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this Radiolab, two scientists make

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Radiolab. Listen wherever you get podcasts.

0:56

Welcome to The Takeaway. I'm Alyssa Harris-Perry.

0:59

Thanks for being with us. Alright,

1:02

go back with me to April 2008.

1:11

Just a few months earlier, the New York Giants

1:14

won an epic Super Bowl. Manning

1:17

loves it. Burris alone. Touchdown New York.

1:22

The world was preparing for

1:24

the Summer Olympics in Beijing.

1:27

Here

1:27

they come down the track. Usain Bolt

1:30

spreading ahead, winning by daylight.

1:33

George W. Bush was still in the White House.

1:35

Actually, I thought we were going to do fine. Show

1:37

us what I know. But the real political story

1:40

was the heated primary battle between

1:42

Democratic senators Hillary Clinton

1:45

and Barack Obama. We think that

1:47

it's taken us into the future and we're... Let's

1:50

go win an election. And I am here to

1:52

report that my bet has paid

1:53

off. We are ready for something new. And

1:56

back in 2008, this is

1:59

how Donald Trump... talked about American politics.

2:02

I think she's going to go down at a minimum as a great

2:04

senator. I think she is a

2:06

great wife to a president.

2:10

And I think Bill Clinton was a

2:12

great president.

2:13

And we didn't know it yet, but

2:15

the country was on the brink of a

2:17

near total collapse of our housing

2:20

and banking systems, a collapse

2:23

that would have global ramifications

2:25

for decades.

2:29

It was into this world in

2:32

April of 2008 that a brand

2:34

new public radio show was

2:36

launched. All

2:39

across America, this is The

2:41

Takeaway

2:41

from WNYC and

2:44

PRI.

2:46

The Takeaway arrived with the stated

2:48

goal of delivering national

2:51

and international news and cultural

2:53

stories through a conversational and

2:56

unprecedented personality-driven

2:58

format. Now,

3:05

over the years, The Takeaway

3:08

has taken on different shapes.

3:13

One host, two hosts, no host. One

3:15

hour, two hours, four hours. Live,

3:18

taped in studio, across

3:20

miles. I

3:25

mean, the show has welcomed thousands

3:27

of guests, told tens of

3:29

thousands of stories, and launched

3:31

hundreds of radio-making careers.

3:34

For 15

3:36

years and 3,933 shows, The

3:41

Takeaway has been part of the national

3:43

fabric and touched the lives

3:46

of millions of listeners.

3:51

Today, Friday, June

3:53

2nd, 2023, at the end of this hour, The

3:56

Takeaway will sign up for the

3:59

show. off for

4:01

the very last time.

4:06

Before we go, we wanted to look back

4:08

over some of what we've done and to

4:10

hear from some of the people who've been part

4:13

of the Takeaway family, including

4:16

you, who we're going to hear from later

4:18

in the hour. But

4:20

we're starting out with Lee Hill,

4:23

his executive editor of news at GBH,

4:26

that's Boston's public radio station

4:28

and a co-producer of this show since

4:31

the very beginning.

4:33

Of course, when I met Lee Hill, he

4:35

was executive producer for the Takeaway.

4:39

And it was just an afternoon in

4:41

April of 2021 when he gave me a call. That's

4:45

right. And if I had it to do all over again,

4:47

I would still make that call and probably would have

4:49

called you on two or three phones to

4:52

ask you to come onto the show.

4:55

Just one of the best decisions that I've ever made.

4:57

I think that you've done such

5:00

a terrific job of guiding

5:03

the show, really reinvigorating

5:06

the culture. Most people who hear

5:08

and experience the show don't know that

5:10

there's also a team element that's

5:12

so important to pulling something

5:14

like this off. And you've been not only a

5:17

great host, but a great team leader from everything

5:19

I've heard on my end, from everything I've heard.

5:21

You've been a terrific team leader and so, so

5:23

proud of you.

5:24

So I so appreciate that because I kind

5:27

of feel like the

5:29

person who, someone has a

5:31

precious Faberge egg or their

5:34

most beloved houseplant and they're like,

5:36

hey, can you take care of this for me?

5:39

I'm going on an extended trip. And

5:41

then I feel like I killed the freaking houseplant or

5:44

broke the Faberge egg.

5:46

No, I am here to tell you, and

5:48

I think I speak for a lot of folks, you've

5:51

done everything right. I

5:53

mean, you've just brought so much energy

5:56

to the program and you've, I

5:58

mean, you know, I see it on.

7:16

67 was

8:00

the year. And

8:03

if you think about where the country

8:05

was during that time and how

8:07

public media was really imagined

8:11

to help fill a critical gap in

8:14

fostering more understanding, bringing

8:16

more equity, centering

8:18

voices that would have otherwise

8:21

been in the margins. And I think that

8:23

the body and spirit of

8:26

that work is exactly, precisely

8:29

the value that the

8:31

takeaway has held in

8:34

the media landscape low these many

8:36

years. And that was really

8:38

underlined by your

8:40

arrival.

8:41

That point, I mean, I think for me,

8:44

again, part of what was and remains

8:46

even until the last day here, so

8:49

exciting about this opportunity is that, I'd

8:52

previously hosted a show, but it was literally called Melissa

8:54

Harris Perry, right? Like it was my show, with

8:57

a whole bunch of really great people I was working

8:59

with, but it was conceived of, and

9:03

then died with, right, my hosting. But this

9:06

is something that is 15 years long. Can

9:10

you talk a little bit about

9:11

how you see the takeaway

9:14

within that broader public media landscape

9:16

you've just laid out for us? Yeah,

9:18

so I think the show,

9:21

it has done a really, it's

9:24

so hard talking about the takeaway in the past tense. I'll

9:26

just say that. But I feel like the show

9:28

has done a really good job of

9:31

taking stories and

9:33

voices that would have otherwise flown

9:36

under the radar, been marginalized

9:39

and making them the centerpiece to

9:42

drive conversation around

9:44

things that we should all be talking about.

9:46

I think some examples of this, I

9:49

think of the wonderful series

9:51

that you all did on Black

9:53

queer rising and hearing from

9:56

people across the country, leaders who

9:59

locate the world. themselves at the

10:01

intersection of being queer,

10:03

being black, being in a position of

10:05

influence. And I don't

10:07

know of any other program that was bringing

10:10

those voices to the fore.

10:12

I also think of your deep

10:14

dives that really took

10:17

a complex issue and

10:19

made it more accessible. I remember when I

10:21

first met you, you told me something about

10:24

you explained your philosophy around accessible

10:27

journalism by putting something down

10:29

to where the goats can get it. Close

10:31

it to the ground. I'm not saying it right. But

10:34

anyway.

10:34

That's exactly right. Although I stole

10:37

that from the

10:40

black eagle, Joe Madison, but

10:42

that's what he says, put it down where the ghosts can

10:44

get it.

10:44

That's right. That's right.

10:46

And make some of these issues that

10:48

are so

10:49

wonky and covered in ways

10:53

that really make it hard to wrap your

10:55

head around in other media

10:57

outlets. And I think the takeaway has done a terrific job

11:00

of making journalism more accessible.

11:03

I also think of work that

11:05

was done with the previous host around Puerto

11:08

Rico and how when many other

11:10

news outlets had picked up and rolled away,

11:12

the takeaway really stayed

11:14

on that story and some of the political

11:17

unrest there and really hearing from the

11:19

spirit of the people who were

11:21

trying to make the island better

11:23

as well as our coverage

11:25

of parenting and

11:28

the intersection of race and media

11:30

and politics. And again,

11:33

there are plenty other shows

11:36

out there that are doing the work of informing

11:38

people, but I think there

11:42

was even a smaller class of programs

11:45

that people could count on to

11:48

hear reporting,

11:50

hear conversation about complex

11:52

issues in a way that was digestible

11:55

in a way that they could see themselves in.

11:57

And I think a lot of people see themselves

11:59

in you and then even

12:02

in, you know, the work that you've done

12:04

as a, I don't know if you like this word, a public intellectual.

12:07

I know that seems like, what is that? You know,

12:09

the scholarship that you bring and

12:11

even, you know, the lesson that you

12:14

used to teach us all every

12:16

weekend on MSNBC,

12:18

you know, you help make

12:20

information and news

12:23

and reporting and journalism accessible

12:26

in a way that we can locate ourselves in. And I think that that's

12:28

the power of the show. You

12:30

know, what I love about what you're

12:32

saying here is, you know, in part thinking about the

12:34

fact of the different ways to

12:36

measure a show having

12:39

impact, right? And sometimes

12:41

it has impact by being long lasting and

12:43

doing the thing. And sometimes it is

12:46

long lasting, does the thing, but it also is

12:48

the residual changes that it makes, the ways

12:51

that it influences other broadcasts,

12:54

other hosts, other producers

12:56

to shift. And I know that when the

12:58

takeaway was first developed,

13:00

it was actually seen as a competitor, a morning

13:02

edition, which strikes me as like

13:05

wild now compared to what the show is. But

13:08

I do wonder about how

13:10

even thinking about something like that, like, oh, here

13:12

is a, you know, here's like a mainstay

13:15

in public media, how creating

13:17

competitors, right, can actually improve.

13:20

So in other words, I'm wondering, is morning edition

13:22

better now than it was 15 years ago,

13:24

in part because that first version

13:26

of the takeaway existed.

13:28

I was going to say that. So full disclosure, I was

13:30

not

13:31

at the takeaway at its inception,

13:33

but I was in the public media space.

13:35

And actually, I was working at NPR headquarters

13:38

in Washington, where morning edition is produced

13:40

when the takeaway came on the scene. And I

13:42

can tell you from being a

13:45

former employee of NPR

13:47

and being a consumer of

13:50

morning edition that when shows

13:52

like the takeaway, tell

13:55

me more that was hosted by Michelle Martin

13:57

at the time came on the scene. morning

14:00

edition to tell

14:03

more stories that were more reflective

14:05

of all of America and all of this

14:07

world and I do think that that is

14:11

an effect of the show and and

14:13

always will be part of the legacy

14:15

of the show is that it made other shows

14:18

better because we saw there were some programs

14:21

and Jay Coward who's probably there in

14:23

the studio with you or in the control room can

14:25

probably attest that you know there were other shows

14:27

that that tried to imitate

14:29

even what the takeaway was doing and

14:32

and I'll say this that you know when

14:35

George Floyd, Brianna Taylor, Ahmaud

14:38

Arbery were murdered

14:41

there was this national conversation

14:43

around equity around

14:46

responsible policing around

14:48

excessive force, parade, police

14:50

community relations, institutional

14:53

racism, white supremacist

14:56

thinking that had infiltrated law

14:58

enforcement well guess what the takeaway had

15:00

always been talking about those things and

15:03

so even before diversity,

15:05

equity, and inclusion became in

15:07

vogue right the takeaway was

15:10

still having these conversations long

15:13

before all of that and so I feel

15:15

like other media have had to catch

15:18

up to where the takeaway always was.

15:20

And yet any media product

15:23

is imperfect it's just the nature of

15:25

things. That's right.

15:27

If you were kind of looking back either over

15:29

your time at the takeaway or even

15:32

you know having launched this version

15:34

of the takeaway right and and this crew

15:36

of people and and having moved on to a new role

15:39

what would you say like if there was if somebody gave

15:41

you a magic wand and a

15:43

ten million dollars what would be the

15:45

thing that maybe you would say all right this would

15:47

have you know moved us even more in

15:50

the direction

15:50

of the mission.

15:51

the

16:00

about doing telling that

16:02

story to the public and

16:04

even

16:06

i'm helping people

16:08

in you

16:09

know the media industry in general

16:11

public media industry in particular

16:13

understand how much of a jew

16:16

all this

16:16

program

16:18

is and how

16:20

different it is and how important

16:22

that difference is in even

16:24

with i'm not inside the head of leadership

16:27

it a w my senior public radio

16:29

a but if i had

16:32

it to do all over again we

16:34

have take away audience members that

16:37

a ride or die you can see this from twitter

16:39

and social media people who have been there since day

16:41

one and they get the value of

16:43

the program i sometimes

16:45

feel that the utility

16:48

of the program the uniqueness of the program

16:51

i'm wasn't always

16:53

recognized in it's own house

16:56

and by in it's own house i don't necessarily

16:58

mean only w in my see

17:00

i mean in the media landscape

17:03

a writ large and i think that

17:06

that's an important point to

17:08

make because again you can

17:10

see with the events that have happened in the

17:12

world right over the past several

17:14

years everyone is trying

17:16

to center the things that the take

17:18

away has always been censoring and

17:21

so so i'll say that

17:23

this might seem like an odd question

17:26

but both

17:27

for the audience but honestly even because

17:29

two years behind the make your i still don't

17:32

really know what the answer is lee

17:34

hill what exactly does an executive

17:36

producer in public radio

17:38

do

17:40

that's a really good question so the executive

17:42

producer should

17:45

help set the tone i'm

17:48

and really guide the program

17:51

i in it's strategy

17:54

helping to develop the voice

17:56

of it's journalism i'm

17:58

helping to keep what we say

18:00

we are and what we intend

18:03

to be and do to keep

18:05

us accountable to those ideals. The

18:08

executive producer is also

18:10

the go between between

18:13

the show staff and

18:15

host and executive senior

18:17

leadership of a production

18:19

house or of in this case, WNYC

18:23

the organization and really

18:25

helping to steer

18:27

the program to keep

18:30

the program relevant,

18:33

fresh, to

18:35

also challenge a

18:37

conventional wisdom around

18:39

what a show can mean

18:41

to its audience and

18:44

find new ways to connect

18:48

to the public that are beyond

18:50

the traditional radio dial. I

18:55

remember even when I was there,

18:57

you doing things on Instagram

19:00

and Facebook and meeting

19:03

the audience where they are. And so

19:05

I would say the role of an EP showrunner

19:08

as it's called in other places is to

19:10

really help guide that strategy

19:13

as well as support the team, be

19:18

someone who helps the team understand

19:22

that they're important, that

19:24

they are valued, that they are

19:26

worthy and also

19:28

at the same time pushing them to become

19:31

better and stronger. And

19:33

so that's how I would describe it. That's

19:35

how I would describe it. And I think

19:38

I was also an evangelist for the show.

19:40

I think an EP, right? Is the

19:42

evangelist for the show to

19:45

the people who need to be converted. My

19:49

church background, sometimes it's hard for me to

19:51

leave those analogies behind against

19:54

my better

19:54

judgment sometimes. But

19:56

we have to really be an evangelist

19:59

and ambassador for the show.

19:59

the show and to help

20:02

people understand why it's so important.

20:04

Look, I love that you shifted

20:06

a little bit to the language of showrunner,

20:09

even from EP, in part because I

20:11

do remember you running a lot. And

20:14

one of the things I feel like is, you

20:16

know, honestly, Lee, I've

20:18

been working here a good three months

20:20

before I realized I didn't work for NPR, like,

20:23

I've listened to public radio

20:25

my whole life, and didn't at

20:28

all understand the structure

20:30

of public radio. So again, doubt

20:32

the listeners understand a bit when you're talking

20:34

about being an evangelist for the show or

20:37

running. Part of running

20:39

is that you are as an

20:41

EP, right? convincing,

20:44

like small town, central

20:47

part of, you know, the Midwest and

20:49

a big market like LA

20:51

to, to run the show. So

20:54

so maybe also help people understand that a bit.

20:56

Yeah, so I mean, I remember being on the phone

20:59

with program directors

21:02

who always said that I

21:04

had

21:04

probably about 300 bosses, right?

21:07

So I didn't only have the bosses who

21:10

were at WNYC, the executive

21:13

team there, but I was accountable to

21:15

every city that carried this

21:18

program, I considered to be my boss.

21:20

And I didn't, you know, it's impossible for one

21:22

person to maintain 300 relationships.

21:25

But I did count it my business to

21:28

be on the phone with the folks in Maine,

21:30

to Los Angeles, to Minnesota,

21:33

and, and helping

21:36

them understand the value of the program,

21:39

listening to their thoughts about the

21:41

program, of course, we, we can't really

21:43

accommodate every, every

21:46

idea. But it was helpful

21:48

to understand, you know, if I was

21:51

talking to someone who was

21:53

in the leading programming at,

21:56

in Southern California,

21:58

for instance, to know that there are hot butts. and issues

22:01

that are happening in those communities

22:03

and as a national show that's popular

22:07

in those communities, trying

22:09

to understand what responsibility

22:12

we have and what we can do to help

22:15

amplify some of the conversations

22:17

that are happening on the local level.

22:20

I've always been, even though I've worked

22:23

in national journalism and national

22:25

media for a big part of my career,

22:28

I've always been a local news person

22:30

at heart. And by that, I mean, I have

22:33

always thought, and I feel like there's data that supports

22:36

this, that a healthy local news

22:38

ecosystem also leads to

22:40

a healthy democracy. And so being

22:43

able to tap into issues that

22:45

were happening in these cities

22:47

from coast to coast where we had

22:49

the honor of coming to people

22:52

through their speakers every day, made

22:54

the program better. And

22:58

not that we could reflect all of those issues

23:00

or stories on every day and every program, but

23:03

it made the show better, knowing that

23:06

we could sometimes touch on those matters

23:09

and balance our responsibility

23:11

as a national show with local

23:14

sensibilities.

23:16

This team, the takeaway, we're

23:18

broadcasting our last show. We,

23:20

together as a team, won't be

23:23

together again. Although we did

23:25

a pink slip party a while back. I

23:27

heard that. Yeah,

23:30

the metaphor of Ocean's Eleven with you. So

23:32

I am thinking, maybe

23:35

the old team will get back together and do something, but

23:39

give a little advice for so

23:42

many of these young producers for

23:44

whom the takeaway has been their

23:46

first gig, their first job, who

23:49

will be going on and doing other work in

23:52

other spaces, especially

23:54

maybe

23:55

so many of our producers are

23:57

either queer folk, women

23:59

folk. folk, black folk, brown folk,

24:02

or the intersection of these identities

24:04

and more. What

24:07

is your advice for moving

24:09

forward in this profession?

24:11

So one, first and foremost,

24:14

hold your heads high. I mean,

24:16

you all have done a terrific

24:19

job, a tremendous job of

24:21

really carving out a unique

24:24

space and driving conversation

24:26

around things that people

24:29

otherwise would not have been talking about.

24:31

And so recognize those

24:34

contributions and give yourselves

24:37

credit for really

24:39

doing remarkable work

24:41

to contribute to our profession through

24:44

this program. Also to

24:46

understand that you are more

24:48

than this moment, you are more

24:51

than the sun setting of a thing and

24:54

that the lessons that you've

24:56

learned and being

24:58

a part of this show is really, in

25:01

many ways, a masterclass in intersectionality

25:04

because of all of the intersections that we covered.

25:07

You're an expert in that. I think if you're a producer

25:09

for The Takeaway, given the

25:11

editorial process that I remember that

25:14

we participated in every

25:16

day and the filtering and

25:18

the critical thinking of ideas and

25:21

concepts and really

25:23

trying to get to the heartbeat of not

25:26

just this country, but the people who've been

25:28

most affected by the worst

25:30

parts of this country, I really think

25:32

that that makes the producers

25:35

there more of a

25:38

commodity and value than

25:40

they realize when it comes to

25:43

being marketable for moving

25:45

on in this profession. And so don't

25:47

hide or dim that light to

25:49

accommodate other people's smallness

25:52

and thinking.

25:54

I probably, yes, I said that. So anyway,

25:57

so that's what I would say.

25:59

this program, I mean, 15

26:02

years, hundreds of people have

26:04

come through the doors of this show

26:08

in different capacities

26:10

over the years. And you're

26:13

now joining this alumni

26:16

network of folks who have worked on the takeaway,

26:18

who work in every corner of

26:20

this profession and

26:23

people who've left the profession and now work

26:25

in academia or in podcasting,

26:28

you know, in the entertainment world.

26:30

We had some people leave and go work on a food

26:33

show. You know, so I just think that you're

26:35

also joining this larger support

26:37

group, many of whom are people of color.

26:40

I remember when I was at the takeaway

26:42

leading the show, I think I

26:44

can say that we were the most diverse

26:48

program. We had the most diverse staff

26:50

in all of New York Public Radio for

26:53

shows. And so that is something

26:56

that very few people can say that they worked

26:58

on a national media program with

27:01

as diverse of a program

27:03

staff as we did. So hold your heads

27:06

high. We've got you. And

27:08

don't discount or diminish the

27:10

value that you added to the national conversation.

27:14

I love that response so

27:16

much. Maybe it's because I

27:18

am at my core, a school teacher, a college

27:21

professor, but a school teacher and our

27:23

job is always to launch the

27:26

young talent to the next thing, right? You're

27:28

not supposed to be in my class forever. You're supposed

27:30

to go on and do bigger and give me something

27:32

to smile about when you come back and tell me about

27:35

all your incredible adventures. And

27:37

I have always felt that spirit in you

27:39

as well, that it's both about employing

27:42

and nurturing talent

27:44

in the moment, but also launching that

27:46

talent out into the world. And so that's

27:48

how we'll take this final episode

27:50

of The Takeaway as this great

27:52

launching pad for these extraordinary

27:54

producers.

30:00

Perry. This is our

30:02

final day on air. After 15

30:05

years and more than 3,900 episodes, the Takeaway

30:09

will end broadcasting at the

30:11

end of this hour. For

30:14

the past couple of weeks, you've been

30:16

hearing the voices of Team Takeaway.

30:19

The producers, sound engineers

30:21

and interns who've made this show

30:24

what it is. And if you've been

30:26

listening to these behind-the-scenes

30:28

conversations, you'll know that

30:31

making an original news show every

30:33

day is a lot of work.

30:35

But it can also be incredibly

30:38

rewarding. Getting to

30:40

bring stories to a national audience

30:42

of millions? Stories

30:45

that you often won't hear anywhere

30:47

else? It's a challenge,

30:50

but also such a privilege.

30:53

And don't take it from me, take

30:55

it from Team Takeaway. This

30:58

is Katarina and I'm a producer

30:59

on the Takeaway. There are so

31:02

many great memories I have of working at the Takeaway,

31:04

but I think my favorite is when Ryan Wild

31:07

and I started our first Takeaway reports.

31:09

We got to try on these vibrating haptic

31:11

vests that helps deaf and hard

31:13

of hearing people experience concerts

31:15

in a different way. Where are you feeling the vibrations?

31:17

I'm feeling the vibrations everywhere. Okay,

31:19

intensely in my torso right

31:22

now. Yeah, it

31:24

makes you want to dance. It was just so

31:26

fun to report on a story and

31:29

share a point of view that I think not many

31:31

people, including me, have really

31:33

thought about. I'm Jackie Martin, line

31:35

producer here for the Takeaway. And I don't know

31:37

what my favorite memory about

31:39

the Takeaway is because I have a lot of good ones.

31:42

I would have to say maybe when

31:45

I booked Dennis Biddle, the former

31:47

Negro League player, when it

31:49

was the hundred year anniversary of

31:51

the start of the Negro Leagues. We had to

31:53

strive to be better, just to prove

31:56

how great we really are, work. I

31:58

think all the players, we're all in the same place. that prepared

32:01

us, the younger players, they went

32:03

through a lot and had nothing

32:05

to look forward to. We knew

32:08

we had a chance with Jackie opening

32:10

the door.

32:14

We just had to get on the ground and out

32:16

in the field for these stories whenever we could.

32:19

Here's our digital producer, Zachary

32:21

Bynum. My favorite moments of The

32:23

Takeaway have been when I've got to leave my little

32:25

corner here in the South and travel all

32:27

over the country. Last year,

32:30

we covered the Poor People's March in

32:32

DC. That was so much fun

32:34

and so important. I went to

32:37

the Teen Vogue Summit in LA

32:39

right after the election. That

32:41

was an incredible time. I

32:43

learned a lot and got to meet a lot

32:46

of leading creators and creatives

32:49

in the industry. This is Vince Fairchild,

32:51

engineer for The Takeaway.

32:52

I got to travel to Florida

32:54

with producer Dana Roberson. We

32:57

went there to document the return

32:59

of Alvin Hall to his high school,

33:01

a financial educator, a BBC

33:04

presenter, and at one point, frequent guest

33:06

on The Takeaway. His high school in Waccala

33:08

was honoring him as one of the few

33:10

black valedictorians. They were also

33:12

trying to right a wrong. Alvin had discovered

33:15

not long after his graduation that his

33:17

valedictorian plaque had been removed

33:19

from the school walls. And it

33:22

seemed

33:22

that somebody had decided that

33:24

they didn't really want to celebrate his achievement. That

33:26

really hurt him. But on this occasion, they

33:28

wanted to honor him and give him

33:31

his due respect. I really enjoyed

33:33

witnessing Alvin have a reunion

33:35

with old friends and family. And it was

33:37

a really special moment to be

33:39

a part of.

33:40

And senior producer Shanta

33:43

Covington. My favorite memories

33:45

from The Takeaway have to hands down be

33:47

the field reporting that I was able to do while

33:49

here. The first of which was after the Dobbs

33:51

decision and Operation Save Abortion

33:54

with Liz Winstead and other reproductive

33:56

justice organizations. There's

33:58

nothing like being in the center.

33:59

of the story, capturing the sound,

34:02

and being able to see the great work that

34:04

people are doing.

34:07

And working on The Takeaway has allowed some

34:09

folks to showcase their unique

34:12

skills. This is Monica Morales

34:14

Garcia, and one of my favorite

34:16

memories that I will forever cherish

34:18

from The Takeaway was we were

34:21

all working on a story about eggs

34:23

in the economy. We used every

34:25

single egg pun imaginable.

34:28

Literally, listen to that story. You will

34:30

find every egg pun

34:32

ever. This is Morgan Givens, and

34:34

one of my favorite memories from The Takeaway is

34:36

the way I was able to repeatedly

34:39

roast Melissa Harris-Perry whenever

34:42

I had a game segment, and she had no idea

34:44

what these games were or what I was

34:46

talking about, but she was still so game

34:48

to learn about them and always have

34:51

really great interviews, even when I was

34:53

clowning her. That is something I

34:56

will hold on to for sure.

35:01

But when you talk with team takeaway, it's

35:04

not only the work that's motivating, it's

35:06

getting to do that work with each

35:08

other. Here's our executive

35:11

assistant,

35:12

David Gable. I've worked on The Takeaway

35:14

maybe seven years, and I am

35:16

so pleased to have met such

35:19

remarkably talented people who

35:21

have come through these doors, particularly

35:23

interns who have jumped in full

35:26

force to a very tough show to do, showing

35:28

us what they're capable of.

35:30

My name is Cass Pizzatto, and my favorite takeaway

35:32

memories are always gonna be the ones where I was in

35:34

person working with this wonderful team, spending

35:36

mornings in the office with everybody at our

35:39

meetings, or going to play pickleball

35:41

with Jackie Martin upstate, going to

35:43

the Ryan meetup with Ryan Wilde, or going

35:45

to a funeral home with Mary

35:47

Steffen Hagen, or spending time in

35:50

the studio with Jay Cowett and Vince Fairchild.

35:52

Like those Fridays where we're

35:54

all just working, slacking

35:56

back and forth about either how rough

35:59

our week has been.

35:59

or how great it's been. Those are

36:02

some of the small moments that mean a lot

36:04

because they just make you remember that you're working

36:06

like not with just people who you work with, but

36:09

people who really kind of make you feel like you're a part

36:11

of a family.

36:12

Hey, this is Mary Steffen Hagen. It's really

36:14

hard to pick just one favorite memory,

36:16

but one that I remember is our two days

36:19

of sort of brainstorming all together

36:21

at the office last June, and I got

36:23

to meet everyone in person and all of

36:25

my first impressions of everyone being really

36:27

kind and authentic and

36:30

smart were confirmed. And the other

36:32

one I would say would have to be when Lee told

36:35

us that Melissa Harris Perry was going to

36:37

be hosting for us. And then

36:39

we learned that she would be our forever host

36:41

after

36:42

guest hosting for a while. Every

36:44

member of Team Takeaway brings

36:47

their whole self to this show every

36:50

single day. And

36:52

when you get 13 unique, driven, and

36:55

talented individuals into one Zoom

36:57

room, every day will

36:59

you get all the quirks too.

37:03

I'm going to really miss just getting to know

37:05

my coworkers as people, even over Zoom

37:08

or getting drinks after work, learning

37:10

like who's a cat person, who's

37:12

a dog person, or who has a burning

37:14

hatred for corgis. So

37:16

many little personal moments of

37:18

connection and care that I'm going to miss.

37:21

Hey, this is Ryan Wilde. Every

37:23

morning we would show up to our morning Zoom

37:25

meeting and our director, Jay Cowett,

37:27

would have a new Zoom background. Sometimes

37:30

it was relevant to whatever day it was. So

37:32

Met's logo for opening day or Star

37:34

Wars for May 4th. And then other

37:37

times it would just be some esoteric

37:40

pop culture or movie reference that

37:42

had us all guessing. But yeah, I'll miss seeing

37:44

those every morning and seeing everyone else's

37:46

face. This is Jay Cowett, director and sound

37:48

designer. I will miss the hundreds of

37:50

amazing producers,

37:51

engineers, interns

37:53

that have come through these halls. So

37:55

many of them are pillars of the audio

37:57

world now. I'm constantly in awe of the

37:59

G.

37:59

giants whose shoulders we stand on 15

38:02

years in. And I will

38:04

miss our audience dearly. The

38:06

calls, the comments, the sense of community

38:09

we built with them, it meant everything.

38:11

I think the thing that I'll miss the most is

38:14

this amazing team. Hashtag team

38:16

takeaway forever.

38:19

You said it, Katarina. Team takeaway

38:21

forever. If

38:24

you haven't already, then be sure

38:26

to find these talented people on social

38:28

media and keep an ear out for

38:30

the amazing work I know they're gonna be

38:32

producing next. The

38:35

takeaway may be ending,

38:36

but we are not

38:39

done.

38:42

["The Big Game"] Now

38:47

over the past 15 years, hundreds

38:49

of takeaway team members have passed

38:52

through this corner of the radio world,

38:55

making big contributions every

38:57

day.

38:59

But there are some other members of team takeaway

39:01

who

39:01

have truly made this show what it is.

39:06

You. You've

39:09

shared with us your lived experiences

39:12

about the issues that we've covered, making

39:15

our conversations concrete.

39:19

Hi, this is Mike from St. Louis. Currently

39:23

the whole plasma donation, this is my

39:25

only source of income after getting out of

39:27

prison. I was briefly

39:30

getting SNAP benefits, which allowed me to eat,

39:33

but those were cut off. So until I can get

39:35

a job, I don't eat twice a week.

39:38

My

39:38

name is Danielle. I live in Warrington,

39:40

Oregon. I was homeless from 12 to 24. Being

39:45

homeless is probably one of the scariest

39:48

things I've ever experienced. I've had to deal through

39:50

prostitution, a lot of scary things

39:52

out there out on the road. I have a lot

39:55

of stories, a lot of experiences that I hope that

39:58

my children, now that I have kids. I'm

40:00

living indoors. I hope that they never have to experience

40:03

and they can learn from my mistakes.

40:04

You shared with us

40:06

the ways that you're making change in

40:08

your communities. Hey, my

40:11

name is Charles and I'm calling from Winfield, Kansas. I

40:15

have a eldest child

40:17

who is a gender

40:19

non-conforming using they-them pronouns.

40:22

And while I serve an affirming

40:25

United Methodist Church as pastor, I

40:27

have worked to make space

40:29

for more folks by including pronouns

40:32

on name tags that we use at the church so

40:34

that they can use their

40:37

appropriate pronouns and

40:39

feel confident that people can see them and

40:41

respect them in those ways.

40:43

You've responded thoughtfully to the

40:45

conversations we've hosted. My

40:48

name is Dorothea and I'm calling

40:50

from Oakland, Berkeley, California.

40:53

And Black

40:54

Joy during the pandemic for me,

40:56

getting in my car and driving

40:58

through Black neighborhoods and

41:01

watching the kids play. Watching

41:03

little babies run up and down the street,

41:05

plus hugging my grandson,

41:08

who I live with. He was the only person I

41:10

could hug all the time.

41:11

Together, we've

41:14

remembered and mourned those

41:16

we have lost. Hi, this

41:18

is Catherine Quintz from Portland,

41:21

Oregon. Bell Hooks means

41:24

everything to me. She

41:26

was with me all through my education and

41:28

she's with me every day in the work that I

41:30

do.

41:31

I'm calling from New Savannah Beach, Florida.

41:35

I'm going to remember the notorious

41:37

RBG as the woman who

41:39

fought for rights for the American people.

41:43

And you've

41:44

shared personal stories of

41:46

loss. My name is Pam and

41:50

my husband died of

41:51

COVID in February

41:54

of 2021. He

41:56

got sick just before

41:58

shots were available.

41:59

available, he would have taken a shot.

42:03

You shared with us what your lives

42:06

sound like. This is

42:08

Susan McLahorn. I'm from Portland,

42:10

Oregon. I can hear the

42:12

cicadas and the trees. There's

42:15

a lot of energy in the air tonight.

42:18

Even your kids have called us and shared

42:21

some of their nuggets of wisdom for

42:23

us adults. My name is Aurelia

42:26

Martin. My advice for

42:29

adults is give

42:31

your children lots of fun and

42:33

protect them of strangers and

42:36

danger. For everyone

42:39

who's taken the time

42:41

and called us over the years,

42:44

thank you.

42:50

Since we've announced that our show

42:52

is ending, we've been hearing

42:54

from you. And here's some of

42:56

what you've told us.

43:00

Hi, my name is Dr. Jessica Chowkaldman.

43:02

This is a show that I listen

43:05

to daily. I am a school social worker

43:07

in the New York City High Schools, and I'm also

43:09

a professor at NYU. And I teach multiple

43:12

classes about race,

43:14

class, and discrepancies in

43:16

the system. And I believe that your

43:19

show, more than any show

43:21

I've ever listened to, addresses this in

43:23

the most nuanced ways. I bring

43:25

your work into my classroom

43:27

often, and I really will

43:29

be missing

43:30

this. So take care, best of luck

43:32

with next endeavors. And really, it

43:34

is a shame.

43:37

I think that The Takeaway is one

43:39

of the best radio shows in

43:41

radio, period. I learn

43:43

more in two, three days by

43:45

listening than I do watching

43:48

TV or social

43:50

media or anything. It's a shame,

43:53

absolute shame, that it's going

43:55

off the air. Butch

43:57

Coleman, Bowie Murr. Hi,

43:59

my name is. Diana Montford, I'm

44:01

calling from Manhattan in New York. I'm

44:05

transgender and I want to thank you for always

44:08

giving wonderful coverage to the transgender

44:11

community and doing so much

44:13

to make people aware of

44:15

the challenges endemic

44:18

to the community. Thank you so much. And

44:21

best of luck in the future with whatever

44:23

your endeavors are. Hi, my name's Adam.

44:25

I live in Northampton, Massachusetts. I listen

44:28

to your program every day at 11.

44:29

I'm a concrete delivery driver and just

44:32

sad to hear that you're going to be off the air. Thanks

44:34

so much for all the great years of entertainment.

44:37

Hi, my name is Jennifer Smith. I'm calling

44:39

from Somerset, Kentucky, and you're

44:41

probably getting a million of these calls, but I'm just

44:43

heartbroken that your show's ending. I'm

44:45

crying. I'm a 52-year-old professional white

44:47

woman in rural Kentucky. And I feel

44:50

like it just opens my world and my life

44:52

to all sorts of things that I wouldn't get exposed to or

44:54

hear about. Amazing artists, amazing

44:57

people. She is amazing. And

44:59

I'm just absolutely heartbroken that

45:02

I'm going to be losing your show. It has been one of the

45:04

joys of my daily life. A

45:06

message for the entire

45:08

staff. I am a 65-year-old

45:12

white male living in

45:15

Charleston, South Carolina. Your

45:17

program has taught me so

45:20

much about the world

45:22

I grew up in, here in the South,

45:24

and the history and the lives of people

45:27

around me. The stories that you

45:29

have shared with men and women

45:32

about so many different issues, you

45:34

have shown me that I

45:37

needed to be better.

45:38

Hi, this is Eden from Colorado

45:41

Springs. I was absolutely

45:43

speechless when I heard Melissa tell us the

45:45

other day that the takeaway is going off

45:47

the air. It broke my heart. I

45:50

just don't know what I'll do without my daily

45:52

dose of reality

45:54

and great reporting from all of you

45:56

guys.

45:57

Well, good morning. This is Sandra Wittler. In

46:00

Brings, I would very

46:02

much miss The Takeaway, and especially

46:05

Melissa Harris Perry. Her

46:08

energy and voice and

46:10

style is unique and irreplaceable. Hi,

46:15

my name is Judith Blix, and I

46:17

live in Lexington, Massachusetts,

46:20

and I just want to say how sad I am that

46:22

The Takeaway is being discontinued.

46:25

It's one of my favorite shows, and it's

46:27

so important to me to hear how

46:30

many more voices of people

46:32

of color and underrepresented

46:35

populations and talking about

46:37

really important things. So, Mike

46:40

from Delon and

46:40

Liz, thank you. I

46:42

am so deeply upset that

46:46

I'm going to lose The

46:48

Takeaway from my daily routine

46:50

and my podcast catch-up routines.

46:53

My favorite story is all of them.

46:56

I was so grateful that

46:59

Melissa Harris Perry took over. I'm

47:02

really, really, really gonna

47:04

miss you all. Thank you for everything

47:06

you've done. Melissa

47:08

Harris Perry just made me realize

47:10

what a great, incredible radio it is, so

47:12

I'm really gonna miss The Takeaway.

47:17

Y'all, these calls make

47:19

us feel 20 feet tall.

47:22

Thank you for sending

47:24

your support, and know

47:26

we're gonna miss you too.

47:28

["The Takeaway from the Air"] The

47:39

Takeaway has been on the air

47:42

for 15 years, but

47:45

today, this hour, is our

47:47

final broadcast. Still,

47:50

throughout these 15 years, we've

47:53

had many talented producers,

47:56

engineers, and hosts who've come

47:58

through our studio doors.

47:59

and are part of our takeaway

48:02

legacy. Together,

48:04

they produced more than 3,900 episodes.

48:09

Y'all, that is a lot of radio.

48:12

And some of those folks wanted to share

48:14

their favorite memories of the show

48:17

with you. My

48:32

favorite memory

48:32

of the takeaway has to be the

48:35

very first day of the takeaway back in

48:37

March of 2008, when

48:39

we all had to get up and

48:41

roll in there at midnight for

48:43

a 6 a.m. show, the very first show.

48:47

And it was actually pretty electric.

48:51

We made a show that day that had

48:53

never been made before, and

48:56

it was amazing. I

48:59

don't even remember being tired

49:02

that day at

49:02

all. Just so

49:05

thrilled to be making something

49:07

new with all of these amazing brilliant people. Love you all.

49:10

Thanks for making such a great show for so many years and

49:14

for realizing

49:16

all the things that we had set out to do that very

49:18

first show.

49:19

My name is Jim Cawgan, and

49:21

I was a producer on the takeaway from

49:24

the very beginning. The thing

49:26

I probably remember most

49:29

is the very early

49:31

time a lot of us had to wake

49:33

up in the morning. Sometimes it was 2 a.m.,

49:36

it was even 1 a.m. sometimes, and

49:39

I remember waking up probably

49:41

in the middle of the night, looking at my clock,

49:43

seeing the digits, and not knowing if they

49:45

were a.m. or p.m., and

49:47

panicking either way. I remember

49:50

we would call our partners at the time,

49:52

the BBC, to ask

49:54

a reporter to come on after some breaking news

49:56

in a far-off place. We would

49:59

tell

49:59

the reporters, that we're the show of the takeaway

50:01

and we're their partner and

50:04

they would in the beginning just laugh at us and

50:06

ask if they could get chips with that. And

50:09

so they put us in what was a conference

50:11

room that I believe had yellow

50:14

walls and no windows

50:16

to the outside world. We

50:19

did have a window to the hallway that our

50:21

co-workers at WMYC would

50:24

walk by and see in at what

50:26

we were doing. We would come in very

50:28

early in the morning and leave very

50:29

late at night and I don't think

50:32

we left much other than maybe

50:34

for a bathroom break. And

50:36

so they would stop and peer in and wonder what

50:39

it was we were doing with such an intense focus.

50:42

And they started calling that room

50:44

the zoo.

50:46

This is TJ Raphael. This

50:48

show is so much more than just

50:50

a radio program. It's given

50:52

me lifelong friends that I

50:55

wouldn't change for the world. I used

50:58

to get into my car every morning

51:00

and head to work and turn on the radio

51:02

and hear the

51:04

takeaway. It gave me

51:07

the news, it connected me to what

51:09

was happening in the world and

51:11

it made me want to work there. And I did

51:13

for half a decade.

51:16

Thank you to the takeaway for changing

51:18

my life, for keeping me informed,

51:21

and for having the best crew of producers

51:23

in the business. You will

51:25

not be forgotten. We appreciate

51:28

you. I'm Leo Duran and I'm

51:30

one of the founding producers who is there for the

51:32

very beginning. And to get

51:35

a little sappy, it's really about the friends

51:37

we made along the way. I have stayed

51:39

in touch with so many members

51:41

of the team. There's so many different

51:44

ways that our lives have stuck together over the

51:46

past 15 years and I can't take that for

51:48

granted. So the takeaway

51:50

might be going away but the friendships

51:53

and family that I've developed through the show

51:55

are gonna last me a lifetime.

51:57

Hi, my name is Irva Gunja and

51:59

I used to to be the executive producer of

52:01

The Takeaway. The Takeaway was

52:04

such a special place for me for so many years.

52:06

It's where I learned to be a journalist and it's where

52:08

I made so many friends and formed

52:11

a second family. My

52:13

best memories from the show are in our control room, where

52:15

so many of us got up at the crack of dawn

52:17

to get to work updating the show, responding

52:20

to breaking news, and preparing

52:22

for the next day ahead. I

52:25

love the show, it's given me so much,

52:27

and I know it's given all of our listeners so

52:29

much, and I'll miss it.

52:31

My name is A. I worked on

52:34

The Takeaway from 2015 to 2021. It's

52:38

impossible to name one favorite

52:41

memory,

52:42

but I have a favorite thing, and it

52:45

was listener calls. Most

52:47

days we would push out a listener question,

52:50

and honestly, if I had the time,

52:53

I loved pulling the responses.

52:56

Sometimes you got funny, random stuff.

53:00

Many times you got heartfelt emotional

53:03

stories. You

53:05

always got insights, and

53:08

it was through those conversations

53:11

the heart

53:11

of the show formed. And

53:14

that is a favorite memory,

53:16

and it's something that I know will

53:18

be missed. I'm Kristen Meinzer. I

53:21

co-host the podcast Daily Fail

53:23

and How to be Fine, and also along

53:25

with Rafer, movie therapy with Rafer

53:27

and Kristen. I got to

53:29

meet so many of the people that I have

53:31

idolized over the years. There was, of course, Joan

53:34

Rivers, our very first celebrity

53:36

interview that Rafer and I had. Betty

53:38

White. I got to hug Dolly

53:41

Parton. Oh my God. Hugging Dolly

53:43

Parton

53:43

is something that you were

53:45

the 1 1 hundredth of 1% of people on earth

53:48

will ever get to do, and I got to do it. I got to hug

53:50

an angel on earth. I

53:52

am so grateful for all

53:55

the experience I got. Meeting

53:57

celebrities, interviewing celebrities.

53:59

and feeling at ease in

54:02

the same room as people I'm intimidated by, it's

54:06

been such a joy and such a gift that I got to do all

54:08

that.

54:09

For me, the takeaway was my very first

54:11

time on radio ever. A

54:14

friend of mine had told me that they were looking

54:16

for someone to review a couple movies.

54:19

I showed up and I couldn't believe that I was going

54:21

to do this on live national

54:23

radio, something I'd never done before,

54:26

and I did it. They invited

54:29

me back and I did it again, and then

54:31

I just never left, and I did it forever

54:33

and ever for years, and I got more and more comfortable, and

54:37

then Kristin Meinzer and I launched

54:40

a podcast out of that and started

54:42

this great partnership that continued

54:45

for years and years, and it

54:47

was just this great thing that I never

54:49

thought I would do. It was a whole new skill I learned, a whole

54:51

new talent, I guess, and

54:55

it made me feel great. The takeaway will always

54:58

have a place in my heart because of that.

55:00

Check out this memory from death,

55:02

sex and money host Anna

55:04

Sale. I started at WNYC

55:06

working on The Takeaway. It was

55:09

the first job I had when I walked in the door. It

55:11

was my first shot and an opportunity to work

55:13

in New York City media. Getting

55:16

to work with the talented producers

55:18

that came in and out of that show, I grew

55:23

so much, and then I realized

55:25

that I met my husband through a friend who

55:27

I'd worked with on The Takeaway. In fact,

55:30

I owe my marriage and my two little

55:32

kids to the network of people

55:34

that I met through my time at The Takeaway. I

55:37

have so much

55:39

affection

55:40

for the producers that

55:42

I've got to work alongside and the work that we

55:44

did together and the energy. I

55:49

am in awe of the amount of energy

55:52

and labor that has gone into tending that

55:54

fire for 15 years. It's been,

55:57

it's incredible.

56:05

My name is Isabelle. I was a producer

56:08

for The Takeaway for about four years. I could

56:10

say my favorite memory was

56:13

covering the Mueller Report

56:15

or getting to produce an interview with

56:17

one of my favorite musicians. But

56:19

honestly, I think my favorite

56:21

memory was the weeks-long

56:24

debate that raged in our control room

56:27

after some of us started putting marshmallow

56:29

peeps in our coffee. Whoo!

56:32

I guess a lot of this team has some

56:34

pretty good memories regarding food.

56:38

So many favorite memories of The Takeaway.

56:40

I can't even begin, but I

56:43

will say the epic bake-offs

56:46

were beyond for birthdays, for

56:48

random reasons. The

56:51

levels of skill and

56:54

intelligence that went into the

56:56

broadcast and went into the bake-offs

56:59

was epic and one of my favorite things

57:01

about The Takeaway. Back

57:03

in 2019, I had just started

57:05

at The Takeaway as a per

57:07

diem associate producer. And

57:10

I was working on a story

57:12

about dairy farmers

57:14

in upstate New York.

57:16

And I was staying late at the

57:19

office and I think it was around like 6.30 p.m.

57:22

And Lee Hill had walked in with a

57:25

bottle of wine and he

57:27

popped it and me

57:30

and some of the other people there at the time just

57:32

sat around and we took like a 30-minute break

57:35

just laughing and joking in the office having

57:37

some wine. And that's when

57:39

I realized that I'm going to remember this moment

57:42

for the rest of my life because where

57:44

else am I going to be able to have a good

57:46

time with my team

57:47

covering such important

57:49

topics that The Takeaway gets to do. And we're

57:52

going to miss that when The Takeaway is off the air. Hi,

57:54

this is Tim I. long time

57:56

listener, first time caller, former producer

57:59

slash

57:59

engineer. Many favorite things

58:02

about working with The Takeaway.

58:04

The incredible editing team and

58:06

the incredible producers and the incredible hosts

58:09

that were able to work with the ability

58:11

to just change on the fly and

58:14

have it go smooth like

58:16

butter. Takeaway is a great team. I'm

58:18

gonna miss the show. Love to you all.

58:20

The Takeaway wasn't my first job in

58:22

journalism but it was the most impactful.

58:25

The show consistently pushed the boundaries

58:28

of what public radio could look and

58:30

sound like. During my time on The Takeaway

58:33

I was encouraged to follow my curiosity

58:36

whether that led to a story about human composting,

58:39

the world's remaining quiet places, or

58:41

the history of white violence in the US.

58:44

Plus I got to work alongside

58:46

some of the best in the biz. From

58:48

the leadership stylings of Lee Hill

58:50

to the sonic magic of Jay Cowett.

58:53

Hey this is Ethan Obermann. I'm a former

58:55

producer for The Takeaway

58:57

and one of my favorite Takeaway memories

59:00

is from back when I was an intern

59:02

in 2016 and our host at the time

59:04

was late and so our

59:07

director Jay and our line producer Berkeley

59:09

had to step in and do

59:12

two of the interviews for that day's show which

59:14

at the time I thought was maybe

59:16

normal but looking back was actually very

59:19

unusual but I think does really

59:21

speak to the fact that this

59:22

team has always just been ready for whatever

59:25

it gets thrown at them. My name is John Asanti.

59:28

I worked on The Takeaway from 2016 to 2017 and

59:32

I'm so sad that The Takeaway is leaving our airwaves

59:35

but I am thankful for the time I spent

59:37

on that show and from the moment

59:39

I began I realized how much I felt like I

59:41

joined an elite team. I got traded

59:44

to this team that people

59:47

maybe overlooked or underrated

59:49

but I knew having worked

59:51

on another daily news

59:52

show that this was one of the toughest

59:54

and strongest

59:57

teams in the building at WNYC and

59:59

when it came to

59:59

pitching ideas, I felt like we were

1:00:02

always trying to hit the angles on news stories beyond

1:00:04

the typical public radio landscape and

1:00:07

beyond what we saw on TV and

1:00:09

what was really a part of our conversations

1:00:11

and our daily lives. So cheers to

1:00:14

the hardest working crew in public radio.

1:00:17

You will be missed. You've set a model

1:00:19

for the rest of the shows out there. It's

1:00:21

a shame that you'll, the takeaway is leaving the

1:00:23

airwaves, but I'm grateful for the

1:00:26

time that was on the air.

1:00:27

I'm Deborah Goldstein and I was a producer

1:00:29

at The Takeaway. Pitch meetings

1:00:32

were definitely a highlight of my year at The

1:00:34

Takeaway and what I loved about this time

1:00:36

was getting to know each of the people on the team.

1:00:39

Every pitch was a chance to learn more about

1:00:42

the person behind the producer, about

1:00:44

their interests, unique perspectives

1:00:46

and passions, not to mention the

1:00:48

occasional cameo from pets or

1:00:51

kids. And while all the pitching was going

1:00:53

on, you had to keep the chat open for the epic

1:00:55

threads of outrage,

1:00:57

trivia and general hilarity.

1:00:59

It was the best. Best of luck to

1:01:01

you all. What

1:01:04

great memories. Thanks to all

1:01:06

the Team Takeaway Forever members

1:01:08

who sent those in.

1:01:22

Welcome back to The Takeaway. You

1:01:25

may have guessed by my voice already, I am

1:01:28

not Melissa Harris Perry. I

1:01:30

am Shanta Covington, senior producer

1:01:32

for The Takeaway. And

1:01:35

this, this is a long

1:01:37

overdue thank you to our host

1:01:40

and my friend, MHP.

1:01:43

Melissa, you ma'am are

1:01:45

a force of nature. How

1:01:48

you're able to juggle being a professor,

1:01:51

a radio show host, mom,

1:01:53

wife and sometimes chicken wrangler.

1:01:57

I get tired just from reading.

1:01:59

very long list. And though

1:02:02

I know you feel like some

1:02:04

days you don't always do your best

1:02:06

in each of these areas, I'm

1:02:08

here to tell you that to us, your

1:02:11

team,

1:02:12

you are simply the best.

1:02:15

Because when it comes to this team, Melissa,

1:02:18

you have made each one of us better producers,

1:02:21

better teammates, and better

1:02:24

human beings. And

1:02:26

the work we've produced together is

1:02:29

proof positive of that.

1:02:31

And you, Melissa, are

1:02:34

the one who always fought for us,

1:02:36

especially when it felt like no one else

1:02:38

did.

1:02:40

So thank you. We

1:02:42

love you. And

1:02:44

we are going to miss you. Without

1:02:47

further ado, I think you should

1:02:50

hear from the rest of the team about

1:02:53

how much you mean to

1:02:55

them. This

1:03:00

is Vince Fairchild, engineer for The Takeaway.

1:03:02

MHP, what I'm going to miss the most about

1:03:05

working with you is your generosity

1:03:08

of spirit, of yourself, of

1:03:11

your time and attention, that

1:03:13

working with you meant true collaboration,

1:03:16

that we were all working towards the same goal, but

1:03:18

there was no sacrifice of acknowledging

1:03:22

every staff member's humanity.

1:03:23

Hey, MHP, this is Katarina. I just

1:03:26

wanted to say thank you for everything.

1:03:28

And I mean everything. I'm in

1:03:31

constant awe of your almost encyclopedic

1:03:34

knowledge of all things political science.

1:03:36

You taught me how to be a better writer, a better

1:03:39

producer, and to write with more empathy

1:03:42

and to maybe not always start a story in

1:03:44

the most obvious way.

1:03:45

I'm

1:03:47

Jackie Martin, line producer here for The Takeaway,

1:03:49

and I have so many good things to say about

1:03:51

Melissa Harris Perry. She is brilliant

1:03:54

and kind and encouraging. She's

1:03:56

a host that will never belittle you

1:03:59

when things go wrong. She works through

1:04:01

anything with you. The

1:04:03

last two years working with

1:04:05

her in the mornings have been just pure

1:04:08

joy. So, I mean, I don't

1:04:10

know. I hope one day maybe we can work together

1:04:12

again, but if not, Melissa,

1:04:14

just know that you are one of my

1:04:16

favorite people on the planet.

1:04:18

This is Morgan Givens, and one

1:04:20

of my favorite things about Melissa Harris-Perry is the fact that

1:04:24

she explains her decision-making so

1:04:27

when she would make changes to a script or

1:04:29

make suggestions or

1:04:32

bring ideas, she would explain her thinking

1:04:34

behind it. You're not working in a vacuum,

1:04:37

and it could be the professor in her, but

1:04:40

it means that you keep learning and you keep

1:04:42

growing, which is awesome.

1:04:44

Melissa, I'm really going to miss you

1:04:46

for many reasons. Our little side conversations

1:04:49

in the Google Docs, I'm going to miss putting corny

1:04:51

jokes in the script to try and make you laugh. I'm

1:04:54

going to miss essentially getting a master

1:04:56

class in interviewing and storytelling

1:04:59

nearly every day just by watching you. I

1:05:01

want to thank you for being a teacher to me

1:05:03

on so many levels. I will always be

1:05:05

inspired by the example you

1:05:08

set with your empathy, your ambition,

1:05:10

your sense of justice, and your confidence

1:05:13

in yourself. This is

1:05:14

Monica Morales-Garcia, and I

1:05:16

just want to say thank you so much, Melissa,

1:05:19

for being one of the funniest,

1:05:21

smartest, and most generous hosts I've

1:05:23

ever worked with. Now, I get

1:05:25

to brag to everyone that I know

1:05:28

Melissa Harris-Perry and honestly,

1:05:30

I've done it a couple times, and it's

1:05:32

truly, truly a privilege to know you

1:05:35

and to work with you.

1:05:37

This is Ryan Wilde. Melissa,

1:05:40

you have been the most supportive,

1:05:43

fun, intelligent, insightful

1:05:46

host I've ever worked with. We

1:05:48

work in a job environment

1:05:51

where we are grappling every day with

1:05:53

serious and challenging issues, but

1:05:56

one thing I so appreciate about you

1:05:58

is that every day...

1:05:59

You've always managed

1:06:02

to bring humor and joy

1:06:04

to our work as well and you've

1:06:06

encouraged us to do the same. It's

1:06:08

been the privilege of my career so

1:06:10

far to have worked with you, for

1:06:13

you. Hey Melissa, it's David. I

1:06:15

will miss you. I will miss stories

1:06:17

of your family and your chickens and your

1:06:20

celebrations and your joy and thank

1:06:22

you for being so kind, so empathetic,

1:06:25

such a good listener, so appreciative

1:06:28

of each and every one of us and

1:06:29

for the gift that you have on

1:06:32

the air of drawing listeners

1:06:34

in to a story that they might have

1:06:37

never thought about listening to or have

1:06:39

never considered and I have been

1:06:42

one of those listeners and I

1:06:44

appreciate

1:06:45

it. Melissa

1:06:47

Harris Perry, oh my

1:06:49

gosh, you are a class

1:06:53

act, a petty queen, a

1:06:55

bold courageous leader who's always

1:06:58

looking to get it right and you're

1:07:01

also one of the single most influential

1:07:03

people who I've had the pleasure

1:07:05

of working with. I mean we always

1:07:08

end up finding our way back to each other and I

1:07:10

just I look at that as meaning

1:07:12

something way bigger than you and me

1:07:14

both. Hey

1:07:15

y'all, it's Kat Spazzotto. I'm an associate

1:07:17

producer for The Takeaway. To our

1:07:19

fearless host, Melissa Harris Perry, I

1:07:22

just want to say thank you so so much for

1:07:24

always setting the example and what

1:07:26

it means to be a stellar leader, for always

1:07:28

having our backs and for fighting

1:07:31

for the beautiful folks that work on this show and

1:07:33

for teaching me valuable lessons about what it means

1:07:36

to be a once in a lifetime kind of host.

1:07:38

This is Jay Cowett. Melissa, thank

1:07:41

you so incredibly much for being here

1:07:43

for all of us in every sense

1:07:45

of that phrase. You are a

1:07:48

force in this industry, this country,

1:07:50

this universe and I am so

1:07:52

proud to be a part of your orbit.

1:07:55

I will miss our mornings and the pure energy

1:07:57

of them and fighting together when things got tough.

1:08:00

and being there when things were good and fun

1:08:02

and real. It has been the true

1:08:05

experience of a lifetime and it made me believe

1:08:07

in audio all over again and I thank you

1:08:09

for that, boss. I will miss you

1:08:11

so much, my friend. Thank you, Melissa.

1:08:15

Thank you. Thank you so much, Melissa.

1:08:17

Thank you so much, Melissa. I'm

1:08:19

just gonna be forever grateful that I got

1:08:21

the opportunity to work with you and

1:08:23

learn from you.

1:08:33

All right, y'all, we're at the end. The

1:08:36

end of the segment, the end

1:08:38

of the hour, the end

1:08:40

of the week, the end

1:08:43

of 15 years, the

1:08:46

end of 3,933 episodes.

1:08:50

The

1:08:53

end of The Takeaway.

1:08:56

Now, there will be no new episodes of our

1:08:58

show,

1:09:00

but

1:09:03

you can always listen back to

1:09:05

segments and shows that you've loved by

1:09:08

checking out our podcast or heading over to

1:09:10

thetakeaway.org. We've

1:09:12

been told all the past segments will

1:09:14

remain archived and available there.

1:09:17

And a final note to our team

1:09:20

and to all of you,

1:09:22

a reminder that nothing in media

1:09:25

is permanent and endings

1:09:27

are not synonymous with failing.

1:09:29

Change

1:09:31

can feel good and exciting

1:09:34

or change can feel painful

1:09:37

and terrifying. And

1:09:39

sometimes change just

1:09:43

is. What lasts and endures

1:09:46

are the lessons we

1:09:48

learned, the changes

1:09:50

we've made, the people we've become. See

1:09:55

the daily broadcasts that you've heard

1:09:57

and hear on binge TV for

1:10:00

the past 15 years. That's

1:10:02

just the show. But

1:10:05

the show is just a little glimpse of

1:10:08

the takeaway. The

1:10:10

takeaway is all

1:10:12

of us and all

1:10:14

of you. It always

1:10:17

was. And it always

1:10:19

will be. Thanks

1:10:23

so much for being with us and

1:10:25

for spending a part of your life with

1:10:27

us. I'm Melissa Harris

1:10:29

Perry and this has been

1:10:32

The Takeaway.