Bullseye with Jesse Thorn is a production of MaximumFun.org and is distributed by NPR.

It's Bullseye, I'm Jesse Thorn.

Ray Suarez is the host of Inside Story on Al Jazeera America.

Before that, he was a long time correspondent for the PBS NewsHour and he hosted NPR's

Talk of the Nation for a good chunk of the 90s.

You know when you're in broadcast news, you get a certain reputation around town.

And there was one perk of that reputation that Ray Suarez didn't see coming.

I was involved in a local YMCA that had a gang diversion program.

And so I did a workshop with a big bunch of guys who were trying to get out of gangs.

And I had to go home before going to work and the guy says, oh, you know, we have the

van.

I'll drop you at your house.

I get in with a bunch of gang boys into this van when riding along.

And one of them from the Latin Kings says, oh, hey, there's your house.

So what's the play there?

How do you know that's my house?

But I was dying, I know.

So I said, oh, do all the brothers know that I live there?

He says, oh, yeah, he says, why do you think your garage was never tagged?

Ray Suarez VIP status.

It's Bullseye.

Coming up, Ray Suarez talks about his experiences as a somewhat reluctant role model.

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