Judges Spotlight

5 Things You Should Know About Jad Abumrad

Jad Abumrad has been shaping the way we tell, dissect, and understand stories for more than 15 years as the host of WNYC’s Radiolab. As one of our esteemed Webby jurors, he helps judge the best in Podcasts.

Below are five facts you probably didn’t know about Abumrad.

Ask Him to Play You a Song

Outside of being an award-winning podcast producer and host, Jad is also a musician. He is a lifelong pianist, studied music composition at Oberlin College, and even composes a large amount of music heard on Radiolab.

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A Genius, by MacArthur's Standards

For his in-depth exploration of the world’s greatest questions, Abumrad was awarded with a highly coveted MacArthur Genius grant.

Plus, in 2016, he took on More Perfect a second podcast to examine how the Supreme Court’s nine judges debate and shape an entire nation.

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He Gets the Ira Glass Stamp of Approval

Radiolab has amassed a cult-like following, with 1.5 million listeners tuning in weekly, including radio guru and This American Life host Ira Glass.

He is such a supporter that Glass penned a detailed manifesto of appreciation to the program:

“Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich have digested all the storytelling and production tricks of everyone in public radio before them, invented some slick moves of their own, and ended up creating the rarest thing you can create in any medium: a new aesthetic.”

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He Embraces "Gut Churn"

You know that gut wrenching feeling of self-doubt, dread, tinted with splash of hopeful desperation? Abumrad calls that “gut churn” and considered it fundamental to the creation process of Radiolab.

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He's Graced a Gossip "Magazine"

When Esquire’s video editor Dominick Nero had a dream about a “gossip magazine based on the NPR universe,” he created one (for laughs, of course).

Naturally, Jad found himself on the cover of NPR Scoop.

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5 Things You Should Know About Jad Abumrad

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