Susan Stamberg, a “founding mother” of National Public Radio (NPR) and the first woman to host a national news program, has died at age 87.

 

 

 

 

NPR reported that Stamberg died on Thursday, October 16. A cause of death was not provided.

 

 

 

 

Stamberg joined NPR in the early 1970s as the network was just getting started. Her career spanned decades, during which she interviewed thousands of people, from prominent figures like politicians and artists to individuals working behind the scenes, such as White House chefs and Hollywood crew members.

 

 

Stamberg hosted the flagship program “All Things Considered” starting in 1972, serving in the role for 14 years. In an oral history interview with Oregon station KLCC in January, she recalled the lack of female role models in broadcasting at the time.

 

 

 

 

 

“The only ones on were men, and the only thing I knew to do was imitate them,” she said, explaining that she initially lowered her voice to sound authoritative.

 

 

After a few days, program manager Bill Siemering told her to simply be herself. She noted that this natural, relaxed delivery helped create a “new sound with radio as well, with NPR,” contrasting with the careful accents and delivery of the few women who were trained actors in broadcasting then. Her colleague Jack Mitchell once noted her “obvious New York accent.”

 

 

 

Stamberg and the team behind “All Things Considered” faced a daily challenge, as they only had five reporters to fill the 90-minute program.

 

 

Stamberg told KLCC that she coined the term “founding mother” to refer to herself and three other women who were instrumental in launching the network: Cokie Roberts, Nina Totenberg, and Linda Wertheimer.

 

 

“I got tired of hearing about Founding Fathers, and I knew we were not that, so we were obviously Founding Mothers, and I was going to put that on the map,” she stated.

 

 

After “All Things Considered,” Stamberg went on to host “Weekend Edition Sunday,” where she launched the Sunday puzzle feature with Will Shortz. Shortz, who is now the crossword editor of the New York Times, explained that Stamberg wanted the show to be the radio equivalent of a Sunday newspaper, offering news, culture, sports, and a puzzle. She later became a cultural correspondent for “Morning Edition” and “Weekend Edition Saturday,” retiring in September.

 

 

In 1979, Stamberg hosted a two-hour radio call-in program with then-President Jimmy Carter from the Oval Office. She managed the listeners who called in to speak with him, and the questions were not screened beforehand.

 

 

Known for her “conversational style, intelligence, and knack for finding an interesting story,” Stamberg was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame. Her notable interview subjects include Nancy Reagan, Annie Liebowitz, Rosa Parks, and James Baldwin.

 

 

She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2020. Stamberg was born Susan Levitt in Newark, New Jersey, in 1938 and grew up in Manhattan.

 

 

She is survived by her son, Josh Stamberg,

and her granddaughters, Vivian and Lena.