Code Switch

What's CODE SWITCH? It's the fearless conversations about race that you've been waiting for. Hosted by journalists of color, our podcast tackles the subject of race with empathy and humor. We explore how race affects every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, food and everything in between. This podcast makes all of us part of the conversation — because we're all part of the story. Code Switch was named Apple Podcasts' first-ever Show of the Year in 2020.

Episodes

Bonus: Remembering the iconic, complicated André Leon Talley

January 23, 2022 • 35 min

Since he died this week, André Leon Talley has been described over and over again as "larger than life." But on this episode, brought to us by our friends at NPR's It's Been a Minute podcast, three queer Black men talk about the smaller, more personal moments that made Talley such an icon in the fashion world — and in the broader culture.

Mark as Played

A whiteness that's only skin deep

January 19, 2022 • 24 min

We use words related to color to describe different racial categories all the time — Black, white, brown. But how much of race and identity actually has to do with the color of your skin? What if what appears to be "whiteness" is only skin deep? Today we're sharing stories from people of color with albinism whose experiences challenge what many people think they know about race.

Mark as Played

They came, they saw, they reckoned?

January 12, 2022 • 35 min

It's now been more than a year since the so-called "racial reckoning" that marked the summer of 2020. The country, some said confidently, was having the biggest racial reckoning since the civil rights movement. But since then, the Code Switch team has been wondering...what was actually being reckoned with? And by whom? And what would the backlash be?

Mark as Played

Nikole Hannah-Jones on the power of collective memory

January 5, 2022 • 50 min

What stories do we learn about the history of the United States? Who dreamed up those stories? And what happens when we challenge them? This week on the pod, our play cousins at NPR's Throughline podcast talk to journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones about the historical argument she tried to make with the 1619 project.

Mark as Played

Ask Code Switch: What Does Race Have To Do With Beauty?

December 29, 2021 • 48 min

This time of year, folks are being inundated with messages about how to become more beautiful. But beauty is an ever-changing goalpost that has everything do with race, class and power.

Mark as Played

What We Watched in 2021

December 22, 2021 • 33 min

Y'all, 2021 brought us a lot of TV. Some of it was even good! So this week, we're talking about the shows that had something interesting to say about race, from We Are Lady Parts to Reservation Dogs to City of Ghosts.

Mark as Played

Bonus Episode: The blessing and curse of the '90s Latin Pop Explosion

December 20, 2021 • 34 min

Our play cousins at NPR's It's Been a Minute podcast reexamine the so-called "Latin explosion" of the late '90s: What it was supposed to be for audiences across the U.S., and what it actually came to represent.

Mark as Played

What Is 'Latin Music' Anyway?

December 15, 2021 • 36 min

The term 'Latin Music' can encompass everything from Celia Cruz to Bad Bunny to Selena Gomez to Los Tigres del Norte. It's rock, pop, hip hop, salsa, bachata, reggaeton, and so much more. So...what exactly is the connective tissue? Language? The ethnicity of the artist? Pure vibes? Or is it something else entirely?

Mark as Played

A Glimpse At 'How The Other Half Eats'

December 8, 2021 • 33 min

How do race and class affect the way we eat? What makes dollar store junk food different from organic junk food? And when did Whole Foods become such a polarizing grocery store? We're getting into all those questions and more with Priya Fielding-Singh, author of the new book, How the Other Half Eats.

Mark as Played

Imagining A World Without Prisons Or Police

December 1, 2021 • 32 min

When Derecka Purnell was growing up, the police were a regular presence in her life. Years later, the lawyer, activist, and author of the new book, Becoming Abolitionists, realized that her vision of a just society was radically different from the world in which she'd been socialized.

Mark as Played

Ask Code Switch: Thought For Food

November 24, 2021 • 32 min

It's Thanksgiving week, so we're bringing you a second helping of one of our favorite episodes, where we answer your questions about race and food. We're getting into the perceived whiteness of vegetarianism, what it means when H-Mart becomes a little too mainstream, and the etiquette around bringing pungent-smelling food to the (proverbial) office.

Mark as Played

'The Characters Are The Light'

November 17, 2021 • 31 min

You already know we love books here on Code Switch — and given that we're smack dab in the middle of Native American Heritage month, we thought we'd introduce you to some of our favorite recent books by Indigenous authors.

Mark as Played

'Being Fly Is An Act Of Community'

November 10, 2021 • 35 min

When 'Soul Train' first aired in 1971, there had never been a show like it. Fifty years later, that's still true. So this week, we're passing the mic to our friends at NPR's It's Been a Minute podcast, who did a deep dive into the age of Black joy — and Black flyness — that Soul Train kicked off.

Mark as Played

Love And Blood Quantum

November 2, 2021 • 22 min

If you're Native American, there's a good chance that you've thought a lot about blood quantum — a highly controversial measurement of the amount of "Indian blood" you have. It can affect your identity, your relationships and whether or not you — or your children — may become a citizen of your tribe.

Mark as Played

Ask Code Switch: Parents Just Don't Understand

October 27, 2021 • 43 min

Or do they? This week, we're answering some of your toughest questions about race and your parents. How do you create boundaries with immigrant parents? What dynamics might interracial couples bring to families? And why do so many Black parents want to prevent their kids from looking "too grown"?

Mark as Played

Painting By Numbers

October 19, 2021 • 29 min

The 2020 census data is finally here! At first glance, it paints a surprising portrait of a changing United States: The number of people who identify as white and no other race is smaller; the share of multiracial people has shot up; and the country's second-largest racial group is... "some other race." But resident census-expert Hansi Lo Wang told us that when you start to unpack the data, you quickly find that those n...

Mark as Played

Skeletons In The Closet

October 13, 2021 • 33 min

In a small suburb of Washington, D.C., a non-descript beige building houses thousands of Native human remains. The remains are currently in the possession of the Smithsonian Institution. But for the past decade, the Seminole Tribe of Florida has been fighting to get some of them back to Florida to be buried. The controversy over who should decide the fate of these remains has raised questions about identity, history, and the nature...

Mark as Played

The Once And Future 'Karen'

October 5, 2021 • 23 min

If you've been paying attention to the news over the past couple years, you know what a so-called 'Karen' is: a white woman who uses her race and gender to wield power over someone more vulnerable. But long before most people became familiar with the term Karen, POCs have been calling out Karen-esque behavior.

Mark as Played

The Rise Of The BBL

September 29, 2021 • 29 min

Black women have always faced immense pressure to make their bodies look a certain way. But if done the "wrong way," achieving that idealized figure can lead to just as much scrutiny and critique. So today, we're talking about the cosmetic procedure known as a Brazilian Butt Lift, and what its rise in popularity illustrates about the type of bodies that do and don't get valued.

Mark as Played

The Dramatic Life Of The American Teenager

September 24, 2021 • 18 min

Kacen Callender started out as a kid in St. Thomas writing fan fiction. Today, they are the author of multiple middle grade and young adult novels full of empathy, learning, and a healthy dose of high school drama.

Mark as Played

Popular Podcasts

Crime Junkie

If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people.

Bob Saget's Here For You

BOB SAGET’S HERE FOR YOU is a podcast that is like no other— For one, this podcast has guests who are friends of Bob’s, or just really interesting people who many of you know and love. Secondly, this podcast is unique because it goes inside Bob Saget’s mind, and then quickly filters out through his mouth. Bob has a way of calming people he has conversations with as well as being entertaining and often informative. Bob talks with his guests with genuine empathy and humor, while reaching his unusually diverse audience that he talks to as a friend, Bob is the dad with great advice, the irreverent funny guy who’s always there when you need a laugh, and the free-associative Bob who goes off on crazy tangents then returns to the subject at hand, as serious or as comedic as it may be, to wrap up each episode in a way only Bob can do. Because he really does believe, “He’s here for you."

Dateline NBC

Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations.

The MLK Tapes

According to the official story, on April 4th, 1968, a lone gunman assassinated Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. That man, James Earl Ray, pled guilty and for most people the case was closed. The MLK Tapes, a new true crime podcast from the creators of Atlanta Monster and Monster: DC Sniper, explores rare recordings of eye-witness testimony and new interviews with people who were there to reveal the true story of the plot to kill Dr. King.

The Daily

This is what the news should sound like. The biggest stories of our time, told by the best journalists in the world. Hosted by Michael Barbaro. Twenty minutes a day, five days a week, ready by 6 a.m.

Advertise With Us

Code Switch

Episodes

.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}Bonus: Remembering the iconic, complicated André Leon Talley

.css-r6mb8g{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:1;overflow:hidden;}A whiteness that's only skin deep

They came, they saw, they reckoned?

Nikole Hannah-Jones on the power of collective memory

Ask Code Switch: What Does Race Have To Do With Beauty?

What We Watched in 2021

Bonus Episode: The blessing and curse of the '90s Latin Pop Explosion

What Is 'Latin Music' Anyway?

A Glimpse At 'How The Other Half Eats'

Imagining A World Without Prisons Or Police

Ask Code Switch: Thought For Food

'The Characters Are The Light'

'Being Fly Is An Act Of Community'

Love And Blood Quantum

Ask Code Switch: Parents Just Don't Understand

Painting By Numbers

Skeletons In The Closet

The Once And Future 'Karen'

The Rise Of The BBL

The Dramatic Life Of The American Teenager

Popular Podcasts

For You.css-1r2bfgw{margin:0 0 -2px 5px;}

Bonus: Remembering the iconic, complicated André Leon Talley

A whiteness that's only skin deep

For You