This American Life
by This American Life
Is this your podcast?This American Life is a groundbreaking podcast hosted by Ira Glass, known for its innovative storytelling and engaging narrative style. As a collaboration with WBEZ Chicago, it has garnered acclaim for being the first radio show or podcast …
Insights from recent episode analysis
Audience Interest
- society and culture topics
- personal storytelling experiences
Podcast Focus
- true stories with emotional depth
- themes explored each week
Publishing Consistency
- weekly episode release
- active for one year
Platform Reach
- available on major podcast platforms
- produced by WBEZ Chicago
Insights are generated by CastFox AI using publicly available data, episode content, and proprietary models.
Most discussed topics
Brands & references
Total monthly reach
Estimated from 39 chart positions in 39 markets.
By chart position
- 🇨🇦CA · Society & Culture#31M to 3M
- 🇺🇸US · Society & Culture#41M to 3M
- 🇦🇺AU · Society & Culture#26100K to 300K
- 🇩🇪DE · Society & Culture#1205K to 30K
- 🇰🇷KR · Society & Culture#16100K to 300K
- Per-Episode Audience
Est. listeners per new episode within ~30 days
768K to 2.3M🎙 Daily cadence·14 episodes·Last published 2d ago - Monthly Reach
Unique listeners across all episodes (30 days)
2.6M to 7.7M🇨🇦39%🇺🇸39%🇦🇺4%+36 more - Active Followers
Loyal subscribers who consistently listen
768K to 2.3M2.0M real followers tracked across platforms
Market Insights
Platform Distribution
Reach across major podcast platforms, updated hourly
Total Followers
—
Total Plays
—
Total Reviews
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* Data sourced directly from platform APIs and aggregated hourly across all major podcast directories.
On the show
From 21 epsHosts
Recent guests
Recent episodes
893: Testosterone
Jul 26, 2026
Unknown duration
892: Trapped on a Bus
Jul 19, 2026
1h 02m 44s
891: The Test Case
Jul 12, 2026
1h 12m 09s
890: Maximal Americanness
Jul 5, 2026
56m 03s
128: Four Corners
Jun 28, 2026
1h 00m 44s
Social Links & Contact
Official channels & resources
Official Website
Login
RSS Feed
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| Date | Episode | Topics | Guests | Brands | Places | Keywords | Sponsor | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7/26/26 |  893: Testosterone | Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered everyone over 30 in the military to have their testosterone tested. That inspired us to rerun this classic episode where everyone at This American Life tested their testosterone and compared results. It did not lead to workplace harmony. Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription. Prologue: Host Ira Glass talks with producer Alex Blumberg, who explains that he wanted to do this show because of his conflicted relationship with his own testosterone. He tells Ira that the reasons go back to a girl in his 8th-grade homeroom. We also hear from a man who stopped producing testosterone due to a medical treatment, and found his entire personality was altered. (10 minutes)Act One: What’s it like to get injected with testosterone? When Griffin Hansbury transitioned, he got massive shots of it and was surprised at the effect it had on him. (17 minutes)Act Two: The men and women on staff at This American Life decide to get their testosterone levels tested to see who has the most and least, and whether personality traits actually match hormone levels. (13 minutes)Act Three: What happens when a man suddenly loses all of his testosterone? We return to Alex Blumberg’s interview from the top of the show with a man who that happened to. He says life without testosterone is life without desire. By that he doesn’t mean sexual desire. He means any desire. (6 minutes)Act Four: Novelist Miriam Toews interviews her 15-year-old son, someone at an age when boys experience a jolt of ten or twenty times the testosterone they had as children, about all the things she doesn’t understand about what he’s going through. (11 minutes)Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.orgThis American Life privacy policy.Learn more about sponsor message choices. | — | ||||||
| 7/19/26 | unexpected journeysmental struggles+3 | Leticia | This American Life | CubaEngland+1 | bus rideCuba+6 | — | 1h 02m 44s | ||
| 7/12/26 | Antifatrial+4 | Zoe Chace | Antifa | Prairieland Detention CenterAlvarado, Texas | Antifatrial+5 | — | 1h 12m 09s | ||
| 7/5/26 | Americanasocial norms+4 | Pablo TorreJiayang Fan+3 | Major League BaseballSurvivor | Michigan | AmericanaMajor League Baseball+7 | — | 56m 03s | ||
| 6/28/26 | American lifehistory+3 | Sarah VowellScott Richer+3 | We Came All the Way from Cuba So You Could Dress Like This? | Four CornersMichigan Avenue+5 | Four CornersIra Glass+5 | — | 1h 00m 44s | ||
| 6/21/26 | health treatmentdeath row appeals+3 | — | Texas | Otay Mesa Detention CenterSan Diego | health problemsexecution+7 | — | 1h 06m 13s | ||
| 6/7/26 | Greek mythologymortality+3 | Lionel Messi | This American Life | Hadesriver Styx | Greek mythsHades+4 | — | 59m 14s | ||
| 5/31/26 | bookslife-changing experiences+4 | Alexa JungeDavid Sedaris+2 | Act OneLittle House | De Smet, South Dakota | life-changing booksMoss Hart+5 | — | 1h 01m 09s | ||
| 5/24/26 | identitychildhood+3 | Gary GulmanEleanor Gordon-Smith | Stop Being Reasonable: How We Really Change Our Minds | — | identitychildhood+5 | — | 1h 02m 52s | ||
| 5/17/26 | transgender issuesmilitary policy+3 | Rachel Khong | Trump administration | — | transgendermilitary+3 | — | 1h 00m 56s | ||
Want analysis for the episodes below?Free for Pro Submit a request, we'll have your selected episodes analyzed within an hour. Free, at no cost to you, for Pro users. | |||||||||
| 5/3/26 | internet blackoutIran+3 | Roxana SaberiFatemeh Jamalpour | This American Life | Iran | Iraninternet blackout+5 | — | 54m 19s | ||
| 5/1/26 | graduationcommencement speech+3 | — | — | — | graduationcommencement+3 | — | 8m 24s | ||
| 4/26/26 | blackjackcard-counting+5 | Andy Bloch | Holy Rollers | — | blackjackcard-counting+5 | — | 1h 04m 36s | ||
| 4/19/26 | infidelitycheating+5 | Jessica PresslerRuby Wright+4 | The New York TimesNot Just Friends+2 | — | infidelitycheating+5 | — | 59m 42s | ||
| 4/12/26 | American historyHarlem Renaissance+3 | Nichole Hill | This American Life | — | Paul RobesonEssie Robeson+3 | — | 1h 01m 41s | ||
| 4/5/26 | relationshipsfamily dynamics+4 | Sarah Koenig | — | — | Robert RedfordDavy Rothbart+5 | — | 1h 02m 33s | ||
| 3/29/26 | familytrue crime+4 | M. Gessen | Serial ProductionsThe New York Times | — | true crimefamily story+5 | — | 59m 15s | ||
| 3/22/26 | family relationshipsparenting+3 | ShirleyBarry | This American Life | — | interviewsparents+3 | — | 59m 00s | ||
| 3/8/26 | immigrationlaw+3 | Ryan Schwank | ICECongress+1 | — | immigration systemICE+3 | — | 1h 02m 04s | ||
| 2/22/26 | decision makingfriendship+3 | Arielle Knight | The Boys and the Bees | Texas | unusual choicesdocumentary+5 | — | 1h 00m 47s | ||
| 2/1/26 | 911 callsimmigration+4 | Anayansi Diaz-CortesMemo Torres | ICE | — | 911 callsimmigration agents+4 | — | 59m 16s | ||
| 1/18/26 | comedyfreedom of speech+3 | Sharief Homsi | StyriaBashar al-Assad+1 | SyriaHama | comedySyria+5 | — | 1h 00m 19s | ||
| 1/9/26 |  New Lore Drop | People discovering information about their own lives that they did not know and suddenly everything looks very different. | — | ||||||
| 10/16/25 |  An Update from Ira | Ira Glass shares some news about This American Life To sign up as a Life Partner, visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners | — | ||||||
| 7/17/25 |  Bonus: Nancy's Deep Cuts | Ira Glass talks with longtime producer Nancy Updike about the most personal stories they have put on the radio. This is a sample of the bonus episodes we regularly release to our This American Life Partners. To gain access to all the bonus episodes AND help us keep making This American Life, join at thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners. | — | ||||||
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Distribution & Reach
About the show, platforms, and key insights.
Distribution & Reach
About the show, platforms, and key insights.
This American Life is a groundbreaking podcast hosted by Ira Glass, known for its innovative storytelling and engaging narrative style. As a collaboration with WBEZ Chicago, it has garnered acclaim for being the first radio show or podcast to win a Pulitzer Prize, solidifying its status as a leader in the audio storytelling landscape. The podcast's unique format revolves around a weekly theme, allowing for a diverse range of personal stories, news narratives, and cultural insights that unfold with emotional depth and unexpected twists. Each episode feels like a cinematic experience, blending humor, poignant moments, and relatable content that reflects contemporary life. Listeners are drawn to This American Life for its ability to illuminate complex societal issues through relatable storytelling. Its appeal spans a broad audience seeking both entertainment and a deeper understanding of the human experience, offering valuable perspectives on what it means to be alive in today's world.
By the numbers
- Total followers: 2.0M
- Total plays: 38M
- Total reviews: 92K
Platforms
TuneIn
- Followers: 256K
Castbox
- Followers: 1.5M
- Plays: 25M
- Reviews: 4.9K
YouTube
- Subscribers: 58K
- Views: 13M
- Videos: 129
Podcast App
- Followers: 91K
- Reviews: 87K
Podcast Republic
- Followers: 75K
- Reviews: 92
Find them online
Audience
general
Key insights
What the show covers
- true stories with emotional depth
- themes explored each week
- surprising plot twists
- capturing contemporary life
Audience interests
- society and culture topics
- personal storytelling experiences
- current events and news
- arts and creative narratives
Platform reach
- available on major podcast platforms
- produced by WBEZ Chicago
- widely recognized podcast
- first Pulitzer Prize winner
Publishing consistency
- weekly episode release
- active for one year
- consistent content delivery
- 14 episodes published
Chart history for This American Life
Peaked at #3 in Canada, top 10 in 2 of 39 tracked markets, currently #3 in Canada.
| Market | Genre | Peak | Current | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | — | #3 | #3 | — |
| United States | — | #4 | #4 | — |
| KE | — | #11 | #11 | — |
| South Korea | — | #16 | #16 | — |
| India | — | #16 | #16 | — |
| VN | — | #17 | #17 | — |
| New Zealand | — | #21 | #21 | — |
| TH | — | #21 | #21 | — |
| AR | — | #24 | #24 | — |
| CL | — | #24 | #24 | — |
| South Africa | — | #24 | #24 | — |
| Finland | — | #25 | #25 | — |
| SG | — | #25 | #25 | — |
| Australia | — | #26 | #26 | — |
| IS | — | #28 | #28 | — |
| ID | — | #28 | #28 | — |
| Ireland | — | #29 | #29 | — |
| HK | — | #41 | #41 | — |
| SA | — | #45 | #45 | — |
| IL | — | #46 | #46 | — |
Chart Positions
39 placements across 39 markets.
Chart Positions
39 placements across 39 markets.