Wiretap from CBC Radio

WireTap is a half-hour radio show which airs on CBC Radio One Saturday afternoons at 1:30 pm, and Thursday evenings at 11:30 pm. An hour-long version of WireTap is distributed in the United States by Public Radio International and is heard on multiple public radio stations. Hosted by Jonathan Goldstein, former producer of Public Radio International’s This American Life, the show features stories that are told as if over the phone with Goldstein.

The show fell into what had traditionally been CBC Radio One’s comedy slot on Sunday afternoons, replacing Madly Off in All Directions which moved to a different time slot, though the show itself does not fit easily into the comedy category. It is now part of the hour Saturday afternoon long comedy block with the half hour comdey debate show The Debaters airing at 1 pm. The show has possibly been best described as “a weekly half-hour of conversation, storytelling and introspection, culled from equal parts real-world experience and the warp of Goldstein’s imagination.” Each show tends to follow a particular investigative theme; titles for past shows includes: “Life Lessons”, “Reach for the Top”, “Prized Possessions” and “Our Fathers”.

The series began in the summer of 2004 as a 10-episode experiment, after which it succeeded to its own regular timeslot. It is recorded out of CBC’s Montreal studios.

As of 2008, Wiretap has a weekly listenership of 350 000.