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Awards and honors

Where to hear The Infinite Mind

Press Kit (pdf 788K)

Public radio’s most honored and listened to health and science program.

"There are programs like ‘Oprah,’ which chronicle the impact these illnesses have on peoples’ lives, and then there’s Nature Neuroscience, which tells you what’s going on in the brain. But only The Infinite Mind combines the two approaches, clearly explaining the science and the effect these illnesses have on people.” - The Sunday New York Times

The Infinite Mind is an innovative, national, weekly public radio series focusing on the latest in neuroscience, the neurobiology of human behavior, mental illness and wellness.

Each week, the program explores exciting scientific discoveries and cultural phenomena related to our rapidly evolving understanding of the human mind. The show features dynamic discussions with world-leading experts including neuroscientists and clinicians, interviews with celebrities and public figures, special reports, listener calls, first-person accounts by those with mental disorders, author readings, and musical performances.

Through its week-in and week-out coverage of the mind, the show has helped develop a meaningful national dialogue on neuroscience and the mind. The series has one of the most loyal followings in public radio with one million weekly listeners in over 300 markets across the country, including five of the top 10 cities.

The Infinite Mind and other works by LCMedia have received more than 60 major broadcast awards, including: a Guggenheim Fellowship, a United Nations Media Award, a Peabody Award, six National Headliner Awards, eight International Radio Awards, four Gracie Awards, and five Unity Awards in Media for coverage of minority issues. Media awards received from leading mental health organizations include: the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, the National Institute of Mental Health, four awards from the National Mental Health Association, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, the American Psychiatric Association, and the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression.

The series is independently produced and distributed by LCMedia in association with the 501(c)(3) non-profit Fund for Independent Media.

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CREATING A NATIONAL DIALOGUE ON CRITICAL ISSUES

“Every reporter who covers mental health should listen to The Infinite Mind. The program is a model of fine storytelling and it demonstrates how to make highly complex subjects accessible and even gripping. Most important, the show conveys its respect and appreciation for people with mental illness.” - Association of Health Care Journalists

Since its premiere a decade ago, The Infinite Mind has chronicled the dramatic and profound changes in the field of neuroscience, covering the broad array of scientific and social issues related to the mind, mental health, human behavior, and related policy issues. 

Recent programs include: Depression in the Brain, Dyslexia, Asperger’s Syndrome (a two-part special report), ECT, Tourette's Syndrome, Alzheimer’s, Domestic Violence, Bipolar Disorder, Multiple Sclerosis, Mental Health Care for Immigrants, Seasonal Affective Disorder, Alcoholism, Schizoaffective Disorder, Mental Health Care for Latinos, Pregnancy and the Mind, Epilepsy, Gambling, and Mental Health and Primary Care. In the wake of the September 11 th attacks and Hurricane Katrina, the program also extensively covered subjects related to trauma, PTSD, and resilience. Among the topics to be examined in the coming year are Neuroethics and the Law, Childhood Disorders, Brain Trauma and its Prevention and Treatment, Alzheimer’s Revisited, Memory, How Boys and Girls Learn, and New Treatments for Depression.

Many of the world’s most influential scientists and clinicians working in neuroscience and the behavioral sciences have visited The Infinite Mind’s studios, including: Nobel Laureates Dr. Eric Kandel and Dr. David H. Hubel; National Institute of Mental Health Directors Dr. Steven Hyman and Dr. Thomas Insel; Dr. Peter Jensen, Center for the Advancement of Children’s Mental Health, Columbia University; Dr. Ronald Kessler, Harvard University Department of Health Care Policy; Dr. Jerome Singer, professor, Yale University; Dr. Kelly Brownell, director, Yale University Center for Eating and Weight Disorders; writer and neurologist Dr. Oliver Sacks; Dr. David Clark, director of the Center for Suicide Research and Prevention, Rush Presbyterian/St. Luke's Medical Center in Chicago; Dr. Norman Rosenthal, author and professor of psychiatry, Georgetown Medical School; and Dr. Robert Pynoos, National Center for Child Traumatic Stress. 

The series also includes subjects of a broader, more general public interest, including recent shows on Multitasking, Writer’s Block, Hoarding and Clutter, Foods and Moods, Courage, Satisfaction, Genius, Creativity, TV and the Mind, Intelligence, Fame, Animal Companions, Hypnosis, Time, Weather and the Mind, Coincidence, and Moving.

The Infinite Mind has developed a loyal audience that includes a broad cross-section of public radio listeners as well as our unmatched following in the mental health community.  Our diverse programming prevents the show from falling into the trap of special interest programs that “preach to the converted.” To broaden the appeal of the program to a national audience, celebrity guests have included: author John Updike; actors Carrie Fisher, Stanley Tucci, Anthony Edwards, Mercedes Ruehl, Margot Kidder, and David Straithairn; comedians Richard Lewis, Lewis Black, and the Firesign Theater; author William Styron and his wife Rose Styron; baseball batting champion Wade Boggs; former First Lady Rosalynn Carter; filmmaker Ric Burns; TV pioneer Norman Lear; business journalist James Cramer; Tipper Gore; and Children’s Defense Fund founder Marian Wright Edelman. Live performances and discussions with musicians include Aimee Mann, Jessye Norman, Judy Collins, Suzanne Vega, Janis Ian, Laurie Anderson, Loudon Wainwright III, Philip Glass, Emanuel Ax, and the casts of the Broadway hits “Avenue Q” and “Wicked.” This programming approach has helped build a weekly listenership that is far more diverse than a purely mental health show would attract. 

The Infinite Mind reaches well beyond its weekly public radio broadcast. The program is carried on the “NPR Now” channel on Sirius Satellite Radio. During the past year, there has been a dramatic growth in requests for copies of The Infinite Mind programs for use as part of college, high school and elementary school curricula, as resources for educators, journalists, primary care physicians and their patients, policymakers, and mental health and community activists.

The Infinite Mind is independently produced and distributed to local public radio stations across the country, without charge, as opposed to programs produced and distributed by NPR, PRI, and the BBC, which can cost local public radio stations as much as $1,000,000 annually. This means that all public radio stations, including those in the inner city, in rural areas, and on Native American reservations, many of whom can’t afford NPR programming, can bring the latest news about mental health, treatment advances, neuroscience, and the mind to their listeners. Dr. Louis W. Sullivan, Founding President and Dean of the Morehouse School of Medicine and former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, wrote us to say: “As one who has dedicated much of my career to education, including health and science education for the general public, I applaud all that you are doing. I applaud your commitment to providing the show free of charge. This critical decision allows the insight and education that the show provides to reach many stations in underserved communities, who would otherwise not be able to afford such a show.”

Our independence is perhaps our greatest asset. It means we can devote the time and resources necessary to cover stories thoughtfully and in-depth. However, our independence comes at a price. It means we must raise all funds necessary for the production and distribution of The Infinite Mind. We continue to stand alone in public radio in offering comprehensive coverage of these important issues, providing a critical pipeline to engage and educate the public including our one million weekly listeners about these critical issues.

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