W. Kamau Bell opens the interview with Sara Sidner by giving her flowers and praising her long record of reporting from conflict zones.

 

Sidner explains her attraction to covering conflict despite disliking it, seeing it as a way to witness honesty and possibly help resolution, a dynamic she connects to her family background. She describes being mixed race, the “quintessential person to hate” for white supremacists, and her commitment to showing her humanity even to those who hate her, insisting she does not truly hate anyone.

 

The conversation turns to their shared experience as only children and Sidner’s deeply “country” childhood in North Florida: no shoes, many animals, and even picking up snakes, followed by a move to Miami Lakes and a more urban life. Her British mother from rural England ensured she knew her Black family and culture, giving her “double country” roots and vivid Southern Black church and music memories like “Great Balls of Fire.”

 

She recounts early poverty in Florida with no electricity, running water, or TV, pumping well water and entertaining herself outdoors, which later made television mesmerizing and helped spark her interest in journalism through shows like 60 Minutes and 20/20.

 

She describes how traumatic stories and war coverage live in her body, from George Floyd’s murder to bombed children in hospitals, and argues that external conflicts stem from unresolved inner conflicts and ego.

 

Sidner insists on being “human being first, journalist second,” willing to intervene in emergencies even if it “kills the story,” and says if she ever loses her humanity she must leave the profession.

 

Sara discusses publicly sharing her breast cancer diagnosis, the unexpected community of survivors it created, and her current “cancer‑free” status, while highlighting the Breast Cancer Research Fund’s work, especially on aggressive cancers and the 40% higher mortality risk for Black women.

 

Donate to the Breast Cancer Research Fund at give.bcrf.org

 

Chapters:

00:00:00 Conflict, Humanity, and War Coverage

00:10:04 Florida, Miami, and Multiple Lives

00:20:23 Education, Privilege, and Mom’s Work

00:32:03 Big J Journalism School, Low Pay, and Ethics

00:42:30 Human First, George Floyd, and Refusing to Lose Humanity

00:52:14 Cancer Journey

 

Who's With Me is produced by Rabbit Grin Productions. Music by Chris Dowd. Distributed by Pushkin Industries. 

W. Kamau Bell opens the interview with Sara Sidner by giving her flowers and praising her long record of reporting from conflict zones.
&nbsp;
Sidner explains her attraction to covering conflict despite disliking it, seeing it as a way to witness honesty and possibly help resolution, a dynamic she connects to her family background. She describes being mixed race, the &ldquo;quintessential person to hate&rdquo; for white supremacists, and her commitment to showing her humanity even to those who hate her, insisting she does not truly hate anyone.
&nbsp;
The conversation turns to their shared experience as only children and Sidner&rsquo;s deeply &ldquo;country&rdquo; childhood in North Florida: no shoes, many animals, and even picking up snakes, followed by a move to Miami Lakes and a more urban life. Her British mother from rural England ensured she knew her Black family and culture, giving her &ldquo;double country&rdquo; roots and vivid Southern Black church and music memories like &ldquo;Great Balls of Fire.&rdquo;
&nbsp;
She recounts early poverty in Florida with no electricity, running water, or TV, pumping well water and entertaining herself outdoors, which later made television mesmerizing and helped spark her interest in journalism through shows like 60 Minutes and 20/20.
&nbsp;
She describes how traumatic stories and war coverage live in her body, from George Floyd&rsquo;s murder to bombed children in hospitals, and argues that external conflicts stem from unresolved inner conflicts and ego.
&nbsp;
Sidner insists on being &ldquo;human being first, journalist second,&rdquo; willing to intervene in emergencies even if it &ldquo;kills the story,&rdquo; and says if she ever loses her humanity she must leave the profession.
&nbsp;
Sara discusses publicly sharing her breast cancer diagnosis, the unexpected community of survivors it created, and her current &ldquo;cancer‑free&rdquo; status, while highlighting the Breast Cancer Research Fund&rsquo;s work, especially on aggressive cancers and the 40% higher mortality risk for Black women.
&nbsp;
Donate to the Breast Cancer Research Fund at <a href="http://give.bcrf.org">give.bcrf.org</a>
&nbsp;
Chapters:
00:00:00 Conflict, Humanity, and War Coverage
00:10:04 Florida, Miami, and Multiple Lives
00:20:23 Education, Privilege, and Mom&rsquo;s Work
00:32:03 Big J Journalism School, Low Pay, and Ethics
00:42:30 Human First, George Floyd, and Refusing to Lose Humanity
00:52:14 Cancer Journey
&nbsp;
Who's With Me is produced by Rabbit Grin Productions. Music by Chris Dowd. Distributed by Pushkin Industries.&nbsp;

Kamau Bell is known for embracing uncomfortable conversations that acknowledge differences, confront embarrassment, and change people’s perspectives. Throughout his career, Kamau has talked with everyone from KKK members to Oprah Winfrey to strangers on the streets. Each time, Kamau fills these conversations with humor, heart, and intellect, showing that a simple conversation can lead to surprising revelations and spark change, one person at a time.

Kamau brings all that and more to his new weekly podcast, Who’s With Me? Inspired by Kamau’s popular Substack newsletter of the same name, Who’s With Me? is more than just a simple question. It is an invitation to connect, a call to action, and a reassuring pat on the shoulder in these increasingly hectic times. 

In every episode, Kamau addresses what has caught his attention in the current cultural or political landscape. He also sits down with someone he admires deeply—a time for Kamau to give them their flowers, ask his most burning questions, and invite his guest to give him and his audience homework on how to make the world a better place. Kamau will talk to celebrities, his fellow comedians, his fellow Oaklanders, activists, and sometimes he will talk to someone like Daveed Diggs, who is all of that in one body. So… who’s with Kamau? New episodes every Wednesday. 

Kamau Bell is known for embracing uncomfortable conversations that acknowledge differences, confront embarrassment, and change people&rsquo;s perspectives. Throughout his career, Kamau has talked with everyone from KKK members to Oprah Winfrey to strangers on the streets. Each time, Kamau fills these conversations with humor, heart, and intellect, showing that a simple conversation can lead to surprising revelations and spark change, one person at a time.
Kamau brings all that and more to his new weekly podcast,&nbsp;Who&rsquo;s With Me? Inspired by Kamau&rsquo;s popular Substack newsletter of the same name, Who&rsquo;s With Me? is more than just a simple question. It is an invitation to connect, a call to action, and a reassuring pat on the shoulder in these increasingly hectic times.&nbsp;
In every episode, Kamau addresses what has caught his attention in the current cultural or political landscape. He also sits down with someone he admires deeply&mdash;a time for Kamau to give them their flowers, ask his most burning questions, and invite his guest to give him and his audience homework on how to make the world a better place. Kamau will talk to celebrities, his fellow comedians, his fellow Oaklanders, activists, and sometimes he will talk to someone like Daveed Diggs, who is all of that in one body. So&hellip; who&rsquo;s with Kamau? New episodes every Wednesday.&nbsp;

Who's with Me? with W. Kamau Bell

Who’s With Me? is more than just a simple question. It is an invitation to connect, a call to action, and a reassuring pat on the shoulder in these increasingly hectic times. Every Wednesday, stand-up comedian W. Kamau Bell sits down with someone he admires deeply to give them their flowers, ask his most burning questions, and invite his guest to give him and his audience homework on how to make the world a better place.

W. Kamau Bell is a Peabody Award winner, 4X Emmy Award winner, documentary filmmaker, Celebrity Jeopardy! champion, Official Ambassador of the band Fishbone, self-proclaimed #1 Bruce Lee Expert (non-Asian division), part-time activist, and full-time family man. Kamau is also known for his CNN docuseries United Shades of America, his four-part docuseries We Need To Talk About Cosby, and for scrawling “HAHA!” over his enemies’ faces on his Instagram account.

Who&rsquo;s With Me? is more than just a simple question. It is an invitation to connect, a call to action, and a reassuring pat on the shoulder in these increasingly hectic times. Every Wednesday, stand-up comedian W. Kamau Bell sits down with someone he admires deeply to give them their flowers, ask his most burning questions, and invite his guest to give him and his audience homework on how to make the world a better place.
W. Kamau Bell is a Peabody Award winner, 4X Emmy Award winner, documentary filmmaker, Celebrity Jeopardy! champion, Official Ambassador of the band Fishbone, self-proclaimed #1 Bruce Lee Expert (non-Asian division), part-time activist, and full-time family man. Kamau is also known for his CNN docuseries United Shades of America, his four-part docuseries We Need To Talk About Cosby, and for scrawling &ldquo;HAHA!&rdquo; over his enemies&rsquo; faces on his Instagram account.

Sara Sidner on Protecting Your Humanity

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/98c915fc-252b-4268-80c4-b4ab0049850c/transcript