WNYC Partners with NPR to Relaunch “Consider This” as the Nation’s First Ever Localized Daily News Podcast; WNYC’s Rebeca Ibarra Named Producer and Host

Read more in this memo from WNYC’s Editor in Chief, Audrey Cooper:

Dear colleagues,

I’m excited to announce that today, we are partnering with NPR to relaunch Consider This as the country’s first localized daily news podcast—one that blends national stories from NPR and local reporting from WNYC. 

Produced by NPR and public radio stations in 10 different markets, Consider This represents a significant technological innovation in on-demand audio because it gives listeners a personalized mix of national news and local reporting from their own community based on their physical location. This national/local on-demand experience is not only a first for public radio but for the podcast industry as a whole, made possible by our shared journalism and digital networks. 

Public radio has long offered listeners an authoritative mix of news and information — from countries in other hemispheres to American statehouses and listeners’ own neighborhoods — on our signature news programs, Morning Edition and All Things Considered. With the launch of Consider This, we will bring that unique mix to the digital space for the first time. This daily podcast showcases what public radio does best, and indeed what only public radio can do: provide a range of the most urgent national and local news produced by the country’s top journalists.

I’m particularly thrilled to announce that Rebeca Ibarra has been named host and producer of the New York edition of Consider This. Rebeca has been at WNYC for almost five years, first as a newsroom intern and then as a news producer and reporter. In 2019, she moved upstairs to Studios and produced the wonderfully funny and poignant podcast, Scattered. Most recently, she has been guest hosting All Things Considered and doing newscasts for WNYC and WQXR. In her new role, Rebeca will have considerable editorial oversight of the local content of the podcast, and I know she is excited to experiment with different ways to bring the news to our audiences in New York and New Jersey.  

Starting today, Consider This will drop each weekday at roughly 5pm for listening during evening drivetime. 

This launch has truly been a collaborative effort across New York Public Radio. Joining Rebeca in getting this off the ground in the newsroom is Joe Capriglione, Danny Lewis, Wayne Shulmister and Sean Bowditch. Theodora Kuslan, Sahar Baharloo, and the marketing team are supporting the effort with a targeted marketing plan with NPR, and the sponsorship team has secured the Metropolitan Museum of Art as the exclusive launch sponsor. 

Please join me in congratulating the team, and celebrating this milestone in the advancement of the public radio mission.

Audrey