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Susan Stamberg, Pioneering NPR Host and 'Founding Mother,' Dies at 87

NPR announced her death weeks after her retirement, highlighting how her approach helped define the network’s conversational sound.

Overview

  • NPR said Stamberg died Thursday at age 87 and did not release a cause of death; she retired in September.
  • She became co-host of All Things Considered in 1972, the first U.S. woman to anchor a nightly national news program, and led the show for 14 years.
  • Stamberg later hosted Weekend Edition Sunday, launched the Sunday puzzle with Will Shortz, and served as a cultural correspondent focused on the arts.
  • Her career honors include induction into the National Radio and Broadcasting halls of fame and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
  • Often described as one of NPR’s “founding mothers,” a term she coined, she is survived by her son Josh Stamberg and two granddaughters, as colleagues and leaders praised her influence.