# Best Names in Public Radio **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 9, 2012, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512 "2012-11-09T19:43:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![The\_Universe\_Lashes\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8797f3/32.png) [@The\_Universe\_Lashes\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Universe_Lashes_Out)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/1 "2012-11-09T19:43:56Z")
I’m pretty sure it’s a requirement to have a cool-sounding name if you want to get a job as a reporter for NPR, PRI, or APM. It was pretty tough to make a list of my ten favorite, but I did anyway: 1. Mara Liasson 2. Barbara Bradley Hagerty 3. Andrei Codrescu 4. Yuki Nogichi 5. Renee Montagne 6. David Folkenflik 7. Kai Ryssdal 8. Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson 9. Lourdes Garcia-Navarro And the winner and still champion for the eighth year in a row: 1. Lakshmi Singh ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/2 "2012-11-09T19:46:05Z")
Tsk! How could you neglect [Ofeibea Quist-Arcton](http://ayearindakar.blogspot.com/2012/01/ofeibea-quist-arcton-npr-african.html) from “Dakarrr!” ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/3 "2012-11-09T19:48:19Z")
Recently discussed in [this thread over in Cafe Society](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=665984). You missed a few 😉 I like **Sylvia Poggioli** , **Ofeibea Quist-Arcton** , and, per SDMB’er \*\*Crotalus \*\*in the other thread, “ **Doualy Xaykaothao** , pronounced dwa lee sy ky tao” ---
**Author:** ![Laggard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de053/32.png) [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/4 "2012-11-09T19:48:23Z")
Flora Licthman Good list. I couldn’t even come close to spelling Ofeibea Quist-Arcton and Doualy Xaykaothao correctly. ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/5 "2012-11-09T20:15:16Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > I like **Sylvia Poggioli** , **Ofeibea Quist-Arcton** , and, per SDMB’er \*\*Crotalus \*\*in the other thread, “ **Doualy Xaykaothao** , pronounced dwa lee sy ky tao” Sylvia’s appeal is entirely in how she says it. From any other throat, it would be dull and lifeless. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/6 "2012-11-09T20:35:52Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > Sylvia’s appeal is entirely in how she says it. From any other throat, it would be dull and lifeless. True. Kinda like dealing with the name Ralph Fiennes, if it wasn’t all “Rafe” and stuff…😉 Interesting tidbit: There is a new newsreader on NPR who’s name is \*\*Windsor \*\ ***Johnston**. Between the WASPy name and her vocal tone and reading style, it was not hard to think “wow, she sounds youngish - is she some sort of Fox news hottie that NPR has brought in?” I looked her up - she _is_ very attractive - [see photo](http://wrti.org/post/windsor-johnston-moves)accompanying article announcing her move to NPR, but a brunette, not a blonde. She looks about 19 in that photo, but apparently she is in her early 30’s…but the big news is that she is engaged (or perhaps married by now) to **NPR’s longtime Morning Edition host, Bob Edwards**. I enjoyed him and felt bad when NPR asked him to move on. But the dude is like 64 - go Bob! ---
**Author:** ![Arrendajo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Arrendajo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrendajo)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/7 "2012-11-09T20:37:33Z")
Lakshmi Singh is tops, followed by Yuki Noguchi. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/8 "2012-11-09T20:39:29Z")
Cloudy O’Sanchez. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/9 "2012-11-09T20:59:08Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > …but the big news is that she is engaged (or perhaps married by now) to **NPR’s longtime Morning Edition host, Bob Edwards**. I enjoyed him and felt bad when NPR asked him to move on. But the dude is like 64 - go Bob! [His head is like the size of her whole body](http://www.zimbio.com/photos/Windsor+Johnston/2012+AFTRA+Media+Entertainment+Excellence/Ozsxia6q8XQ)! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/10 "2012-11-09T20:59:22Z")
Moving this thread over to Cafe too, from IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/11 "2012-11-09T21:01:21Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > [His head is like the size of her whole body](http://www.zimbio.com/photos/Windsor+Johnston/2012+AFTRA+Media+Entertainment+Excellence/Ozsxia6q8XQ)! :eek: [Similarly illustrative](http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/phillygossip/120660894.html) ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/12 "2012-11-09T21:07:10Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > [Similarly illustrative](http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/phillygossip/120660894.html) Blurgh. That is disgusting. Hey, old man, leave that girl alone! ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/13 "2012-11-09T21:09:43Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Recently discussed in [this thread over in Cafe Society](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=665984). > > You missed a few 😉 > > I like **Sylvia Poggioli** , **Ofeibea Quist-Arcton** , and, per SDMB’er \*\*Crotalus \*\*in the other thread, “ **Doualy Xaykaothao** , pronounced dwa lee sy ky tao” I’ll be damned, so that’s how you spell Doualy’s name - never would have guessed it correctly! I was just listening to The World, and I like the flow of **Marco Werman** ’s name. (Still, Lakshmi is who I thought of immediately when opening the thread.) ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/14 "2012-11-09T21:17:30Z")
> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > I was just listening to The World, and I like the flow of **Marco Werman** ’s name. (Still, Lakshmi is who I thought of immediately when opening the thread.) Curiously, I’m pretty certain Lakshmi is a fairly common Indian feminine name, and Singh is damn near the Indian “Smith.” But we love Lakshmi Singh all the same. ---
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/15 "2012-11-09T21:26:51Z")
> [@Arrendajo](#): > > Lakshmi Singh is tops, followed by Yuki Noguchi. Her name is Yuki? I always hear it as “Yukino Gucci.” I have that same problem with Jo-Ansil Burner. Neda Ullaby sounds like homeopathic remedy. ---
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/16 "2012-11-09T21:27:27Z")
> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > I was just listening to The World, and I like the flow of **Marco Werman** ’s name. (Still, Lakshmi is who I thought of immediately when opening the thread.) Don’t you mear Mark O’Worman? 😉 (and, btw, over in the thread **Wordman** linked to, I think I’m the only one who voted for Lakshmi) ---
**Author:** ![inedible\_knapsack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/49beb7/32.png) [@inedible\_knapsack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/inedible_knapsack)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/17 "2012-11-09T21:33:10Z")
Every time I hear Lourdes Garcia-Navarro or Yuki Noguchi on the radio, I end up saying their names over and over in my head for the rest of the day. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/18 "2012-11-09T22:20:39Z")
Some of those names are dead common in their native languages. Yuki Noguchi is about as exciting as Jane Smith. And as I mentioned in the other thread, “Doualy Xaykaothao, pronounced dwa lee sy ky tao” is not correct; it’s pronounced. “dwa ha lee sai kow tow”. The ones I like to hear pronounced the most are the multi-syllabic ones that either sound cross-cultural, like Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson, or aristocratic, like Barbara Bradley Hagerty. Roddy ---
**Author:** ![phxjcc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8491ac/32.png) [@phxjcc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phxjcc)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/19 "2012-11-09T23:16:33Z")
> [@Erdosain](#): > > I have that same problem with Jo-Ansil Burner. Winner. Best laugh that I have had today. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2012, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512/20 "2012-11-09T23:25:44Z")
> [@Labdad](#): > > Don’t you mear Mark O’Worman? 😉 I had him figured as Marko Wurman. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-names-in-public-radio/640512.md?page=2)