1947-2026
‘The power is in storytelling’: Longtime KUNM host Carol Boss dies
Boss’ shows touched on issues ranging from civil rights to the death penalty
Carol Boss is remembered as a radio host whose programs focused on human rights and on people who were rarely given a platform to share their views.
Boss hosted weekly music and public affairs shows on KUNM and Peace Talks Radio, where she interviewed people ranging from high-profile guests like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s oldest daughter, Yolanda King, to young Israeli and Palestinian women advocating for “equality, peace, and justice for all.”
“(Boss) saw her work in radio as a way to connect with people through conversation,” Peace Talks Radio co-founder Paul Ingles said. “She was a great listener as all good interviewers should be. And, you know, she cared about people and she cared about people (who) didn’t often get a voice.”
Boss died of complications from Alzheimer’s disease on Sunday. She was 79.
‘Extremely well prepared’
Boss was born on April 29, 1947, in Far Rockaway in New York. She graduated from Queens College with a degree in education.
Boss was teaching in New York when she decided to take her schnauzer Dusty and move to Albuquerque, her brother, Steve Boss, said.
“She said, ‘Let me get out of here and try something new,’” he said. “And so, she did.”
Boss joined KUNM in the mid-1980s. Over the next few decades, she hosted shows on KUNM’s Women’s Focus and Freeform as well as for Peace Talks Radio.
“I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that she interviewed several thousand New Mexicans along with some national names of note during her probably 8,000 hours on the air,” Ingles said. “I always considered her New Mexico’s Terry Gross of NPR’s ‘Fresh Air’ fame.”
Among the people Boss interviewed on KUNM was Helen Prejean, who talked about her 1993 memoir, “Dead Man Walking: The Eyewitness Account of the Death Penalty that Sparked a National Debate.”
In the intro, Boss told listeners: “You won’t hear me talk much, which is good because I think you’ll find this extraordinary woman riveting and will be hanging on to her every word.”
“It was a lovely interview that I know Carol was really proud of,” Ingles said. “And the thing that stood out about it was Carol was extremely well prepared. She set a tone for the conversation that was completely natural.”
During Boss’ time at Peace Talks Radio — from 2005 to 2015 — she spoke with civil rights activists like King and Dorothy Cotton as well as 1997 Nobel Peace Laureate Jody Williams and 1976 Nobel Peace Prize co-winner Mairead Maguire.
“I think she prized talking to a couple of Noble prize winners,” Ingles said. “Those are just the most relaxed and informative conversations that you could hope to hear.”
In Boss’ decade with Peace Talks Radio, the program won two Paul Ré Peace Prizes, which honors people in the University of New Mexico community whose work focuses on peacemaking, he said.
“One review that I read of our program said that ‘Peace Talks Radio is a powerful, yet very gentle program,’” Boss said in a 2010 acceptance speech. “And I think … the power is in the storytelling. We encourage guests to tell their stories, which are often tender and they’re compelling and listeners tell us they are inspired. And when we humans are moved, we are opening ourselves, as Paul Ré has said in his vision statement, to integrate peace into all of our thoughts and actions and that is a thing of great beauty.”
After leaving Peace Talks Radio, Boss continued with her work on Women's Focus, interviewing guests about top women's issues. In 2022, Boss spoke with women from Tomorrow’s Women, a nonprofit that trains young Israeli and Palestinian women “to partner as leaders to promote equality, peace, and justice for all.”
“I think (that show) was important just because it highlighted her belief in peace and conflict resolution in unique ways and bringing together women to try and solve a conflict,” KUNM Operations Director Steve Emmons said.
Aside from exploring serious issues, Boss also had an afternoon music show where she showcased her eclectic taste.
“She did a real good job of trying to stay current with new and upcoming musicians,” Emmons said. “But she would also play a lot of (the) old standards like Ella Fitzgerald and Aretha Franklin.”
Steve Boss said he remembered hearing an all-kazoo women’s orchestra perform in the studio, which was “pretty amazing.”
In 2024, Carol Boss retired from KUNM.
“This has been an incredible journey,” she said in her final broadcast. “I have had the very genuine experience of being able to tell stories of women whose role in history may otherwise have been lost … I have been able to meet women from Palestine and Israel and tell their stories. This was an unexpected benefit of hosting this show that I will always cherish.”
A public gathering is being planned for October.
Boss is survived by her brother Steven Boss of New York City.
Gregory R.C. Hasman is a general assignment reporter and the Road Warrior. He can be reached at ghasman@abqjournal.com or 505-823-3820.