Guy Raz is widely considered to be one of the pioneers of podcasting. He’s been instrumental in creating some of the most iconic podcasts in the world including How I Built This, the kids science podcast Wow in the World and TED Radio Hour . Guy is also the force behind the celebrity interview podcast The Great Creators and the business podcast Wisdom from the Top. The New York Times has described him as “one of the most popular podcasters in history.” Collectively, his shows reach 19 million listeners a month.
Guy is also the author of two New York Times bestsellers including How I Built This and a children’s book The How and Wow of the Human Body (with Mindy Thomas.) He’s co- authored four other children’s books on animals and space. He’s the co-founder of two media companies including Built It Productions and the kids and family studio Tinkercast.
Guy has interviewed over 20,000 people over a career in broadcasting spanning more than 25 years including presidents, Nobel Prize winners, iconic actors, athletes, musicians and business leaders. Forbes magazine has called him “the greatest interviewer of his generation.”
He’s been profiled in The New York Times, has been named one 40 most influential podcasters by The Hollywoood Reporter and one of the 40 most influential people in children’s media. Guy has also appeared as a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon half a dozen times.
In 2017, Raz became the first person in the history of podcasting to have three shows in the top 20 on the Apple Podcast charts simultaneously.
Previously, Guy was a foreign correspondent for CNN and NPR where he covered news from more than 50 countries. During his six years abroad, Raz covered everything from wars and conflict zones to sports and entertainment. He reported from more than 40 countries including the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Macedonia, and the ongoing conflict in Israel and the Palestinian territories.
Guy was also the weekend host of NPR News' signature afternoon newsmagazine All Things Considered. During his tenure (2009-2012), he transformed the sound and format of the program and interviewed figures such as Bill Gates, Condoleezza Rice, Jimmy Carter, Shimon Peres, General David Petraeus, Al Gore, Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, Eminem, Taylor Swift, and many, many others.
Raz has anchored live coverage on some of the biggest stories in recent years, including the killing of Osama bin Laden, the Newtown School Shootings, and the 2012 presidential election.
For his work in broadcasting, Guy has been awarded the prestigious Edward E. Murrow award and was part of the team that won both the Peabody and DuPont awards. He’s also received the National Headliner award, the NABJ, the Gracie, the Daniel Schorr Prize, a Webby, an iHeart award among several others.
In 2008, he spent a year as a Nieman journalism fellow at Harvard University where he studied classical history.
He has also served as a Ferris professor of journalism at Princeton University, a Shapiro fellow at George Washington University, and an adjunct professor of journalism at Georgetown.
Guy lives in Marin County, California with his family.
