Radio Diaries

PRX

Radio Diaries works with people to document their own lives for public radio: teenagers, seniors, prison inmates and others whose voices are rarely heard. We help people share their stories—and their lives—in their own words, creating documentaries that are powerful, surprising, intimate and timeless. Radio Diaries is a proud member of Radiotopia, from PRX, a curated network of extraordinary, story-driven shows. Learn more at radiotopia.fm

Radio Diaries works with people to document their own lives for public radio: teenagers, seniors, prison inmates and others whose voices are rarely heard. We help people share their stories—and their lives—in their own words, creating documentaries that are powerful, surprising, intimate and timeless. Radio Diaries is a proud member of Radiotopia, from PRX, a curated network of extraordinary, story-driven shows. Learn more at radiotopia.fm

More Information

Location:

United States

Genres:

Storytelling Podcasts

Radiotopia Podcasts

History

Documentary

Networks:

PRX

Radiotopia

Description:

Language:

English

Website:

http://www.radiodiaries.org/

Episodes

Shirley Chisholm: Unbought and Unbossed

7/25/2019

Today…there’s “The Squad.” But 50 years ago, there was only one woman of color in the U.S. Congress, and she was the first. Shirley Chisholm, of New York City, was elected to Congress in a historic victory in 1968. And like the squad...Chisholm made her voice heard. In 1972, Chisholm launched a spirited campaign for the Democratic nomination. She was the first woman and first African American to run. Declaring herself “unbought and unbossed,” she took on the political establishment,...

Duration:00:16:16

The Square Deal

6/20/2019

100 years ago, George F. Johnson ran the biggest shoe factory in the world. The Endicott-Johnson Corporation in upstate New York produced 52 million pairs of shoes a year. But Johnson wasn’t only known for his shoes. Johnson had an unusual theory at the time, about how workers should be treated. Some people called it “Welfare Capitalism.” He called it “The Square Deal.”

Duration:00:16:30

Amanda's Diary: Revisited

6/6/2019

This month marks the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising, a turning point in the gay rights movement. The anniversary is a reminder of how much has changed since 1969, when "homosexual acts" were illegal in all states but one - Illinois. Today, gay marriage is legal across the nation. Here at Radio Diaries we have our own small time capsule of how much has changed. The very first audio diary I ever did, with Amanda Brand. Amanda's story was about being a gay teenager, with parents...

Duration:00:22:56

Last Witness: Surviving the Tulsa Race Riot

5/20/2019

On May 31, 1921, six-year-old Olivia Hooker was home with her family when a group of white men launched an attack on the Greenwood section of Tulsa, Oklahoma. In less than 24 hours, the mobs destroyed more than 1000 homes and businesses. It’s estimated as many as 300 people were killed. The Tulsa Race Riot is considered one of the worst incidents of racial violence in American history. Olivia Hooker was the last surviving witness to the events of that day. Know someone who’d make a good...

Duration:00:09:16

Juan's Diaries: Undocumented, Then and Now

5/2/2019

Back in the 1990s, Juan crossed the U.S.-Mexico border illegally, and settled with his family next to the Rio Grande river in Texas. We gave him a cassette recorder to document his life there for NPR. Almost two decades later, we gave Juan another recorder to report on his life as an adult. In many ways, Juan has achieved the American Dream - he has a house, a good job, and three American kids. But...he's still undocumented.

Duration:00:32:31

The Bonus Army

4/18/2019

In 1932, 20,000 WWI veterans set up a tent city in Washington. They called themselves the Bonus Army. See photos of the Bonus Army here: http://www.radiodiaries.org/march-of-the-bonus-army/

Duration:00:15:34

The Working Tapes

4/4/2019

In the early 1970’s, author Studs Terkel went around the country with a reel-to-reel tape recorder interviewing people about their jobs. He turned these interviews into a book called, “Working.” After the book was released in 1974, the tapes were packed away in Studs home office. A few years ago, we at Radio Diaries, along with our collaborator Jane Saks of Project&, were offered the chance to make a radio and podcast series out of the recordings. In today’s episode, we bring you some of...

Duration:00:23:51

The Story of Jane

3/21/2019

Before the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Roe vs. Wade, abortions were illegal in most of the United States. But that didn't mean women didn't have them. Hundreds of women were dying every year in botched abortions. In 1965, an underground network formed in Chicago to help women who wanted to have abortions, in a medically safe way. At first, they connected women with doctors willing to break the law to perform the procedure. Eventually, women in the collective trained to perform...

Duration:00:12:10

The Ski Troops of WWII

3/7/2019

The men of the 10th Mountain Division led a series of daring assaults against the Nazis in the mountains of Italy during WWII. After returning home, many of these soldiers helped to create the modern ski industry.

Duration:00:23:51

When Nazis Took Manhattan

2/20/2019

On February 20th, 1939, 20,000 people streamed into Madison Square Garden in New York City. Outside, the marquee was lit up with the evening's main event: a "Pro-American rally." Inside, on the stage, there was a 30-foot tall banner of George Washington, sandwiched between American flags...and two huge swastikas. Today’s episode is a special collaboration with The Memory Palace. *** This episode is sponsored by Care/Of, a monthly subscription vitamin service. For 50% off your first...

Duration:00:20:06

A Voicemail Valentine

2/11/2019

Nowadays we’re very accustomed to recording and hearing the sound of our own voices. But in the 1930s many people were doing it for the first time. And a surprising trend began. People started sending their voices to each other, through the postal service. It was literally: voice-mail. We recently combed through a large collection of early voicemail at the Phono Post Archive, and we discovered that many of these audio letters are about the same thing: Love. *** This episode is supported...

Duration:00:12:26

The Border Wall

1/16/2019

Stories about walls and borders, and what happens when – instead of people crossing the border – the border crosses the people. Act 1: Wrong Side of the Fence Pamela Taylor technically lives in the U.S. But somehow, her house is on the Mexican side of the border wall. Act 2: The Chamizal Ever since Texas became a state, the Rio Grande has been the official border between the US and Mexico. The problem is, rivers can move – and that’s exactly what happened in 1864. Torrential rains...

Duration:00:16:15

Bonus Episode: Hear the World Differently

12/10/2018

There’s an old saying that “sound is like touch from a distance.” We think it’s a perfect metaphor for what we at Radio Diaries — and all the shows at Radiotopia — try to do. We want to help you hear the world differently. We’re in the middle of our annual fundraiser where we ask you, our listeners, to support the network that makes this show possible. Our goal is to reach 25,000 donors. Every donation counts, no matter the size. So give what you can and help us get one step closer....

Duration:00:03:04

A Guitar, A Cello, and the Day that Changed Music

11/15/2018

November 23, 1936 was a good day for recorded music. Two men – an ocean apart – sat before a microphone and began to play. One was a cello prodigy who had performed for the Queen of Spain; the other played guitar and was a regular in the juke joints of the Mississippi Delta. But on this day 75 years ago, Pablo Casals and Robert Johnson both made recordings that would change music history.

Duration:00:18:08

The Song That Crossed Party Lines

11/1/2018

Our country is so politically polarized these days, it’s hard to remember a time when Republicans and Democrats could agree on anything at all. In today’s episode, we’re going back almost 80 years, to another extremely polarized moment in American history. It was 1940, and the U.S. was deeply divided about engaging in World War II. Franklin Roosevelt was running for his third term, facing a Republican challenger, Wendell Wilkie. But that election season, the Republican Party, The...

Duration:00:12:03

Campaigning While Female

10/18/2018

A record-breaking number of women are running for Congress in the midterm elections this November. There are 257, dwarfing all previous years. And in 2020, we’ll likely see a record number of women running for President as well. It's a historic moment for women in politics. But what many people don’t know is that - over the years - there have actually been more than 35 women who have run for President. Today on the show we have three stories of women who launched bids to be President of the...

Duration:00:28:24

Serving Time 9-5: Diaries from Prison Guards

10/4/2018

Sergeant Furman Camel spent 27 years in a North Carolina Prison. That's as many years as Nelson Mandela spent behind bars. But Camel did his time, as likes to say, in 8 hour shifts. "I wear this uniform with pride. Everyday that I come in here I'm creased down. My shoes are shined. And I smell good. The uniform is 90% of the job. Looking the part." In this episode we bring you audio diaries from the prison guards who work at Polk Youth Institution.

Duration:00:24:15

Matthew and the Judge

9/20/2018

We gave Judge Jeremiah, a Rhode Island juvenile court judge, and Matthew, a 16-year-old repeat offender, tape recorders. Through their audio diaries, Matthew and the judge tell the same story from two different sides of the bench.

Duration:00:21:19

Prisoners of War

8/29/2018

During the war in Vietnam, there was a notorious American military prison on the outskirts of Saigon, called Long Binh Jail. But LBJ wasn’t for captured enemy fighters, it was for American soldiers. These were men who had broken military law. And there were a lot of them. As the unpopular war dragged on, discipline frayed and soldiers started to rebel. By the summer of 1968, over half the men in Long Binh Jail were locked up on AWOL charges. Some were there for more serious crimes, others...

Duration:00:20:13

Last Witness: Mission to Hiroshima

8/6/2018

On August 6, 1945 the United States dropped an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima, Japan. It was the first time a nuclear weapon had been used in warfare. There were three strike planes that flew over Hiroshima that day: the Enola Gay which carried the bomb, and two escort planes, the Great Artiste and the Necessary Evil. Russell Gackenbach was a Second Lieutenant and a navigator on the mission. Today, he is the only surviving crew member from those three planes. Know someone who’d make a...

Duration:00:14:56