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Talk of the Nation
GenreNews, interview, call-in
Running time120 min
Country of originUSA
Language(s)English
Hosted byJohn Hockenberry (1991-1993)
Ray Suarez (1993-2000)
Juan Williams (2000-2001)
Neal Conan (2001-2013)
Ira Flatow (Science Friday) (1991-2013)
Original releaseNovember 1991 (1991-11) –
June 2013 (2013-06)
Websitenpr.org/programs/totn/

Talk of the Nation (TOTN) was an American talk radio program based in Washington D.C., produced by National Public Radio, and was broadcast nationally from 2 to 4 p.m. Eastern Time. It focused on current events and controversial issues.

The show began broadcasting in November 1991. It was hosted by Neal Conan from late 2001 to the program's last day on air in June 2013. Each episode included special guests involving the topics discussed on that day. Past regular hosts have included John Hockenberry, Ray Suarez, and Juan Williams. Each Friday Ira Flatow hosts Science Friday, with discussion topics from science and technology. The program invited listeners to pose questions for the guest host or hosts by telephone or e-mail.

On March 29, 2013, NPR announced that it would cease production of TOTN at the end of June, replacing it with an expanded version of Here and Now that will become an NPR/WBUR coproduction.[1][2][3]

Science Friday will continue as an independent show.[4]

Format

TOTN begins with a look ahead to the upcoming topics. Then the regular five-minute NPR newscast occurs. After the newscast, the show generally spends from 30 minutes to the entire show discussing the main topic. If discussion on that topic peters out, or if the guests have to leave, then shorter news interviews similar to those found on the NPR newsmagazines of five to ten minutes air. Sometimes these shorter segments take calls, but often they do not. More controversial issues may have guests and take calls the entire hour.

One hour's topics do not carry into the next hour. This is because many stations carry only one hour of the program. In addition, the host will deliver a concluding "This is Talk of the Nation from NPR News" as a cue to stations that wish to cut away to local programming before the scheduled break.

To coordinate the choice of interview partners in cultural coverage between TOTN and other NPR shows (as of 2010: Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Tell Me More), NPR set up a "dibs list" system around 2005, whereby the first show to declare interest in a particular guest can "reserve" that person.[5]

Hosts

Hosts have included John Hockenberry (1991–1992), Ray Suarez (1993–1999), Juan Williams (2000–2001), and Neal Conan (2001–2013). Ira Flatow has served as host of Science Friday since 1991.

Guest hosts on the show have included:[citation needed] Alison Stewart, Ira Glass, Mary Louise Kelly, John Donvan, and Tony Cox.

Audience

In September 2010, Talk of the Nation was aired on 328 public radio stations, and had a weekly audience of 3.2 million and an AQH Share of 605,700.[5]

As of March 2013, TOTN was airing on 407 stations to what host Neal Conan was "the largest audience in the program's history".

Cancellation

On March 29, 2013, NPR and WBUR announced that Talk of the Nation would cease production and that NPR would replace it with a two-hour version of Here and Now.[6][2]

According to NPR executives, "the unusual move ...to replace Talk of the Nation with WBUR's Here & Now, which is carried by not even half as many stations across the country, is partly in response to long-voiced demands by member stations calling for more robust news coverage during the workday. The number of public radio listeners sags markedly between Morning Edition and All Things Considered."[2] Partnering with WBUR to expand Here and Now is considered a "more pragmatic approach to expanding [mid-day] news coverage" than Day to Day (2003–2009), an earlier NPR attempt at such a program,[2] which had been produced in collaboration with Slate.

The final broadcast of the program was on June 27, 2013.[7]

References

  1. ^ Folkenflik, David; Memmott, Mark. "NPR To Discontinue 'Talk Of The Nation'". The Two-Way. Washington, DC, USA: NPR. Retrieved 2013-03-29.
  2. ^ a b c d Nickisch, Curt (2013-03-30) [2013-03-29]. "'Talk Of The Nation' To End; 'Here & Now' To Expand". WBUR.org. Boston, MA, USA: WBUR. Retrieved 2013-03-30. {{cite web}}: External link in |work= (help)
  3. ^ Stelter, Brian (2013-03-30). "After 21 Years, NPR Is Ending 'Talk of the Nation'". The New York Times. New York, NY, USA: The New York Times Company. p. C1. Retrieved 2013-03-30.
  4. ^ Kaplan, Karen. "Ira Flatow of "Science Friday" discusses show's future after TOTN". latimes.com. Retrieved 2013-03-31.
  5. ^ a b "Harry Shearer and NPR: The Big Uneasy : NPR Ombudsman". NPR.org. Washington, DC, USA: NPR. {{cite web}}: External link in |work= (help)
  6. ^ Folkenflik, David; Montagne, Renée (2013-03-29). "NPR To Drop Call-In Show 'Talk Of The Nation'". NPR.org. Washington, DC, USA: NPR. Retrieved 2013-03-30. {{cite web}}: External link in |work= (help)
  7. ^ Final Talk Of The Nation Airs Thursday June 27, 2013. Retrieved June 27, 2013.


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