Rhaina Cohen
Rhaina Cohen is a producer and editor for Embedded, NPR's home for documentary storytelling. She's developed, produced, and edited acclaimed narrative podcast series on a wide range of issues, from abortion access to the aftermath of gun violence.
She was previously a producer and editor for the seasonal narrative shows Invisibilia, Rough Translation, and Louder Than A Riot. For years, she covered the social sciences as a producer for Hidden Brain. Cohen joined NPR as an intern for Planet Money.
She's also the author of the national bestseller, The Other Significant Others: Reimagining Life with Friendship at the Center. In 2024, Cohen gave a TED talk about the overlooked potential of friendship. She's written about the topic for The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and TIME.
Cohen's work has been honored by numerous awards, including a National Headliner Award and an Edward R. Murrow Award, and she's received grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities Public Scholars Program and The Greater Good Science Center. Cohen was a Marshall Scholar at the University of Oxford, where she earned a master's in comparative social policy. She holds a bachelor's degree in American Studies from Northwestern University.
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Buying a home is a conventional milestone for couples. But as home prices skyrocket, many Americans are buying homes with someone who isn't their romantic partner. -
Thousands of years ago, there was a ceremony to bind close friends together as sworn siblings. Could the practice be resurrected today to strengthen modern friendships? Two women did just that. -
In the latest story in the NPR's series The Science of Siblings, we hear about a practice that dates back to ancient times that allows people to turn a friend into a sibling.
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The demand for "proper" English can be used to shut people out of spaces and opportunities. The folks at NPR's "Rough Translation" podcast have a story to tell. -
After the shooting at the Capital Gazette newspaper, the surviving staff resolve to rebuild their paper. -
Judy, Lyn and Donna Ulrich were driving to a volleyball game when their Ford Pinto was hit from behind by a Chevy van. The Pinto caught fire, and the three teenagers were burned to death. This week on Hidden Brain, we talk to a former Ford insider who could have voted to recall the Pinto years before the Ulrich girls were killed — but didn't. And we ask, is it possible to fairly evaluate our past actions when we know how things turned out? -
If you've ever flown in economy class on a plane, you probably had to walk through the first class cabin to get to your seat. Maybe you noticed the extra leg room. The freshly-poured champagne. Maybe you were annoyed, or envious. Social psychologist Keith Payne says we tend to compare ourselves with those who have more than us, but rarely with those who have less. This week, we revisit our 2019 episode on the psychology of income inequality, and how perceptions of our own wealth shape our lives. -
Some challenges feel insurmountable. But psychologist Emily Balcetis says the solutions are often right in front of our eyes. This week, as part of our annual series on personal growth and reinvention, Emily explains how we can harness our sight to affect our behavior. -
Not long after his sixteenth birthday, Fred Clay was arrested for the murder of a cab driver in Boston. Eventually, Fred was found guilty — but only after police and prosecutors used questionable psychological techniques to single him out as the killer. This week on Hidden Brain, we go back four decades to uncover the harm that arises when flawed ideas from psychology are used to determine that a teenager should spend the rest of his life behind bars. -
In the past few weeks, the nation has been gripped by protests against police brutality toward black and brown Americans. The enormous number of demonstrators may be new, but the biases they're protesting are not. In 2017, we looked at research on an alleged form of bias in the justice system. This week, we revisit that story, and explore how public perceptions of rap music may have played a role in the prosecution of a man named Olutosin Oduwole.
