787: Baby's First Christmas

402: Save the Day

This American Life - 757: The Ghost in the Machine

People use machines to find people they lost.

757: The Ghost in the Machine

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I remember back when I was first starting in radio working at NPR.

This was in their old studios on M Street in Washington, D.C.

And my boss back then and my mentor Keith Talbot who, side note, taught me what was possible with radio,

Anyway, we were in the studio listening to some recording and this was back in the days of Reel to Reel.

Tape recorders and so it was a long ago, right?

I'm back then any Reel to Reel tape that you would throw up on a machine at NPR, it would start with,

I think it was like 30 seconds, it might have been a minute of tone.

You know what I'm talking about when I say tone, right? It's this sound.

This tone actually has a practical function.

If you picture, oh my god, this is really annoying, I'm just going to stop that.

Okay, if you picture a sound meter with a needle, you know,

the bounce is up and down every time there's a sound.

Each week we choose a theme. Then anything can happen. This American Life is true stories that unfold like little movies for radio. Personal stories with funny moments, big feelings, and surprising plot twists. Newsy stories that try to capture what it’s like to be alive right now. It’s the most popular weekly podcast in the world, and winner of the first ever Pulitzer Prize for a radio show or podcast. Hosted by Ira Glass and produced in collaboration with WBEZ Chicago.

0:00.0	Support for this American life comes from Squarespace.
0:03.0	Squarespace is the all-in-one platform for building your brand and growing your business online.
0:07.4	Get started with the Best in Class website template and customize it to fit your needs.
0:11.3	Browse the category of your business to find a perfect starting place.
0:14.8	Sell your products on an online store.
0:16.9	Whether you sell physical or digital products, Squarespace has the tools you need to start selling online.
0:22.4	Head to squarespace.com slash American for a free trial.
0:25.9	And when you're ready to launch, use offer code American to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.
0:32.8	I remember back when I was first starting in radio working at NPR.
0:36.2	This was in their old studios on M Street in Washington, D.C.
0:40.0	And my boss back then and my mentor Keith Talbot who, side note, taught me what was possible with radio,
0:45.4	I would not be here without Keith.
0:47.2	Anyway, we were in the studio listening to some recording and this was back in the days of Reel to Reel.
0:51.5	Tape recorders and so it was a long ago, right?
0:53.9	I'm back then any Reel to Reel tape that you would throw up on a machine at NPR, it would start with,
0:57.9	I think it was like 30 seconds, it might have been a minute of tone.
1:02.1	You know what I'm talking about when I say tone, right? It's this sound.
1:06.4	A thousand hertz.
1:08.1	This tone actually has a practical function.
1:10.7	If you picture, oh my god, this is really annoying, I'm just going to stop that.
1:14.2	Okay, if you picture a sound meter with a needle, you know,
1:18.4	the bounce is up and down every time there's a sound.
	...

757: The Ghost in the Machine

This American Life

This American Life

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