I should be packing for my return to the East Coast. So instead I will assemble a list of my favorite podcasts.
I came late to the
podcast train. Before 2016, I
hardly knew what podcasts were, let alone how to get them onto my phone. (What is internet?) I heard people talk about programs like
This American Life, but I just figured I would never know how to listen to
them. I liken it to how I felt not
getting the Disney channel as a kid.
I’d hear the other kids talk about the shows and Disney channel original
movies, but knew these things would never be part of my life. I could only pretend to also have a
crush on the Famous Jett Jackson.
I would never truly know him.
Earlier this year,
however, I discovered the “Podcast” app on my phone and that subscribing to
podcasts is free. Who knew?
Now I don’t know how to get through a workday without my podcasts. And Will doesn’t know how to get me to
shut up about them. So without
further ado, the Blob’s Favorite Podcasts of 2016.
They don’t know it, but
Nate Silver, Clare Malone, Harry Enten, and Jody Avirgan are my best
friends. If only they knew
me. Clare is my soul sister
(practically the same name, Catholic, went to Georgetown, one of four girls)
and Harry is my nerd crush. When I
first heard his voice, I thought he was a 60-year-old Jewish man, but it turns
out he is a very handsome my-age Jewish man. I proposed marriage to him via Twitter when Will and I went
to a live taping of the podcast in San Francisco, but he never answered. I still hold out hope.
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| Nate, Clare, <3 Harry <3, Jody. |
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| Happy nerds. |
Nate and the gang offer
sane, data-based election/politics analysis, with a healthy mix of nerd
humor. I wish more people would
listen to them. They are
thoughtful, fair, and…balanced (!).
Lillian Cunningham of
the Washington Post aired an episode about each president every week leading up
to the election. It was a good
substitute for my presidential biography reading (on which I made zero progress
this year). This easily could have
been a gimmicky podcast about president trivia (did you know Taft was a
fatty? Did you know John Quincy
Adams went skinny-dipping in the Potomac?), but instead, Lillian explored
substantial themes every week (Abraham Lincoln’s love of writing and language,
how William McKinley revolutionized the presidential campaign, etc). I learned a lot and was also
entertained (see William Henry Harrison campaign song). I especially appreciated her treatment
of the more recent presidents—she examined each with an open mind, without
resorting to popular opinions and stereotypes. This podcast is just another reason to support and subscribe
to the Washington Post. Gotta make
an extra effort to support the First Amendment under the reign of
He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.
I catch myself doing the
same shoulder bob I do during the Soprano’s theme song.
The people behind
Stranglers have reopened the investigation of the Boston Strangler(s). It’s both a fascinating and deeply
disturbing listen. Not for the
faint of heart. Also not
recommended for listening right before you leave work and walk home alone…in
the dark.
The guys on Longform
interview writers and editors from all different kinds of publications. Often brings on daydreams of a career
as a freelance writer…
If you are looking for
some deep cut analysis of the NBA with bonus Seinfeld references, look no
further than the NBA Squeeze. I do not regularly watch the NBA, so I must admit
a lot of the analysis of specific teams and players gets by me. However, I particularly enjoy when Ryan
and Joe get into the mechanics of the game. Is the charge an appropriate call for the NBA? Shouldn’t more guards be grabbing
rebounds, while the bigs do all the boxing out work? Why do we crave high fives at the foul line? Have high fives gotten out of hand
(pardon the pun)? All important
questions. Thank you, Ryan and
Joe, for bringing them to light.
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My full list of podcasts
is below (with assorted brief commentaries). Favorites in bold. I am always open to suggestions.
The Nerdist: my very first
podcast.
Coffee Break Spanish: a
very Scottish guy does this podcast but his Spanish is pretty good to my ear…
BBC Documentary: great
except their episodes on America usually drip with condescension.
New Yorker Fiction
Undisclosed
Lore: just wish Aaron
Mahnke would stop saying “you see” every third sentence.
Serial
TEDTalks: I have to be
in the mood for TED talks.
Presidential
Makers
BackStory with the
American History Guys: love these dudes.
FiveThirtyEight
Elections
This American Life
Radiolab
Planet Money
New Yorker: The Writer’s
Voice
Song Exploder
Embedded
KCRW’s The Organist
Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me
Freakonomics
Criminal
The Moth
99% Invisible: Is this the voice Roman Mars uses in his daily life?
Here’s the Thing with
Alec Baldwin: Alec Baldwin is an arrogant windbag, but he interviews
interesting people.
Death, Sex & Money
What’s the Point
Longform
Dan Snow’s HISTORY HIT:
love this British nerd. Great history
podcast—his World War I stuff is very good.
More Perfect
Revisionist History
With Her: :____(
On Being with Krista
Tippet: very zen.
NBA Squeeze
Looped In: Houston real
estate podcast. Gotta stay in the
loop ;) ;) ;)
Stanglers
Colonial Williamsburg
History: only episode I listened to was an interview with “George Washington”. Not great.
Keepin’ It 1600
NPR Politics
Breakdown: Intriguing
and incredibly depressing. Don’t
leave your kids in a hot car.
Decoding Westworld
Art Detective
The West Wing Weekly
