Chris Benderev is a founding producer of and also reports stories for NPR's documentary-style podcast, Embedded. He's driven into coal mines, watched as a town had to shutter its only public school after 100 years in operation, and, recently, he's followed the survivors of a mass shooting for two years to understand what happens after they fade from the news. He's also investigated the pseudoscience behind a national chain of autism treatment facilities. As a producer, he's made stories about ISIS, voting rights and Donald Trump's business history. Earlier in his career, he was a producer at NPR's Weekend Edition, Morning Edition, Hidden Brain and the TED Radio Hour.
Tara Boyle is the supervising producer of NPR's Hidden Brain. In this role, Boyle oversees the production of both the Hidden Brain radio show and podcast, providing editorial guidance and support to host Shankar Vedantam and the shows' producers. Boyle also coordinates Shankar's Hidden Brain segments on Morning Edition and other NPR shows, and oversees collaborations with partners both internal and external to NPR. Previously, Boyle spent a decade at WAMU, the NPR station in Washington, D.C. She has reported for The Boston Globe, and began her career in public radio at WBUR in Boston.
Jennifer Schmidt is a senior producer for Hidden Brain. She is responsible for crafting the complex stories that are told on the show. She researches, writes, gathers field tape, and develops story structures. Some highlights of her work on Hidden Brain include episodes about the causes of the #MeToo movement, how diversity drives creativity, and the complex psychology of addiction.
A new report from the Walton Family Foundation and Gallup shows over 50% of Gen Z Arkansans describe themselves as thriving. Gallup’s Andrea Malek Ash explains how researchers measure well-being and what influences those results.
Casa Magnolia, a space known as a bookstore, café and art venue, hosted one final gathering Sunday before closing. Ozarks at Large’s Sophia Nourani shares a farewell postcard from the community’s creative hub.
In this edition of Archives from the Pryor Center, Randy Dixon and Kyle Kellams recount the 1988 abduction of newborn Christopher Michael Jones from a Little Rock hospital and the emotional, weeks-long search that ended in his safe return.