This American Life

Each week we choose a theme. Then anything can happen. This American Life is true stories that unfold like little movies for radio. Personal stories with funny moments, big feelings, and surprising plot twists. Newsy stories that try to capture what it’s like to be alive right now. It’s the most popular weekly podcast in the world, and winner of the first ever Pulitzer Prize for a radio show or podcast. Hosted by Ira Glass and produced in collaboration with WBEZ Chicago.

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23 episodes
weekly
Avg 53 min
English

Episodes 23

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#897
Monday · 1 hr 7 min
897: Intergenerational Space Travel
People braving the true final frontier — the gap between people born at slightly different times.
#646
September 14 · 1 hr 7 min
646: The Secret of My Death
The clues people find when trying to make sense of a death.
#449
September 7 · 1 hr 1 min
449: Middle School
The awkward, confusing, hormonally charged world of middle school.
#896
August 31 · 1 hr 8 min
896: I Know What You Need
Moments when it seems obvious what to do for someone else, so of course you jump in.
#206
August 24 · 1 hr 1 min
206: Somewhere in the Arabian Sea
Life aboard an aircraft carrier stationed in the Arabian Sea supporting bombing missions over Afghanistan.
#895
August 17 · 58 min
895: Label Maker!
Labels and the havoc they wreak.
#443
August 10 · 1 hr 2 min
443: Amusement Park
We head to some of the happiest places on earth: amusement parks!
#894
August 3 · 1 hr
894: I Couldn't Help but Notice
People dealing with new, glaring, massive changes happening right where they live.
#893
July 27 · 1 hr 1 min
893: Testosterone
Everyone at This American Life tests their testosterone and compares results.
#892
July 20 · 1 hr 2 min
892: Trapped on a Bus
People on journeys they did not intend — or agree to.
#891
July 13 · 1 hr 10 min
891: The Test Case
The government sets out to prove that Antifa is real.
#890
July 6 · 56 min
890: Maximal Americanness
The people, places, objects, and social norms that make this country what it is.
#889
June 22 · 1 hr 6 min
889: There’s Something About Hail Mary
We spend an hour in the last two minutes of the fourth quarter, behind and desperate, with people trying any damn thing they can think of.
#888
June 8 · 58 min
888: Not Today, Hades!
Regular people trapped inside Greek myths.
#887
May 18 · 59 min
887: Two Is One, One Is None!
One family faces the Trump administration’s ban on trans people serving in the military.
#886
May 4 · 54 min
886: Blackout
Iran has been under a total internet blackout since the war began. We found a way to get voice memos out.
May 1 · 8 min
Ira (Reluctantly) Gives a Graduation Speech
Ira always hated commencement speeches. Then he felt like he had to give this one.
#885
April 13 · 1 hr 1 min
885: Bless This Mess
The untold, messy story of Paul and Essie Robeson.
#884
March 29 · 59 min
884: The Idiot
M. Gessen returns to our show with a true crime story that all takes place in their own family.
January 9 · 58 min
New Lore Drop
People discovering information about their own lives that they did not know and suddenly everything looks very different.

Showing 1–20 of 23 episodes