“Hello, hello,” exclaims Aaron L. Fogelson ’19 as he opens the door to the WHRB headquarters. Sporting a multicolored button-down, circular glasses, and a carefully coiffed ’do, Fogelson emanates charm, charisma, and just a little bit of funk.
Reclining in the studio where he records his popular “Dogg House Report,” Fogelson asks if the music coursing through the studio is “sett[ing] the right mood.” His speech is characterized by elongated vowels and comic over-pronunciation, idiosyncrasies which have become the foundation of the radio host’s popularity.
Prior to Harvard, Fogelson had little experience with broadcast journalism. Though he tried to start a podcast in high school, he describes the result as “horrible.” Just over two years later (during which he traveled, couchsurfed, and studied), Fogelson regularly rubs elbows with famous figures from Steve Aoki to Alan Dershowitz through his work for WHRB.
The Dogg House Report essentially consists of Fogelson goofing around with his guests for 30 minutes. Through dog puns, ridiculous games, and segments that combine the two (he challenged Dean of the College Rakesh Khurana to a game of “Woof Admissions”), Fogelson approaches broadcast journalism in a distinctly collegiate style.
Though Fogelson’s first Dogg House interview was in early October of his freshman year, his big break came after interviewing Dean of Freshman Thomas A. Dingman ’67 (or “Tommy Dingman Fresh” as Fogelson refers to him). Fogelson calls that interview “the first product that I had created that was good and unique.”
“What I’m going for is a college version of an interview. I want to get on their level,” Fogelson says. “In the end the point is just to try to understand the person beyond the answer. The purpose is not what they are saying, but how they are interacting. Overall, it’s a guided hangout.”
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More recently, Fogelson has left the Dogg House to “hang out” with musicians.
Fogelson conducts these interviews on location. Once, he waited 45 minutes in the pouring rain at Chicago’s Lollapalooza to interview hip-hop artist D.R.A.M.
Fogelson has eaten chicken with the indie rock band Beach Fossils, talked about the Israel-Palestine conflict with DJ Borgore, witnessed singer-songwriter BØRNS eat ice cream off a ring pop, been caked by DJ Steve Aoki and smoked “undisclosed drugs” with D.R.A.M.
Fogelson employs his characteristically eccentric techniques in these off-site interviews, bringing props, food, and his trademark voice to every interview.
“We bring gifts. We make it fun. We have props. I come usually dress[ed] in something weird, and I act like an idiot for the first two minutes to make them more comfortable,” Fogelson explains.
Though Fogelson has interviews scheduled with Rae Sremmurd, Sammy Adams, and many others, he anticipates “slowly quitting or slowing down” soon. Instead of interviews, he hopes to cover musical events in a program modeled on in the vein of NPR’s “Tiny Desk Concert” series.
