Terry Gross, born in Brooklyn, New York, received a bachelor's degree
in English and an M.Ed. in Communications from the State University of
New York (SUNY) at Buffalo. Gross has been honored with a 1989
Honorary Doctor of Letters from Drexel University and a 1993
Distinguished Alumni Award from SUNY Buffalo.
Gross isn't afraid to ask tough questions, but she sets an atmosphere
in which her guests volunteer the answers rather than surrender them.
What often puts those guests at ease is Gross' understanding of their
work. "Anyone who agrees to be interviewed must decide where to draw
the line between what is public and what is private. But the line can
shift, depending on who is asking the questions," observes Gross.
"What puts someone on guard isn't necessarily the fear of being 'found
out.' It sometimes is just the fear of being misunderstood."
Gross began her radio career in 1973 at public radio station WBFO in
Buffalo, New York. There she hosted and produced several arts, women's
and public affairs programs, including This Is Radio, a live,
three-hour magazine program that aired daily. Two years later, she
joined the staff of WHYY-FM in Philadelphia as producer and host of
Fresh Air, then a local, daily interview and music program. In 1985,
WHYY-FM launched a weekly half-hour edition of Fresh Air with Terry
Gross, which was distributed nationally by National Public Radio
(NPR). Since 1987, a daily, one-hour national edition of Fresh Air has
been produced by WHYY-FM; it now airs on 160 stations. Two compilation
tapes of Fresh Air are available in the NPR Shop.
In addition to her work on Fresh Air, Gross has served as guest host
for the weekday and weekend editions of NPR's All Things Considered.
Her appearances include a spot as co-anchor of the PBS show, The Great
Comet Crash, produced by WHYY-TV, a short series of interviews for
WGBH-TV/Boston, and an appearance as guest-host for CBS Nightwatch.
Terry Gross has received a number of awards, including the prestigious
Peabody Award in 1994 for its "probing questions, revelatory
interviews and unusual insight." In 1987, the program received the
Ohio State Award. In 1981, it won the Corporation for Public
Broadcasting Award for "Best Live Radio Program." |
