Happy 40th To 'All Things Considered'

Turning 40 is a good thing when it's a news program you're talking about. It's a sure sign you must be doing a lot of things right.

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Today, All Things Considered hits that mark.

As NPR's Susan Stamberg says of the show, which she co-hosted for 14 years in the '70s and '80s, "when we started, there was war in Vietnam, demonstrations against that war, the voting age was lowered to 18, the Beatles had broken up and in the air — as well as on our air in the early '70s — a sweetly notable absence of irony."

She celebrates the show's milestone with a look back at past All Things Considered anniversary reports. We'll add her report, which airs on the show today, to the top of this post later.

Also on the show today, you'll hear from hosts past and present throughout the program. We've stitched together their remarks:

ATC hosts Listen

Meanwhile, for those interested in what the show sounded like on May 3, 1971, we've got some clips.

The original theme:

Theme music and introduction Listen

The way original host Robert Conley introduced the show:

The first show's line-up Listen

Conley's 4-plus minute talk about the anti-war protests that day in Washington:

Robert Conley on the day's big story Listen

Some of the "sounds of the streets" that the show broadcast:

The sounds of the streets Listen

And, that show's first 30 minutes: