Black Stories. Black Truths.

The dating app Bumble can not stay out of the news. First, the company launched an anti-celibacy advertising campaign mocking abstinence and suggesting women shouldn't give up on dating apps. Then, at a tech summit, Bumble's founder suggested artificial intelligence might be the future of dating. Both efforts were met with backlash, and during a time when everyone seems irritated with dating - where can people turn? Shani Silver, author of the Cheaper Than Therapy substack, and KCRW's Myisha Battle, dating coach and host of How's Your Sex Life? join the show to make sense of the mess. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

What does a comedian know about baseball? And what can America's oldest baseball field tell us about the civil rights movement? Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama is America's oldest ballpark. It's older than Wrigley Field and Fenway park. But its history is full of contradictions. In its heyday, Rickwood was home to both the Birmingham Barons and the Birmingham Black Barons, one of the most talented teams in the Negro Leagues. The field hosted a women's suffrage event, but the stadium's owner also allowed a KKK rally to take place there. Comedian Roy Wood Jr. hosts a new podcast called Road to Rickwood from WWNO & WRKF, which takes a closer look at the field's history as a microcosm of the civil rights movement itself. Wood Jr. grew up in Birmingham playing baseball at Rickwood. In the podcast, he speaks to historians, civic leaders, major league baseball executives, former Negro Leaguers, and members of Alabama's first integrated sports team. For himself and those he interviewed, baseball was an oasis. It was also still a space where racism shaped the lives of some of the nation's best baseball players. In this episode of The Sunday Story, Wood Jr. sits down with host Ayesha Rascoe to talk baseball, Birmingham, and race in America. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

Michael Jackson is reaching a new generation of fans through a popular Broadway musical featuring his legendary music and choreography — and a big screen biopic is scheduled to premiere next year.It remains to be seen how the film will address Jackson's tumultuous career, but the estate has been involved with the movie's development. Fifteen years on, Michael Jackson's legacy remains fraught. Is it possible to separate the artist and the person? And should we? NPR's Adrian Florido speaks with media critics Eric Deggans and Ann Powers. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

In the post-apocalyptic world of A Quiet Place, aliens kill anyone who makes a sound, forcing humans into a near-silent existence. The new movie A Quiet Place: Day One takes us back to the beginning, but this time through the eyes of a terminally ill cancer patient played by the excellent Lupita Nyong'o. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

The Civil Rights Act was signed into law on July 2, 1964. President Lyndon B. Johnson called it a way for America to honor its promise of liberty. But 60 years on, how well has it lived up to that promise? Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

The venerable British science fiction series Doctor Who is back with a new season. Ncuti Gatwa — who is Black and openly queer — brings a vibrant energy to the story of an alien who travels through space and time in a blue box. The series, now streaming on Disney+, also features the return of showrunner Russell T. Davies, who birthed the modern era of Doctor Who. But what does this mix of new and old mean for the sci-fi institution? Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

For many Black people, transitioning to natural hair can feel frustrating, especially if you're doing it for the first time. Experts share what you need to know about growing out natural hair, from washing it and styling it – to learning to love it. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

We've probably said it a hundred times on Code Switch — biological race is not a real thing. So why is race still used to help diagnose certain conditions, like keloids or cystic fibrosis? On this episode, Dr. Andrea Deyrup breaks it down for us, and unpacks the problems she sees with practicing race-based medicine. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

With the news of O.J. Simpson's death on Thursday, we're revisiting our reporting from 2016, where we took a look into how Simpson went from being "too famous to be Black," to becoming a stand-in for the way Black people writ-large were mistreated by the U.S. carceral system. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

First up, there has been a media frenzy around the fouls made against rising basketball star and Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark. Commentators and fans have called her fellow WNBA players bullies, jealous, and catty. But Code Switch co-host Gene Demby and Defector's Maitreyi Anantharaman say a lot of the people commenting misunderstand the WNBA. Host Brittany Luse learns what the new fans might be missing and how racism, sexism and homophobia could be fanning the flames of the latest hot takes. Brittany also leads Gene and Maitreyi through a game of "But Did You Know." Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

Trans women have become culturally associated with the violence they face, both in sympathy and stigma. The historian Jules Gill-Peterson looks to how that came to be in her book, A Short History of Trans Misogyny. This week, we talk about how panics around trans femininity are shaped by wider forces of colonialism, segregation, and class interests. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

Martin Luther King Jr. was relatively unpopular when he was assassinated. But the way Americans of all political stripes invoke his memory today, you'd think he was held up as a hero. In this episode, we talk about the cooptation of King's legacy with Hajar Yazdiha, author of The Struggle for the People's King: How Politics Transforms the Memory of the Civil Rights Movement. Listen to more Code Switch at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR.org, or anywhere you get your podcasts. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

A civil lawsuit has been filed against rap mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs by his ex-girlfriend and former protégé Cassie Ventura. She alleged to have suffered years of emotional and physical abuse during the course of their relationship. Diddy denied the allegations and settled the suit quickly, but other damning claims have resurfaced in its wake. His reputation seems to have been tarnished — at least for the moment. And it has us wondering: Is this a crucial turning point for a long-awaited reckoning within the music industry? Or merely a blip in the routine of business as usual? Listen to more Pop Culture Happy Hour at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR.org, or anywhere you get your podcasts. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

The prince of pranks, Eric André, changed the comedy landscape with his long-running series on Adult Swim, The Eric André Show. After a 3-year hiatus, the show is back. Brittany Luse sits down with André to talk about the new season, his pranks on Amber Rose and Jaleel White, and why his humor seems to always flip the script of figures of authority and create heroes out of average Joes. Listen to more It's Been A Minute at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR.org, or anywhere you get your podcasts. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

Juneteenth commemorates the day that enslaved Texans found out — more than two years after Emancipation Day — that they were free. It's also a day known for celebratory meals and red drinks. And the holiday, originally celebrated mostly in Texas, is gaining popularity around the country; in fact, on June 15, the U.S. Senate unanimously approved a bill that would make Juneteenth a legal public holiday. But as the Juneteenth becomes more widespread, we wondered: Is there a risk that certain people (and corporations) will try to keep the food and lose the meaning? Listen to more Code Switch at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR.org, or anywhere you get your podcasts. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

Tracee Ellis Ross is an icon. From playing the premiere Black bachelorette, Joan Carol Clayton, on Girlfriends to becoming America's mom as Bow Johnson on Black-ish, she's spent the past two decades portraying a paragon of Black womanhood on screen. More recently, Tracee's turned her focus toward uplifting the stories of real people – on her Hulu documentary Hair Tales, and with her new podcast, I Am America. Host Brittany Luse talks with Tracee about her long and varied career, how she tackles storytelling through documentary and what it means to have rich auntie energy. Listen to more It's Been A Minute at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR.org, or anywhere you get your podcasts. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

The start of a new year can push us to think about how we take care of ourselves – our bodies or our minds. And for some people that can mean seeking help for mental health issues like depression and anxiety. In some ways, being open about pursuing treatment for mental health concerns is becoming more commonplace. But for men who are socialized not to express vulnerability and keep emotions in check, seeking therapy may feel taboo. Black men must also contend with the long history of neglect and abuse that has influenced how generations of African Americans feel about health services, a lack of Black mental health professionals, and the understanding that shielding emotions is a way to face the pressures and dangers of racism. Host Michel Martins talks with writer Damon Young, author of What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Blacker: A Memoir in Essays, and psychologist Earl Turner of Pepperdine University, on making therapy more accessible for Black men. Listen to more Consider This at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR.org, or anywhere you get your podcasts. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

One in ten Black people living in the U.S. is an immigrant, and many Black immigrants—particularly those born in African nations—have settled in the South, according to a Pew Research report from 2022. This statistic caught Code Switch editor Leah Donnella's eye. She wanted to know: How have Black immigrants redefined their sense of identity in the South, while confronting American racism? In this episode of The Sunday Story, Leah tells host Ayesha Rascoe about the people she met in Tennessee. Listen to more Up First at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR.org, or anywhere you get your podcasts. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

The Montgomery bus boycott lasted from December of 1955 through December of 1956. What people often remember of that moment in history is that when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat, it sparked a bus boycott that was led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. But what that retelling leaves out are all the women who organized for years to make that boycott a reality and who helped sustain it for 13 long months. In this episode, the women behind the boycott tell their own story. Listen to more Code Switch at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR.org, or anywhere you get your podcasts. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy

Former first lady Michelle Obama's most recent memoir, The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times, offers insight on a wide range of topics: feeling seen, dealing with fear, and making new friends. But a throughline of the book is advice about relationships – with our partner, our kids and ourselves. She draws from her own experiences with her husband, former President Barack Obama, her daughters Sasha and Malia, and her mother, Marian Robinson, to illustrate how she's helped each of her relationships thrive. The key, she tells NPR's Juana Summers, is that "you have to evolve with it." Listen to more Life Kit at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR.org, or anywhere you get your podcasts. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy