Christmas and Commerce
This American Life
12/24/25
•62m
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Stories about the intersection of Christmas and retail, originally broadcast in 1996 when our show was only a year old. Including David Sedaris's "Santaland Diaries" about the seasons he spent working as an elf at Macy's.
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877: The Making Of
December 21, 2025
•60m
How one block in Portland, Oregon became a movie-set war zone that lots of people think is a real war zone.
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- Prologue: What the movie Hearts of Darkness and right-wing influencers have in common. (8 minutes)
- Act One: Producers Zoe Chace and Suzanne Gaber follow a bunch of right-wing influencers as they search for Antifa in Portland. (31 minutes)
- Act Two: We meet the so-called leader of Antifa in Portland. (16 minutes)
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801: Must Be Rats on the Brain
December 28, 2025
•72m
The one animal we can’t seem to live without, even when we really, really want to.
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- Prologue: At the announcement of New York City’s inaugural rat czar, we meet Darneice Foster, who despises the rats outside her apartment. And host Ira Glass introduces two special co-hosts for today’s show. (11 minutes)
- Act One: Producer Elna Baker meets Todd Sklar, a man who can’t quit rats. (22 minutes)
- Act Two: Fifty years ago, New York City started to put garbage out in plastic bags. This has become the number one food source for rats. Producer Ike Sriskandarajah investigates the decision that led to the city’s rat baby boom. (10 minutes)
- Act Three: How did Alberta, Canada pull off a feat that has eluded the rest of human civilization? Ira visits the largest rat-less land in the world. (15 minutes)
- Act Four: We drop a hot mic into a hot mess of a rats’ nest. You’ll never believe what happens next. (3 minutes)
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