Now Hear This

Robin Amer. Photo by Alissa Pagels.

Robin Amer ’14 MS knew she wanted to work in radio ever since she started listening to NPR in high school to prepare for debate contests. As the winner of WNYC’s Podcast Accelerator contest, Amer is in the process of producing the pilot episode of her podcast The City, which she describes as a real-life version of HBO’s The Wire — an inside look at the inner workings of a city. The first season focuses on Chicago, and if the show gets picked up, each season will explore a new city.

Since the 2014 release of NPR’s Serial, podcasts have enjoyed renewed popularity. Neil Verma, an assistant professor in radio/TV/film who specializes in the history of radio plays, says the rising popularity of podcasts as a form of storytelling doesn’t surprise him. “Radio listening is the most common experience in the world,” he explains. “There’s this old joke that says radio will always be better than television because you can’t get TV in a canoe.”

Here are just a few of the podcasts that feature Northwestern students or alumni:

Nine Lives – A storytelling podcast that allows students to share their true, unscripted, personal anecdotes.

Pound the Talk – A Northwestern sports–focused collaboration between WNUR Sports and Inside NU.  

The Spectrum – Part of the Daily Northwestern’s opinion column on the experiences of marginalized community members.

The Up & Up Podcast – Co-hosted by Josh Brechner ’12, ’12 CERT, this biweekly show focuses on the struggles of millennials.

Slate Money – The web magazine’s weekly business-related podcast, co-hosted by senior business and economics correspondent Jordan Weissmann ’08.