This American Life Archive

633: Our Town - Part Two 15.12.2017 ↓

When an Alabama town went from 98% white to one-fourth Latino, what did it mean for taxpayers, schools, traffic, crime?

632: Our Town - Part One 08.12.2017 ↓

What really happened when undocumented workers showed up in one Alabama town?

631: So a Monkey and a Horse Walk Into a Bar 10.11.2017 ↓

Blurring the line between animal and human.

630: Things I Mean to Know 27.10.2017 ↓

Stories of people trying to unspool some of life’s certainties.

629: Expect Delays 20.10.2017 ↓

Stories about delays, including a town in Ohio known almost entirely for its speed trap.

628: In the Shadow of the City 13.10.2017 ↓

Stories that take place on the edge of civilization, just out of sight.

627: Suitable for Children (2017) 06.10.2017 ↓

Neil Drumming looks back at a toy he loved that, in retrospect, probably wouldn’t love him back.

626: White Haze 22.09.2017 ↓

What should we make of right-wing groups like the Proud Boys, who believe “the West is the best”?

625: Essay B 08.09.2017 ↓

In 1967, the first Black students integrated the South’s elite prep schools. One of the main reasons they were there? To benefit the white kids.

624: Private Geography 01.09.2017 ↓

What Betsy DeVos's experience in a public school in her hometown can tell us about her vision for education in this country.

623: We Are in the Future (2017) 18.08.2017 ↓

Afrofuturism is a way of looking at black culture that’s fantastic, creative, and oddly hopeful.

622: Who You Gonna Call? 04.08.2017 ↓

Stories of lucky people who have found the exact right person to ring up for help.

621: Fear and Loathing in Homer and Rockville 21.07.2017 ↓

Two towns grapple with the question—who do we let in?

620: To Be Real 14.07.2017 ↓

People try to go deeper—to get to something real—in some unexpected places: war, magic, and porn.

619: The Magic Show 30.06.2017 ↓

Former kid magicians Ira Glass and David Kestenbaum dive back into the world of magic.

618: Mr. Lie Detector 09.06.2017 ↓

A polygraph operator and his strange journey.

617: Fermi’s Paradox 19.05.2017 ↓

Three people grapple with the question, “Are we alone?”

616: I Am Not a Pirate 05.05.2017 ↓

Stories about both historical and modern-day swashbucklers who loot, pillage, and question their choices.

615: The Beginning of Now 28.04.2017 ↓

Before Trump started his presidential campaign, there was a congressional race that redefined what was possible in American politics.

614: The Other Mr. President (2017) 14.04.2017 ↓

What it's actually like to live in the confusing information landscape that is Putin's Russia.

613: OK, I’ll Do It 31.03.2017 ↓

A surgeon takes out his own appendix in what might be one of the most daring surgeries ever performed.

612: Ask a Grown-Up 17.03.2017 ↓

Teenage girls ask for advice about their love lives, and Ira's tribute to his very grown-up friend Mary.

611: Vague and Confused 03.03.2017 ↓

A show about rules and what happens when they’re vague and randomly enforced.

610: Grand Gesture 17.02.2017 ↓

People going to very extreme measures to demonstrate their feelings.

609: It’s Working Out Very Nicely 03.02.2017 ↓

We document what happened when the President’s executive order went into effect temporarily banning travel from seven countries.