This American Life: episodes

15 recent episodes from the show's feed. Back to the show

1. 901: Is Your Blue My Blue?

   Nov 9, 2026 · 1h 0m

   The doomed project of trying to translate what’s in your head into someone else’s head. (00:00:00) Prologue: A while back, Ira woke up with double vision and learned that he had cataracts. After his cataract surgery, he realized the color blue looked very different to him. Now he always wonders: does everyone see the same blue as I do, or is their blue different? (3 minutes) (00:03:26) Act One:

2. 900: Talk Me Into It

   Nov 2, 2026 · 1h 1m

   It’s the midterms! This week’s show is about people changing their minds and not changing their minds — and the people trying to do the persuading. (00:00:00) Prologue: In Detroit, Rose Johnson tries to convince other Black voters to vote for Abdul El-Sayed. Her friend isn’t having it. (7 minutes) (00:07:30) Act One: In Montana's Senate race this year, Democrats have been caught up in a messy cl

3. 506: Secret Identity

   Oct 26, 2026 · 1h 2m

   A bank robber on an undercover mission. A teenage girl with the powers of a tiger. A vigilante seeking vengeance in Ciudad Juárez. All have secret identities — but not all of them chose those identities for themselves. (00:00:00) Prologue: Ira attempts to solve perhaps the most unsolvable mystery at the Trees of Mystery in California: Who is the voice of Paul Bunyan? (7 minutes) (00:07:25) Act O

4. 489: No Coincidence, No Story!

   Oct 19, 2026 · 1h 1m

   We asked listeners to send us their best coincidence stories, and we got more than 1,300 submissions! There were so many good ones that we decided to make a whole show about them. From a chance encounter at a bus station to a romantic dollar bill to a baffling apparition in a college shower stall.  (00:00:00) Prologue: Hannah Jacoby tells the story of when she and her best friend Lindsey bonded o

5. 899: Reaching Out

   Oct 5, 2026 · 1h 2m

   Sayre Quevedo’s invented a way to do a podcast that feels completely new. He’s been recording nearly all his conversations for years, and the result is something that captures a person’s life in a raw and complicated way that’s rarely heard. His new show Reaching Out also documents his mutually judge-y relationship with his twin brother as they set out to find their long-lost birth father. (00:00

6. 898: An Argument

   Sep 28, 2026 · 1h 3m

   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 economically segregated school systems in the country: New York City. Nikole chose a regular public school, one that most wealthy and middle-class parents wouldn’t consider, and she challenged other pa

7. 897: Intergenerational Space Travel

   Sep 21, 2026 · 1h 7m

   People braving the true final frontier — the gap between people born at slightly different times. (00:00:00) Prologue: Last fall, some NPR podcasts started getting mysterious comments on Spotify. They made no sense to the staff reading them – until someone from a younger generation cracked the code. (11 minutes) (00:12:00) Act One: When Courtney Maum was eighteen, her mother married a guy she de

8. 896: I Know What You Need

   Aug 31, 2026 · 1h 8m

   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.  (00:00:00) Prologue: Devon Taylor tells host Ira Glass about a time she confronted people who stole $100 from her. (12 minutes) (00:12:01) Act One: We get to an age when we find ourselves taking care of our parents, whether they want us to or not. Writer Kristen Rou

9. 895: Label Maker!

   Aug 17, 2026 · 58 min

   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 episode: labels and the havoc they wreak. (00:00:00) Prologue: Sara and Ethan have been dating for 10 months. They see each other at least once a week, text pretty much every day, and have been there f

10. 894: I Couldn't Help but Notice

    Aug 3, 2026 · 60 min

    People dealing with new, glaring, massive changes happening right where they live. (00:00:00) Prologue: Rick Cole, a city councilmember in Pasadena, CA, talks to Ira about how he responded to a surprise nighttime military exercise in his neighborhood this June – complete with helicopters, gunfire, and flash bangs. (5 minutes) (00:05:30) Act One: A doctor trained as a midwife tells the eye-poppin

11. Ira (Reluctantly) Gives a Graduation Speech

    May 1, 2026 · 8 min

    Ira always hated commencement speeches. Then he felt like he had to give this one.

12. New Lore Drop

    Jan 9, 2026 · 58 min

    People discovering information about their own lives that they did not know and suddenly everything looks very different.

13. An Update from Ira

    Oct 16, 2025 · 5 min

    Ira Glass shares some news about This American Life

14. Bonus: Nancy's Deep Cuts

    Jul 17, 2025 · 27 min

    Ira Glass talks with Nancy Updike about the most personal stories they have put on the radio.

15. A Big Announcement

    Oct 16, 2024 · 5 min

    Ira Glass has news to share about some things happening here at This American Life.