Design Matters with Debbie Millman 20th Anniversary celebration with podcast hosts Krista Tippett, Ira Glass, Hrishikesh Hirway, Kara Swisher, and Jad Abumrad.
Oct 27, 2025
Debbie Millman celebrates 20 years of her podcast by featuring insights from notable hosts Krista Tippett, Ira Glass, Hrishikesh Hirway, Kara Swisher, and Jad Abumrad. Krista explores her journey back to spirituality, while Ira reveals his interviewing techniques that encourage vulnerability. Hrishikesh shares the creation story of Song Exploder, driven by a desire to dive deeper into music. Kara discusses the impact of loss on her life perspective and the importance of setting boundaries. Jad reflects on his evolution in radio and the experimental roots of Radiolab.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
European Years Shaped Krista's Vocation
- Krista Tippett traveled and worked across Europe, including divided Berlin, which reshaped her view of spirituality and vocation.
- Those experiences led her to study divinity and pursue oral histories that seeded her radio conversations about faith.
Humanizing Religious Conversation
- Krista noticed public religion was dominated by strident soundbites that misrepresented theological nuance.
- She saw first-person conversations as a way to humanize doctrine and enrich public life.
Small Tactics To Seem Older
- Ira Glass recounted youthful attempts to appear older, including wearing ties and cutting his hair for career reasons.
- He described being mistaken for a student while reporting and using small tactics to seem like an adult.
