It was produced by
KPBS-FM in San Diego from 1998 to 2007 and has since then been produced by Wayword, Inc. The show was originally hosted by authors
Richard Lederer and
Charles Harrington Elster. After five and a half years, Elster left the show and was replaced by journalist and writer
Martha Barnette. In October 2006, Lederer announced his retirement from the show. He was replaced by writer and lexicographer
Grant Barrett in January 2007. On August 2, 2007, KPBS-FM announced it would stop production of
A Way with Words, saying it did not have enough experience or manpower to distribute a weekly program across
North America. In September 2007, Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett, co-hosts of
A Way with Words, along with the show's producer Stefanie Levine, announced the creation of Wayword, Inc., an independent production company that would continue series production. Wayword began to distribute the program with the November 24/25, 2007 episode. Its distribution has since increased across the nation under this arrangement, from a quarter-million listens each week to half a million. As of August 16, 2023, the show has produced 1,621 episodes. ==References==