I shared some podcast recommendations a year ago and wasn’t expecting to update them a year later, but my listening has turned over rapidly. I haven’t spent quite as much time on it in 2016 as my older child now objects to listening to “talking” in the car. Drat! I’ll be commuting more in 2016, watch for an uptick.
New this year:
Startup. In a year I shut down a business I was naturally going to listen to the “starting a business” podcast, and to do something I’ve never done before, ie, go back and listen to it from the beginning. I found 2015’s Season 2 about the company Dating Ring a bit of a mixed bag for reasons largely outlined here, but I still enjoy the episodes about Gimlet Media itself. From 2014, Episode 3: How To Divide an Imaginary Pie in which they negotiate a co-founder equity split is a highlight. In 2015’s episodes, I enjoyed Episode 12: Burnout and Episode 16: The Secret Formula about podcast production. They’re going to profile a third company in Season 3, I am curious to see whether the episodes about external companies are ever as good as the ones about Gimlet itself.
NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour, a round-table discussion of (largely American) pop culture, complete with, like Slate Money, the usual round table personality tropes emerging over time. Sample episodes: their farewell to Parks and Recreation and their review of Spy. But the best introduction of all is Peak Glen Wheldon, reviewing the Star Wars: Card Trader app. That’s in the Kimmy Schmidt episode at time 38:27, listen to that one first.
Reply All. Gimlet’s most popular podcast hasn’t quite made my “every episode” cut, but I did catch several of the highlights. I enjoyed Episode 36: Today’s the Day in which PJ and Alex have adventures in New York, and Episode 44: Shine On You Crazy Goldman in which PJ takes acid.
Returning from a year ago:
Chat 10 Looks 3, now one of Australia’s most popular (albeit still lowest production quality) podcasts. Check out Episode 20: Another Thing To Feel Guilty About in which Leigh Sales reveals herself to be a book chucker-outerer and Episode 21: Time For a New Safeword after Malcolm Turnbull became Prime Minister when Sales (one of Australia’s most prominent political interviewers) had previously declared his name to be her safeword.
Slate Money. I still listen to every episode even though I enjoy it a bit less now that they have a guest in most weeks. Check out The Two and 20 Edition for how venture capitalists make money.