Co-Host, NPR's All Things Considered
Ari Shapiro: Biography at a Glance
- Ari Shapiro is well known as one of the hosts of All Things Considered, NPR's award-winning afternoon news magazine.
- During his first two years on the program, listenership to All Things Considered grew at an unprecedented rate, with more people tuning in during a typical quarter-hour than any other program on the radio.
- Shapiro has reported from above the Arctic Circle and aboard Air Force One. He has covered wars in Iraq, Ukraine, and Israel, and he has filed stories from dozens of countries and most of the 50 states.
- His New York Times bestselling book, The Best Strangers in the World, reveals the stories behind his most heartwarming and heartbreaking narratives from traveling on Air Force One to following the path of Syrian refugees to learning from those fighting for social justice at home and abroad.
- An occasional singer, Shapiro makes frequent guest appearances with the "little orchestra" Pink Martini. Shapiro has performed live at many of the world's most storied venues, including Carnegie Hall in New York, The Royal Albert Hall in London, and L'Olympia in Paris.
- He created the show "Och and Oy" with Tony Award winner Alan Cumming, and they continue to tour the country with it.
- In 2023, he was named Journalist of the Year by The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists for demonstrating outstanding skill, integrity, and commitment to reporting stories that are essential for LGBTQ+ visibility and equality.
Videos
Biography
Ari Shapiro has reported from above the Arctic Circle and aboard Air Force One. He has covered wars in Iraq, Ukraine, and Israel, and he has filed stories from five continents.
In 2015, Shapiro joined Kelly McEvers, Audie Cornish and Robert Siegel as a weekday co-host of All Things Considered, NPR's award-winning afternoon news magazine.
Shapiro was previously NPR's International Correspondent based in London, from where he traveled the world covering a wide range of topics for NPR's national news programs.
Shapiro joined NPR's international desk in 2014 after four years as White House Correspondent during President Barack Obama's first and second terms. In 2012, Shapiro embedded with the presidential campaign of Republican Mitt Romney. He was NPR Justice Correspondent for five years during the George W. Bush Administration, covering one of the most tumultuous periods in the Department's history.
Shapiro is a frequent guest analyst on television news programs, and his reporting has been consistently recognized by his peers. The Columbia Journalism Review honored him with a laurel for his investigation into disability benefits for injured American veterans. The American Bar Association awarded him the Silver Gavel for exposing the failures of Louisiana's detention system after Hurricane Katrina. He was the first recipient of the American Judges' Association American Gavel Award for his work on U.S. courts and the American justice system. And at age 25, Shapiro won the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize for an investigation of methamphetamine use and HIV transmission.
An occasional singer, Shapiro makes guest appearances with the "little orchestra" Pink Martini, whose recent albums feature several of his contributions. Since his debut at the Hollywood Bowl in 2009, Shapiro has performed live at many of the world's most storied venues, including Carnegie Hall in New York, L'Olympia in Paris, and Mount Lycabettus in Athens.
Shapiro was born in Fargo, North Dakota, and grew up in Portland, Oregon. He is a magna cum laude graduate of Yale. He began his journalism career as an intern for NPR Legal Affairs Correspondent Nina Totenberg, who has also occasionally been known to sing in public.
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The Best Strangers in the World: Stories from a Life Spent Listening
Ari Shapiro, the beloved host of NPR's All Things Considered, takes his audience on a journey around the globe to reveal the stories behind his most heartwarming and heartbreaking narratives. He details his time traveling on Air Force One with President Obama, following the path of Syrian refugees fleeing war, and learning from those fighting for social justice at home and abroad.
As the self-reinforcing bubbles we live in become more impenetrable, Ari Shapiro keeps seeking ways to help people listen to one another; to find connection and commonality with those who may seem different; to remind us that, before religion, nationality, or politics, we are all human. This talk is a testament to one journalist’s passion for Considering All Things—and sharing what he finds with the rest of us.
