It's NHPR's Fall Fund Drive! You can help support our show and NHPR by making a contribution here:
In the meantime, during the fund drive we'll be airing some favorite segments from our archives. Plus, today we have a new interview with Joe Richman who talks about his new project for Radio Diaries.
Here's what's on today's show:
Working Then and Now
Author and broadcaster Louis "Studs" Terkel was known for his personable, down to earth interviewing style, and his powerful oral histories of World War II and The Great Depression. His gift was his ability to connect with ordinary men and women - and nowhere is that more evident than in his 1974 book, Working: People Talk About What They Do All Day And How They Feel About What They Do.
In order to write his book on the working lives of everyday people, Terkel conducted more than 130 interviews with men and women - recordings that have gone unheard until now. All this week, as part of a collaboration between Radio Diaries and Project& these recordings are being recovered and broadcast on NPR, and on the Radio Diaries podcast. Joe Richman is the founder and executive producer of Radio Diaries, and has been compared to Studs Terkel himself - he joined us to share more about the project, how work has changed in America since the release of Stud's book, and why these interviews matter.
The Case Against Apple Picking
Apple picking is a rite of passage for many children certainly, but Daniel Gross shatters that illusion in his article decrying apple picking as a scam. Daniel is a longtime contributor to Slate, where he originally published the article “Against Apple Picking” and who resurrects it each fall to new outrage. His most recent book is Better, Stronger, Faster.
Listen to this segment again: The Case Against Apple Picking
Every Night Ever
They say seeing is believing...but anyone who has witnessed a magic trick, or read an article online promising something shocking, knows you can't always believe what you see, or hear, or read. Here's proof, from Nate DiMeo and The Memory Palace.
You can listen to this story again at PRX.org.