Ari Shapiro
Ari Shapiro has been one of the hosts of All Things Considered, NPR's award-winning afternoon newsmagazine, since 2015. During his first two years on the program, listenership to All Things Considered grew at an unprecedented rate, with more people tuning in during a typical quarter-hour than any other program on the radio.
Shapiro has reported from above the Arctic Circle and aboard Air Force One. He has covered wars in Iraq, Ukraine, and Israel, and he has filed stories from dozens of countries and most of the 50 states.
Shapiro spent two years as NPR's International Correspondent based in London, traveling the world to cover a wide range of topics for NPR's news programs. His overseas move came after four years as NPR's White House Correspondent during President Barack Obama's first and second terms. Shapiro also embedded with the campaign of Republican Mitt Romney for the duration of the 2012 presidential race. He was NPR's Justice Correspondent for five years during the George W. Bush Administration, covering debates over surveillance, detention and interrogation in the years after Sept. 11.
Shapiro's reporting has been consistently recognized by his peers. He has won two national Edward R. Murrow awards; one for his reporting on the life and death of Breonna Taylor, and another for his coverage of the Trump Administration's asylum policies on the US-Mexico border. The Columbia Journalism Review honored him with a laurel for his investigation into disability benefits for injured American veterans. The American Bar Association awarded him the Silver Gavel for exposing the failures of Louisiana's detention system after Hurricane Katrina. He was the first recipient of the American Judges' Association American Gavel Award for his work on U.S. courts and the American justice system. And at age 25, Shapiro won the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize for an investigation of methamphetamine use and HIV transmission.
An occasional singer, Shapiro makes frequent guest appearances with the "little orchestra" Pink Martini, whose recent albums feature several of his contributions, in multiple languages. Since his debut at the Hollywood Bowl in 2009, Shapiro has performed live at many of the world's most storied venues, including Carnegie Hall in New York, The Royal Albert Hall in London and L'Olympia in Paris. In 2019 he created the show "Och and Oy" with Tony Award winner Alan Cumming, and they continue to tour the country with it.
Shapiro was born in Fargo, North Dakota, and grew up in Portland, Oregon. He is a magna cum laude graduate of Yale. He began his journalism career as an intern for NPR Legal Affairs Correspondent Nina Totenberg, who has also occasionally been known to sing in public.
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When he takes over, in the fall of 2027, he will be the youngest music director in the orchestra's 133-year history.
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NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with 22-year-old jazz singer Samara Joy, who recently took to the stage of legendary club Blues Alley in Washington, D.C. Her album, Linger Awhile, is out now.
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Pianist Min Kwon asked 70 artists to examine and interpret the patriotic standard on solo piano. "What they have in common is what they want America to sound like," she says.
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NPR speaks with Angel Bat Dawid about capturing emotion in sound, Chicago's influence on her music and the artist she's most grateful for: George Clinton.
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Rapper-turned-politician Jecorey Arthur is teaming up with Teddy Abrams, the head of the Louisville's orchestra, for a musical collaboration tackling racial injustice.
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NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with artist Devonté Hynes about how his Grammy-nominated classical album Fields came together and the artist he is most grateful for – Angel Bat Dawid.
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The song "Strange Fruit" is the powerful and thematically horrifying centerpiece of the new film The United States Vs. Billie Holiday, which positions music as a powerful force for change.
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The pianist joins Ari Shapiro to discuss Amplify With Lara Downes, a video series on Black musicians who have experienced renewed creativity regarding racial injustice.
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The insightful pianist offers a Beethoven bonanza, ranging from the mesmerizing pulse of the popular "Moonlight" Sonata to flashes of wry humor and tender beauty.
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NPR's Ari Shapiro talks to WNYC's Jad Abumrad about his new podcast which explores the life and legacy of the prolific songwriter and her ability to bridge the divide in America.