Anna Sale

Anna Sale is the creator and host of Death, Sex & Money, the podcast from WNYC Studios about “the things we think about a lot and need to talk about more.” Anna won a Gracie for best podcast host in 2016 and the show won the 2018 Webby and 2021 Ambie for best interview show.

Before launching Death, Sex & Money in 2014, Anna covered politics for nearly a decade. She is the author of the book Let's Talk About Hard Things, which The New Yorker wrote "shows us how supportive listening happens." She grew up in West Virginia and now lives in Berkeley with her husband and two daughters.

Shows:

Anna Sale appears in the following:

In Our Marriage, Psychosis Comes and Goes

Wednesday, November 15, 2023

After years of stability, Mark and Giulia thought they knew how to keep Giulia’s mania at bay. Then she had another episode. 

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Has the Podcast Bubble Finally Burst?

Friday, November 10, 2023

Taking stock of podcasting in 2023, and the role public radio will play in its future.

Raphael Saadiq: Music Was My Therapy. It Had To Be.

Wednesday, November 08, 2023

R&B artist Raphael Saadiq talks to us about using music to cope with loss, reflecting on love, and creating light in darkness.

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An End of Life Doctor’s Shocking Loss

Wednesday, November 01, 2023

Dr. Bonnie Chen felt confident talking to her patients about death, but when her son died suddenly, her grief made her see everything differently.

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Married With No Kids and a Ranching Business with No Heirs

Wednesday, October 25, 2023

Albert and Sue Sommers are in their 60s, married and don’t have kids, and that raised big questions about what would happen to Albert’s family ranch in Wyoming once they were gone.

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Jonathan Goldstein, Heavy Weights, and What We Owe Old Friends

Wednesday, October 18, 2023

Anna talks to Jonathan Goldstein, host of Heavyweight, about awkward phone calls and the emotional power of deadlines, and we share an episode from their new season about friendship.

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Feeling Lost or Stuck? Try Craigslist, says John Wilson.

Wednesday, October 11, 2023

The filmmaker behind HBO’s How To with John Wilson shares how his hobbies, like checking Craigslist ads obsessively, make him feel more deeply connected.

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A New York City Mover Who Carries More Than Your Boxes

Wednesday, October 04, 2023

Over the past 20 years, Adonis Williams has moved thousands of people in and out of New York City. With each move, he catches a glimpse of a life in transition. 

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Ellen Burstyn at 90 Today

Wednesday, September 27, 2023

Anna and Ellen Burstyn check in 9 years after they first spoke. Ellen talks about the relationships that make up her life in this moment, her dog, and finding novelty in the everyday.

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Revisiting Ellen Burstyn at 81

Wednesday, September 20, 2023

We’re listening back to one of Anna’s favorite episodes, when actor Ellen Burstyn invited us into her apartment for a sprawling interview about her past and present.

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I Did Surrogacy For Money And Now I’m Starting Over

Wednesday, September 13, 2023

Anna follows up with Sarah Short, the mom who became a surrogate to pay off debt. They discuss her divorce, starting her own business, and why this chapter of her life feels “freeing.”

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A Headline Stays Static Even As A Life Transforms

Wednesday, September 06, 2023

Lawrence Bartley was first on the show in 2014 while he was still in prison. In this new episode, he talks about becoming a journalist and the impact of a headline from our show. 

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Why Ezra Klein Thinks “We're Living Through A Mistake”

Wednesday, August 30, 2023

The New York Times journalist talks about the difficulties of early parenthood, the lure of communal living, and why he loves Burning Man.

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A Trans Elder’s ‘Final Act’: Musician Beverly Glenn-Copeland

Wednesday, August 23, 2023

The 79-year-old musician tells Anna about coming into his gender identity, “being cared for” by his bandmates, and the joys—and pitfalls—of finding success later in life.

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Secrets, Turn-Ons, and Fantasies: Your Stories About Porn

Wednesday, August 09, 2023

We revisit our most popular episode, featuring your stories about secret hard drives, fantasy plot lines, illegal downloads, titillating Tumblr feeds, and giving porn up completely.

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Bells and Bills: The Price You Paid For Your Wedding

Wednesday, August 02, 2023

We asked listeners, who are in the wedding planning process right now, to tell us how money is becoming a sticking point.

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The Crude Reality of Debt from This is Uncomfortable

Wednesday, July 19, 2023

We’re featuring an episode from This is Uncomfortable, a podcast from Marketplace, about how Kate Beaton’s quest to rid herself of debt landed her in the Canadian oil sands.

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No More Souters

Thursday, July 13, 2023

How a surprisingly moderate justice paved the way for today’s precedent-busting Court.

Why Writer Brandon Taylor Likes Being “A Little Bit Lonely”

Wednesday, July 12, 2023

The author talks about falling in love with writing in high school English classes, learning to manage money, and his evolving relationship with the Internet.

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I Still Love My Dad, But I Don't Love Guns

Wednesday, July 05, 2023

Two years after Anna’s first conversation with a listener named Jack, she called him back for an update on his relationship with his dad and to firearms.

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