Listen to compelling true stories on ‘This American Life’

“This American Life” is the ultimate storytelling podcast, choosing a topic each week. Every episode finds true stories to center on the weekly theme, and many individuals are interviewed. Hosted by Ira Glass, “This American Life” started as a radio show in 1995, and has released over 700 episodes. In collaboration with Chicago Public Media, the show is aired on PRX (The Public Radio Exchange) stations. With its top-notch, plot-centric journalism, “This American Life” has earned every broadcasting award you can imagine. Its lengthly list of accolades includes the Pulitzer Prize, making history as the first radio show or podcast series to ever receive the award.

You’ll hear riveting stories, new ideas, memorable moments, laugh-out-loud tales, and constantly be surprised by the variety of evergreen topics. In episode 4 of Podsauce, “My Fugitive” Nina Gilden Seavey recommends “This American Life,” as this show is her go-to for true stories and long-form interviews.

What happens when your community suddenly turns on you? What’s in the power of daily practices, and can you learn anything by implementing solid routines in your life? These questions are just a few of the interesting subjects tackled in this season. Other recent episodes consider what to do if you’re victimized by bad neighbors. We hear of property wars, parking debacles, and other nightmarish behavior.

This month’s episodes recount extreme ways people have fixed things, stories of sisterhood, and grief. The “This American Life” staff directly participated in “The Psychopath Test” episode by completing the list of questions on the Psychopathy Check-List Revised (PCL-R) checklist. The staff shared their findings and results as part of the episode.

“This American Life” is amazing for so many reasons. A factor in its success is its ability to experiment, expand, and evolve over time.

Tune in weekly for new stories.