Scroll down for links to popular podcasts.
• How to download podcasts and listen to them on Android or iOS (Alina Bradford and Mark Jansen, Digital Trends, 7-31-19)
• 8 Types of Podcasts: The Complete Guide to Audio Content Marketing (Alexander Santo, Brafton) With pros and cons of each: Interview podcasts, Conversational podcasts, Monologue podcasts, Storytelling/Investigative podcasts, Roundtable podcasts, Theatrical podcasts, Repurposed content podcasts, Hybrid podcasts (mixing and matching to create your own style).
• How to listen to podcasts: everything you need to know (Rowan Slaney, The Guardian)
• Listen Notes (an excellent podcast search engine)
• Hark Let Hark editors curate podcast moments into playlists around your interests.
• Best Podcast Directories to Help You Get More Listeners (Podcast Insights) Also useful to listeners.
• 31 Best Podcast Hosting Sites (Podcast Insights)
• The Atlantic podcasts
• CNBC podcasts
• Health podcasts (Covering Health's links)
• NASA podcasts
• New York Times podcasts
• Nickelodeon podcasts (podcasts for children, Podbean)
• NPR Podcast Directory
• PBS podcasts
• Publishers Weekly podcasts
• SBNation podcasts (sports)
• Slate podcasts
• TEDTalks podcasts
• Washington Post podcasts
• WNYC podcasts
• WSJ podcasts (Wall Street Journal)
• How To Upload A Podcast (To iTunes Or Any Other Directory) (Podcast Insights)
SOME OF OUR FAVORITE PODCASTS
aka podcasts we, friends, or colleagues have enjoyed (and sometimes become addicted to)
in alphabetical order:
• 1A (NPR News) Joshua Johnson hosts with great guests, framing the best debate in ways to make you think, share and engage.
• Acquired. "Every company has a story." Learn the playbooks that built the world’s greatest companies — and how you can apply them as a founder, operator, or investor. Mark Zuckerberg’s new production.
• Against the Rules Michael Lewis looks at what’s happened to fairness in American life through the lens of people who depend on public trust. After exploring what’s happened to referees and coaches, the third season of Against the Rules tackles what’s happened to our trust in experts and expertise.
• Armchair Expert Dax Shepard and Monica Padman interview celebrities, journalists, and academics about "the messiness of being human."
• The A16 podcast discusses tech and culture trends, news, and the future -- especially as ‘software eats the world’ (Andreessen Horowitz)
• Before Breakfast Host Laura Vanderkam shares time management strategies and scheduling.
• The Ben Shapiro Show
• Biographers International (discussions with biographers from around the country and the world)
• Blank Check with Griffin and David Hosts Griffin Newman and David Sims delve into the works of film's most outsized personalities in painstakingly hilarious detail.
• Brian Lehrer: A Daily Politics Podcast
• Caliphate.Rukmini Callimachi reports on the Islamic State and the fall of Mosul.
• Can He Do That? (Washington Post podcast about Trump, exploring the powers and limitations of the American presidency, and what happens when they're tested)
• Code Switch (NPR) Ever find yourself in a conversation about race and identity where you just get...stuck? Listen to journalists of color talk about it.
• Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend (weekly podcast hosted by American comedian and talk show host, with war stories from TV work)
• Consider This (NPR and WNYC) Make sense of the day's news in a quick 20 minutes.
• Crazy/Genius Derek Thompson's blog (on The Atlantic) on big questions about technology, science, and culture.
• The Daily (The New York Times, host Michael Barbaro) Daily 20-minute news podcast and radio show episodes based on the Times' reporting of the day, with interviews of NY Times journalists.
• The Daily Show with Trevor Noah (Comedy Central's Podcast Network)
• Darknet Diaries Explore the dark side of the Internet as Jack Rhysider takes you on a journey through the chilling world of privacy hacks, data breaches, and cyber crime, as masterful criminal hackers show us just how vulnerable we all are.
• Dead End: A New Jersey Political Murder Mystery (WNYC) A story of crime and corruption at the highest levels of society in the Garden State.Episodes release every Tuesday.
• Decoder Ring: Cracking cultural mysteries (archive of 2020 shows) Each month Slate critic Willa Paskin took a cultural question, object, or habit; examined its history; and tried to figure out what it means and why it matters. Examples: Baby Shark, sad Jennifer Aniston, the rise of the horror clown.
• Dead Eyes Actor/comedian Connor Ratliff was fired by Tom Hanks from the 2001 HBO miniseries Band of Brothers because Hank thought Ratliff had “dead eyes.” "Through interviews with actors in his and Tom Hanks’s orbit, Ratliff explores not just the ups and downs of show business, but the more deeply human experience of dealing with personal and professional failure. And more importantly, how we move on, learn, and grow from it."~Esquire
• Death, Sex, and Money (Anna Sale, WNYC) What matters most. Check out the archive.
• The Dishcast with Andrew Sullivan (Unafraid conversations about anything"). Catch up with the Dishcast archives
• Dr. Death (Wondery) "explores what happens when a power-hungry doctor is not stopped by the people who should stop him until it is too late."
• Dolly Parton's America (NPR)
• Ear Hustle (Radiotopia) The daily realities of life inside prison shared by those living it, and stories from the outside, post-incarceration.
• Endless Thread (WBUR and Reddit) Hosts Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson dig into Reddit's vast and curious ecosystem of online communities, collaborating with Reddit's 330 million users and over 140 thousand communities to find all kinds of jaw-dropping narratives.
• Everything Is Alive (in which inanimate objects tell their life stories)
• Ezra Klein show (NY Times) Real conversations about ideas and topics that matter.
• Family Secrets (IHeart Radio) Dani Shapiro and her guests explore family secrets and the lessons the truth can tell us.
• Freakonomics The hidden side of everything.
• Fresh Air (Terry Gross, WHYY) Intimate conversations with today's biggest luminaries weekdays. A favorite.)
• The Glenn Show Lively conversations with others, especially John McWhorter (Watch two grown-ups disagree with grace). H/T Romy Mancini
• The Golfer's Journal Tom Coyne's fortnightly forays into golf’s uncovered corners and characters.
• Grammar Girl's Quick & Dirty Tips for Better Writing
• The Habitat Life on Mars, sort of. The true story of six volunteers picked to live on a fake planet.
• Half Size Me Heather A. Robertson, who lost 170 pounds and has maintained her weight loss since 2012, interviews real people who share their own motivational stories of weight loss and weight maintenance.
• Heavyweight (Gimlet Media) Humorist Jonathan Goldstein helps people try to resolve a moment from their past. See New Yorker review.
• Hidden Brainexplores the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior and questions that lie at the heart of our complex and changing world. See, for example, We broke the planet. Now what?
• Household Name (aka Brought to you by) Surprising stories about how the biggest, household name brands affect our lives and culture — for better or worse.
• How Did This Get Made? Paul Scheer, June Diane Raphael and Jason Mantzoukas talk about hilariously bad movies.
• How I Built This (Guy Razz, NPR) The stories behind some of the world's best known companies: a narrative journey about innovators, entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built.
• The Indicator (weekdays from Planet Money) helps you make sense of what's happening today--a quick hit of insight into work, business, the economy, and everything else.
• Insights at the Edge (Tami Simon interviews spiritual teachers, visionary writers, and living luminaries about their newest work and current challenges)
• Intelligence Squared America's debate series. Restore critical thinking, facts, reason, and civility to American public discourse. Join the debate and hear both sides of every issue.
• The Intercept Adversarial journalism that holds the powerful accountable.
• Invisibilia (NPR), —Latin for invisible things—fuses narrative storytelling with science that will make you see your own life differently. Unseeable forces control human behavior and shape our ideas, beliefs, and assumptions.
• Keep It A show about pop culture and politics (and when they collide)
• Last Culturistas Comedians Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang talk about hot pop culture.
• The Last Days of August Jon Ronson, the creator of Audible Original The Butterfly Effect, delves into the pornography industry again as he unravels the never-before-told story of what caused a beloved 23-year-old actress’s untimely death.
• Last Seen WBUR’s true crime podcast, a genre-bending anthology about people, places and things that have all gone ... missing.
• The Laverne Cox Show (Shondaland and iHeartMedia) Intimate conversations with folks who help you see and think differently so maybe you can act differently.
• Let's Talk About Myths, Baby! Greek and Roman mythology, retold.
• Lit Up (a podcast about literature)
• Louder Than a Riot Through the lens of hip-hop, NPR Music's Rodney Carmichael and Sidney Madden use the lens of hip-hop to analyze mass incarceration in America, as it disproportionately affects Black America.
• The Manual Each week an expert, artisan, or craftsman participates in a round-table discussion on what’s new, exciting, and unique in their trade, the idea being to help men live a more engaged life.
• The Minimalists Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus serve up tips on living meaningful lives with less.
• Mobituaries with Mo Rocca, an irreverent but deeply researched appreciation of the people (and things) of the past.
• Modern Love (WBUR and The New York Times) Top actors performing true stories of love, loss, and redemption.
• The Moment (host Brian Koppelman). Interviews about the pivotal moments that fueled fascinating creative careers.
• Moonface A fiction and drama show about a Korean American son (Joel Kim Booster) who wants to come out to his mom (Esther Moon), but can't because they don't speak the same language.
•The “Moonrise” podcast, which tells a tale of nuclear brinkmanship, backroom politics, and science fiction.
• Moore to the Point Russell Moore's newsletter. An evangelist on why Trump has to go. "Our country under attack."
• The Moth Podcast (NPR, re-airs all new episodes of The Moth Radio Hour)
• My Brother, My Brother, and Me Comedy advice from brothers Justin, Travis, and Griffin McElroy.
• My Favorite Murder True crime comedy podcast hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark.
• Nancy (WNYC Studios, NPR, stories and conversations about the LGBTQ experience today, hosted by Kathy Tu and Tobin Low. Prepare to laugh and cry and laugh again.)
• The New Yorker Radio Hour (NYC Studios, host David Remnick)
• New York Times Book Review: Celebrating 15 Years of the Podcast (New York Times, 4-16-21) Pamela Paul, Sam Tanenhaus, and others discuss what happened behind the scenes during 15 years of the book review's podcast. Interesting.
• The Nice Guys on Business Hosts Doug Sandler and Strickland Bonner focus on relationships, honesty, trust and integrity.
• NPR News Now podcast The latest news in five minutes.
• The NPR Politics Podcast Every weekday, NPR's best political reporters explain the big news coming out of Washington and the campaign trail, telling you both what happened and why it matters.
• On Being (Krista Tippett) What does it mean to be human? How do we want to live? And who will we be to each other?
• Only Human A show about health. Because every body has a story
• The Only One in the Room Laura Cathcart Robbins, who famously once found herself the only black woman in the room, interviews celebrities of all races, ethnicities, creeds, and nationalities who have also felt "othered."
• On the Media WNYC’s weekly investigation into how the media shapes our worldview.
• Pardon My Take (Big Cat & PFT Commenter, Barstool Sports)
• Patient Zero (New Hampshire Public Radio) Exploring one of the most enigmatic epidemics of the 21st century: Lyme disease.
• People in the Shadow podcasts (Player FM roundup of podcasts on ghosts, paranormal, end times, the spooky and unexplained)
• The Pitch podcast Listen to real entrepreneurs pitch to real investors—for real money. (Josh Muccio, host) Takes you behind closed doors and into the world of startups: how people sell their ideas, what makes investors tick, and how these initial conversations can bloom into business deals—or die on the vine.
• Planet Money (NPR) The economy explained, enjoyably.
• Pod Save America Freewheeling conversation about politics and more, with Jon Favreau, Dan Pfeiffer, Jon Lovett, and Tommy Vietor, joined by journalists, politicians, comedians, and activists.
• Political Gabfest (Slate, hosted by Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz) Where sharp political analysis meets informal and irreverent discussion.
• Poog Comedians Jacqueline Novak and Kate Berlant muse about the wellness industry.
• The Popcast With Knox and Jamie "Music criticism and commentary filled with talking points you’ll be eager to pass on to your friends." ~Ben Boskovich
• Pop Culture Happy Hour Freewheeling chat about the latest movies, television, books, and music.
• The Prince: Searching for Xi Jinping (The Economist) A podcast about China's leader.
• Publishers Weekly podcasts (in various categories)
• Radio Diaries First-person diaries, sound portraits, and hidden chapters of history, from teenagers to octogenarians, prisoners to prison guards, bra saleswomen to gospel preachers. The extraordinary stories of ordinary life.
• RadioLab Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich (WNYC, New York Public Radio) combine investigative journalism and a lively narrative style to explore a strange world, from driverless cars and the U.S. nuclear chain of command to the history of football.
• Radiolab for Kids Presents: Terrestrials (WNYC, where we uncover the strangeness right here on earth)
• Redhanded, an award winning true crime podcast that offers a weekly dose of murder, wit and “WTFs” delivered with all the facts, anecdotal tangents aplenty, serious societal scrutiny and real BRITISH flavour.
• Renegades: Born in the USA. A series of conversations between President Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen about their lives, music, and enduring love of America. How two feisty Brits met, got drunk, and became true crime podcasting soulmates (Aja Romano, Vox, 2-22-21) Cult hit RedHanded balances the appeal of true crime storytelling with progressive politics — and a lot of charm.
• R2 C2 CC Sabathia and Ryan Ruocco talk to friends, athletes, and celebrities about the world of sports and the biggest stories in MLB, the NBA, and the NFL.
• Rumble Strip (Apple) “Rumble Strip,” a Limitless Podcast About Life in Vermont (New Yorker review) "In its attention to local detail and character, the show both honors place and transcends it."
• Sawbones Justin and Dr. Sydnee McElroy take you on a marital tour of misguided medicine through the ages.
• Scattered (WNYC, NPR) Chris Garcia's dad had one dying wish: That his family scatter his ashes off the coast of Cuba. As Chris tries to do right by his dad, he sets out to uncover the truth about a man he barely knew.
• The Score: Bank Robber Diaries (true crime, 5 episodes)
• The Serial Killer Podcast (hosted by Thomas Wiborg-Thune, a Norwegian)
• The Shadows (Kaitlin Prest, CBC fiction) Stories about the anatomy of a relationship: a crush, a choice, a resentment and an end.
• Sincerely, X (talks from speakers whose ideas deserve to be heard, but whose identities must remain hidden. The first season features a compelling program of victims, perpetrators, investigators, activists, empaths, etc.)
• 1619 (New York Times writer Nikole Hannah Jones) In August of 1619, a ship carrying more than 20 enslaved Africans arrived in the English colony of Virginia. America was not yet America, but this was the moment it began. No aspect of the country that would be formed here has been untouched by the 250 years of slavery that followed. See also the New York Times Magazine’s 1619 Project. WritesTime Magazine: "Each episode demonstrates how our economy, political system and popular culture are rooted in the slave trade and built on the work of African Americans."
• Slow Burn (Apple. To watch, join SlatePlus) Slate staff writer Leon Neyfakh’s narration captures the often surreal details of political scandal. Season 1: Watergate. Season 2. Monica Lewinsky.
• Sounds Like a Cult A podcast about modern-day “cults,” with hosts Isa Medina and Amanda Montell interviewing. There is an almost imperceptible border between cults and religion, but they can also take the form of self-help groups and business networks. Cults can be so powerful that people may lose their money, their faith, their morals, and even their lives.
• Snap Judgment Mixes real stories with killer beats to produce cinematic, dramatic radio.
• Specifically for Seniors a podcast for those of us in the "Remember when..." generations.
• Spectacular Failures Big business gone bad. Host Lauren Ober tackles some of the most spectacular business failures of all time.
• StartUp (hosts Alex Blumberg and Lisa Chow, Gimlet Media). A show about what it’s really like to start a business.
• Storybound (Lit Hub Radio and Podglomerate) Listen to your favorite authors and writers reading some of their most impactful stories, designed with powerful and immersive sound environments.
• StoryCorps (NPR, Stories of the human heart. A candid, unscripted conversation between two people about what's really important in life: love, loss, family, friendship.)
• S-Town (host Brian Reed, from Serial and This American Life) An investigative journalism podcast.
• StraightioLab (Apple) An intellectual podcast where smart comedians George Civeris and Sam Taggart unpack the rich, multi-colored tapestry of straight culture.
• Stuff You Should Know (Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant, iHeartRadio)
• The Takeaway (WNYC) Daily news featuring critical conversations, live reports from the field, and listener participation.
• TED Radio Hour Guy Raz explores the emotions, insights, and discoveries that make us human, taking us on a narrative journey through fascinating ideas, astonishing inventions, fresh approaches to old problems, and new ways to think and create.
• TED Talks Daily Host Elise Hu brings you thought-provoking talks on every subject imaginable — from Artificial Intelligence to Zoology, and everything in between.
• Thirty for Thirty Sports stories like you've never heard before, about the greatest—and sometimes, worst—moments, teams, and players in sports history.
• This American Life (host Ira Glass, popular long-time program from radio days, about American society and culture)
• This Sounds Serious (A Castbox Original) A comedic fictional podcast, this homage to true crime storytelling plays with familiar styles, tones, and tropes of popular crime podcasts and Netflix documentaries.
Season One: The Case of Daniel Bronstadt
Season Two:Missing Melissa
Season Three: Grand Casin
• Through the Cracks (NPR, Jonquilyn Hill, investigates the unsolved 2014 disappearance of Relisha Rudd - a second grader in Washington D.C., who was not declared a missing person until 18 days after she was last seen at her homeless shelter and at school. Asks who our society looks out for, who falls through the cracks, and why.
• Timesuck Podcast with comedian Dan Cummins (weekly deep dives into topics ranging from true crime and the paranormal to history, conspiracy theories, and cryptozoology)
• Tiny Desk Concerts (NPR Music, Audio--there's also a video version).
• The Truth (PRX) Movies for your ears: short stories that are sometimes dark, sometimes funny, and always intriguing.
• Unobscured with Aaron Mahnke. A serialized narrative, focusing on one topic only (for Season 1, the Salem Witch Trials; Season 2, the world of Spiritualism).
• Up First (NPR) The three biggest stories of the day, with reporting and analysis from NPR News — in 10 minutes.
• A Very Fatal Murder (David Pascall's true-crime podcast for The Onion)
• Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! NPR's weekly current events quiz. Have a laugh and test your news knowledge while figuring out what's real and what they've made up.
• The Weeds (Vox) Where politics becomes policy.. Every Tuesday, Dylan Matthews, Dara Lind, and others dig into the weeds on important national issues, including healthcare immigration, and housing.
• The Weekly Dish (Andrew Sullivan) Check out the archive of 70 free episodes, including names of experts interviewed.
• Welcome to Your Fantasy The wild true crime story behind the cultural phenomenon Chippendales, with historian Natalia Petrzela.
• We Like Drinking (hosts Jeff Eckles, John Ruyak, and Jeff Solomon talk with professionals from the spirits industry about booze)
• What a Day (Crooked Media) Akilah Hughes and Gideon Resnick bring you the top stories of the day across politics, business, economics and pop culture--what matters and how you can fix it.
• Will Be Wild (Wondery) An 8-part series about the forces that led to the January 6th insurrection and what comes next. Hosts Andrea Bernstein and Ilya Marritz.
• WriteLane (host Lane DeGregory) True stories told well.
• Write Minded podcast Inspiration and real talk about the ups and downs of the writing life. Good place to start: The power of writing to set us free
• The Writer Files (Kelton Reid's interviews with a broad spectrum of writers)
• WTF with Marc Maron a weekly podcast and radio show hosted by stand-up comedian Marc Maron.
• You Made It Weird A weekly comedy interview podcast hosted by Pete Holmes, the gatekeeper to every comedian's can of secret inner weird.
• You Must Remember This Karina Longworth’s podcast explores the “secret and/or forgotten” histories of Hollywood in the 20th century.
• You're Wrong About Mike and Sarah are journalists obsessed with the past. Every week they reconsider an event, person or phenomenon that's been miscast in the public imagination.
ROUND-UP REVIEWS OF PODCASTS
• 12 Long-Running Podcasts Worth Bingeing Immediately (Lifehacker) with reviews and links to tune you in to the podcast:
---The Read
---Judge John Hodgman
---Welcome to Night Vale
---The Allusionist
---Baby Geniuses
---Radio Drama Revival
---This American Life
---Ear Hustle
---Comedy Bang! Bang! (formerly known as Comedy Death-Ray)
---Dumb People Down.
• Best Podcasts of All-Time (according to Samuel Thomas Davies)
• The 13 Best Popular Podcasts to Listen to in 2022 (Spotify & Apple) Links to episodes and descriptions for The Joe Rogan Show, The Daily, This American Life, Stuff You Should Know, Pod Save America, Call Her Daddy, Office Ladies, Morbid: A True Crime Podcast, My Favorite Murder, Crime Junkie, Why Won’t You Date Me? with Nicole Byer, Planet Money. All of them are available either on Spotify, Apple, or both. First they list the Apple podcasts, then the Spotify.
• The 20 Best Podcasts to Listen to Right Now (Matthew Chernov, Variety)
• The best podcasts of 2019 (Digital Trends) From true crime to comedy.
• The Stitcher List Weekly ranking of the most popular shows on Stitcher.
• The Best History Podcasts (The Manual)
• The Book Review Podcast (NY Times)
• 20 Best Podcast Directories (We Edit Podcasts)
• Jeremy Caplan's list of 50 best podcasts
• The 64 Best Podcasts You Can Listen To In 2021 (Esquire)
• 52 Podcasts For Every Type Of Book Lover (Buzzfeed)
• 8 of the best podcasts for book lovers (Megan Sutton, The Manual, 4-19-18)
• Fast-Lane Listening: The Best Podcasts for Road Trips (LeeAnn Whittemore, The Manual, 5-28-19)
• Listen Up: These Podcasts Can Help You Get Your Life Together LeeAnn Whittemore (The Manual) recommends a few self-help podcasts.
• 20 Inspiring Writing Podcasts to Subscribe to Right Now (Brianna Bell, The Write Life)
• Addictive and wonderful TV and cable shows (Pat McNees, blog post)
Is something you love missing? Tell me about it!