The hottest radio show in America is NPR’s Snap Judgment, which broadcasts long-form stories better than anybody.
I worked closely over the last few months with one of the show’s producers, Nancy López, to help her tell the father-son spy drama that formed the backbone of my book, The Spy’s Son. I gave Nancy some FBI wiretaps, and my former employer, The Oregonian, gave her permission to use portions of my original eight-hour interview with the protagonist of the story, Nathan Nicholson.
As Nancy put it, the tale “just really had the plot and the twists and turns to make a good Snap story.”
She talked me into a sound booth at Oregon Public Broadcasting for a couple of recording session to lend my (not-so-hot) voice to the narrative. Nancy’s narration, not to mention her spare but telling script and a haunting musical score, far exceeded my own high expectations.
But there’s a really cool back story, and here it is:
Read More