One year ago, when the world wasn\u2019t as broken, many of us made the trip to our local theater to watch a loosely based \u2018biopic\u2019 of the relationship between Mr. Rogers and Lloyd Vogel. This fictionalized look into the real-world story about how Fred Rogers impacted the life of journalist Tom Junod took us behind the \u2018neighborhood\u2019 of our childhood and into the fuller life representation of the man on local PBS nationwide who taught us how to care.<\/span><\/p>\n

Mr. Rogers\u2019 Neighborhood<\/span><\/i> was one of the defining TV shows of any child growing up between 1968 and 2001. Those same stories live on today through the PBS animated spinoff \u2018<\/span>Daniel Tiger<\/span><\/i>\u2019<\/span>s Neighborhood<\/span><\/i> and continue to impact children around the world.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

While Mr. Rogers left the airwaves in 2001, his message and example seem even more relevant today.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why is it that we are still drawn to him? Why is it that a dated show feels so strangely relevant all these years later?\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Recently, I stumbled upon a podcast called <\/span>Finding Fred. <\/span><\/i>Hosted<\/span> by Carvell Wallace and presented by iHeartRadio and Fatherly, it explores the complex message\u2014and the man who created the core \u2018DNA\u2019\u2014of the show. This 10-part series is<\/span> less of an exploration of the man and more of <\/span>an unwrapping of the thinking behind the show that has in some ways become radical, spiritual, and revolutionary in today\u2019s world.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Because of COVID-19, politics, and social dissidence in our culture today, it seems the loudest voice is the only one that matters. Yet Mr. Rogers is the complete opposite of the bombastic rhetoric that overarches modern conversation. The quietness and meekness of the man that may seem out of touch and lacking relevance today might be the very thing we need more of now.<\/span><\/p>\n

Finding Fred<\/span><\/i> asks a simple question: Does Mr. Rogers matter today? While it\u2019s easy to imagine how it could quickly become a nostalgic \u2018fluff show\u2019 that endeavors to make us all feel comfortable, host Carvell Wallace doesn\u2019t cheapen it by taking that feel-good easy out. Instead, the show investigates and discovers the unique depth that Rogers brings through the exploration of race, community, faith, love, loss, death, make-believe, violence, oppression, genocide, and war. These topics are relevant no matter the decade, but seem significantly more important in our current times. Each episode weaves interviews, clips, and discussion of the topics Mr. Rogers boldly explored when other children\u2019s shows ignored them.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Host Carvell Wallace<\/b><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

To explore the complexity that was Mr. Rogers, you need a host who can dive deep into the research while being able to craft a captivating story shared through the audio medium. It seems easy; however, many shows fall apart either by shallow preparation that fictionalizes the conversation or by the host\u2019s inability to explain solid research. Carvell does a masterful straddling of both to craft the perfect balance.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We would expect nothing less from a <\/span>New York Times<\/span><\/i> bestselling author who has contributed to <\/span>Slate<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>Esquire<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>GQ<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>New Yorker<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>Pitchfork<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>ESPN The Magazine<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>The Guardian<\/span><\/i>, and <\/span>MTV News<\/span><\/i>. Throughout the podcast, Carvell exhibits an impressive depth of knowledge and understanding as he interviews psychologists, spiritual leaders, and people who worked and lived alongside Fred Rogers.<\/span><\/p>\n

Reminding Us of Our Humanity<\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As I listened to each episode of the podcast, one thought kept emerging in my mind:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We need a restoration\u2014a reset\u2014of our humanity in this post-election world as we still grapple with the fallout from Covid-19. We need to find the humanity that was defined by each message that Fred Rogers provided us when he entered our house via television.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Do Fred Rogers and his show still matter today? I believe <\/span>Finding Fred<\/span><\/i> answers that question with an unmistakable \u201cyes.\u201d But it also leaves us with some new questions\u2026\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What will you do to find empathy again? How will you respond to Fred\u2019s timeless messages in your own life?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Fred once said, “<\/span>When I was a boy, and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me,<\/span><\/i> \u2018Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.\u2019<\/span>\u2019\u2019 <\/span><\/i>
\n<\/span><\/i>Maybe the best question we can ask today is, will you be the helper the world needs today? Will you choose to live a life that sings, <\/span>‘I like you just the way you are?\u2019<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

December 2020 Issue<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One year ago, when the world wasn\u2019t as broken, many of us made the trip to our local theater to watch a loosely based \u2018biopic\u2019 of the relationship between Mr. Rogers and Lloyd Vogel. This fictionalized look into the real-world story about how Fred Rogers impacted the life of journalist Tom Junod took us behind the \u2018neighborhood\u2019 of our childhood and into the fuller life representation of the man on local PBS nationwide who taught us how to care. Mr. Rogers\u2019 Neighborhood was one of the defining TV shows of any child growing up between 1968 and 2001. Those same<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":10760,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[1369,1365,1364,1368,1366,1367,894],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n