Code Switch

NPR's Code Switch is a podcast that explores how race and culture collide in America. Race is an issue that permeates many aspects of American culture. It also allows journalists of color to be the ones telling these stories. This allows for the topics covered on the podcast to feel authentic.

The podcast's title should give an idea of the stories that appear on Code Switch. To "code switch" is when African-American people speak in a different way to White people than when talking with Black people. But why do people code switch in the first place? The answer to that question may vary depending on who they are asking. The fact that people feel that they need to code switch is revealing itself. It shows why a podcast like this is so vital at this moment.

Code Switch has several primary hosts. Gene Demby is one of the cofounders of the podcast. In his prior capacity, he was the show's lead blogger. Demby has extensive experience as a writer and editor. He has also worked as part of teams at The New York Times and HuffPost.

B.A. Parker, Lori Lizarraga, and Karen Grigsby Bates cohost the show with Demby. Shereen Marisol Meraji was a cohost and cofounder of Code Switch. She has since moved on to pursue other projects, as has Brittany Luse, who was part of the team at one point.

Code Switch features the kind of fearless conversations that NPR listeners love. They have been a leading voice in public radio for decades. And programming like Code Switch is a reason for that.

Code Switch is everywhere from segregationists and reverse freedom rides to Dungeons & Dragons. The team travels from places as varied as a high school in Florida to the south side of Chicago. Whether a story is happening in Hollywood or New York doesn't matter. If it involves race or ethnicity, it may be in this podcast.