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Fresh Air

Fresh Air

Fresh Air from WHYY, the Peabody Award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues, is one of public radio's most popular programs. Hosted by Terry Gross and Tonya Mosley, the show features intimate conversations with today's biggest luminaries.

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  • 20 episodes
  • daily
  • Avg 49 min
  • English

Episodes 20

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  • Friday · 46 min

    Feminist Icon Gloria Steinem

    Writer, activist and face of the women’s liberation movement Gloria Steinem died Wednesday at age 92. She spoke with Terry Gross several times over four decades, this remembrance pulls from three of those conversations: In 2015, Steinem talked about...

  • Thursday · 48 min

    Filmmaker Paul Greengrass on rage, rebellion and ‘The Uprising’

    Paul Greengrass’ new film, The Uprising, stars Andrew Garfield as a 14th-century peasant who, in the wake of the Plague, leads a revolt against the king. It's a history Greengrass grew up learning, and now sees parallels with Covid and Jan 6th....

  • Wednesday · 49 min

    Back-to-school with Big Tech

    Tech giants like Google and Microsoft have been competing for years to get their devices, software and AI into public schools, even offering free training programs for teachers and students. These brands are helping shape what and how children learn....

  • Tuesday · 49 min

    A centennial celebration of John Coltrane

    Coltrane was one of the most influential musicians in the history of jazz, from his beautiful ballads, to his more spiritual music, and his role in the forefront of free jazz. September 23 marks 100 years since his birth. We speak with his son Ravi...

  • August 31 · 50 min

    How the government wastes our time

    Atlantic journalist Annie Lowrey explores the administrative burdens people face applying for government benefits like unemployment and food assistance. It's not just about wasted time: "When the government treats us like this, we don't trust it," she...

  • August 29 · 53 min

    Best Of: Jason Segel / Lisa Kudrow

    Jason Segel returns to talk with Terry Gross about his Emmy-nominated series Shrinking, in which he plays a therapist who suffered a nervous breakdown in the wake of his wife’s death. Segel opens up about his own therapy and acting opposite Harrison...

  • August 28 · 46 min

    Remembering Tim Curry

    Actor Tim Curry, best-known for playing mad scientist Dr. Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show, died this week at age 80. He spoke with Terry Gross in 2005 about finding the character’s look and voice.  Also, actor Rhea Seehorn has been...

  • August 27 · 49 min

    Riz Ahmed takes on his inner critic

    In his Prime Video series, Bait, Riz Ahmed plays an actor auditioning to be the next James Bond. Ahmed says Bond is a "symbol of aspiration, this unattainable kind of self" his character is pursuing. He’s nominated for an Emmy for his role in the...

  • August 26 · 50 min

    Dolly Parton

    The beloved country superstar died Tuesday at age 80. Parton spoke with Terry Gross in 2001 about growing up in rural poverty with 11 siblings, leaving for Nashville to become a star, and coming up with her signature look. "I've always believed that a...

  • August 25 · 49 min

    The story of the world's first super-terrorist

    National security writer Joby Warrick tells the story of “Carlos the Jackal,” the world’s most notorious terrorist of the ‘70s and ‘80s. He became so famous for his brazen attacks and playboy lifestyle that, once, when he was releasing hostages from a...

  • August 24 · 50 min

    Lisa Kudrow

    Lisa Kudrow is up for two Emmys for the final season of The Comeback, about an actress who will endure almost anything to keep working. She spoke with Tonya Mosley about her character’s delusion and how the show has captured different eras of...

  • August 22 · 53 min

    Best Of: Colman Domingo / Writer Leïla Slimani

    Colman Domingo is nominated for two Emmy Awards this year, for two very different roles: in the Netflix comedy The Four Seasons and in the final season of HBO's Euphoria. He spoke with Tonya Mosley about the transition from dramatic roles to comedy,...

  • August 19 · 49 min

    Challenges the U.S. military is facing in Iran

    Defense analyst Stacie Pettyjohn says while the U.S. military is facing long-range missile shortages, prolonged deployments, and vacated regional bases, Iran is building cheaper weapons quickly. She tells Dave Davies the U.S. military is scrambling to...

  • August 18 · 48 min

    Jason Segel is not afraid of the ‘dirty underneath’

    Segel returns to talk with Terry Gross about his Emmy-nominated series Shrinking, in which he plays a therapist who suffered a nervous breakdown in the wake of his wife’s death. Segel opens up about his own therapy, acting opposite Harrison Ford, and...

  • August 17 · 45 min

    What evolution reveals about eating, dieting and fat

    When you’re dieting to lose weight, human evolution is often working against you. We’ll talk about why with Daniel Lieberman, author of Fed Up and founder of Harvard’s Department of Evolutionary Biology.  He spoke with Terry Gross about diets he’s...

  • August 14 · 50 min

    Reckoning with America’s history of slavery

    Poet and writer Clint Smith says we are taught to think of slavery as something that happened a long, long time ago. But then he learned that his grandfather's grandfather had been enslaved. “This person who was so central to my life and my own...

Showing 1–20 of 20 episodes