NPR Pioneering Journalist Susan Stamberg Dies at 87

RADIO ONLINE | Friday, October 17, 2025 | 12:42pm CT

Susan Stamberg

Susan Stamberg, a trailblazing journalist who helped shape National Public Radio from its earliest days and became the first woman to anchor a nightly national news program, died Thursday, October 16. She was 87.

Stamberg joined NPR in the early 1970s, just as the network was taking shape, and quickly became one of its defining voices. Rising from producer to anchor of All Things Considered in 1972, she brought warmth, curiosity, and humanity to a medium long dominated by formal, deep-voiced men. NPR host Scott Simon once said she was "the first real human being to host a regular evening newscast."

Her reporting and interviews spanned politics, art, and the everyday details of American life. Over her five-decade career, she spoke with figures from jazz great Dave Brubeck to Hollywood craftspeople and White House chefs. She was equally known for her humor and authenticity-often knitting during broadcasts and famously sharing her mother-in-law's cranberry relish recipe each Thanksgiving, a tradition that became an NPR hallmark.

Born Susan Levitt in Newark, NJ, in 1938, Stamberg grew up in Manhattan and graduated from Barnard College with a degree in English literature. Her radio career began unexpectedly when she filled in as a weather announcer at Washington's WAMU, improvising her first forecast after forgetting to call the weather service.

As one of NPR's "founding mothers," alongside Linda Wertheimer, Nina Totenberg, and Cokie Roberts, Stamberg helped define the network's inclusive, conversational tone. When NPR's first program director, Bill Siemering, encouraged her to "be yourself," she took that advice to heart, helping generations of women find their voices in broadcasting.

Stamberg hosted Weekend Edition Sunday, launched NPR's beloved Sunday puzzle segment, and introduced audiences to Car Talk. Her cultural coverage illuminated both the profound and the playful, from probing interviews with director Elia Kazan to science experiments with Wint-O-Green Life Savers.

Over the years, she earned numerous honors, including induction into the National Radio Hall of Fame and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She retired in September 2025, leaving behind a legacy of intellect, empathy, and storytelling that continues to shape public radio.

Stamberg is survived by her son, actor Josh Stamberg, and granddaughters Vivian and Lena.