Special Programs

WAMU 88.5 airs programs that we produce as well as programs from National Public Radio (NPR), Public Radio International (PRI), American Public Media (APM), the BBC, and other broadcasters from around the world. All times are Eastern Time (ET).

Learn more about upcoming special programs.

View today's schedule for all of our channels
View the complete weekly schedule for all of our channels

TED Radio Hour

TED Radio Hour, a new program from NPR and TED, is a journey through fascinating ideas, astonishing inventions, and new ways to think and create.

Rebroadcast: Diane Rehm Interviews Maurice Sendak

Tonight at 9, we present a special rebroadcast of The Diane Rehm Show, featuring an 1991 interview with renowned children's author Maurice Sendak, who has died at age 83. 

Fighting The Odds: Inside D.C.'s Dropout Crisis

In a special one-hour documentary, WAMU 88.5 News follows one of the lowest-performing schools in the District as it struggles to improve.

The Drop Out Dilemma

KALW teamed up with a group of eight students from Mills College to look into the forces driving kids out of school in Oakland. These student reporters spent months in the schools the result is this documentary.

President Obama Addressing Nation From Afghanistan

President Barack Obama will make a live address to the nation from Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan on the one-year anniversary of the death of Osama Bin Laden.

American RadioWorks: Put To The Test

A look at the impacts of the expanding use of standardized testing on the American school system, using one North Carolina school as a case study.

A Sense Of Place: Hollow Victory

The people of West Virginia fight back against Big Coal and their attempts to destroy their homes in places slated for "mountaintop removal."

Hunting For Oil

What became of all the oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico two years ago?

Diane Rehm's 2005 Interview With Mike Wallace

In an interview from 2005, Diane Rehm spoke with legendary journalist Mike Wallace about his life, work, and career highlights.

NPR Supreme Court Healthcare Wraps

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments about the constitutionality of the Affordable Healthcare Act.

Intelligence Squared: Does China Do Capitalism Better Than America?

The Intelligence Square team takes on China's approach to capitalism in the latest installment of its Oxford-style debates. 

Bullied: Teen Stories from Generation PRX

From being called "Osama" in a Boston classroom, to looking at whether bullying prevention programs really work in Anchorage, youth producers from around the globe help show what many don’t we understand – but need to – about bullying.

The Tempest and Post Performance Discussion

Following the one-hour radio play, we hear a post-performance discussion, taped in front of an live audience.

Particles: Nuclear Power After Fukushima

A one-year anniversary special for broadcast March 11, 2012 examines the future of nuclear power after the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in Japan.

America Abroad: The Rise of the Islamists

After decades of repression by secular rulers, Islamists are the new power brokers in the Arab world. What do they plan to do with that power?

NPR's Coverage of Super Tuesday

NPR will have coverage of the Republican primaries on Super Tuesday, supplemented by local reports from WAMU News reporters.

NPR's Coverage of Arizona, Michigan Republican Primaries

NPR will be reporting live from the Arizona and Michigan Republican presidential primaries on Tuesday, February 28.

Soundprint

Soundprint is "the aural equivalent of photojournalism," a show that engages the listener's mind, imagination and heart.

DC Bluegrass Festival

The Boxcars, Sierra Hull and Highway 111 will be headlining the two-day DC Bluegrass Festival. The event features a band competition Friday night, and a full day of instrument workshops, jamming and more on Saturday.

Mind the Gap: Why Good Schools are Failing Black Students

This documentary tells the story of a suburban high school with lots of resources and a diverse student body that is struggling to close the minority achievement gap.

A Tribute to WAMU's Jerry Gray

In honor of beloved WAMU 88.5 host Jerry Gray, who passed away last week, we have a special tribute featuring excerpts from his shows and tributes from WAMU personalities.

State of Siege: Mississippi Whites and the Civil Rights Movement

We'll examine how the civil rights movement prevailed against hateful opposition in Mississippi.

Humankind: Rubin Carter's Hurricane

Rubin "Hurricane" Carter recently published a spiritual memoir on his life and experience of wrongful conviction and imprisonment for murder.

NPR Florida Presidential Primary Coverage

Robert Siegel and Audie Cornish will co-host NPR's coverage of the Florida presidential primary

NPR Coverage of the State of the Union Address

Melissa Block will host live as President Obama delivers his last State of the Union before facing the 2012 president re-election campaign.

King's Last March from American RadioWorks

On April 4, 1967, Martin Luther King, Jr. gave a landmark speech from the pulpit of Riverside Church in New York -- one year before he would be assassinated. Listen to the speech that had him roundly condemned -- by the mainstream press, by other civil rights activists, and by President Lyndon Johnson.

Who Is This Man? A State Of The Re:Union Special

The "I Have a Dream" speech has become the shorthand of the Civil Rights movement but we might never have heard it, if it weren't for Bayard Rustin.

Freakonomics Radio

Levitt and Dubner Freakonomics is a radio show spin-off of their popular book about cheating teachers, bizarre baby names, self-dealing Realtors, and other seeming economic absurdities. This program runs from Jan. 15 through Feb. 11.

NPR New Hampshire Presidential Primary Coverage

Melissa Block will host the New Hampshire presidential primary special featuring candidate speeches, newsmaker interviews, and expert analysis.

New Hampshire Primary Night Coverage from NHPR

New Hampshire Public Radio is offering live coverage of the New Hampshire presidential primary.

Toast Of The Nation

Ring in the New Year with WBGO's Rhonda Hamilton, as she hosts a live musical countdown to 2012. The program features The Billy Childs Quartet, saxophonist Miguel Zénon, and The Julian Lage Trio.

Hot Jazz New Year's Eve

Hot Jazz Host Rob Bamberger brings WAMU’s New Year’s Eve tradition to life with six glorious hours of vintage jazz, swing, and big band recordings from the '20s, '30s, and '40s.

Third Coast, Hour One

Documentary winners of the 11th annual TC / Richard H. Driehaus Foundation competition, demonstrate just how powerful radio storytelling can be.

Wait Wait ... Don't Tell Me: A Royal Pain in the News

A year-end edition of Wait Wait ... Don't Tell Me that highlights the highlights (and low-lights) of 2011. Featuring special guests, including award-winning writer Neil Gaiman.

A Season's Griot

Happy Kwanzaa! "A Season's Griot" is public radio's only nationally syndicated Kwanzaa program.

The Big Broadcast: Christmas Night

Join Ed Walker as he hosts a holiday special, featuring classic, Christmas-themed programming.

Tinsel Tales

 These programs feature collections of the best and most requested holiday stories from NPR voices past and present, such as David Sedaris, Bailey White and John Henry Faulk.

A Christmas Carol

From the novella by Charles Dickens, we present Charles Dickens' classic “A Christmas Carol.”

The Big Broadcast: Christmas Eve

WAMU 88-5 invites you to spend your Christmas Eve with The Big Broadcast starting at 8 p.m.

Hanukkah Lights

This year's Hanukkah Lights features stories about a bookish schoolboy and a young woman who discovers a rewarding new life.

Songs Of Snow And Light

Jenn Hitt, host of Capital Americana on Bluegrass County, presents an hour of acoustic-focused seasonal musical celebration featuring songs of snow and light from a variety of musical disciplines.

The State of the Re:Union

State of the Re:Union has set out to explore how a particular American city or town creates community, the ways people transcend challenging circumstances and the vital cultural narratives that give an area its uniqueness.

Latitudes: Play!

Why is play so important, regardless of where we grow up?

The Hidden World of Girls: Girls and the Women They Become

Tina Fey comes to public radio to host The Hidden World of Girls, two new hour-long specials that take us into the secret life of girls and they women they become.

The Animal House

The Animal House is a weekly discussion that explores the latest in animal science, pet behavior, and wildlife conservation.

The Big Broadcast: Thanksgiving Special

In this year’s Thanksgiving special of The Big Broadcast, Ed Walker features songs dealing with Thanksgiving, and we’ll also hear the Elgin Watch “Parade of Stars.”

Turkey Confidential

Join Lynne Rossetto Kasper, the award-winning host of public radio's national food show, The Splendid Table, for turkey triage. 

Day 6

A weekly news magazine offering a wrap up of the week's news, pop culture, and entertainment from different perspectives. 

Lean & Hungry Theater

Lean & Hungry Theater is a non-profit educational radio drama company. Drawing primarily on the works of William Shakespeare, Lean & Hungry provides adaptations of classic dramatic works to underserved areas, in established or improvised venues.

Snap Judgment

Snap Judgment is a themed, weekly NPR storytelling show. We focus on presenting compelling personal stories - mixing tall tales with killer beats to produce cinematic, dramatic radio.

Radiolab

Radiolab is a show where sound illuminates ideas, and the boundaries between science, philosophy and human experience are blurred.

WAMU 88.5 50th Anniversary Documentary

Listen to some of the most important figures in WAMU 88.5 history describe its growth from a station of two people into the vibrant news and education resource it is today.

Intelligence Squared

Bringing Oxford-style debates to New York City, Intelligence Squared presents debates on a variety of provocative topics.

The Breakdown: What's Working in the Job Market

This month's unemployment report is arguably the most important of the year. What does it mean for those hoping to work?

Latitudes

Latitudes is an hour-long  radio show that takes you into the lives of everyday people around the world. The stories are unexpected, rich in sound and riveting to hear -- they engage the intellect, the conscience and the imagination. They feature people who are finding constructive solutions to some of life’s toughest challenges.

President Obama's Address to a Joint Session of Congress

President Obama will address a joint session of Congress to talk about the economy and his jobs creation plan.

The Kojo Nnamdi Show: Architecture and Security, 3 p.m.

The Diane Rehm Show: Sheila Bair Rebroadcast

Rebroadcast: Diane Rehm Interviews Sheila Bair

Diane Rehm talks with Sheila Bair, who recently stepped down as chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Reflecting on the tumultuous period she served, Bair said the FDIC's job is "to protect bank customers, not banks."

We Remember: Storycorps Stories From 9/11, Sun., Sept. 11, 6 p.m.

We Remember takes an intimate look at lives forever changed by the attacks on 9/11.

Voices From Afghanistan, Sun., Sept 11, 1 p.m.

Voices From Afghanistan is an hour-long special marking a decade of U.S. troop engagement in Afghanistan. The program offers snapshots of life in Afghanistan today and looks forward to the future.

Joined by War: Afghanistan 10 Years Later, Sun., Sept. 11, 2 p.m.

People from the U.S. and Afghanistan participate in a candid conversation about how our world has changed since 9/11. 

rlpaulproductions: We Were On Duty

A first-person oral history of the September 11th attack on the Pentagon.

Special Extended Weekend Edition Sunday, Sun., Sept. 11, 8 a.m.

Weekend Edition captures the days events that transformed our world a decade ago.

Couscous and Cultural Diplomacy, Sun., Sept. 11, 6:30 a.m.

What's it like to be the only Muslim in the only U.S. town named after an Arab Muslim?

The Dick Spottswood Show: Labor Day Special

A special Labor Day edition of The Dick Spottswood Show, WAMU's weekly bluegrass show on Bluegrass Country.

A Shortcut Back To 9/11, Sun., Sept. 11, 6 a.m.

With sounds from the street, eyewitnesses and news reports, this program features actualities from that morning mixed with music. Remix also contains 2001 year-end commentary from various eyewitnesses who wondered about the future.

BackStory With The American History Guys

The hosts of BackStory take at history in a new, engaging way.

The Moth

True stories that dissolve socio-economic barriers, expose vulnerabilities, and quietly suggest ways to overcome challenges and see with new eyes.

Global Perspective

Global Perspective is an international documentary series produced in cooperation with broadcasters from around the world: BBC World Service, Australian Broadcast Corporation, Canadian Broadcast Corporation, RTE (Ireland), Radio Television Hong Kong, Radio New Zealand, and SAFM Radio South Africa.
Our second channel, WAMU's Bluegrass Country, is available on HD Radio at 88.5-2 and online at bluegrasscountry.org.

View today's schedule for all of our channels
View the complete weekly schedule for all of our channels
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Our third channel, WAMU-3, available on HD Radio at 88.5-3, provides news and talk programs not available on the flagship channel.

Learn more about upcoming special programs.

View today's schedule for all of our channels
View the complete weekly schedule for all of our channels

Particles: Nuclear Power After Fukushima

A one-year anniversary special for broadcast March 11, 2012 examines the future of nuclear power after the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in Japan.

Newshour

The one-hour daily flagship program that, seven days a week, provides the latest news and interviews with newsmakers, eyewitnesses, correspondents, and analysts. Offering the best BBC reportage and features, debate and discussion, it's global in reach, authoritative in style.

NPR South Carolina Primary Coverage

We provide full NPR Coverage of the South Carolina primaries. 

The Big Broadcast: Christmas Eve

WAMU 88-5 invites you to spend your Christmas Eve with The Big Broadcast starting at 8 p.m.

The Big Broadcast: Thanksgiving Special

In this year’s Thanksgiving special of The Big Broadcast, Ed Walker features songs dealing with Thanksgiving, and we’ll also hear the Elgin Watch “Parade of Stars.”

BBC News: Libya Special Coverage

We'll carry BBC coverage of unfolding events in Libya surrounding the alleged capture and killing of former President Muammar Gadhafi.

Global Perspective

Global Perspective is an international documentary series produced in cooperation with broadcasters from around the world: BBC World Service, Australian Broadcast Corporation, Canadian Broadcast Corporation, RTE (Ireland), Radio Television Hong Kong, Radio New Zealand, and SAFM Radio South Africa.
88.3 Ocean City -- NPR news and information on the Delmarva Peninsula.

Learn more about upcoming special programs.

View today's schedule for all of our channels
View the complete weekly schedule for all of our channels

TED Radio Hour

TED Radio Hour, a new program from NPR and TED, is a journey through fascinating ideas, astonishing inventions, and new ways to think and create.

Rebroadcast: Diane Rehm Interviews Maurice Sendak

Tonight at 9, we present a special rebroadcast of The Diane Rehm Show, featuring an 1991 interview with renowned children's author Maurice Sendak, who has died at age 83. 

Fighting The Odds: Inside D.C.'s Dropout Crisis

In a special one-hour documentary, WAMU 88.5 News follows one of the lowest-performing schools in the District as it struggles to improve.

President Obama Addressing Nation From Afghanistan

President Barack Obama will make a live address to the nation from Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan on the one-year anniversary of the death of Osama Bin Laden.

American RadioWorks: Put To The Test

A look at the impacts of the expanding use of standardized testing on the American school system, using one North Carolina school as a case study.

A Sense Of Place: Hollow Victory

The people of West Virginia fight back against Big Coal and their attempts to destroy their homes in places slated for "mountaintop removal."

Hunting For Oil

What became of all the oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico two years ago?

Diane Rehm's 2005 Interview With Mike Wallace

In an interview from 2005, Diane Rehm spoke with legendary journalist Mike Wallace about his life, work, and career highlights.

NPR Supreme Court Healthcare Wraps

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments about the constitutionality of the Affordable Healthcare Act.

Intelligence Squared: Does China Do Capitalism Better Than America?

The Intelligence Square team takes on China's approach to capitalism in the latest installment of its Oxford-style debates. 

Bullied: Teen Stories from Generation PRX

From being called "Osama" in a Boston classroom, to looking at whether bullying prevention programs really work in Anchorage, youth producers from around the globe help show what many don’t we understand – but need to – about bullying.

Particles: Nuclear Power After Fukushima

A one-year anniversary special for broadcast March 11, 2012 examines the future of nuclear power after the disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in Japan.

The Tempest and Post Performance Discussion

Following the one-hour radio play, we hear a post-performance discussion, taped in front of an live audience.

America Abroad: The Rise of the Islamists

After decades of repression by secular rulers, Islamists are the new power brokers in the Arab world. What do they plan to do with that power?

NPR's Coverage of Super Tuesday

NPR will have coverage of the Republican primaries on Super Tuesday, supplemented by local reports from WAMU News reporters.

Lean & Hungry Theater

Lean & Hungry Theater is a non-profit educational radio drama company. Drawing primarily on the works of William Shakespeare, Lean & Hungry provides adaptations of classic dramatic works to underserved areas, in established or improvised venues.

NPR's Coverage of Arizona, Michigan Republican Primaries

NPR will be reporting live from the Arizona and Michigan Republican presidential primaries on Tuesday, February 28.

Soundprint

Soundprint is "the aural equivalent of photojournalism," a show that engages the listener's mind, imagination and heart.

Mind the Gap: Why Good Schools are Failing Black Students

This documentary tells the story of a suburban high school with lots of resources and a diverse student body that is struggling to close the minority achievement gap.

A Tribute to WAMU's Jerry Gray

In honor of beloved WAMU 88.5 host Jerry Gray, who passed away last week, we have a special tribute featuring excerpts from his shows and tributes from WAMU personalities.

State of Siege: Mississippi Whites and the Civil Rights Movement

We'll examine how the civil rights movement prevailed against hateful opposition in Mississippi.

Humankind: Rubin Carter's Hurricane

Rubin "Hurricane" Carter recently published a spiritual memoir on his life and experience of wrongful conviction and imprisonment for murder.

King's Last March from American RadioWorks

On April 4, 1967, Martin Luther King, Jr. gave a landmark speech from the pulpit of Riverside Church in New York -- one year before he would be assassinated. Listen to the speech that had him roundly condemned -- by the mainstream press, by other civil rights activists, and by President Lyndon Johnson.

Who Is This Man? A State Of The Re:Union Special

The "I Have a Dream" speech has become the shorthand of the Civil Rights movement but we might never have heard it, if it weren't for Bayard Rustin.

NPR New Hampshire Presidential Primary Coverage

Melissa Block will host the New Hampshire presidential primary special featuring candidate speeches, newsmaker interviews, and expert analysis.

New Hampshire Primary Night Coverage from NHPR

New Hampshire Public Radio is offering live coverage of the New Hampshire presidential primary.

Toast Of The Nation

Ring in the New Year with WBGO's Rhonda Hamilton, as she hosts a live musical countdown to 2012. The program features The Billy Childs Quartet, saxophonist Miguel Zénon, and The Julian Lage Trio.

Hot Jazz New Year's Eve

Hot Jazz Host Rob Bamberger brings WAMU’s New Year’s Eve tradition to life with six glorious hours of vintage jazz, swing, and big band recordings from the '20s, '30s, and '40s.

Third Coast, Hour One

Documentary winners of the 11th annual TC / Richard H. Driehaus Foundation competition, demonstrate just how powerful radio storytelling can be.

Wait Wait ... Don't Tell Me: A Royal Pain in the News

A year-end edition of Wait Wait ... Don't Tell Me that highlights the highlights (and low-lights) of 2011. Featuring special guests, including award-winning writer Neil Gaiman.

A Season's Griot

Happy Kwanzaa! "A Season's Griot" is public radio's only nationally syndicated Kwanzaa program.

The Big Broadcast: Christmas Night

Join Ed Walker as he hosts a holiday special, featuring classic, Christmas-themed programming.

Tinsel Tales

 These programs feature collections of the best and most requested holiday stories from NPR voices past and present, such as David Sedaris, Bailey White and John Henry Faulk.

A Christmas Carol

From the novella by Charles Dickens, we present Charles Dickens' classic “A Christmas Carol.”

Hanukkah Lights

This year's Hanukkah Lights features stories about a bookish schoolboy and a young woman who discovers a rewarding new life.

Latitudes: Play!

Why is play so important, regardless of where we grow up?

The Animal House

The Animal House is a weekly discussion that explores the latest in animal science, pet behavior, and wildlife conservation.

The Big Broadcast: Thanksgiving Special

In this year’s Thanksgiving special of The Big Broadcast, Ed Walker features songs dealing with Thanksgiving, and we’ll also hear the Elgin Watch “Parade of Stars.”

Turkey Confidential

Join Lynne Rossetto Kasper, the award-winning host of public radio's national food show, The Splendid Table, for turkey triage. 

Day 6

A weekly news magazine offering a wrap up of the week's news, pop culture, and entertainment from different perspectives. 

Radiolab

Radiolab is a show where sound illuminates ideas, and the boundaries between science, philosophy and human experience are blurred.

The Breakdown: What's Working in the Job Market

This month's unemployment report is arguably the most important of the year. What does it mean for those hoping to work?

Latitudes

Latitudes is an hour-long  radio show that takes you into the lives of everyday people around the world. The stories are unexpected, rich in sound and riveting to hear -- they engage the intellect, the conscience and the imagination. They feature people who are finding constructive solutions to some of life’s toughest challenges.

President Obama's Address to a Joint Session of Congress

President Obama will address a joint session of Congress to talk about the economy and his jobs creation plan.

The Kojo Nnamdi Show: Architecture and Security, 3 p.m.

The Diane Rehm Show: Sheila Bair Rebroadcast

We Remember: Storycorps Stories From 9/11, Sun., Sept. 11, 6 p.m.

We Remember takes an intimate look at lives forever changed by the attacks on 9/11.

Voices From Afghanistan, Sun., Sept 11, 1 p.m.

Voices From Afghanistan is an hour-long special marking a decade of U.S. troop engagement in Afghanistan. The program offers snapshots of life in Afghanistan today and looks forward to the future.

Joined by War: Afghanistan 10 Years Later, Sun., Sept. 11, 2 p.m.

People from the U.S. and Afghanistan participate in a candid conversation about how our world has changed since 9/11. 

rlpaulproductions: We Were On Duty

A first-person oral history of the September 11th attack on the Pentagon.

Special Extended Weekend Edition Sunday, Sun., Sept. 11, 8 a.m.

Weekend Edition captures the days events that transformed our world a decade ago.

Couscous and Cultural Diplomacy, Sun., Sept. 11, 6:30 a.m.

What's it like to be the only Muslim in the only U.S. town named after an Arab Muslim?

The Dick Spottswood Show: Labor Day Special

A special Labor Day edition of The Dick Spottswood Show, WAMU's weekly bluegrass show on Bluegrass Country.

A Shortcut Back To 9/11, Sun., Sept. 11, 6 a.m.

With sounds from the street, eyewitnesses and news reports, this program features actualities from that morning mixed with music. Remix also contains 2001 year-end commentary from various eyewitnesses who wondered about the future.

BackStory With The American History Guys

The hosts of BackStory take at history in a new, engaging way.

The Moth

True stories that dissolve socio-economic barriers, expose vulnerabilities, and quietly suggest ways to overcome challenges and see with new eyes.

Global Perspective

Global Perspective is an international documentary series produced in cooperation with broadcasters from around the world: BBC World Service, Australian Broadcast Corporation, Canadian Broadcast Corporation, RTE (Ireland), Radio Television Hong Kong, Radio New Zealand, and SAFM Radio South Africa.