover t...

Some people in this country think Antifa is a dangerous domestic terror organization. Some think that’s a complete myth.  This week we go to the federal trial where, for the first time, the government...

We try to tell the story of life in America through portraits of life on four different corners, in four different states across the nation. Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for ou...