I listened to a couple of (new to me) podcasts in the gym today and thought they were both good:
Boom! Lawyered is from the Rewire News Group, and hosted by Imani Gandy (Angry Black Lady) and Jessica Mason Pieklo. This week’s episode was on the possible PornHub ban. What I’ve always liked about ABL is that she’s a lawyer who understands power politics, lawfare or whatever other term you want to use for the intersection of law and politics. So, she and her co-host examined the vagueness of the Texas law at issue here, and the possibility that it will be used to shield “the children” from things like sex education, as well as from porn.
Greg Sargent’s new-ish podcast is called “The Daily Blast” and his episode interviewing Paul Krugman was good. Since there was some discussion of the Laken Riley bill in the comments, here’s his take on that horrible piece of legislation.
Of course, the Josh Marshall podcast is another must-listen in my book, and the Progress Pondcast with Martin Longman and Brendan Skwire is also a good listen. (That’s a Spotify link for the Pondcast, but it’s available on all the platforms.)
If you have recommendations, please put them in the comments. Also, Kay mentioned that she’s enjoying the content aimed at normie Dems at TikTok and mentioned Hope Walz and Michelle Obama. If you have recommendations for that platform, let’s hear them. I think TikTok is going to be around for at least the weekend, but probably much longer.
(Thanks for Betty for reminding me to post about Rose’s Books of All Time podcast. My wife and I recently listened to the Aesop’s Fables episode which was quite good.)
Pink Tie
Peter Shamshiri, Michael Liroff, and Rhiannon Ham have an excellent podcast called 5-4. https://www.fivefourpod.com
The tagline: “5-4 is a podcast about how much the Supreme Court sucks.” All three hosts are incredibly smart and funny, especially my current podcast crush Peter. He also co-hosts If Books Could Kill with Michael Hobbes, which is not explicitly political but really entertaining.
Betty Cracker
The only political podcast I still listen to with any regularity is Marshall’s. I keep thinking at some point I’ll snap out of it and become interested in news and politics again, but it ain’t happening.
As for non-political podcasts, I’ll put in another plug for our own Rose’s “Books of All Time,” which is fun and accessible and informative.
Mart
Didn’t ABL and Mr. Cole go to the Democratic convention ??? years back? My recollection was there was just a tiny bit of tension between the two…
@mistermix.bsky.social
@Betty Cracker: Ach, forgot about that one, added it to the post. Thanks!
UncleEbeneezer
@Mart: Yes. He complimented her rack and she threatened to punch him in the dick, if I remember correctly
comrade scotts agenda of rage
@UncleEbeneezer:
My biggest gripe with the site is that the search function ain’t great. Thus, it’s really hard to dig up priceless gems like that one from back in the day.
UncleEbeneezer
For kinky people here, there’s a great podcast called Girls On Porn where two sex+ Feminists choose a genre or search term of porn, do a deep dive into the history of it (both the practice in real life and when it became a thing in porn) and actually do a conversation that’s pretty intellectual but also fun. Then they discuss two video examples that they each picked. It’s a surprisingly educational podcast.
UncleEbeneezer
@comrade scotts agenda of rage: Well I think that post might have got lost in the rebuild, a few years ago.
Durkin
The Bulwark has been in my political-commentary podcast rotation since the summer. As a lifelong and committed progressive, I cringe at the conservative slant that sometimes seeps into their conversations, but they are generally smart and thought-provoking. And the critique of Trump and MAGA is robust and seething; sometimes I hear in it the anger of cult survivors.
Sure Lurkalot
I always recommend the Professional Left podcast with Driftglass (blogger) and BlueGal (Crooks & Liars), it is well scripted and delivered. Someone recently recommended the Majority Report with Sam Seder and after one or two episodes, I’m not convinced I’ll continue listening.
The ostensibly non-political Books of All Time and If Books Could Kill (both mentioned above) are both excellent as is Maintenance Phase (another Michael Hobbes effort) and EarHustle, originally about life in San Quentin but so much more.
Finally, Everything is Alive (no new episodes) –you will not believe how much inanimate objects can teach you about being human. May be a good one to bookmark when the troubles start next week.
Gretchen
History Chicks https://thehistorychicks.com
http://professionalleft.blogspot.com Professional left
Bob Cesca https://www.bobcesca.com
I second the recommendation of If Books Could Kill
Betty Cracker
“This American Life” might be too totebaggy for some of y’all, but I often find it amusing. The most recent podcast episode, Try a Little Tenderness, has as act 1 a hilarious skit called “The Big Nap” from the broadway show “All In.” Fred Armisen and others feature in a detective noir with a twist. (The rest of the episode was unremarkable, IMO.)
Baud
@Betty Cracker:
I didn’t know that was possible. :-)
Theron Ware
@Gretchen: I second Bob Cesca. Also Chauncey DeVega, Keith Olbermann, Randi Rhodes, Meidas Touch.
laura
For smartening up-The Professional Left- 15 years of being right about the right being wrong! Ear Hustle- now more than ever because prison labor creates wealth while crushing labor costs. BOOM! Lawyered and Strict Scrutiny because I like my law ladies! The Black Guy who Tips with Rodimus Prime and his wife Karen. The Karen Hunter Show. Maintenance Phase.
And for pure pleasure: You Must Remember This (esp Polly Platt, the invisible woman!), The Fall of Civilizations, Desert Island Discs.
Old School
@UncleEbeneezer:
Not quite correct (but better than I remembered):
UncleEbeneezer
@Old School: I remember an ABL post about threatening to punch Cole in the dick. It cracked me up at the time.
dc
For Spanish speakers, Radio Ambulante: https://radioambulante.org
Susan Einbinder
The Nicole Sandler Show – Fridays with Emptywheel (Marcy Wheeler)
Al Frankin
Lawfare Daily
The John Fugelsang Podcast
The Dig
Daily Kos
Talking Feds
Cleanup on Aisle 45 (not sure they are continuing) and The Daily Beans
Newly renamed Main Justice (used to be Prosecuting Donald Trump)
Sometimes in no particular order: Opening Argument; The Hartman Report (the shows with callers can get really tedious, though he’s got a lot more patience than I do); Pod Save America; Strict Scrutiny; Stay Tuned with Preet
martha
I love Books of All Time, thanks Rose! I honor all of you who can listen to current events/political podcasts. I cannot. So, I’m spending most of my time listening to 1): several history podcasts (The Rest is History—2 British historians, but they cover topics across the ages/ We Have Ways of Making You Talk—2 WWII nuts talk about…WWII); 2) Learn to Paint podcast (the interviewer is so good at talking to artists about how and why they make art); 3) true crime (Scotland Yard Confidential). And the 2 British hosts of The Rest is Entertainment just make me laugh, even if I’ve very little idea about some of the shows /people they’re talking about.
Another Scott
@Mart:
If nobody’s posted it yet…
#AngryBlackLadyCrankyWhiteGuy2012: It Begins
Angry Black Post Convention Write-up (from 2012).
HTH!
Best wishes,
Scott.
hitchhiker
I like to nerd out, and now you’ve been warned. At 99% Invisible, the hosts spent an entire year on a sort of extended book group covering only one book: Robert Caro’s massive 1975 tome about Robert Moses, The Power Broker. They have many guests, including AOC and Pete Buttigieg and Caro himself, and generally it’s just a fascinating way to learn this particular bit of the history of NY & its infrastructure. I’ve been to NY exactly once, for about 8 hours, and they managed to make me care deeply about what Moses did to that city.
Anyway, 99% is a good podcast, and those particular episodes are very worth the trouble of locating and playing them.
EmanG
Not political but I can’t recommend A History of Rock Music in 500 songs by Andrew Hickey strongly enough. A rather droll Englishman doing deep dives into the formation, and most influential songs of, rock music. Impeccably researched and filled with crazy insights and bits of knowledge for the true rock nerd. All the thumbs up.
twbrandt
404 Media has an excellent tech-focused podcast. The journalists who run the 404 Media website do an excellent job. They are not boosters or shills, but bring a skeptical and even jaundiced eye to the industry.
Ed Zitron of Better Offline is also good, but he really needs an editor.
Rose Judson
Thanks for the plug, MM and Betty! Spent part of my day in the Library of Birmingham working on episode 24.
Some podcasts I enjoy include Empire, which starts out as a history of the East India Company (one of the co-hosts, William Dalrymple, has written an excellent series of books on the subject), but has since gone on to look at other empires, including ours.
Ologies is also entertaining and informative, as is Vox’s Unexplainable. (The Child particularly enjoys the latter; she seems to find it comforting to know there are still lots and lots of scientific mysteries out there, such as the reason why mammals yawn.)
Booger
This Podcast Will Kill You
geg6
I’m the podcast queen! I have an extensive library of podcasts I listen to. I’ve either stopped following or only listen to shorts takes from the political podcasts, with the sole exception of the Josh Marshall podcast. Some of the fun ones, if you’re looking for distraction, are You Must Remember This with Katrina Longworth, Talking Pictures with Ben Mankiewicz, The Rest is History with Dominic Sandbrook and Tom Holland, Hit Parade with Chris Molanphy of Slate, You Had to Be There with various hosts and Uncover from the CBC for some excellent true crime reporting.
Noskilz
If you are just looking for something silly in these grim times, Bigfeets is worth checking out. Jason Pargin, Seanbaby and Brockway analyze the Mountain Monsters crew’s fumbling efforts to accidentally discover improv in the course of a comically inept bigfoot hunting show.
The link above is to spotify, but it can be had on most podcast venues and the later episodes can be had on youtube
Starfish (she/her)
@twbrandt: Oh my gosh. Ed Zitron’s blog is “Where’s Your Ed At?” and I always wonder where his editor is? 😂
Geminid
@geg6: The Podcast Queen! Sounds like an ABBA song.
Kay
The only podcasts I currently listen to are Josh Marshall’s and If Books Could Kill
Okay so the Rednote app is now directing new US users to 10 second Chinese language lessons. You can skip them but they throw one at you periodically. So Americans are posting tortured renditions of what I think is Mandarin(?)
We have driven these people to learn a new language. Poorly. They’re not good at it.
Glory b
Not political, but a hoot, “The Bravo Docket,” 2 lawyers who use the legal woes of reality stars as jumping off points to talk about the law, “Behind the Bastards,” a podcast about histories evil people. If you didn’t hate Paul Manafort before, you’ll REALLY hate him after their episodeson him, convincing the Angolan president to extend the Civil War, resulting in the deaths of at least hundreds of people in order to increase his consulting fee.
Also, another thumbs up from me for “If Books Could Kill,” just for the way they EXCORIATE NYC Mayor Adams. Im sure he’ll make New York ground zero for deportation in return for a pardon, his stupid BURNS.
LOL, Mistermix must have seen that the consensus among black Juicers is that ABL has lost her damn mind & decided to talk her up.
Too late.
TheflipPsyd
I have trouble sleeping and listen to podcasts at bed time. I apologize in advance because I have so many favorites.
The Black Guy Who Tips Podcast: current events, commentary
Unreformed: The story of the Alabama Industrial School — infuriating story about a reform school
Who Killed JFK (Rob Reiner produced)
Murder 101 — group of school students end up solving serial killer for a class
The Last Billionaires — every week, new question about democracy and gilded age
Get Sleepy (the male voice sets me to sleep immediately) and Tracks to Relax are excellent if you need to calm and are having trouble sleeping
The Rewatchables — hosts re-watch movies and discuss
New Heights — Kelce bros talk sports and entertainment
What Now? with Trevor Noah — Interview and commentary
Radio Mystery Theater — all the cbs radio mystery episodes that were played on radios in the 70s
Bridgewater — a multi-season story about Bridgewater New England, some woods that open to another dimension and monsters
Midnight Burger — science fiction series about a diner that travels the universe and time
Desert Skies — story about the afterlife — if after you died you had to travel through 12 realms in a buick skylark
7Lamb Productions has a number of podcasts. I started with Tower 4 and that remains my favorite, but the others are good as well.
Tower 4 — adventure/science fiction story about a guy who is hired to watch for fires in a Tower
End of All Hope — what if the world was invaded by aliens
Paralyzed — horror about a guy who experiences sleep paralysis when not asleep
Story — every season is a story — all different genres.
Kay
@Glory b:
Thanks for Bravo Docket. That sounds fun.
Just look at that parking lot
@EmanG: The History of Rock & Roll in 500 Songs is by far the best music podcast going. You might see some episodes of certain songs and wonder , “What is that doing on this list”, but just listen and you find out why.
Maybe drifting into “totebaggynish territory , but NPR’s Thoughline has some political history episodes and all their shows are well made.
Gretchen
@Betty Cracker: I just listened to this episode: https://www.thisamericanlife.org/850/my-sweater
It starts out like it’s going to be true crime, (don’t pick up that hitchhiker!) and turns into something incredibly sweet.
Anastasio Beaverhausen
The Rest is History. Super wide-ranging and thoroughly entertaining deep dives into all manner of history. Just try the episode on Disco and you’ll get a taste for their approach. Then work your way up to the 7-part Aztec episodes, etc.
Ramalama
@Betty Cracker: I still love this American Life. A mainstay of my commuting and bringing ride share people with me to Montreal…before there were apps it was just me advertising and signing my girl name on Craigslist. Which attracted so many women riders. TAL became a favorite of so many Europeans – visiting Boston but also making a quick stop to Canada – who’d never heard it before, learning about the weird parts of America, not ever mentioned in the news. There was one story of how people in Pennsylvania, upset that Hilary didn’t win the nomination, were instead turning to GOP rather than vote for Obama. And how that might flip the outcome of the presidential election, so close to voting time. The Europeans had NO idea about the divisions.
Anyway, my favorite is Music Lessons with David Sedaris singing the Oscar Mayer commercial as though he were Billie Holiday. And a story of the writer Anne Lamott and how she thought she might die in a plane crash and how she became a Jesusy Bon Vivant .
Making note of these new shows.
Marmot
This may be way too late, but I’m surprised no one has mentioned Know Your Enemy, which goes into depth about right-wing intellectual history, left activism, current events, etc.
Also, I like the various Lawfare/Brookings Institution podcasts. Often too wonky, but there are so many going on at once that I can generally find a new episode I’m interested in.
Edit: The Michael Hobbes podcasts are great! And for a little horror fiction, The Wrong Station.
Edit: Oh! And WNYC’s On the Media!