Death, Sex and Money is an interview-style podcast hosted by Anna Sale that discusses the big questions "often left out of polite conversation."[1][2] The podcast launched in May 2014 and is produced by
WNYC Studios. The podcast features celebrities and experts, as well as guests with little to no name recognition.[3] The podcast covers the topics of finance, grief, love, and relationships.[4][5]
Format
Host Anna Sale describes Death, Sex, and Money saying, "It really came down to having a show that goes right at the things that shape our lives and that we have the most difficulty navigating—that I was having the most difficulty navigating."[6] In addition to stories from guests, the podcast includes stories from Anna Sale's own life, as well as testimonies and voicemails left by the show's listeners.[6]
In deciding which stories to cover, Sale takes into account current events as well listener suggestions and her own beliefs on what might lead to an interesting conversation.[7]
History
While working at WNYC as a political reporter, Anna Sale submitted her idea for the show to an internal contest at WNYC.[8] Sale describes her inspiration for the podcast as "a reaction to the artifice of politics, here you're talking about things without really talking about them specifically, concretely or honestly."[7] Sale's pitch won the contest and Death, Sex and Money launched in 2014 as a 30-minute podcast.
The first episode which aired in 2014 consisted of a conversation with singer Bill Withers about the open-ended topic of how to be a man.[7] Another early episode of the podcast entitled This Senator Saved My Love Life, covered the story of a friendship between Arthur (Sale's then-boyfriend, now-husband) and Wyoming senator Alan Simpson.[7]
On the November 25, 2015, episode of Death, Sex, and Money actress
Holland Taylor opened up about her sexuality saying, "I haven't come out because I am out," adding, "I live out."[10][11][12][13]
On the May 25, 2015, episode of the podcast, actor
Jeff Daniels discussed relapsing at 50 after 14 years of sobriety.[14][15]
In 2018 Death, Sex and Money won a Webby Award for Best Interview/Talk Show[16] and was also nominated for Best Series[17] and Best Individual Episode.[18] The show won a 2021 Ambies award for "Best Interview Podcast".[19]
Sale wrote Let's Talk About Hard Things, which was published in 2021 by
Simon & Schuster. The book is split into five sections: death, sex, money, family, and identity. She conducted a series of new interviews for the book, although she references conversations from the podcast occasionally.[21]
In 2022, Sale appeared on
Storybound (podcast) for a conversation regarding her book and having tough conversations.