Mostly we do journalism, but an entertaining kind of journalism that’s built around plot. In other words, stories! Our favorite sorts of stories have compelling people at the center of them, funny moments, big feelings, surprising plot twists, and interesting ideas. Like little movies for radio.

Our show is heard by more than 2 million listeners each week on over 500 public radio stations in the U.S., with another 2.8 million people downloading each episode as a podcast. We’re also heard on radio stations across Canada and Australia. We’ve won all sorts of awards, over a half dozen Peabody Awards, and the very first Pulitzer Prize ever awarded to a radio show or podcast.

If you’re brand new to our show, you might start with the list of episodes our host Ira Glass put together called “New to This American Life?” We’ve been on the air since 1995, so you can also browse through our recommended lists or our entire archive of more than 700 episodes. 

Our show is produced in collaboration with WBEZ Chicago and delivered to stations by PRX, Public Radio Exchange.