Public Radio Redux

We whiz past billboards every day, mostly ignoring their pleas to buy more beer and better toothpaste. Billboards aren't going to take it anymore! A French company has emboldened these normally placid roadside ads to stage a revolt. If we won't look at them, they'll watch us instead.

Quividi has figured out how to install tiny cameras into billboards that can detect the driver's age and gender, all in the interest of better advertising.

During this week's On The Media, Quividi's chief scientific officer argues that its consumer recognition software isn't as "evil" as you might think. It turns out that it may not be entirely accurate either. Fabio would likely be tracked as a woman whose interests might include haircare products.

One thing's for sure: these new billboards raise a slew of privacy questions and make me want to drive around wearing a gorilla mask.

(photo by lordsutch)

Millions of people wake up every morning, open their eyes, and get on with their day. For Sandy Wolofsky, life isn't so simple. The "dull haze" of her cataracts keep her tethered to the bright lights that illuminate the corners of her Montreal home. Unlike most cataracts sufferers, Sandy isn't in her 80's. She's a young woman (of undisclosed age) who needs to get on with her life.

CBC's documentary series Outfront follows Sandy as she goes into surgery, pulls off her bandages, and sees clearly for the first time in years. Recovery isn't easy: driving is dicey and her first showers require a snorkel mask. Even two months after surgery, she is in pain and still can't see clearly.

Sandy shares the challenges of recovery with equal parts joy and frustration. The microphone is her confidant as she helps us understand what it's like to navigate the world through cloudy eyes.

(photo by photostar58)

When NPR revived Edward R. Murrow's 1950's tribute to the personal philosophies of every day people, it was expected to be a one year project. Four years and 60,000 essay submissions later, NPR is ending its weekly This I Believe broadcasts.

According to an internal memo from NPR's Ellen Weiss, the final episode of This I Believe will air in April. But don't lose sight of the This I Believe website. New essays will be published there, along with curricula aids for teachers who want to inspire students to document their own personal beliefs.

This I Believe's four year run is a testament to the passion and determination of average Americans. Most importantly, it documented the moments in people's lives when they were forced to reconsider what really matters. We have so much to gain when we take the time to formulate our own beliefs and truly listen to each other's stories.

Michael Weaver is an algae rancher with an eye towards biofuel. His company usually keeps its vat of bubbling green algae away from prying media eyes, but The Takeaway convinced Weaver to let John Hockenberry have the first peak.

Between the flashing lights that "feed" the algae and the techno beat pulsing in the background, this video feels a bit like a '90s rave. Don't worry, the biofuel technology is definitely 21st century.

If you haven't been following The Takeaway's Power Trip, this video gives you plenty of reasons to get on board their multimedia road trip to uncover green energy innovations across the country.

Other highlights include a gadget that helps you curb your household energy usage and a sit-down interview with Google's Green Energy Czar. Tomorrow they'll stop by the TED conference to find out what's next on the energy horizon.

(skip to 23:30)

Oh, Pluto. No more styrofoam ball science fair dioramas for you. And you won't be gracing solar system placemats either. It's true: Pluto was reduced to a mere "dwarf planet" by the International Astronomical Union in 2006.

Neil deGrasse Tyson sparked the debate over "America's favorite planet" back in 2000 when he decided not to include Pluto in a Hayden Planetarium exhibit at the American Museum of Natural History. Outcries of support for this icy ball of mass have followed Tyson every since.

Now he's written a book about the life and times of this demoted planet. But don't shed a tear for poor Pluto. As Tyson tells NPR's Melissa Block during their lively interview, "Pluto is happier." Let's hope so... planets have feelings too.

(photo by Beopenguin)

Back in November Kurt Andrersen and a handful of Studio 360 producers traveled to Japan to uncover the ancient and modern mysteries of this beguiling country. Stories and photos of their adventures appeared on the Studio 360 blog almost instantly and we've been anxiously waiting for the audio ever since.

Banzai! Last week's broadcast ended with Pejk Malinovski's macabre journey into a Japanese forest where hundreds of people have committed suicide. A chilling interview with the owner of a cafe at the edge of this "sea of trees" is mixed with a dramatic reading of the novel that inspired countless people to end their lives there. Though Malinovski finds little more than a crushed mix tape, his breathless narration makes you feel like you're scurrying through this dark forest along side him.

Studio 360 promises an entire hour of sound-rich reporting from Japan next week. Who wants to come over for a sushi and saki listening party?

(photo by Okinawa Soba)

Time capsules, urban cowboys, tin can art - plus dozens of honest conversations about race, war, and the economy. Weekend America was one of those rare shows that truly bridged the gab between disparate people and places. By dropping us into the living rooms, butcher shops, and sidewalk gardens of Americans we might not otherwise meet, Weekend America helped us connect with one another.

While many shows attempt to build these kind of cultural and racial connections, Weekend America had a secret weapon: a love of sound. From the whoops of Chicago's African American Jews to an entire series on the "one thing" immigrants from all over the world brought with them to the United States, Weekend America gave listeners a rare opportunity to hear American diversity.

During this final episode, John Moe reflects on how these sounds of joy and hardships have given him a new understanding of patriotism. I'm holding out hope that average Americans will be inspired to knock on each other's doors, seek out people unlike themselves, and truly listen to the sounds and stories of our country. Perhaps this will be Weekend America's legacy.

(photo by Weekend America)

Okay, okay, we get it! The economy sucks. Our favorite public radio shows can't stop talking about it and it is driving us into a dark money-hording depression. It has even led our friends at Radio Sweethearts to take a sabbatical from the dial.

While fast-forwarding through Marketplace last weekend, I heard a segment that gave me some hope. Hope that didn't just come from the President chastising Wall Street bankers for giving themselves $20 billion in bonuses, but hells yeah Obama: "That is the height of irresponsibility...It is shameful."

This hope came from author Ryan D'Agostino and his new book Rich Like Them. Ryan decided to find out how people in all those mansions made all that money. He simply walked up their cobblestone paths and knocked on their big front doors. Ryan found in general that they were humble, hard-working folks who weren't like the evil Gordon Gekko characters we envision.

As for their advice for weathering the economic storm, a San Francisco art gallery owner had this advice:

"...don't panic. There are certain things that we cannot control, but when you're running your business, don't start doing stupid things because of a headline. Forget about that and control the things you can control."

Oh, and don't forget your towel.

If only we could fill our bank accounts with tears. Then listening to StoryCorps would make us all millionaires.

Yep, this conversation between father and son made me bawl. With lip quivering statements like, "You're what I think of as a good man," and simple, honest advice like, "be gentle," I'm sure I'm not the only one who lost it while listening to this.

Sometimes I think about what a better place the world would be if everyone had a father who truly loved his wife and kids. Then I daydream about driving up to the ATM with a giant bag of tears. And then I smile.

(photo by guano)

Last summer, marine biologist-turned-radio producer Ari Daniel Shapiro traveled to the Shetland Islands to do a story on killer whales. He spent nearly five days days staring off into the distance, microphone in hand, hoping to catch just a glimpse of a killer whale.

The whales never showed up. Shapiro had hours of ocean sounds, dozens of interviews, and not much else. Some reporters might have flown home with a shrug and a sigh and forgotten about the piece altogether. Instead, Shapiro decided to explore the reasons we search for mythical creatures in the first place.

One local man gleefully compared the crew's quest to his boyhood hobby of tracking down every bus that barreled through his Northern Scottish town. Another man tipped his hat (although he wore no hat) to these mysterious beasts. One researcher even described the whale's movements as downright sexy.

These whimsical interviews would have likely ended up on the cutting room floor if Shapiro had actually seen a whale. Instead, through a series of surprising and joyful moments, Shapiro gently reminds us that it's the journey that matters.

(photo by Tom Barber)