Lori Lizarraga Joins NPR's "Code Switch" As New Co-Host

Code Switch, which features conversations about the role that race and identity play in society and culture, feels like the perfect fit for Lizarraga, who recently shared with MediaVillage her thoughts about the podcast's audience and the increased importance of authenticity in all forms of media and entertainment. "I'm eager in this new role with Code Switch and NPR to hear the ways that they're talking about closing that divide," she said. "There's a disconnect to getting it 100% right, but there's a market for it."

At the start of her career, Lizarraga considered herself "a Swiss Army knife of reporting," she recalled. "For the first two years of my career in Bakersfield, I covered everything: homicide, fires, natural disasters. I was anchoring and producing. Doing a little bit of everything meant that I was fluent in a lot of different [subjects]. I looked for my beat in those first two years and really took pride in myself for being so versatile. Then, once I found a beat, I couldn't stop caring to do just that."

For Lizarraga, everything changed as a result of two major shifts in our society. The first was the COVID-19 pandemic, during which she saw which communities were being impacted the most, and how they received the least amount of resources and attention. Then came the death of George Floyd, which further fueled the fight for social justice.

"I saw how those two major issues impacted all of our lives in some way, and there were [very] few journalists of color in the newsroom I was in at the time who knew how to tell those stories in authentic, genuine and effective ways," she explained. "I started advocating for the language we used, where we were putting stories in the rundown, who the voices were on the stories, things as simple as using the word 'protest' instead of 'riot.' These aren't things that a newsroom may try to get right, but that can really shape the narrative in a big way."

Lizarraga joins current Code Switch co-hosts Gene Demby and B.A. Parker and senior correspondent Karen Grigsby Bates, all of whom are journalists of color, on the weekly podcast "that tackles the topic of race with empathy and humor," as described by NPR. The show has been so well received that it was named Apple Podcasts' first-ever Show of the Year in 2020.

As a Latina and first-generation American, Lizarraga explained that she is most excited to share her multicultural upbringing and perspective with Code Switch listeners, noting that being surrounded by different cultures encourages her to continue to learn more and grow. "None of us is a monolith, so there is no 'traditional' perspective anymore," she asserted. "I feel like the fact that my identities cross and intersect with each other and that of other people in dozens of ways is a really good thing.

"I hope that Code Switch starts to hold space for more conversations about the intersectionalites of identity that seem strange but are really just people being complicated and not one-dimensional," she concluded. "The show doesn't pretend to leave you with solutions or answer your questions. I think sometimes it leaves you with even more questions. It's a space for people who are curious. They may even be challenged and walk away realizing they have been wrong or educated in a way they didn't expect."

Photo at top Lori Lizarraga / JerSean Golatt

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