Margot Adler
Margot Susanna Adler (April 16, 1946 – July 28, 2014) was an American author, journalist, lecturer, Wiccan priestess, and New York correspondent for National Public Radio (NPR). Early life. Born in Little Rock, Arkansas, Adler grew up mostly in New York City. She attended The High School of Music & Art (later joined with LaGuardia High School) in New York City. Her grandfather, Alfred Adler, was a noted Austrian Jewish psychotherapist, collaborator with Sigmund Freud and the founder of the school of individual psychology. Education. Adler received a bachelor of arts in political science from the University of California, Berkeley  and a master's degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in New York in 1970. She was a Nieman Fellow at Harvard University in 1982. Journalism and radio. During the mid-1960s, Adler worked as a volunteer reporter for KPFA-FM, the Pacifica Radio station in Berkeley, California. After returning to New York City, she worked at its sister station, WBAI-FM, where, in 1972, she created the talk show "Hour of the Wolf" (still on the air as hosted by Jim Freund), and later another talk show, called "Unstuck in Time". Adler joined NPR in 1979 as  a general assignment reporter, after spending a year as an NPR freelance reporter covering New York City, and subsequently worked on a great many pieces dealing with subjects as diverse as the death penalty, the right to die movement, the response to the war in Kosovo, computer gaming, the drug ecstasy, geek culture, children and technology and Pokémon. After 9/11, she focused much of her work on stories exploring the human factors in New York City, from the loss of loved ones, homes and jobs, to work in the relief effort. She was the host of "Justice Talking" up until  the show ceased production on July 3, 2008. She was a regular voice on "Morning Edition" and "All Things Considered". She was also co-producer of an award-winning radio drama, "War Day". Neopaganism. Adler wrote "Drawing Down the Moon", a 1979 book about Neopaganism which was revised in 2006. The book is considered by some a watershed in American Neopagan circles, as it provided the first comprehensive look at modern nature-based religions in the US. For many years it was the only introductory work about American Neopagan communities. Her second book, "Heretic's Heart: A Journey Through Spirit  and Revolution", was published by Beacon Press in 1997. Adler was a Wiccan priestess, an elder in the Covenant of the Goddess, and she also participated in the Unitarian Universalist faith community. Death. In early 2011, Adler was diagnosed with endometrial cancer, which metastasized over the following three years. Adler died on July 28, 2014 at the age of 68. She remained virtually symptom-free until mid-2014. Adler was cared for in her final months by her son.