Skip to main content
Terry Gross at her microphone in 2018

Terry Gross

Terry Gross is the host and an executive producer of Fresh Air, the daily program of interviews and reviews. It is produced at WHYY in Philadelphia, where Gross began hosting the show in 1975, when it was broadcast only locally. She was awarded a National Humanities Medal from President Obama in 2016. Fresh Air with Terry Gross received a Peabody Award in 1994 for its “probing questions, revelatory interviews and unusual insight.” America Women in Radio and Television presented her with a Gracie Award in 1999 in the category of National Network Radio Personality. In 2003, she received the Corporation for Public Broadcasting’s Edward R. Murrow Award for her “outstanding contributions to public radio” and for advancing the “growth, quality and positive image of radio.” Gross is the author of All I Did Was Ask: Conversations with Writers, Actors, Musicians and Artists, published by Hyperion in 2004. She was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, and received a bachelor’s degree in English and M.Ed. in communications from the State University of New York at Buffalo. She began her radio career in 1973 at public radio station WBFO in Buffalo, NY.

Sort:

Newest

29:41

The Economics of the Pornography Industry

U.S. News and World Report reporter Eric Schlosser talks about his recent cover story "The Business of Porn." Schlosser followed the money trail to expose how pornography grew into a multi-billion dollar industry. He found that "Mom and Pop" neighborhood video stores have become some of the largest porn outlets.

Interview
20:18

Dr. Ira Byock on "Dying Well"

Byock talks about his new book "Dying Well: The Prospect of Growth at the End of Life." He is President of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine and a prominent spokesman for the hospice industry. His book explores how the end of life, whether a person is suffering pain or not, can be an opportunity for deepened spiritual growth and reconciliation with others.

Interview
38:22

Heavyweight Champion George Foreman on What Boxing Taught Him

Foreman is presently a preacher, community leader and dedicated child advocate. On February 14th, the documentary "When We Were Kings" opens. It's about the fight in Zaire in 1974 when Foreman lost the world title to Muhammad Ali. In 1995 Forman wrote his autobiography, By George, co-authored by Joel Engel. (REBROADCAST from 6/7/95)

Interview
15:20

Independent Filmmaker Louis Massiah on the Legacy of DuBois

Massiah is founder and Executive Director of the Scribe Video Center in Philadelphia. He has won numerous awards for the films he has produced for public television. Messiah's latest project is a documentary featuring the late civil rights activist and NAACP co-founder W.E.B. DuBois, called "W.E.B. DuBois: A Biography in Four Voices." It premiers on PBS this month.

Interview
20:57

Comedian Chris Rock on Black Identity

Rock is 26 years-old and grew up in Brooklyn. He got his start in show business performing stand-up comedy routines in Manhattan. He spent three years on "Saturday Night Live" and appeared in a few films, including the recent "Beverly Hills Ninja." He has a new comedy and talk-show series, "The Chris Rock Show," premiering February 7 on HBO.

Interview
52:07

A Debate on Race and Politics in Theater

A broadcast of the debate between playwright August Wilson and critic Robert Brustein over multiculturalism and the theater. The discussion is moderated by actress, playwright, and performance artist Anna Deavere Smith. Wilson, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and author of the play "Fences," says the modern theater system jeopardizes the values of black actors because it is dominated by white society. Brustein, the American Repertory Theater's artistic director and the theater critic of "The New Republic," claims Wilson's ideas encourage black separatism.

51:09

The Campaign Against Female Genital Mutilation

Associate Professor at Columbia University of Public Health Dr. Nahid Toubia. She is from Sudan, and was the first woman surgeon in her country. Toubia is director of "Rainbo" a research and information organization dedicated to the health and human rights of women, particularly women's reproductive and sexual rights. They've begun a campaign against female genital mutilation. Toubia has written a report: "Female Genital Mutilation: A Call for Global Action." (REBROADCAST from 3/27/96)

Interview
19:10

Actress Helena Bonham Carter Moves Away from Period Films

Bonham Carter grew up and lives in London with her mother and father. Never formerly trained as an actress, she first began at the age of 16 in the film "Lady Jane." Now, at age 30, she's been in a number of films, including "Room With a View," "Howard's End," and Woody Allen's "Mighty Aphrodite." Her latest film, "Margaret's Museum," is a 1940's love story set in Nova Scotia.

21:47

"Gridlock'd" Director Vondie Curtis Hall

Actor Vondie Curtis Hall was raised in Detroit. He plays a doctor on the TV series "Chicago Hope" and has had roles in the movies "Broken Arrow," "Passion Fish," and "Romeo and Juliet." His latest project is the writing and directing of the new film "Gridlock'd," a comedy about the troubles two men encounter when they make a pact to overcome their heroin addictions, starring Tim Roth and Tupak Shakur.

Interview

Did you know you can create a shareable playlist?

Advertisement

There are more than 22,000 Fresh Air segments.

Let us help you find exactly what you want to hear.
Just play me something
Your Queue

Would you like to make a playlist based on your queue?

Generate & Share View/Edit Your Queue