David Kestenbaum

Jan 24, 2025 | thisamericanlife.org | Ira Glass |Aviva DeKornfeld |Talia Augustidis |David Kestenbaum

Host Ira Glass talks to B.A. Parker about her birthday tradition. (6 minutes) Producer Aviva DeKornfeld speaks with a father and daughter who have been playing the same game for 25 years. (9 minutes) Talia Augustidis asks a single question over and over. (5 minutes)A version of this story originally aired on Short Cuts, a Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4.

Sep 14, 2024 | thisamericanlife.org | David Kestenbaum

Senior Editor David Kestenbaum hears about a way to save some money and help save the world. All he needs is a little help. (5 minutes)

Sep 5, 2024 | thisamericanlife.org | Tobin Low |Aviva DeKornfeld |Alix Spiegel |David Kestenbaum

Note: The internet version of this episode contains un-beeped curse words. BEEPED VERSION. Guest-host Tobin Low talks to comedian Tig Notaro about a jarring ride to school with her son. (6 minutes) Producer Aviva DeKornfeld heads to the Calgary Stampede to watch as men try out a machine designed to simulate menstrual cramps. (15 minutes) A man can’t seem to see anyone in his life for who they really are, plunging his life into chaos.

Aug 8, 2024 | thisamericanlife.org | Ira Glass |Nicole Piasecki |David Kestenbaum |Zoe Chace

Note: The internet version of this episode contains un-beeped curse words. BEEPED VERSION. Ira goes out with a letter carrier, ‘Grace,’ as she delivers mail on her route. He learns about the people who bring us our mail and also how people treat their mail. (11 minutes) Writing a letter decades after an event that shaped her life was the only way that Nicole Piasecki could make some sense of it. (18 minutes)A version of this essay first appeared in Hippocampus Magazine.

May 24, 2024 | thisamericanlife.org | Emmanuel Dzotsi |David Kestenbaum |Marie Phillips

Guest host Emmanuel Dzotsi talks to Leroy Smith about how one high school basketball tryout forever changed Leroy’s relationship to a childhood friend. (7 minutes) A man finds himself sucked into an intense head-to-head running competition against a perfect rival – all for free burritos from Chipotle. (18 minutes) Writer Simon Rich grapples with an A.I. chatbot that threatens to make him obsolete.