The Colin McEnroe Show

This hour, our new favorite way to communicate: emoji. We look at how emoji are created and how they change meaning and talk to the creator of Emojiland: The Musical . GUESTS: Keith Broni: Editor-in-chief of  Emojipedia Keith Harrison Dworkin: Composer and creator of Emojiland: The Musical Alex King: Associate professor of philosophy at Simon Fraser University and editor-in-chief of  Aesthetics fo...

This hour, a conversation about handling life’s hardships with philosopher Kieran Setiya, the author of Life Is Hard: How Philosophy Can Help Us Find Our Way . GUESTS: Kieran Setiya: Professor of philosophy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the author of Life Is Hard: How Philosophy Can Help Us Find Our Way The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts , Spotify...

This week’s Nose could be some genetic switch that flipped. Something that was there, dormant, and it just… On April 8,  The New York Times  Opinion published an interactive, “ 17 Pop Culture Moments That Define the COVID Era .” The Nose didn’t really have a choice but to start figuring out its own COVID canon. And:  The Power  is a TV series adaptation of Naomi Alderman’s 2016 science fiction nov...

Humans have always been interested in the sky, and astrology has been used as a tool for people in power for a long time. During times of stress, interest in astrology increases. But why are we so interested in something that is not considered a science? This hour, a look at the history of astrology, its relationship with astronomy, and the reasons why people love it so much. GUESTS: Julie Beck: S...

Alana Newhouse, editor-in-chief of  Tablet  Magazine, recently wrote  an article  where she argued that the real divide currently is between those who think we can fix our institutions, and those who think they are broken beyond repair. Alana joins us for the hour to explore the divide between the “brokenists” and the “status-quoists,” and to explain what this framework means for the future. GUEST...

Sometimes, we just love to hate. From reality TV shows like  The Bachelor  and  The Real Housewives  franchise to movies like  The Room  and  Twilight , sometimes it’s so bad it’s good. The phenomenon of hate-watching has reached new audiences on social media platforms such as Twitter and YouTube. Haters are more vocal than ever. In this episode we ask why we want to watch and suffer through movie...

We’ve been doing these shows a couple times a month where we don’t book any guests, where we fill the hour with your calls. And your calls have been interesting and surprising and amusing. This hour, the conversation winds around to the end of civilization and why we aren’t doing anything about it, roller derby, the music we use, litter, very fast cars … Anything. (Seemingly) everything. These sho...

This week’s Nose is a redundancy in case the FBI needs to contact the president and other methods are compromised. The Night Agent is an espionage conspiracy thriller TV series created by Shawn Ryan and based on the 2019 novel by Matthew Quirk. It stars Gabriel Basso. All 10 first season episodes are available on Netflix. The Night Agent was renewed for a second season. And: Rabbit Hole is an espi...

Bears, bobcats, coyotes, and deer are repopulating Connecticut, despite being hunted to near extinction by early settlers. Is the mountain lion among those returning? The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection thinks it’s unlikely. They investigate hundreds of mountain lion sightings every year without finding physical evidence of their presence. The sightings increased in 2...

This hour, we investigate what it means to be a good citizen today. What are our responsibilities? What do we owe each other? GUESTS: Tamar Gendler: Professor of philosophy, psychology, and cognitive science and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Yale University Azar Nafisi: Author of six books, including  Reading Lolita in Tehran ; her newest is  Read Dangerously: The Subversive Power of...

Ahead of NPR’s special coverage of the arraignment of former President Donald Trump, we look at the possible legal case and its broader implications. And we take your calls. GUEST: Ross Garber: A lawyer specializing in political investigations and impeachment and a legal analyst for CNN The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , Google Podcasts , Stitcher , or w...

This hour is about the psychology of fandom. We look at how the mind of a fan operates. We talk with experts about the mental attachments and connections fans have with their favorite shows and fictional characters. Plus, there are many reasons why one becomes a fan. We’ll talk about that, and how fandoms have evolved over time. Finally, a look at the types of emotions fans feel and how they expre...

We believe this week’s Nose will be perceived as indigenous and will not trigger the immune response. Avatar: The Way of Water is the first of four planned sequels to 2009’s Avatar . It is the highest-grossing film of 2022, the highest-grossing film of the COVID era, and the third-highest grossing film ever made. The Way of Water is now available to purchase on iTunes/Amazon/etc., and it’s still i...

This hour: a conversation with novelist Emily St. John Mandel, about time travel, the simulation hypothesis, adapting her work to television, art and culture during times of crisis, autofiction, Wikipedia, and much more. GUESTS:  Emily St. John Mandel:  Novelist, whose books include  Sea of Tranquility ,   The Glass Hotel , and  Station Eleven Join the conversation on Facebook  and  Twitter . The...

This hour we look at mis-speaks, mis-hearings and mis-understandings, like malapropisms, mondegreens, eggcorns, and spoonerisms. We'll share our favorite examples and learn about what they can tell us about the English language, and how our brains process language. And we'll celebrate the joy of playing with language. GUESTS:  Emily Brewster:  Senior Editor and lexicographer at  Merriam-Webster ,...

This hour: historical reenactments. We look at the role reenactments play in helping us understand or experience history. We talk with reenactors about what draws them to this and what their experiences are like. Plus, reenactments aren’t just about the acting but the costumes and the props. We hear from a tailor who creates custom clothing using traditional materials and methods to create true-to...

We’ve been doing these shows a couple times a month where we don’t book any guests, where we fill the hour with your calls. And your calls have been interesting and surprising and amusing. This hour, the conversation winds around to John Donne and William Shakespeare, the age-old dilemma: to pay someone to plow your driveway or not to pay someone to plow your driveway,  layoffs at NPR , a long-ago...

In his book From Hollywood with Love: The Rise and Fall (and Rise Again) of the Romantic Comedy , Scott Meslow lays out two ways to tell if a given movie is a rom-com. First, his own definition: “A romantic comedy is a movie where (1) the central plot is focused on at least one romantic love story; and (2) the goal is to make you laugh at least as much as the goal is to make you cry.” And then, Th...

This hour, we wrap our heads around clapping — its history, its varied permutations, and the kinds of occasions on which people applaud. GUESTS: Erin Elstner: Percussionist and professor of percussion at Webster University Frank Rizzo: Theater critic for  Variety  and other publications Gavin Witt: Professor of theater history at Towson University The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast o...

It could be that you’ve used online reviews to try new restaurants, dry cleaners, hotels or even movies. But what makes us trust the opinions of strangers on the internet? This hour, a look at the art and the etiquette of the online review. GUESTS: Tyler Anderson: Owner of  Tanda Hospitality Lauren Dragan: Senior staff writer at  Wirecutter Xandy Schiefer: Co-host of the podcast  Beach Too Sandy,...

Tuberculosis has been around for thousands of years, and it still infects millions per year. This hour, we look back at how tuberculosis has shaped history and how it is still impacting health today. Plus, a look at the history of tuberculosis treatment, how tuberculosis has shaped modern architecture, and the impact of tuberculosis on art and artists. GUESTS: Heran Darwin: Professor in the Depart...

How do you like to relax? Do you read a book? Go for a hike, maybe? How about grabbing dinner with friends? The list goes on, and we consider these activities leisure. This hour, we learn what leisure is and how to master it. We take a look at the importance of leisure for health, how the concept differs around the world, and what it means to value your free time. Finally, we examine what the futu...

This week’s Nose is being institutionally told that its personal expression is bad. This weekend, Adam Sandler receives the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor . Colin says it’s the end of Western civilization , or something like that. But is it? And: Seth Rogen has gone on the record about how “devastating” critiques of his work can be. It’s a topic this week’s Nose, which includes America’s Grea...

March Madness is upon us! And so the only logical thing to do is to get improv comedian Julia Pistell and the actual Bill Curry together to talk basketball for an hour on the radio. That may not be the only logical thing to do. It may be that that’s not actually a logical thing to do at all. But we’re doing it anyway. *It’s our 13th one of these unless it isn’t. Our thinking is that we’ve done thi...

Do you daydream? What do you daydream about? This hour is all about the art of daydreaming. We'll reflect on the value of daydreaming, and why it can be so difficult to talk about our daydreams. Plus, we’ll look at what daydreaming does to our brains, and we’ll learn about maladaptive daydreaming. GUESTS:  Leslie Jamison:  Novelist, essayist and professor at Columbia University’s MFA Program Jonat...