This week’s counts: 50 notable guests, seven new podcasts, six deep dives and one love songs deep dive. Happy Valentine’s Day. 

Pod Take of the Week

“We get to the right destination by walking down the wrong trail many times over and over.”

Listen: WorkLife with Adam Grant: Wild Work Advice from Cheryl Strayed (7:28)

• That’s Cheryl Strayed, with a solid reminder that mistakes and detours aren’t fatal. They’re necessary. 
• The former Dear Sugar advice columnist and best-selling author of “Wild” steers Grant toward the light when talking about what constitutes good or bad advice. 
• Says Strayed: “Life is a long game,” and we don’t know what “bad” experiences resulting from “bad” advice will mean over time. 
• She adds: “Sometimes we’re ten years out and we look back and we say, ‘Oh, that bad experience, that thing I shouldn’t have done, is the very reason I’m here right now in exactly the right place.’”

Go Deep

1) Love Songs

Listen: All Songs Considered, Reminiscent, Studio 360

• Your love song amuse bouche before you dive in: Spotify’s top love song (1.1 billion streams!), John Legend’s “All of Me.” 
• NPR’s music pod surveys nine musicians about the love songs they wish they’d written. Amelia Meath’s pick is the best pick: Dire Straits’s “Romeo and Juliet.”
• Reminiscent goes for a Valentine’s Day pop punk mixtape draft, made for a very specific situation: “The year is 2006, you’re crushing on that cutie from homeroom, and you don’t know how to tell her how you feel.”
• Studio 360 replays an excellent interview with the queen of sappy love songs, Delilah. 

2) Dating in the 2020s

Listen: Monica & Jess Love Boys

• Armchair Expert podcast spins off a 10-part series on the relationship struggles of two opposites. Jess, who dates too much and Monica who dates too little.”

3) The Cold War

Listen: The Cold War: What We Saw

• Another ten-part series. This one aims to share “what it was like to live through the end of the Cold War.”
• It’s the current No. 6 pod on iTunes. 

4) The assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia

Listen: The Tortoise Podcast

• It’s a four-part investigation into the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia.
• The background: “Daphne investigated corruption involving the most powerful businessmen and politicians in Malta where she lived. She paid with her life. Her son Paul goes in search of the men who ordered her murder.”

5) “The Breakfast Club”

Listen: The Rewatchables

• A 1-hour, 43-minute dive into the John Hughes classic that’s being re-evaluated in the #MeToo era.

6) Gun Violence in America

Listen: American Diagnosis with Dr. Celine Gounder

• The pod concludes a 36-part series with guests David Hogg and Tyah-Amoy Roberts, survivors of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting and members of the board of March for Our Lives.
• Today marks the second anniversary of the school shooting in Florida.
• Series binge time: 16 hours, 5 minutes. 

Guest Appearances By…

($L) = On Luminary, behind a paywall. (S) = A Spotify exclusive.

Abrams, Stacey Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

Apatow, Judd Talkhouse

• He talks with David Duchovny about Garry Shandling. 

Bacon Brothers, The Vocal Point with Martina McBride ($L)

Barber, Andrea Nobody Told Me!

Bee, Samantha More with Anna Maria Tremonti

Bell, Kristen Second Life

Biggs, Jason Anna Faris is Unqualified

Bong Joon Ho The Awardist

Buscemi, Steve Bullseye

Cisneros, Sandra On Being

• Says Cisneros: “I think that artists are children that never grow up.”

Crow, Sheryl Rolling Stone Music Now

Dorsey, Jack The CouRage and Nadeshot Show

Duchovny, David Talkhouse

• Reminder: He talks with Apatow about Garry Shandling. 

Feliciano, Jose Latino USA

Ferguson, Craig Maltin on Movies

Fonda, Jane UnStyled

Gad, Josh Armchair Expert

Grohl, Dave The Bill Simmons Podcast

Howery, Lil Rey The Read

Iger, Robert The Bill Simmons Podcast

Jeong, Ken Office Ladies

John, Papa H3 Podcast

Kardashian West, Kim All’s Fair with Laura Wasser

Key, Keegan-Michael Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend

Kimmel, Jimmy The Al Franken Podcast

Klein, Ezra Armchair Expert

Kroll, Nick Comedy Bang! Bang!

Letts, Tracy Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me!

Lewis, Huey This Must Be the Gig, You Made it Weird with Pete Holmes, Questlove Supreme, Bullseye

• The ‘80s music icon who’s been struggling with hearing loss makes the rounds in support of his band’s return with a new album. 

Louis-Dreyfus, Julia The goop Podcast

• “The fear is kind of like the gas in your tank,” Louis-Dreyfus tells Gwyneth. 

Luna, Diego The Big Ticket

Manson, Shirley The Margaret Cho

Martindale, Justin The Joe Rogan Experience

McKibbon, Bill Future Hindsight

• The author and environmentalist talks about facing climate change.

Miller, TJ The Adam Carolla Show

Nwodim, Ego Green Eggs and Dan

Obama, Barack Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

Obama, Michelle Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

Robertson, Robbie Broken Record

Ryan, Katherine Off Menu

Samberg, Andy Comedy Bang! Bang!

Schiff, Adam The Axe Files

Schwartz, Ben WTF with Marc Maron, ID10T, Comedy Bang! Bang!

Smith, Gary Big Questions with Cal Fussman

Sorvino, Mira Life is Short with Justin Long

Teller, Miles Pardon My Take

Tharp, Twyla Death, Sex & Money

Tomson, Shaun Remarkable People

Underwood, Blair Thirst Aid Kit

Wolff, Tobias Bookworm

Notable New Podcasts

1) Dying for Sex

• Molly gets diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer and “decides to do something bold: she leaves her unhappy marriage and embarks on a series of sexual adventures to help her feel alive.”
• She confides in her friend Nikki, who hosts this podcast about “friendship, death, sex, and what you do with the time you have left.” 
• It’s No. 4 on iTunes. 

2) The Great Fail

• The pod examines epic failures from “companies, brands, and people.” Debra Chen hosts. 

3) The Seventh Daughter

• An audio drama set a century ago about “a mysterious woman {who] tutors a young girl in the arts of mind reading and clairvoyance.”

4) All’s Fair with Laura Wasser

• The celebrity divorce lawyer will “chat with celebrities, innovators and experts about all kinds of relationships, breakups, love, war and everything in between.”
• Big get for her debut episode: Kim Kardashian West.

5) Citizen Critic

• The pod critiques “the critics of some favorite and iconic movies, music, television, and more.”
• Musician Scott Janovitz and scientist Greg Conley host. 

6) Dating While Gray

• Laura Stassi reveals the “lessons she’s learned and the stories she’s heard from people 50 and older searching [for], finding and choosing love.”

7) The Redheads Book Club

• A book club hosted by The Morning Toast’s Jackie Oshry. 
• The kickoff book: “The Husband’s Secret” by Liane Moriarty.

And One to Look Forward to: The Last Degree of Kevin Bacon (Feb. 17)

• It’s a Spotify-exclusive comedy about killing Kevin Bacon. 
• You have questions. Here are the details: “Randy Beslow has forever pinpointed his failed Footloose audition as the moment when everything in his life went downhill. 30 years later when he hits rock bottom, he vows to eliminate the one thing that ties together all of his problems: acclaimed character actor and cultural institution, Kevin Bacon.”
• My take: Subscribed!

Pod Take of the Week

“I’m not saying feral hogs is the only thing we should talk about as a country. I get that there’s a lot going on right now. But I just feel like feral hogs should be in the top 10.”

Listen: Reply All: 30-50 Feral Hogs (7:29)

• That’s PJ Vogt, doing what he and Reply All do so well: He investigates an issue that flared on the internet, and tells an incredible story about a pressing modern-day concern.
• At the center: A viral tweet from Willie McNabb, who wrote, “Legit question for rural Americans – How do I kill the 30-50 feral hogs that run into my yard within 3-5 mins while my small kids play?”
• Vogt interviews McNabb and many others to show how what much of the internet took as an opportunity to mock is a bonkers critical issue. 
• Stat: More than 5 million feral hogs roam the U.S. It’s a massive problem.

Go Deep

1) China and the NBA

Listen: The Journal, The Bill Simmons Podcast, The Gist, The Daily, Today, Explained

• Houston Rockets’ general manager Daryl Morey tweeted about the protests in Hong Kong. With a single image and seven words, a global crisis erupted. 
• These podcasts do a good job of breaking down the state of play. 

2) Outrage

Listen: Hidden Brain

• The NPR pod takes a deep dive into “how outrage is hijacking our conversations, our communities, and our minds.”

3) Kendrick Lamar’s DAMN.

Listen: Dissect

• The pod kicks off a season-long deep dive into the Pulitzer Prize-winning album. 

4) The Best Rappers of All Time

Listen: expediTIously with Tip “T.I.” Harris

• The rapper picks the best 50 rappers in a two-part series. 
• Binge time: 1 hour, 42 minutes

5) Rooney v. Vardy

Listen: Ringer Dish, Who? Weekly

• Take a deep dive into the saga of Wagatha Christie, aka Colleen Rooney. 
• The wife of soccer/football star Wayne Rooney played detective on Instagram and…well, if you don’t know the story, I won’t spoil it. 
• Or, just wait for the inevitable six-part podcast series. 

Guest Appearances By…

($L) = On Luminary, behind a paywall. (S) = A Spotify exclusive.

Abagnale, Frank The Perfect Scam

• The “Catch Me if You Can” man quizzes you on scams. 

Brown, Brené In Pursuit

Brown, Karamo Work in Progress with Sophia Bush

Brownstein, Carrie This Song

• The Sleater-Kinney mainstay talks about Rihanna’s “Stay.”

Budden, Joe Hotboxin with Mike Tyson

Busey, Gary Pardon My Take

Chriqui, Emmanuelle Life is Short with Justin Long

Colvin, Shawn The National Podcast of Texas

Conway, George Stay Tuned with Preet

Dennings, Kat Wine & Crime

Dessa The Open Ears Project

Diggs, Daveed Bullseye

Eisenberg, Jesse The Open Ears Project

Ellroy, James Monocle 24: The Big Interview

Fiorina, Carly Recode Decode

Hamilton, Argus WTF with Marc Maron

Harjo, Joy Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

Hill, Jemele Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

Jones, Radhika Longform Podcast

• Convo with the editor of Vanity Fair.

Kroll, Nick The Bill Simmons Podcast

Kunis, Mila Andrea Savage: A Grown-Up Woman #buttholes

Letterman, David Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend

Maddow, Rachel Pod Save America

Marshall, Winston The Road Taken

Pitbull Latino USA

Phair, Liz Studio 360

Platt, Ben The Big Ticket

Rajskub, Mary Lynn Doughboys

• The actress reviews Moe’s Southwest Grill.

Redban, Brian The Joe Rogan Experience 

Robertson, Robbie The Moment with Brian Koppelman

Serrano, Shea Recode Media, Yo, Is This Racist?, Unspooled, The Bill Simmons Podcast

• Internet hero makes the pod rounds to promote his new book, “Movies (and Other Things)” 

Shields, Brooke The Ron Burgundy Podcast

Singh, Lilly Anna Faris is Unqualified

Tippett, Krista Pod Save the People

Tollefson, Carrie Another Mother Runner

Tweedy, Jeff Rolling Stone Music Now, All Songs Considered

Tyler the Creator Broken Record

Wu, Constance The Thrive Global Podcast

Notable New Podcasts

1) The Last Voyage of the Pong Su 

• The Australian true crime pod tells the tale of a “North Korean dictator, bags of heroin, drug lords, spooks, sailors, Australian cops and a web of lies.”

2) Striped: The Story of the White Stripes 

• A deep dive into the White Stripes’ debut album and how Jack and Meg White “sowed the seeds of worldwide rock and roll domination.” 

3) The Undercovers 

• The podcast looks at the life and work of undercover federal law enforcers, and includes “unbelievable, adventurous, shockingly, violent, and harrowing stories.” Ed O’Neill hosts. 

4) American Elections: Wicked Game

• The Wondery podcast “will explore all 58 presidential elections to discover if there ever was a ‘good ol’ days,’ or if presidential politics have always been played dirty.”

5) California Burning

• The North State Public Radio podcast investigates how California’s “fire-prone forests have been managed and examines how we can all be better stewards of the land and avoid catastrophic wildfires in the future.”

6) Derailed

• The Wisconsin Public Radio podcast tells the story of a failed high-speed rail line between Madison and Milwaukee. 

7) Inside The Big Day Out 

• On “the rise and fall of the world’s biggest touring music festival.” From Australia’s Triple J.

8) Andrea Savage: A Grown-Up Woman #buttholes

• A “comedy podcast that every week is going to introduce another weird, hilarious, unique ‘grown up’ celebrity guest to prove that even though you are technically an ‘adult,’ you don’t have to be a total loser.” 

9) The Challengers

• Actress Amy Brenneman leads conversations about challenges we face “and how they have the potential to be our greatest teachers.” 

10) Feedback with EarBuds 

• A weekly podcast from friend-of-the-newsletter Earbuds Podcast Collective that corresponds with the weekly EarBuds podcast newsletter. 

11) Moonface

• A scripted podcast about “a Korean American son who wants to come out to his mom, but can’t because they don’t speak the same language.” 

12) Camp Monsters

• The REI podcast reveals “the stories of impossible encounters with impossible creatures in the wildest corners of North America.” 

13) Good Game: How Games Play Us

• A pod about video games and how they can “tell you about yourself and the way you see the world.”

14) The Storyteller: Murder Most Foul

• A true-crime podcast set in Scotland on the 20th anniversary of a brutal murder. 

And One to Look Forward To: Bad Batch (Oct. 23)

• A six-part investigative series about patients who are “offered a miracle cure, but instead they end up rushed to the hospital in critical condition.” 

The counts: 54 notable guests, 23 new podcasts, six deep dives and one endangered letter of the alphabet.

Pod Take of the Week

“The alphabet should be reordered.”

Listen: The Hottest Take (:46)

• That’s Tyler Parker, with a scorching take during the debut week of the Ringer’s new opinion/comedy pod on Spotify.
• Parker just ain’t having R, S and T — “elite letters, superstar letters” — positioned behind Q. 
• Q, he says, can just be banished. K and W can do the work. 
• Says Parker: “If Q’s in the alphabet after this I’m gonna be furious.”
• Additional Reading: “The Mixed-Up Alphabet.” 

Go Deep

1) The World of Comedy 

Listen: The Gist

• The five-part, week-long series devotes an episode each to stand-up, improv, podcasts, film and late night. 
• Guests include Aparna Nancherla, Ron Funches and John August.
• Binge time: 3 hours, 1 minute.  

2) “Baby Shark”

Listen: Switched on Pop

• A 36-minute deep dive into the “dark magic” of the earworm, aka the parents’ “nightmare that will not end.”

3) Puerto Rico

Listen: Throughline

• A 1 hour, 6 minute dive into the relationship the territory has with the U.S. mainland.  

4) How to Make Meetings Less Terrible

Listen: Freakonomics Radio

• A 41-minute look at how to not waste time in conference rooms and on Zoom calls. 

5) “American Idiot”

Listen: Reminiscent

• The indie punk and emo music pod devotes 54 minutes to breaking down the landmark Green Day album on its 15th anniversary. 

6) U.S. Interstate System

Listen: Stuff You Should Know

• A 1 hour, 3 minute dive into the power — both positive and destructive — of America’s superhighways. 

Guest Appearances By…

($L) = On Luminary, behind a paywall. (S) = A Spotify exclusive.

Abrams, Stacey Lovett or Leave It

Ali, Laila Splitting Upward

Aukerman, Scott Off Camera with Sam Jones, Kickass News, Doughboys

• The co-creator of “Between Two Ferns” talks about the Netflix “Ferns” movie, Marie Callender’s.  

Baran, Madeline Inside Podcasting

Batiste, Jon The Open Ears Project

• The bandleader discusses his love for Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring.”

Black Keys, The The Joe Rogan Experience

Black, Michael Ian Filling the Void

• The comic talks about poker. 

Braverman, Blair With Friends Like These

Carroll, E. Jean Death, Sex & Money

Carroll, Sean The Joe Rogan Experience, Science Weekly

Coates, Ta-Nehisi Longform Podcast

Cornwell, Patricia StarTalk Radio

Cummings, Whitney The Hilarious World of Depression

Day, Charlie Armchair Expert

Folds, Ben Conversations

Gadsby, Hannah Studio 360

Galifianakis, Zach Comedy Bang! Bang!

Gladwell, Malcolm Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations, The Bill Simmons Podcast, It’s Been a Minute with Sam Sanders, Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

• Gladwell makes the round of podcasts with long names to promote his new book about strangers. 

Glazier, Ilana The Thrive Global Podcast

Godin, Seth The Moment with Brian Koppelman

Gyllenhaal, Jake Talks at Google

Hale, Tony Life is Short with Justin Long, You Made it Weird with Pete Holmes

Hannah-Jones, Nikole The Ezra Klein Show

Howard, Britney The New Yorker Radio Hour

Jacobson, Abbi The Thrive Global Podcast

Jefferies, Jim Not Too Deep with Grace Helbig

Kantor, Jodi Skimm’d From the Couch, Call Your Girlfriend, Recode Decode, The Daily

Kardashian West, Kim Foodgod:OMFG

Koenig, Ezra Keep It

Koepp, David Scriptnotes

Kramer, Julia Women Who Travel

• The editor of Bon Appetit’s Best New Restaurants in America list talks restaurants, rhubarb danishes.

Lake, Katrina How I Built This with Guy Raz

Lang Lang Here’s the Thing With Alec Baldwin

Lapkus, Lauren Comedy Bang! Bang!, Yo, Is This Racist?

Lorenz, Taylor Ringer Dish

Lynch, Jane The Three Questions with Andy Richter

McKenna, Aline Brosh Without Fail

Mendes, Sam The Open Ears Project

• The director talks about his affection for Carl Orff’s “Gassenhauer.”

Munroe, Randall The Ezra Klein Show

Newmark, Craig Recode Media

Nye, Bill Getting Curious with Johnathan Van Ness

Offerman, Nick The Poscast

Raphael, June Diane WTF with Marc Maron

Ray, Rachael Beyond the Plate

Ringwald, Molly UnStyled

Samuelsson, Marcus Off Menu

Sanders, Bernie Latino USA

Schine, Cathleen Bookworm

Snowden, Edward Fresh Air

Steinem, Gloria Work in Progress

Sturridge, Tom Talks at Google

T.I. Forked Up

Twohey, Megan Skimm’d From the Couch, Call Your Girlfriend, Recode Decode, The Daily

Zombie, Rob The Joe Rogan Experience, ID10T

Notable New Podcasts

1) Motive

• The murder-adjacent true crime podcast from WBEZ Chicago chronicles “a cruel sociological experiment. Lock up a 13-year-old boy for a murder that he swore he didn’t commit. Release him as a 30-year-old man. Then, give him $25 million.” The boy-turned-man is Thaddeus “T.J.” Jimenez. 
• Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Frank Main hosts. 

2) The Thing About Pam

• The true-crime pod from Keith Morrison and Dateline NBC focuses on a murder that sets off “a chain of events that would leave one man dead, another man implicated, and expose a diabolical scheme.”
• It’s the No. 1 podcast on iTunes.

3) Correct Opinions with Trey Kennedy

• Comic and video-maker Kennedy just wants us to “take a deep breath, make fun of some people and enjoy some remedy through roasting.”
• It’s the No. 10 podcast on iTunes.  

4) Passenger List

• Kelly Marie Tran and Patti LuPone star in the fictional pod about a flight that disappears while crossing the Atlantic.
• Tran plays a college student whose brother was in the flight, and she’s searching for answers. 

5) Finding Van Gogh 

• Another promising true crime pod about art theft, specifically Van Gogh’s “Portrait of Dr Gachet.”
• This one from the Stadel Museum “traces the painting’s eventful history – to get to the bottom of the question: where is the masterpiece now?

6) The Open Ears Project

• A non-news daily pod from WNYC “where people share the classical track that means the most to them.”
• Episodes run around 10 minutes each. 

7) Scared to Death 

• A podcast in which host Dan Cummins tries “to scare his wife Lynze to death with two tales of alleged-to-be-true horror.”

8) The Lead

• A daily pod about sports from The Athletic.

9) Campaign HQ with David Plouffe

• President Barack Obama’s campaign manager “digs into what the [Democratic presidential] candidates are trying to accomplish in their messaging.”

10) Working Daughter

• Host Liz O’Donnell focuses on “the millions of family caregivers juggling eldercare, career and life, telling their stories and answering their questions.”

11) Long May They Run

• LMTR goes for season-long deep dives into a band, its fans and “the journey that made them one of the most successful touring bands of all time.”
• Season one: Phish. 

12) Sports Criminals

• The focus is on “professional athletes who thought they could get away with anything, including blackmail, theft, prostitution and even murder.”

13) My Life of Crime

• 48 Hours’s Erin Moriarty launches a six-part true crime series that kicks off with a two-parter on the case of accused ax-murderer Lizzie Borden.

14) Three Big Points

• The management pod from MIT’s Sloan Management Review focuses on “one new idea from the world’s leading academics, researchers, and executives” and delivers it “with three takeaways.”

15) London, Actually (S)

• London Hughes’s Spotify-exclusive dating podcast finds the stand-up enlisting “various celebrity friends to help her find a man.” 

16) Foodgod: OMFG

• Reality show regular Jonathan Cheban talks” about his lifestyle, travels, food and more, often with his friends and celebrity guests.” 
• Like with his initial guest, Kim Kardashian West.  

17) She Makes Money Moves

• The pod from Glamour and iHeartRadio ”shares intimate, unscripted stories from women across the country along with advice from financial experts to help guide these women—and women everywhere—forward.” 

18) Work in Progress with Sophia Bush

• It’s about “frank, funny, personal, professional, and sometimes even political conversations with people who inspire Sophia.”

19) We Hear

• The podcast version of the New York Post’s Page Six column. Hard to believe this wasn’t already a podcast. 

20) Out Travel the System (S)

• Nisreene Atassi hosts Expedia’s Spotify-exclusive travel podcast.

21) Wide Open with Tony Gonzalez

• Former NFLer Tony Gonzalez has conversations “with the brightest minds in the worlds of business and entertainment to discuss health, wellness and mindset.”

22) The Hottest Take (S)

• The folks from the Ringer “will debate, defend, and parse a controversial opinion on a pressing topic of the day,” like fantasy football and indoor volleyball. 

23) Down to Date with Kendall Long

• Bachelor in Paradise’s Kendall Long hosts and listens in “to two complete strangers on a first date inside a recording studio.”

And One to Look Forward To: Frontier Tween (Sept. 24, $L)

• In the “coming-of-age scripted comedy series from Team Coco, the all-female writing staff takes you on a journey of 12-year-old poet Tilly Mulch’s life on the untamed prairie.”
• It’s a place “every day is full of adventure and the cows know all her secrets.”
• It’s from the team that created The Onion’s beloved A Very Fatal Murder.

5 Pod Takes

1) “How does Paul Bunyan’s ox say hello?”

“How?”

“It’s a blue wave.”

Listen: Pod Save America: “We won.” (3:35)

• That’s Jon Lovett, with the corny but satisfyingly accurate take about the results of the U.S. midterm elections. Straight-man assist to Jon Favreau.
• The Democrats captured the House of Representatives and more than 300 seats in state legislatures, a “blue wave” of political change.

2) “It’s such a long list [of potential investigations] it’s hard to remember all of this stuff.”

Listen: Trump, Inc.: So What Trump Investigations Could Be Coming (21:49)

• That’s Eric Umansky of ProPublica, who foresees so many potential investigations of the Trump administration he needs four buckets to put them in.
• Those investigative buckets: 1) Trump’s business dealings. 2) Foreign government spending on Trump’s businesses currently. 3) Influencers and accessors. 4) Corruption among government agencies.
• The pod’s guests are the “1927 Yankees of Trump corruption.“
• They are: Umansky, David Fahrenthold of The Washington Post, Anita Kumar of McClatchy and Adam Davidson of The New Yorker.

3) “The brain, as busy as it can be, is actually very lazy.”

Listen: On Being: James Doty — The Magic Shop of the Brain (7:37)

• That’s Krista Tippett, recounting a story told to Doty about why magic tricks work.
• Why? Because “[m]ost people who are watching a magic show aren’t really there watching the magic show. They are regretting something they did yesterday, or worrying about something that might happen tomorrow.”
• Doty adds: “There was a study that was done that showed that the average person, almost 80 percent of the time, they’re not focused on the present, they’re focused on exactly that: regret about the past or anxiety about the future.”

4) “Life is a team sport.”

Listen: Maltin on Movies: Ryan Coogler (16:36)

• That’s “Black Panther” director Coogler, talking about one of the things that he and Ruth Bader Ginsburg have in common.
• Coogler talks to Leonard and Jessie Maltin about the doc “RBG” and what it takes to be successful in the movie business, as well as their personal connection. Coogler took a class of Maltin’s when he studied at USC.

5) “There’s one thing we’ve learned as a species about email, that’s all caps means you’re shouting. And basically we haven’t learned anything else.”

Listen: HBR IdeaCast: Avoiding Miscommunications In A Digital World (7:34)

• That’s communications expert Nick Morgan on the medium you’re reading this on.
• Fact check: False. We’ve learned email is splendid for learning about podcasts.

Go Deep

1) “All the President’s Men”

Listen: The Rewatchables

• The Ringer takes a timely deep dive into politics and conspiracies in the 1976 political thriller about Watergate.
• Binge time: 1 hour, 25 minutes.

2) “Election”

Listen: The Bechdel Cast

• The pod takes an equally timely deep dive into elections, analyzing the excellent 1999 black comedy.
• Binge time: 1 hour, 37 minutes.

3) The WWI Armistice

Listen: Conversations

• The Australian pod reflects on the 100th anniversary of the armistice agreement that ended WWI with a series of stories related to the moment.
• Binge time: 2 hours, 37 minutes.

4) Napster vs. Record Labels

Listen: Business Wars

• BW goes back to 2000 with a seven-part series on the fight between file-sharing system Napster and record labels.
• The crux: Could people could download music for free? Or was it stealing music?

• Binge time: 2 hours, 58 minutes.

5) Civil Rights

Listen: American History Tellers

• AHT goes wayyy back to the 1860s and Honest Abe to tell the history of the fight for civil rights for black Americans.
• Binge time: 4 hours, 18 minutes.

6) The Last Episode of “The Office”

Listen: Finale

• The pod analyzes the final episode of the U.S. version of “The Office.”

Guest Appearances By…

Aikman, Troy Sports Media with Richard Deitsch

Bocelli, Andrea Inside the Studio

Boi, Big Song Exploder

• Musician breaks down “Order of Operations.”

Bowie, John Ross Not Too Deep with Grace Helbig

Butterfield, Stewart The Secret History of the Future

Cody, Diablo I Think You’re Interesting

Cohen, Ben Here’s the Thing with Alec Baldwin

• That’s Ben of Ben & Jerry’s fame. Americone Dream, all the way.

Cohn, Nate I Have to Ask

Coyle, Daniel Nobody Told Me!

Crawford, Cindy Oprah’s Master Class

Daltrey, Roger Kickass News

Dacus, Lucy Talkhouse

Dorian, Shane The Joe Rogan Experience

• Convo with the big-wave surfer.

Duplass, Mark Armchair Expert

Earnhardt Jr., Dale The Joe Rogan Experience

Field, Sally Monocle 24: The Big Interview

Freston, Kathy Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

Gethard, Chris Kickass News

Green, John Death, Sex & Money

Greenfield, Jerry Here’s the Thing with Alec Baldwin

• That’s Jerry of Ben & Jerry’s fame. I’m still team Americone Dream.

Harris, Sam TED Talks Daily

Helms, Ed Ask Me Another

Honnold, Alex Curious with Josh Peck

Jacobs, A.J. The Tim Ferriss Show

Jacobson, Abbi It’s Been a Minute with Sam Sanders, Keep It

Johnson, Gary Gov. Lost in America

Kinnear, Greg The Bill Simmons Podcast

Klores, Dan The Bill Simmons Podcast

• The director talks about his 20-hour (!) documentary “Basketball: A Love Story.”

Kotb, Hoda The Thrive Global Podcast with Arianna Huffington

Koy, Jo The Brilliant Idiots

Lamott, Anne Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

Leonard, Franklin TED Talks Daily

Lincoln, Sadie How I Built This with Guy Raz

• Convo with founder of Barre3.

Lonergan, Kenneth Studio 360

Mantzoukas, Jason Comedy Bang! Bang!

Marshall, Frank FilmStruck

McElroy, Travis Off Book

McMillon, Doug The Tim Ferriss Show

• Convo with CEO of Walmart.

Mitchell, Finesse The Adam Carolla Show

Mogahed, Dalia The TED Interview

Myles, Eileen Bookworm

Neyfakh, Leon The Ezra Klein Show

O’Reilly, Bill The Adam Carolla Show

P, Christina The Joe Rogan Experience, The H3 Podcast

Pagels, Elaine Fresh Air

Pelosi, Nancy Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness

• Convo with the likely next U.S. Speaker of the House, conducted before the midterms.

Pike, Rosamund Off Camera with Sam Jones

Plymell, Charles Deviate with Rolf Potts

Reitman, Jason Playback

Reznor, Trent The Treatment

Rich, Simon Bullseye

Ripken Jr., Cal Pardon My Take

• He’s anti-bat flip. Boo.

Roach, Yusef Culture Kings

Ross, Tracee Ellis Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

Rubin, Gretchen Nobody Told Me!

Rudner, Rita WTF with Marc Maron

Salonen, Esa-Pekka Monocle 24: The Big Interview

Schnabel, Julian The Director’s Cut

Schriock, Stephanie Hysteria

Schumer, Amy Pretty Big Deal

Schwarzenegger, Arnold The Axe Files

Shearer, Harry The New Yorker Radio Hour

Sheraton, Mimi The Gist with Mike Pesca

• Convo with the NYT’s first female food critic.

Sigler, Jamie Lynn Inside of You

Skipper, John Recode Media with Peter Kafka

Sulzberger, A.G. Recode Decode

Tierney, Maura Anna Faris is Unqualified

Tolokonnikova, Nadya The Jordan Harbinger Show

Tompkins, Paul F. Comedy Bang! Bang!

Traister, Rebecca Waking Up with Sam Harris

Wambach, Abby Planet Futbol

Weinzweig, Ari Eater Upsell

Williams, Paige Longform Podcast

Yeun, Steven The Dave Chang Show

Notable New Podcasts

1) Imagined Life

• The pod’s an “immersive journey through the surprising moments and challenges that shaped someone’s life before they were famous.”

2) Forever Ago

• New Brains On pod is a family-friendly history show with episodes that explore “the origin of just one thing — like sandwiches, video games, clocks and more — while teaching listeners to think critically about history.”

3) Prognosis

• An eight-episode series from Bloomberg’s business health team “explores the leading edge of medical advances.”

4) The End of the World with Josh Clark

• It’s “a 10-episode deep dive that explores the future of humanity and finds dangers we have never encountered before lurking just ahead.”

5) Chat Sematary

• The pod dives deep into Stephen King’s books and their adaptations. Deanna Chapman hosts.

6) Players with Lindsay Czarniak

• Former ESPNer Czarniak interviews country music personalities about sports.

Shouts to Zachary Davis and everyone at Sound Education for a superb conference last week. So many new-to-me podcasts to consider for upcoming weeks.

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this newsletter, please forward it to a friend. Also, find us on Twitter @WeekInPodcasts.

7 Pod Takes

1) “I believe the scholarly term is ‘hot mess.’”

Listen: Code Switch: The Cost to Cast a Ballot (21:11)

• That’s Carol Anderson, historian and a professor of African-American studies at Emory University, describing the 2000 election fiasco in Florida.
• This great ep takes a deep dive into the history of voter suppression and explores one of the most pressing topics in the U.S.: “Why people don’t vote and why more and more people can’t vote.”
• My take: It’s been awful. We must fight to do better.

2) “By the time you’re out of college your body is just done. Man, you are Brett Favre doing infomercials.”

Listen: Believed: The Good Guy (9:23)

• That’s host Kate Wells, outlining the crazy toll gymnastics takes on one’s body and highlighting the significance of doctors at the sport’s elite level.
• Wells and the Believed pod are focused on Larry Nassar, the once-beloved doctor now known as “one of the worst serial pedophiles in U.S. sports history.”
• The first episode of the series details how Nassar gained the trust of the gymnasts and their families.
• My take: Horrible story, masterful storytelling.

3) “President Trump is, more or less, a wedge issue generating machine.”

Listen: The Daily: How 1994 Gave Us Today’s Politics (3:21)

• That’s NYT opinion columnist Jennifer Senior, touting Trump’s unfortunate superpower, but also putting it in context.
• Senior tracks the genesis and evolution of the Republicans using wedge issues to gain political leverage against Democrats back to 1994. The costs are enormous.

4) “When you’re doing stuff that sucks you have a lot of time to think your way out of your present situation.”

Listen: The Gender Knot: Slow Burn’s Leon Neyfakh on gender in US politics(6:07)

• So says co-host Daniel Carroll, introducing himself in this insightful pod about the intersection of politics and gender.
• Neyfakh brings a POV influenced by his exploration of the Bill Clinton impeachment scandal on the excellent latest season of Slow Burn.

5) “I’ve had so many interviews about death…I think that’s probably improved my life in some ways.”

Listen: Outside Podcast: Dispatches: Alex Honnold on “Free Solo” (10:13)

• That’s climbing legend Honnold, in an interview about how his life has changed in the wake of his no-ropes ascent of Yosemite’s El Capitan and the movie about his achievement.
• Outside calls “Free Solo” the best climbing movie ever made.
• Honnold also goes 1 hour, 51 minutes with Joe Rogan on The Joe Rogan Experience.

6) “What really matters is the microphone technique.”

Listen: Pop Culture Happy Hour: Halloween (20:35)

• That’s host Linda Holmes, with a playful shot at herself and the PCHH crew for their digression about the awful practices used by the podcasters who play a key role in the latest “Halloween” movie.
• Spoiler: While they were in agreement about podcast horrors, they split on the quality of the actual movie.
• My take: Gotta love the passion of podcasters defending their craft.

7) “It’s still an armpit in a lot of ways, but it’s a loveable armpit.”

Listen: The Bill Simmons Podcast: World Series Thoughts Plus Hasan Minhaj(12:43)

• That’s Simmons, with a not-so-hot take on the oldest MLB ballpark. Simmons broke down his experience at Fenway Park during Game One of the World Series pitting his beloved Boston Red Sox vs. the Los Angeles Dodgers.
• My take: I’ll be happy if the series returns to that armpit.
• Go Dodgers!

Go Deep

1) Standup Comedy

Listen: The History of Standup

• Six-part series concludes with a look at the current (booming) state of standup.
• Binge time: 3 hours, 39 minutes

2) “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”

Listen: Binge Mode

• Book six is in the books. Mallory Rubin and Jason Concepcion continue their Harry Potter immersion with a 10-part deep dive into the penultimate book in J.K. Rowling’s series, including the movie.
• Binge time: 17 hours, 9 minutes

3) The Politics of Population

Listen: Outside/In

• The pod “about the natural world and how we use it” goes two parts on population and the politics and impact surrounding it.
• Binge time: 1 hour, 18 minutes.

4) Consent in the #MeToo Era

Listen: Radiolab

• The celebrated pod takes a three-part deep dive into sexual consent.
• In “In the No,” they “wander into rooms full of college students, hear from academics and activists, and sit in on classes about BDSM.”
• Binge time: 2 hours, 1 minute.

5) “Halloween” the Movie Series

Listen: Halloween Unmasked

• The Ringer’s eight-part series on the horror flicks winds up with a look at the latest sequel.
• Binge time: 5 hours, 23 minutes.

Guest Appearances By…

Acevedo, Stacey Skimm’d From the Couch

• Convo with Girls Scouts’ CEO.

Abrams, Stacey It’s Been a Minute with Sam Sanders

Bareilles, Sara The Dan Wootton Interview

Barinholtz, Ike The Treatment

Bateman, Justine The Adam Carolla Show

Bee, Samantha Stay Tuned with Preet

Brown, Karamo Keep It

Bryant, Aidy Origins SNL

Carden, D’Arcy You Made it Weird with Pete Holmes

• Janet!

Carlson, Tucker The Adam Carolla Show

Condon, Zach All Songs Considered

Cowell, Simon Oprah’s Master Class

Dano, Paul The Big Picture, Fresh Air

Duplass, Mark Anna Faris is Unqualified

Esmail, Sam Remote Controlled

Gethard, Chris Good One, The Adam Carolla Show

Gillum, Andrew Pod Save America

Goldberg, Danny Sounds & Vision

Goodwin, Doris Kearns The Ezra Klein Show, Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

Hayes, Sean Recode Decode

Idle, Eric Bullseye, WTF with Marc Maron

Jacinto, Manny The Good Place: The Podcast

• Jason!

King, Elle Bobbycast

Kolbert, Elizabeth Longform Podcast

Lear, Norman Maltin on Movies

Lee, Spike Playback

Lin, Jeremy Freakonomics Radio

McCarthy, Melissa Fresh Air

McElhenney, Rob Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard

Merchant, Stephen Inside of You

Middleditch, Thomas Comedy Bang! Bang!

Minhaj, Hasan The Bill Simmons Podcast

Orlean, Susan Here’s the Thing with Alec Baldwin, Bookworm

Oz, Dr. The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast

Philipps, Busy Katie Couric

Plaza, Aubrey Talkhouse

• In conversation with Craig Robinson

Quavo The Bill Simmons Podcast

Redzepi, René House of Carbs

Roberts, Julia Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations, Remote Controlled

• The Hollywood legend goes two parts with Oprah, one part with Remote Controlled about the TV adaptation of “Homecoming.”

Robinson, Craig Talkhouse

• In conversation with Aubrey Plaza

Rogen, Seth How Did This Get Made?

Schiff, Richard The West Wing Weekly

Serrano, Shea The Bill Simmons Podcast

Silver, Nate The Ezra Klein Show

Singh, Lilly Pretty Big Deal

Slater, Kelly The Joe Rogan Experience

Thompson, Ben Conversations With Tyler

Ullman,Tracey Creative Conversation

Wain, David Comedy Bang! Bang!

Wojcicki, Anne Recode Decode

Yates, Sally The New Yorker Radio Hour

Notable New Podcasts

1) Believed

• NPR and Michigan Radio team for an investigative pod series that explores the question: “How did Larry Nassar, an Olympic gymnastics doctor, get away with abusing hundreds of women and girls for two decades?”

2) It Seemed Smart

• SB Nation debuts a seven-episode series about “the amusing, diabolical, and entertaining world of sports trickery and mayhem.” Spencer Hall hosts.

3) FWD: Thinking

• Quartz’s new pod covers “bold professionals who have challenged the status quo to recreate their careers.” Khe Hy hosts.

4) Dreamboy

• Night Vale Presents’ latest “is a story of creatures, human and otherwise, caught in the eternal pornography of the cosmos, told in the blockbuster cinematic style of Spielberg classics.” Listen for the murderous zebra.

5) My Best Break-Up

• The pod from Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine features different break-up stories each week. Guests describe how their break-ups transformed their lives. Maeve Higgins hosts.

6) Instant Message

• Wall Street Journal technology columnists David Pierce, Joanna Stern and Christopher Mims “talk about the most important tech trends.”

7) Tai Asks Why

• 11-year-old Tai Poole “is trying to find answers to life’s biggest questions.”

8) Blackwood

• The audio drama focuses on “the local legend of a monster called The Blackwood Bugman.” Turns out the local legends are true.

7 Pod Takes

1) “I feel like there’s an America out there that isn’t as crazy as we are.”

Listen: The Argument: Is The Supreme Court Broken? Should Democrats Run on #MeToo? (9:01)

• That’s Ross Douthat, one of the crazy “we” in question, along with his co-hosts on a new podcast from The New York Times opinion page, Michelle Goldberg and David Leonhardt.

• Says Douthat: “I’m not completely sure how much of this toxic mood is pervasive in the country, versus being sort of pervasive and constantly whipped up by those of us cursed to write about it for a living and argue about it on social media.”

• Fact check: True.

2) “We’re not afraid enough of water.”

Listen: Weather Geeks: Hurricane Hype & Hurdles (11:38)

• That’s Dr. Rick Knabb, former director of the National Hurricane Center, emphasizing the power of surges and flooding when it comes to hurricanes.

• Knabb and host Dr. Marshall Shepherd discuss whether the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale is the most effective way to communicate the power of storms.

• Knabb says it’s a legitimate question whether the popular focus on wind speed is helping or hurting our responses.

3) “We’ve all been trained to posture. We have to learn something different if what we want is to understand each other.”

Listen: On Being: Living the Questions: Can conversation make any difference at a moment like this? (10:55)

• That’s Krista Tippett, who devotes a 22-minute pod to articulating the awfulness of the Kavanaugh hearings and why we need to strive for better conversation.

• Tippett took to her pod to explain and elaborate her polarizing late-September tweet.

• My take: Another reason podcasts are better than Twitter. The complexity and nuance of Tippett’s explanation on her pod is better and more enriching than any tweet.

4) “You need to start from a mindset that shutting down curiosity leads to problems.”

Listen: HBR IdeaCast: The Power of Curiosity (4:51)

• That’s Harvard Business School professor Francesca Gino, whose research shows how creativity in the workplace can reduce conflicts and lead to better outcomes.

• She adds: Creativity doesn’t lead to inefficiency or unproductivity.

• My take: Excellent. We need more curiosity in the world.

5) “Think of an apology as an investment.”

Listen: Freakonomics Radio: How to Optimize Your Apology (8:29)

• That’s Ben Ho, associate professor of economics at Vassar College, who has developed a model of apologies.

• One prediction: Apologies are more likely in longer relationships.

• The most important prediction in his model: “For an apology to be effective it has to be costly.”

6) “The league’s more fun if the Knicks are good.”

Listen: The Bill Simmons Podcast: Guessing 1018-19 NBA Over/Unders With Joe House (16:16)

• That’s Simmons, wishing the best to New York’s awful NBA squad.

• Simmons discusses the rumor Kevin Durant wants to join the Knicks next year.

• My take: That would be fun. Welcome back, NBA.

7) “Just Google the Queen of England and paint that face onto your face, and you’ll be good.”

Listen: Dear Hank & John: President Alligator (13:18)

• That’s John Green’s rec for dealing with awkwardness of people staring at you when they’re singing “Happy Birthday” to you.

• He adds: “She always has people looking at her so she is incredibly good at making a face that says, ‘I acknowledge you, thank you acknowledging me, and let the festivities continue.’”

• My take: Worth a shot.

Go Deep

1) The Murder of Laquan McDonald

Listen: 16 Shots, The Daily

• The WBEZ Chicago/Chicago Tribune production that, over the course of 25 episodes, followed the trial of Jason Van Dyke, the Chicago police officer who shot and killed McDonald, finished this week.
• Binge time: 8 hours, 18 minutes.
• Chaser: The Daily debriefs its Chicago bureau chief on the case for 22 minutes.

2) The Impeachment of Bill Clinton

Listen: Slow Burn

• The celebrated, eight-part deep dive into President Clinton’s impeachment and the surrounding events concluded this week.
• Binge time: 5 hours, 59 minutes.

3) Long-Distance Cons

Listen: The New Yorker Radio Hour

• The two-part pod about a businessman who “lost his fortune in what seems to have been a scam; years later, his daughter goes to confront the man behind the scheme.”
• Binge time: 1 hour, 4 minutes.

4) “Kokomo”

Listen: Punch Up the Jam

• A 1 hour, 35 minute deep dive into the Beach Boys’ polarizing last big hit.
• Says co-host Miel Bredouw: “This would be the whitest man in the world’s favorite song to strip dance to.”

5) Cops and Computers

Listen: Reply All

• The two-part pod focuses on New York City police officers who “are in a fight against their own police department.” A broken computer system stands at the center of it all.
• Binge time: 1 hour, 25 minutes.

Guest Appearances By…

Agg, Jen Women in Charge

• Restaurateur talks about her restaurant empire.

Aina, Jackie Creative Conversation

Albom, Mitch Kickass News, Nobody Told Me!

Barinholtz, Ike Comedy Bang! Bang!, The Lowe Post, The Big Picture, The Adam Carolla Show

• Actor/comedian makes the pod rounds to talk about his new movie, “The Oath.”

Barr, Roseanne The Joe Rogan Experience

Baty, Chris Write-minded Podcast

• Convo with the founder of NaNoWriMo.

Bell, Kristen Modern Love

• She reads an essay by Lori Jakiela, “The Plain, Unmarked Box Arrived.”

Big Freedia Keep It

Boot, Max Stay Tuned with Preet

Brown, Yvette Nicole Anna Faris is Unqualified

Chalamet, Timothée Playback

Chazelle, Damien Fresh Air

Che, Michael Origins SNL

Dikkers, Scott Kickass News

• Convo with founder of The Onion.

Erickson, Erick On Being

Gad, Josh Curious with Josh Peck

Gethard, Chris The Hilarious World of Depression

Gibbard, Ben Talkhouse

Griffiths, Megan Talkhouse

Gyllenhaal, Maggie Here’s the Thing with Alec Baldwin

Henson, Taraji P. Skimm’d From the Couch

Herzog, Werner Maltin on Movies

Honnold, Alex Ted Talks Daily, Pardon My Take

• Climber talks free solo climb of Yosemite’s El Capitan.

Jenkins, Tamara The FilmStruck Podcast

Jost, Colin Origins SNL

Kerry, John Off Message

Khosrowshahi, Dara Inside the Hive with Nick Bilton

• Uber’s CEO talks autonomous vehicles, Uber’s culture.

Kohn, Sally On Being

Kroll, Nick The Joe Rogan Experience

Krugman, Paul Conversations with Tyler

Lenker, Adrianne All Songs Considered

• Convo with the songwriter and lead singer of Big Thief.

Longoria, Eva Tilted

McCarthy, Andrew Deviate with Rolf Potts

Meyers, Seth Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard

Mitchell, Billy Dueling Decades

• Gaming legend on Donkey Kong, shenanigans in Iowa.

Monáe, Janelle This Song

Nowitzki, Dirk The J.J. Redick Podcast

Orange, Tommy Forked Up

Orman, Suze Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

• The two-parter with the finance expert goes 2+ hours.

Ovitz, Michael The Adam Carolla Show

Reilly, John C. The Bill Simmons Podcast

Sarandon, Susan Oprah’s Master Class

Shteyngart, Gary Bookworm

Schur, Mike The Gist

Sedaris, David Monocle: The Big Interview, The Adam Buxton Podcast

Soloway, Jill Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

Spacek, Sissy Off Camera with Sam Jones

Thompson, Keenan Origins SNL

Trevorrow, Colin Talkhouse

Union, Gabrielle Pretty Big Deal

Vargas, Jose Antonio The Ezra Klein Show

Vile, Kurt WTF with Marc Maron

Villaseñor, Melissa Origins SNL

Wambach, Abby How It Is

Winkler, Henry Inside of You

Yellowtail, Bethany The Mash-Up Americans

Notable New Podcasts

1) One to Grow On

• Hallie Casey launches a pod that “tries to understand the impacts of food production.”

2) Legal Wars

• Wondery’s new pod recounts “the most famous court cases in American history,” with host Hill Harper.

3) The Argument

• The New York Times Opinion page goes pod, explaining “arguments from across the political spectrum” once a week.

4) Sold in America

• Noor Tagouri hosts “an eight-episode journey into the world of selling sex in the United States.”

5) Tilted: A Lean In Podcast

• The pod focuses on the “gender bias that lurks in unexpected places, the impact it has on our everyday lives, and what happens when women lean in and start driving change.” It kicks off with a visit to Reese Witherspoon’s production company.

6) Underdog

• Texas Monthly and Pineapple Street Media team to cover “the most expensive, most talked-about political race of 2018: the U.S. Senate contest between Congressman Beto O’Rourke and Senator Ted Cruz.”

7 Pod Takes

1) “Don’t be afraid to sit down in a crappy place and order every single thing you don’t recognize on the fucking menu.”

Listen: The Trip: A damn fine mezcal (11:57)

• That’s José Andrés, distilling a lesson learned from the late, great Anthony Bourdain in a bittersweet episode of the Roads & Kingdoms pod.
• Andrés joins Nathan Thornburgh and Matt Goulding in a heartfelt pod lamenting the loss of their friend and partner Bourdain, and celebrating a worldview that Bourdain championed.
• My take: Still feeling Bourdain’s loss. Glad to see R&K keep the pod going.

2) “Grievance and anger is a powerful motivating force in politics.” 

Listen: I Have to Ask: Nate Silver (6:03)

• That’s FiveThirtyEight’s Silver, with a take on one potential dynamic at play in the 2018 U.S. midterm elections next month, and potentially beyond, in the wake of the Kavanaugh hearings and almost two years of Trump.
• Adds Silver: “The more you gain policy-wise, particularly when you try to push forward policies whose popularity is ambiguous to slightly negative, then voters want to balance and you pay a price for that.”
• My take: Here’s to some righteous anger.

3) “I don’t love gentle things anymore.”

Listen: Recode Decode: ‘Full Frontal’ host Samantha Bee (32:03)

• So says Bee, who isn’t interested in just being entertained.
• She adds: “I like someone to take my hand and drag me into a world.”
• Host Kara Swisher conducts a compelling interview with Bee, ranging from her entertainment preferences to dealing with the fallout from her description of Ivanka Trump to the gamification of everything.

4) “It makes the telemarketing era look quaint.”

Listen: Today, Explained: All my friends are robocalls (11:10)

• That’s Simon van Zuylen-Wood on the rise of robocalls, a scourge of the digital era. About 4.2 billion robocalls were made last month.
• He traces the exhausting history of phone scams and unwanted calls back more than 100 years.
• My take: Same as yours, I’m sure. Someone make ‘em stop.

5) “A focus on quality, on uniqueness, on locality, on experience, ends up amounting to a kind of claustrophobic sameness.”

Listen: Decoder Ring: Hotel Art (30:17)

• That’s Willa Paskin, who goes deep on the evolution of hotel art and ends up in a familiar place.
• It’s the same as what’s happened at farm-to-table restaurants and “impeccably sourced coffee houses.”
• She adds: “Everywhere you go, there you are in a room with perfectly bespoke art that so carefully reflects presiding good taste. It looks like all the other rooms full of bespoke art.”

6) “Even if you’re famous, you shouldn’t go around stealing people’s memories.”

Listen: Heavyweight: Rob (19:45)

• So says Jonathan Goldstein, investigating whether Rob Corddry really broke his arm when he was eleven, as he remembers, or if he’s making it up, conflating his experience with his brother Nate’s, as his family believes.
• My take: It’s a poignant, entertaining pod about memory and the dynamics of family.
• Spoiler: Goldstein gets to the bottom of the mystery. Corddry ain’t stealing nobody’s memories.

7) “Pretty much everyone who’s fifty-one and still making rock ‘n’ roll is embarrassing most of the time.”

Listen: The Great Debates: Kurt Cobain Would Not Have Embarrassed Us(17:35)

• That’s Dave King, who takes the position that Cobain, should he have lived to be 51 and still with us today, would have embarrassed us because all old rockers embarrass us.

• My take: Wrong. Exhibit A: Without Bob Dylan still doing it into his fifties and beyond, we wouldn’t have this amazing moment.

Go Deep

1) Artificial Intelligence

Listen: American Innovations

• The six-part pod on thinking machines ends with an interview with chess legend Garry Kasparov.
• Binge time: 3 hours, 13 minutes.

2) That Infamous Sarah Palin Interview

Listen: Katie Couric

• The two-part docupod looks back 10 years to Couric’s interviews with the then-VP candidate, and asks how Palin’s rise helped usher in a new brand of politics.
• Binge time: 1 hour, 40 minutes.

3) “Dazed and Confused”

Listen: The Rewatchables

• The Ringer’s Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, and Sean Fennessey go deep, “kick some ass, and drink some beer” with the Linklater classic.
• Binge time: 1 hour, 16 minutes.

4) “Halloween” the Movie Franchise

Listen: Halloween Unmasked, Nerdificent

• Two pods take a deep dive into the scary movie franchise, with Halloween Unmasked kicking off an eight-part look.
• Nerdificent goes deep for 1 hour, 17 minutes.

Guest Appearances By…

Armisen, Fred The A24 Podcast

Baldwin, Alec Origins: SNL

• SNL’s Trump talks SNL, Trump.

Bardem, Javier Off Camera with Sam Jones

Barinholtz, Ike It’s Been a Minute with Sam Sanders

Bell, Kristen Keep It

Bloom, Rachel Remote Controlled

Bridges, Jeff Kickass News

Brown, Alton The Sporkful

Charles, Larry Waking Up with Sam Harris

Chazelle, Damien Playback with Kris Tapley

Cummings, Elijah Off Message

D’Apolito, Lisa The Adam Carolla Show

• Convo with the director of “Love, Gilda.”

Damon, Matt The Bill Simmons Podcast

Deneen, Patrick The Ezra Klein Show

Faris, Anna WTF with Marc Maron

Garbus, Merrill Talkhouse

• In conversation with Meghan Remy.

Gay, Roxane How It Is

Glaser, Nikki The Joe Rogan Experience

Green, Hank How to Be Amazing with Michael Ian Black

Haberman, Maggie The Moment with Brian Koppelman

Hague, Nick Houston We Have a Podcast

• Convo with the astronaut.

Hawke, Ethan Mad Influence

Hirono, Mazie Hysteria

Hozier All Songs Considered

• The singer/songwriter guest DJs.

Jett, Joan The New Yorker Radio Hour

Jones, Radhika Recode Media with Peter Kafka

Kardashian West, Kim Pretty Big Deal with Ashley Graham

Kid Mero, The The Bill Simmons Podcast

Kramer, Jana Inside of You

Kroll, Nick Comedy Bang! Bang!

Lewis, Michael Fresh Air

LL Cool J Oprah’s Master Class

Maher, Bill Waking Up with Sam Harris

Mayer, Jane Stay Tuned with Preet

McFarlane, Bonnie The Church of What’s Happening Now: With Joey Coco Diaz

McLendon-Covey, Wendi Armchair Expert

Michaels, Lorne Origins SNL

Nosrat, Samin The Tim Ferriss Show

Osnos, Evan Fresh Air

• The New Yorker writer talks Facebook and Zuck.

Pelosi, Nancy Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

Phair, Liz This Song

Power, Cat Song Exploder

• Chan Marshall breaks down her song “Woman.”

Remy, Meghan Talkhouse

• In conversation with Merrill Garbus.

Richards, Cecile How It Is

Ryan, Joey You Made it Weird with Pete Holmes

Santaolalla, Gustavo This Movie Changed Me

• The Oscar-winning composer talks “Wings of Desire.”

Schwartzman, Jason The A24 Podcast

Silverman, Riley Queery with Cameron Esposito

Smith, Kevin Anna Faris is Unqualified

Spacek, Sissy WTF with Marc Maron

Tenacious D Bullseye

Todd, Chuck The Axe Files

Traister, Rebecca Why Is This Happening? with Chris Hayes, The Ezra Klein Show, The Gist, Longform Podcast

• The writer makes the pod rounds promoting her new book, “Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women’s Anger.”

Notable New Podcasts

1) Crimetown

• In season two of the pod Marc Smerling and Zac Stuart-Pontier go deep on the culture of crime in Detroit.

2) Halloween Unmasked

• The Ringer launches an eight-part pod “celebrating the remarkable and terrifying phenomenon of America’s most revolutionary horror film, ‘Halloween.’”

3) Fangs

• A four-part pod about Dracula as a pop culture phenomenon.

4) Without Fail

• In the conversational pod, Gimlet’s Alex Blumberg talks to “visionaries of all kinds — about their successes, and their failures, and what they learned from both.”

5) Wild Thing

• The Los Angeles Times calls this pod “’Serial’ for Sasquatches.”

6) Mad Influence

• GQ gets in the pod game with “a conversational deep-dive into the behind-the-scenes stories and hard-won wisdom of iconic creative careers.”

7) Bear Brook

• The true crime pod from New Hampshire Public Radio covers a “cold case that changed the way murders will be investigated forever.”

8) Unobscured

• The pod from Lore’s Aaron Mahnke promises “to dig deep and shed light on some of history’s darkest moments.” The first-season topic: The Salem Witch Trials.

9) Heavyweight

• It’s season three of the pod that “goes back to the moment everything changed.”

10) Pretty Big Deal with Ashley Graham

• The “supermodel, style icon and barrier-breaking body activist” launches a pod with conversations about “culture, beauty, business and owning who you are” with noted podcast aficionado Kim Kardashian West.

11) Threedom

• Scott Aukerman, Lauren Lapkus, and Paul F. Tompkins “focus on the basics of being funny with each other.” The Wrap describes the pod as “casual conversations that suddenly veer into sharp bits of improv.”

I also listened to Slow Burn. I don’t think getting infuriated by Linda Tripp helped my recovery any.

7 Pod Takes

1) “It’s the most crushing non-important thing that can happen to you in life.”

Listen: The Rewatchables: ‘Rounders’ with Bill Simmons and Sean Fennessey(28:15)

• That’s Fennessey, during a 1 hour, 33 minute deep dive on “Rounders,” on the whiplash of losing at poker in a particular way.
• The moment defined: “[Y]ou hit a big hand and you’re so deluded with euphoria about hitting the hand you don’t realize there’s a better hand out there.”
• My take: Find someone who talks about you the way Fennessey and Simmons talk about “Rounders.” Or maybe run away from that person? Your call on how comfortable you are with obsession.

2) “Central casting couldn’t have cast a better villain.”

Listen: Slow Burn: Tell-All (5:12)

• That’s Linda Tripp, acknowledging the perception of her backstabbing role in the grand saga of Bill Clinton’s impeachment.
• My take: It’s an excellent, layered ep of the multi-part chronicle, with a meta subplot that hinges on host Leon Neyfakh’s own surreptitious recording of Tripp.
• Says Neyfakh: “I had thought that taping Linda Tripp without her knowledge was a violation of her trust. She seemed to think that it has brought us closer together.”

3) “That was my lowest point of my life, to have to eat a Thousand Island sandwich.”

Listen: Ear Hustle: Birdbaths and a Lockbox (12:54)

• So says San Quentin inmate Michael Williams, on what he had to do to get through a lockdown.
• Recipe for a Thousand Island sandwich, for the uninitiated: Thousand Island salad dressing, bread.
• Williams’s admission comes in the Season 3 opener, a deep dive into prison lockdowns.

4) “It’s amazing how [sports] provide a kind of structure of meaning in people’s lives.”

Listen: Freakonomics Radio: How Sports Became Us (9:51)

• That’s Jennifer Egan, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist with no innate interest in sports, talking about … sports. She came to her interest through one of her children.
• Egan’s one of an eclectic, interesting bunch of people talking to host Stephen J. Dubner for a Freakonomics series “The Hidden Side of Sports,” which will ask what pushes athletes to excel, among other topics.
• Other sources on tap include: Mark Cuban, Mikaela Shiffrin, Kim Ng, Daryl Morey, Kerri Walsh Jennings, and a busload of economists, of course.
• My take: Extremely relevant to many of my interests. High hopes for the series.

5) “I ate goulash before every race … I ate Spam on Christmas Eve. I’m not an elite athlete.”

Listen: Another Mother Runner: #329: In-Person Conversation with Two-Time Olympian Kara Goucher (9:02)

• That’s Goucher, who is indeed an elite runner (evidence: two Olympics appearances), with a funny and poignant articulation of her gnawing self-doubt.
• Controlling that doubt has been “so important in my career,” she says.
• AMR co-host Dimity McDowell gives Goucher props for her openness and emotionalism.
• My take: Goucher’s elite, but a relatable elite.

6) “That’s like an elevator, but sideways.”

Listen: Everything is Alive: Ana, Elevator (11:35)

• That’s Ana the Elevator, with her elevator-centric view of the world, talking about a bus.
• If you’re wondering what an elevator thinks of stairs, this pod’s for you.
• Spoiler: Upon seeing stairs for the first time, Ana says, “Wow. These are beautiful.”

7) “My dream is that I’m in bed by 8:30 every night.”

Listen: Queery: Tig Notaro (46:34)

• That’s Notaro, on life with kids and why it’s hard for her to do standup.
• She says of her current lifestyle: “There’s nothing I’d rather be doing.”
• My take: Right on, Tig.

Go Deep

1) Hurricane Harvey

Listen: The Daily

• A two-parter tells the story of how Houston’s emergency systems failed during last year’s hurricane, and how that affected one family.
• Binge time: 51 minutes

2) “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”

Listen: Binge Mode

• Another book, another binge epic. Mallory Rubin and Jason Concepcion continue their Harry Potter immersion with a 10-part deep dive into the fifth book in J.K. Rowling’s series, including the movie.
• Binge time: 14 hours, 45 minutes

3) “The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy

Listen: The Bechdel Cast

• The two-part “epicsode” breaks down the three “LOTR” films.
• Binge time: 2 hours, 4 minutes

Guest Appearances By…

Apatow, Judd Anna Faris is Unqualified

Arguello, Marcella The Mash-Up Americans

Banks, Patrice Raising the Bar

• Convo with founder of Girls Auto Clinic.

Belsky, Scott The Tim Ferriss Show

Burr, Bill The H3 Podcast

Byer, Nicole Not Too Deep with Grace Helbig, Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness

• Convos with the “Nailed It” host.

Carden, D’Arcy I Think You’re Interesting

• Janet!

Christensen, Erika Inside of You

Clapper, James The Josh Marshall Podcast

Cohen, Joshua Bookworm

• Author talks about his book “ATTENTION: Dispatches from a Land of Distraction.”

Cole, Kat Skimm’d From the Couch

• Convo with President of FOCUS brands.

Dorsey, Jack Recode Media

• Twitter’s CEO on Twitter’s problems, plans.

Eichner, Billy WTF with Marc Maron

Fallon, Morgan The Joe Rogan Experience

• Convo with a producer and director of “Parts Unknown.”

Fonda, Jane Remote Controlled

Formichetti, Nicola Creative Conversation

• The artistic director talks business, working with Lady Gaga.

French, David The Ezra Klein Show

Gabbard, Tulsi The Joe Rogan Experience

Galifianakis, Zach Comedy Bang! Bang!

Griffin, Kathy The Breakfast Club

Hahn, Kathryn Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard

• 2 hours, 47 minutes with the actress about monogamy, the Amish.

Haidt, Jonathan Waking Up with Sam Harris

• Convo with the author of “The Coddling of the American Mind.”

Han, Jenny Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me!

Hawke, Ethan Modern Love

• Actor reads Pauls Toutonghi’s story “Learning Humanity From Dogs.”

Holder, Eric Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

Holofcener, Nicole The Big Picture

Isbell, Jason Pod Save America

Jefferson, Cord Invisibilia

Landgraf, John Strictly Business

Jacinto, Manny The Good Place: The Podcast

• Jason!

Jealous, Ben Off Message

Jordan, Kim How I Built This with Guy Raz

• Convo with a founder of New Belgium Brewing Company.

Key, Keegan-Michael The Bill Simmons Podcast

LaBelle, Patti Oprah’s Master Class

Leibovich, Mark Recode Decode

Lessin, Jessica The Substack Podcast

Lethem, Jonathan Filmstruck

Lorre, Chuck Maltin on Movies

Lovett, Jon The Axe Files

McGarry, Flynn Here’s the Thing with Alec Baldwin

McKenna, Aline Brosh Scriptnotes

Minhaj, Hasan The JJ Redick Podcast

Miller, Amy The Soft Spot

• The comedian talks about all things Pee-Wee Herman.

Nolan, Katie The Bill Simmons Podcast

Olson, Martha Rossini House of Carbs

• Founder of Sweet Martha’s Cookie Jar, which sells 1 million cookies a day at the Minnesota State Fair.

Rascoff, Spencer Inside the Hive with Nick Bilton

• CEO of Zillow shares why poor and middle class Americans are being priced out of the housing market.

Rhodes, Ben Pod Save the World

Rogen, Lauren Miller It’s Been a Minute with Sam Sanders

Ronan, Saoirse Feminists Don’t Wear Pink

Rothwell, Natasha I Think You’re Interesting

Saget, Bob Curious with Josh Peck

Stelter, Brian The Jamie Weinstein Show

Teigen, Chrissy Bon Appetit Foodcast

• She promotes her new book, makes pad Thai carbonara.

Thiel, Peter The Rubin Report

Tyson, Neil deGrasse Kickass News

Walsh, Jennifer Rudolph The Goop Podcast

• Literary agent talks storytelling, Together Live.

Whyte, David On Being

Winkler, Henry You Made it Weird with Pete Holmes

Wood, Anthony Recode Media with Peter Kafka

• Roku CEO talks streaming.

Wong, Nicole Recode Decode

• Convo with former deputy CTO of the U.S.

Yang, Jenny How It Is

Yarris, Nick The Joe Rogan Experience

• Writer talks about being wrongly convicted of murder and spending 22 years on death row.

Zeng, Ming HBR Ideacast

• Convo with Alibaba’s chief strategy officer.

Notable New Podcasts

1) Ellen on the Go

• A behind-the-scenes companion pod for “The Ellen Degeneres Show,” hosted by the show’s exec producers.

2) Southwest vs. American

• Business Wars kicks off a series on the battle between two U.S. airlines.

3) The Oval Office Tapes

• A dramatic podcast from R.J. Cutler asks, “What if that soccer ball Vladimir Putin gave to President Trump was covered in microscopic transmitters?”

4) Queerly Beloved

• From Vice, Sarah Burke and Fran Tirado host “a multifaceted portrait of LGBTQ chosen family — the people who help us figure out who we are and inspire us to live as our most authentic selves.”

5) Feminists Don’t Wear Pink

• Scarlett Curtis “interviews inspiring women about what feminism means to them.”

6) Wolverine: The Long Night

• Marvel’s first scripted podcast, which was previously available only to paid subscribers, is now free.

7) Directionally Challenged

• New pod from Candice King and Kayla Ewell about “30-something women asking life’s questions and learning from the people who just might have the answers.

And a couple I missed last week:

8) Uncover: Escaping NXIVM

• An investigative pod series about the cult.

9) The Secret History of the Future

• Tom Standage and Seth Stevenson “examine the ancient ingenuity that our modern digital technology can learn from.”

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this newsletter, please forward it to a friend. Also, find us on Twitter @WeekInPodcasts.

The new season of Slow Burn started this week and, yeah, it’s great. It’s now at the top of my pod queue for my upcoming vacation.

Reminder: While I’m away, I’ll be taking a break from the newsletter. The next full edition comes out August 31. Thanks again for reading.

7 Pod Takes

1) “It’s got a bigoted attitude, but you can dance to it.”

Listen: Popcast: Can Guns N’ Roses, or Any Artist, Erase an Unflattering Moment (6:17)

• That’s host Jon Caramanica on “One in a Million,” the GNR song that “includes offensive and bigoted language” — and that has been disappeared from the band’s new box set.
• Caramanica and his guests address the question: “What happens when artists take control of their legacy and say, ‘Nah, we didn’t do that’?”
• My take: Fascinating look at the impermanence of art and culture in the digital age.

2) “There’s definitely a thing in American culture where if it looks like you’re putting in effort, gross.”

Listen: Pop Culture Happy Hour: Punching Bags and What’s Making Us Happy This Week (2:15)

• Audie Cornish puts her finger on the pulse of an unfortunate strain of American culture in explaining her solidarity with cultural “punching bag” Anne Hathaway.
• Adds Cornish, of that popular perception of Hathaway: “It had that feel of she’s raising her hand in the front of the class all the time and everyone hates that kid. Guess what? We get the last laugh.”
• Also defended by the PCHHers: Jennifer Aniston, pumpkin spice, Guy Fieri.

3) “‘No justice, no peace’ is a statement of fact.”

Listen: Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations: Mitch Landrieu, Part 2: A White Southerner Confronts History (18:17)

• That’s former New Orleans’ mayor Landrieu in a two-part conversation about race in the United States.
• Adds Landrieu: “If there is no justice. If I don’t feel like I’m being fairly treated. If I’m not given the same opportunity. If I’m not afforded the same responsibility. If I don’t have the same kind of hope. I feel alienated from you. And when we’re alienated we can’t be together. There can be no sense of peace.”
• Start with part one.

4) “Newt Gingrich is a Typhoid Mary of the divisiveness that exists in our politics.”

Listen: Stay Tuned with Preet: Why I Quit the GOP (with Steve Schmidt)(21:50)

• So says Schmidt, explaining his decision to leave the Republican party.
• Schmidt’s timeline for the GOPs evolution into a cult of personality begins with Gingrich’s rise in 1994 and runs through the party’s change from being strong in the North and West to becoming a “Southern, Evangelical Christian party fueled by resentment.”

5) “YouTube was that friend that always out-edges you.”

Listen: The Ezra Klein Show: Why online politics gets so extreme so fast (5:47)

• That’s Zeynep Tufekci, pointing out how YouTube’s “Up Next” algorithm forces extreme views into its users’ media diets.
• Her theory: “Slightly edgier content is interesting. It’s novel. It’s not the same old, same old.” And that edginess is attractive, especially to young people.

6) “There is no place more alone at a party than the dishwashing station.”

Listen: Dear Hank and John: Let’s Be Mermaids (17:14)

• That’s a good thing, says John Green, best-selling novelist and guy who apparently spends 45 minutes avoiding people and listening to podcasts while the party winds down.
• Says Green: “It is a slightly selfless act, but mostly selfish.”

7) “The Hope Diamond’s curse can smell fear.”

Listen: Sidedoor: The Curse of the Hope Diamond (3:24)

• So says half-joking — but maybe half-serious! — host Tony Cohn, who illuminates the stories and the truth behind the infamous gem’s dark side.
• My take: Play it safe, friends. Don’t get all National Treasure-y with the Hope Diamond.

Go Deep

1) Startup Churches

Listen: StartUp

• Gimlet’s five-part series on “planting” new churches like they’re tech companies concludes.
• Binge time: 3 hours, 9 minutes.

2) eBay vs. PayPal

Listen: Business Wars

• The six-part series dissects the rivalry between the two pioneering internet powerhouses.
• Binge time: 2 hours, 33 minutes.

3) “The Dark Knight”

Listen: Filmspotting

• The pod marks the 10th anniversary of the landmark superhero movie with a deep dive.
• Binge time: 1 hour, 50 minutes.

4) Depression and Creativity

Listen: The Great God of Depression

• The five-part series on depression as it relates to creativity dropped all of its episodes last Friday. I missed it before sending last week’s newsletter.
• Binge time: 1 hour, 56 minutes.

5) “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”

Listen: Binge Mode

• Premature with this last week, too. Mallory Rubin and Jason Concepcion continue their summer of Harry Potter immersion with an eight-part deep dive into the fourth book in J.K. Rowling’s series, plus the movie.
• Binge time: 12 hours, 21 minutes.

Guest Appearances By…

Almond, Steve The Moment with Brian Koppelman

Armstrong, Jesse The Watch

• Convo with the showrunner of “Succession.”

Blacc, Aloe Required Listening

Black, Michael Ian The Sporkful

Brady, Wayne Curious with Josh Peck

Byrne, Rose Off Camera With Sam Jones

Chu, Jon M. Playback

Clapper, James R. Trumpcast

Couric, Katie Stay Tuned with Preet

Culkin, Macaulay The Joe Rogan Experience

D’Onofrio, Vincent Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard

Falco, Edie Remote Controlled

Finnegan, William The New Yorker Radio Hour

• Remnick goes surfing with the Pulitzer winner.

Fogel, Susanna The Treatment

• Convo with director of “The Spy Who Dumped Me.”

Gill, Vince Walking the Floor

Huang, Eddie The Bill Simmons Podcast

Kaling, Mindy Scriptnotes

Kemper, Ellie Modern Love

• The actress reads Susan Perabo’s essay about the emotions of parenting.

Kroll, Nick The Dave Chang Show

Landgraf, John I Think You’re Interesting

• President and CEO of FX Networks on the future of TV, the problems with bingeing.

Lennon, Thomas The Adam Carolla Show

Leno, Jay WTF with Marc Maron

Lessin, Jessica The Digiday Podcast

• The Information founder on building a subscription-based media business.

Matlock, Glen Geoff Lloyd’s Hometown Glory

• Former Sex Pistols bassist talks about London.

Moynihan, Bobby Comedy Bang! Bang!

Ocasio-Cortez, Alexandria Pod Save America

O’Dowd, Chris WTF With Marc Maron

O’Neal, Shaquille Oprah’s Master Class

O’Rourke, Beto Pod Save the People

Promaulayko, Michele Skimm’d From the Couch

• Convo with the EIC of Cosmo.

Pryce, Jonathan I Think You’re Interesting

Rich, Nathaniel Longform Podcast

Rollins, Henry The Joe Rogan Podcast

• Punk legend goes almost 3 hours, promotes his new Showtime show.

Samuelsson, Marcus Eater Upsell

Schur, Mike The Good Place: The Podcast

Simmons, Bill Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

Talev, Margaret NPC Update-1

• Bloomberg News White House correspondent on covering the Trump administration.

Watts, Shannon Off Message

• Convo with founder of Moms Demand Action about gun regulation, knowing where to find the closest hospital.

Woodruff, Judy The Axe Files

Notable New Podcasts

1) Slow Burn: The Impeachment of Bill Clinton

• The second season of the hit pod takes on the saga of the president’s impeachment. Leon Neyfakh hosts.

2) Kalki Presents: My Indian Life

• Kalki Kanmani hosts the pod about “life for young Indian adults in the 21st century.”

3) Words Matter

• Elise Jordan and Steve Schmidt talk to “journalists, elected officials, policy-makers and thought-leaders” to “analyze the week’s news and get at the real truth behind all the distracting headlines.”

4) The Great God of Depression

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this newsletter, please forward it to a friend. Also, find us on Twitter @WeekInPodcasts.

7 Pod Takes

 1) “The exercise of curiosity requires a risk, a sacrifice, a commitment.”

Listen: Revisionist History: Malcolm Gladwell’s 12 Rules for Life (2:15)

• That’s Gladwell on why he loves one of Megan McArdle’s rules for life: “Always order one extra dish at a restaurant, an unfamiliar one.”

• Gladwell’s pod is a bait and switch — he doesn’t offer his own 12 rules — but it’s a great bait and switch.

• Gladwell puts forth one rule: Pull the goalie. Gladwell explains it in a typically Gladwellian way, circling through hockey strategy, home invasions, stand your ground laws and Wall Street quants for 45 minutes before getting to his point.

• That point: In life, don’t do the easy and agreeable thing.

2) “I think that’s the defining question of our time, not just in the United States but in Europe as well.”

Listen: The Daily: What Migrants Are Fleeing (21:18)

• So says Azam Ahmed, reacting to host Michael Barbaro’s articulation of “an incredibly complicated question for the United States.”

• The question: “If almost everyone in a country is living in fear and can make an argument that they need to come to the United States, what is the U.S. to do? It couldn’t possibly absorb an entire nation.”

• My take: A typically sober, insightful Daily pod about what’s driving migrants to the United States’ southern border and the towering challenges involved all around.

3) “It leaves truth telling no place to stand.”

Listen: Hidden Brain: Fake News: An Origin Story (22:14)

• That’s Andie Tucher, a professor at Columbia University, on Trump’s war on truth via assertions of “fake news.”

• She adds: “I find that really dangerous to the idea of a democracy.”

• Tucher and host Shankar Vedantam put the current cries of “fake news” into historical perspective, highlighting how what’s happening now differs from earlier cries of “fake news” in the U.S.

• My take: Tucher’s take’s on the money.

4) “Crumbs aren’t good in microgravity.”

Listen: The Kitchen Sisters Present: Give Space a Chance: Gastrodiplomacy in Orbit (4:43)

• So says Vickie Kloeris, manager of the International Space Station food system at the Johnson Space Center, in an excellent pod about food in space.

• It’s all about tortillas, she says. They offer a taste of Texas, where astronauts train. They also don’t shed crumbs that can peskily float into electronics.

• Spoiler: In space, people often crave spicy food.

5) “There’s gotta be a Ronaldo in there somewhere.”

Listen: The Indicator from Planet Money: The Beautiful Indicator (2:50)

• That’s Robert Smith, articulating the logic of Chinese leaders intent on turning their country into a world football/soccer superpower.

• China’s goal: to host and win the World Cup by 2050.

• The first steps: Build 20,000 training centers, 60,000 new fields and recruit 50 million players/potential Ronaldos.

6) “He just wanted to be the first cop in Middleboro to arrest a clown.”

Listen: Decoder Ring: Clown Panic (1:40)

• That’s Jonathan A. Martin, who was arrested in Kentucky in 2016 for wearing a creepy clown costume, on the motivation of his apprehending officer.

• Martin’s anecdote kicks off a terrific pod exploring the rise of creepy clowns in pop culture.

• Host Willa Paskin asks: “Why does an archetype that for hundreds of years made us laugh start to scare the bejesus out of us?”

7) “Cracker Jack are the coleslaw of candy.”

Listen: Pardon My Take: Vince Carter + Mt. Rushmore of Stadium Foods (14:44)

• The PMT guys stir up controversy around an early pick for the Mt. Rushmore of stadium foods.

• Spoiler: The hot dog earns George Washington’s spot.

Go Deep

1) The Supreme Court

Listen: Political Gabfest, Hysteria, Fake the Nation, Up First, NPR Politics, The Daily, 538 Politics

• The retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy and the court’s (awful) decision to uphold President Trump’s travel ban dominated the news and politics pods. Among the highlights:

• Pod Save America: “It seems very likely that John Roberts is the swing vote on the court now,” says Jon Lovett.

• Trumpcast: Jacob Weisberg talks to UC Irvine Law and Poli Sci professor Rick Hasen.

• More Perfect: Reprises its episode on Korematsu v. United States, the case that upheld the internment of Americans of Japanese heritage during World War II.

2) The Islamic State

Listen: Caliphate

• The acclaimed New York Times pod about the Islamic State and the fall of Mosul finished up late last week, with the 10th and final episode trickling into The Daily’s pod feed over the weekend.

• Translation: Caliphate finished last week but I missed the last episode in my feed. I’m including it this week because it’s too powerful to skip. All 12 episodes are now available.

• Binge time: 5 hours, 25 minutes

3) WTF is Up with Kanye West?

Listen: Popcast

• The pod asks and answers important questions about Yeezy for 1 hour, 24 minutes.

4) Yellow Journalism

Listen: Business Wars: Hearst vs. Pulitzer

• A seven-part deep-dive into the rivalry that shaped American journalism for a generation.

• Binge time: 2 hours, 57 minutes

5) Pregnancy Discrimination

Listen: The Daily

• The 44-minute, two-part pod investigates “systematic and pervasive” discrimination against pregnant women inside large American companies.

6) “The Star-Spangled Banner”

Listen: Punch Up the Jam

• The pod AV Club deemed one of the best of 2018 so far goes deep on the U.S. national anthem for 1 hour, 12 minutes.

Guest Appearances By…

Abrams, Stephanie Weather Geeks

• Convo with the meteorologist.

Anderson, Louie The Treatment

Apatow, Judd The New Yorker Radio Hour

• In conversation with Molly Ringwald about John Hughes movies and shifting cultural standards, Apatow asks, “How are we supposed to feel about jokes that we wouldn’t do now?”

Balaban, Bob I Think You’re Interesting

Bell, Kristen The Good Place: The Podcast

Bercovici, Jeff The Outside Podcast

• Author of “Play On” talks about being an athlete into your golden years.

Bialik, Mayim Anna Faris is Unqualified

Bloom, Rachel Amy Schumer Presents 3 Girls, 1 Keith

Boom, Steve The Bob Lefsetz Podcast

• The VP of Amazon Music on how Alexa and music. Says host Lefsetz about Amazon Music: The service might get little ink, but it’s a powerhouse.

Chesky, Brian Recode Decode

• Airbnb CEO on being on the wrong side of Trump, politics in tech.

Danes, Claire Remote Controller

De Laurentiis, Giada How to Be Amazing with Michael Ian Black

Garcetti, Eric The Ezra Klein Show

Gunn, James Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum

• Convo with the director of “Guardians of the Galaxy.”

Hoppins, Pete Planet Futbol with Grant Wahl

• Convo about Nigeria’s unis with Nike’s senior design director.

Howery, Lil Rey WTF with Marc Maron

Hyden, Steven Deviate With Rolf Potts

• Podcast host and author or “Twilight of the Gods” on rock as an aging art.

Kondabolu, Hari But That’s Another Story

Klein, Ezra Why is This Happening? With Chris Hayes

Meyers, Seth Remote Controller

Nugent, Ted The Joe Rogan Experience

Pesca, Mike Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air, The Sporkful

• The Gist host on politics, sports what-ifs and nachos.

Peterson, Jordan Remade in America with Bassem Youssef

• Convo with Canadian professor about Ukrainian farmers, white privilege.

Ringwald, Molly The New Yorker Radio Hour

• In conversation with Judd Apatow, she talks about her shifting feelings towards her work with John Hughes, which she wrote about for The New Yorker.

Rubio, Marco The Axe Files

• Convo with the U.S. Senator from Florida.

Shriver, Maria Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

Willner, Charlotte and Dave Recode Decode

• Convo with the creators of Facebook campaign “Reunite an immigrant parent with their child.”

Yang, Alan The Dave Chang Show

• Co-creator of “Master of None” on transitioning from studying biology to doing comedy.

Yankovic, Weird Al Comedy Bang! Bang!

• Post-”Ridiculously Self-Indulgent, Ill-Advised Vanity Tour” debrief from the musical comedy legend.

Zimmer, John How I Built This with Guy Raz

• Convo with co-founder of Lyft.

Notable New Podcasts

1) Hysteria

• Erin Ryan hosts “a bicoastal squad of opinionated, mouthy women to discuss news, politics, and cultural stories that affect women’s lives, from serious to absurd.”

2) Inside Jaws

• Hosted by Mark Ramsey, it’s a “story of one man, a fresh-faced, inexperienced director who nearly wrecked his promising career and became the most important filmmaker of our era.”

3) Cher and Retweet

• Comedians Andy Balloch and Justin Porter take a “comedic journey down the rabbit hole that is Cher’s twitter feed.”

4) The Control Group

• It’s a 10-part “historical fiction” pod. The gist: “Encouraged by a private research group, a doctor at a mental ward sheds his ethical restraints in an effort to pioneer a new form of mental cleansing.”

5) At Liberty

• The weekly ACLU pod “explores the biggest civil rights and civil liberties issues.”

7 Pod Takes

1) “I think you can be in love and not love the person.”

Listen: Amy Schumer Presents: 3 Girls, 1 Keith: Love (2:47)

• Schumer’s new pod begins with a hot take about love. She says: “Being ‘in love’ is a feeling that passes.”

• The whole pod’s about love, which, with Schumer (and three of her friends), means the conversation bounces from slow jams to the manipulation of “being songed” to Applebee’s to bladder devices.

• Also, there’s a Pound It or Pass segment, if you’d like to know which famous people Schumer and her friends would sleep with.

• Yes, Spotify’s paying her $1 million for her pod.

2) “If you could gamble on the existence of alien intelligence in Las Vegas, it’d be the easiest bet at the casino.”

Listen: Crazy/Genius: Why Haven’t We Found Aliens (5:44)

• Derek Thompson sums up the position of his guest, astrophysicist Adam Frank.

• The astrophysicist, by the way, would push all-in with a pro-alien intelligence bet.

• Says Thompson: “We are getting tantalizingly close to answering one of the greatest mysteries in the cosmos.”

• My take: A riveting, science-driven look at the oldest question in astronomy: Are we alone?

3) “This is an incredibly complicated policy problem even if you have the best, smartest, most experienced, compassionate people doing it. We do not have that in this situation.”

Listen: Pod Save America: “Sta-cey! Sta-cey! Sta-cey!” (4:18)

• That’s Dan Pfeiffer, talking about U.S. immigration policy and the Trump administration’s inhumane practices at the border.

• My take: I appreciate the mix of justified outrage and sober discussion about the challenges of border issues and immigration. The Pod Save America guys’ knowledge of the complex issue from their time in the Obama administration shows.

4) “Back in the day, if you wanted to see good-hearted Americans fighting Klansmen, you’d turn on Jerry Springer. And now if you want to see good-hearted Americans fighting Klansmen, you turn on CNN.”

Listen: The Press Box: Trump’s “Lies,” the Strange Case of Ali Watkins, and Stephen A. Smith (2:21)

• Co-host Bryan Curtis nails the state of media discourse in America.

5) “Biography the best form of history.”

Listen: The Tim Ferriss Show: Brandon Stanton — The Story of Humans of New York and 25M+ Fans (22:01)

• That’s Stanton, the man behind Humans of New York, which he says might be the most popular photography project on the planet.

• Biography, he says, “cuts through the theory” and the speculation of the author.

• My take: Inspiring story about an incredible project. Worth the Ferrissian-length pod of almost 2 hours.

6) “Everybody’s family believes they’ve pulled a fast one. And they never do. Everybody always knows.”

Listen: Dear Sugars: Who’s Your Daddy (24:11)

• That’s Steve Lickteig, whose family and most of his community kept his true identity a secret from him for 18 years.

• Spoilers: His mother and father, who he thought were his adoptive parents, are his biological grandparents. His eldest sister is his biological mother.

• My take: A fascinating look at Lickteig’s life, as well as the consequences of DNA testing and genetic discoveries on families.

7) “[It’s] kind of like when you get a really excellent burrito, and you’re like, ‘I cannot finish this, but I will.’”

Listen: Hannahlize This: We Tried a Rage Room (6:16)

• That’s Hannah Gelb, comparing smashing objects in a rage room to one of the greatest dishes in the world.

• My take: Rage rooms are like burritos? Rage rooms sound wonderful.

Got a Pod Take, a show to binge or a great guest I should consider for next week’s newsletter? Send it!

Go Deep

1) Songs of Summer

Listen: Switched on Pop, All Songs Considered

• Switched on Pop announces its Switched on Summer series, which will deconstruct “summer pop hits from the ‘60s to the present.”

• All Songs Considered pops open a box of wine and rides the roséwave for 38 minutes.

• Says NPR Music’s Lars Gotrich: Roséwave isn’t a musical genre. It’s a lifestyle.

2) Travel Writing

Listen: Deviate with Rolf Potts

• Travel writing heavyweights Potts and Thomas Swick highlight a discussion about the state of the genre in a post-Bourdain world.

• Binge time: 1 hour, 7 minutes.

3) Inclusivity in Outdoor Communities

Listen: Outside Podcast

• Outside wraps a four-part series looking at people of color in outdoor sports and communities.

• Binge time: 1 hour, 27 minutes

4) “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”

Listen: The Bechdel Cast

• A 1-hour, 16-minute breakdown of the movie.

5) “Pretty in Pink” Soundtrack

Listen: Heat Rocks

• Eliza Skinner goes 43 minutes on an iconic ‘80s movie soundtrack.

Guest Appearances By…

Adlon, Pamela Remote Controller

Alexander, Jason Modern Love

• The actor reads a story about the search for love and parking.

Anderson, Louie Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me!

Barbaro, Michael Recode Decode

• Convo with host of “The Daily.”

Bird, Brad The Treatment

Beane, Billy Men in Blazers

• Inspiration for “Moneyball” talks soccer.

Boogie2988 H3 Podcast

• Convo with the comedian/vlogger.

Bortles, Blake Pardon My Take

• Bortles!

Brady, Tom Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

• Two-part convo with the New England Patriots’ QB, who attempts to prove he’s not a robot.

Buss, Jeanie Inside of You

• Convo with the president of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Cannon, Kay FilmStruck

• The writer/director talks comedy writing, “Rocky” fantasies.

Cenac, Wyatt Late Night Whenever with Michelle Buteau

Cordeiro, Carlos Planet Futbol with Grant Wahl

• Convo with U.S. Soccer president about how Canada, Mexico and the U.S. won the 2026 World Cup. Also: Yes!

Donovan, Landon Planet Futbol with Grant Wahl

Ek, Daniel Recode Media with Peter Kafka

• Spotify’s CEO on R. Kelly, losing money.

Esposito, Cameron Remade in America with Bassem Youssef

Fahrenthold, David Pod Save America

• WaPo Pulitzer winner talks about his reporting on the Trump Foundation.

Frank, Adam The Joe Rogan Experience

• The astrophysicist goes 2 hours, 32 minutes on alien worlds.

Gillibrand, Kirsten Off Message

• Convo with the U.S. Senator from New York.

Glaser, Rob The Bob Lefsetz Podcast

• Convo with the founder of RealNetworks.

Grant, Heidi HBR Ideacast

• Social psychologist on how to ask colleagues for help.

Green, Laci Not Too Deep with Grace Helbig

• Convo with “the internet’s favorite sex educator.”

Hamm, Jon Hannibal Buress Handsome Rambler

Itzkoff, Dave WTF with Marc Maron

• Author of new Robin Williams bio talks about the one-of-a-kind comic.

James, Jim Celebration Rock

Jacinto, Manny The Good Place: The Podcast

• Jason!

Kaine, Tim Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

Kondabolu, Hari I Think You’re Interesting

Kreischer, Bert Anna Faris is Unqualified

Maddow, Rachel The Axe Files

Metcalf, Laurie Here’s the Thing with Alec Baldwin

Mitchell, Donovan The J.J. Redick Podcast

• Convo with one of the NBA’s top 2017-18 rookies.

Moore, Mandy Remote Controller

• Convo with the ”This is Us” star.

Mraz, Jason The Monocle Culture Show

Nash, Niecy It’s Been a Minute with Sam Sanders

Nichols, Rachel Pardon My Take

Olson, Kaitlin Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard

Pao, Ellen The Ezra Klein Show

Pfeiffer, Dan Recode Media with Peter Kafka, The Gist, The Moment with Brian Koppelman

• Convos with Pod Save America co-host about his new book, “Yes We (Still) Can: Politics in the Age of Obama, Twitter, and Trump.”

Prine, John This Song

• Singer/songwriter discusses Dylan’s “The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll.”

Riggle, Rob The Adam Carolla Show

Rosner, Helen Longform Podcast

• Convo with The New Yorker food writer.

Snider, Dee This Past Weekend

Stickles, Patrick This Must Be the Gig

• Singer of Titus Andronicus on Sleater-Kinney and the band’s new album.

Taffer, Jon The Adam Carolla Show

Thornton, Billy Bob WTF with Marc Maron

Wilde, Olivia The Goop Podcast

Wilson, Chip How I Built This with Guy Raz

• Convo with founder of Lululemon Athletica.

Yang, Andrew Waking Up with Sam Harris

• Longshot presidential candidate talks universal basic income.

Notable New Podcasts

1) Amy Schumer Presents: 3 Girls, 1 Keith

• Amy Schumer and her friends “dish about their lives, pop culture, politics, and stand-up comedy. It’s dinner with your besties—if your besties were morally bankrupt.” Extended episodes are available on Spotify.

2) Hard Factor

• Barstool Sports stays on brand with a “10ish minute news-suppository for people who think cable anchors don’t scream at each other enough.”

3) Rivers of Oil

• New Minnesota Public Radio pod’s “about the oil pipelines that flow beneath our feet and the epic tug of war between our reliance on oil and the risk that oil poses to the future.”

4) Aftereffect

• WNYC’s new pod tells the story of,a police shooting that “upended the life of Arnaldo Rios Soto, a 26-year old, non-speaking, autistic man.” Audrey Quinn hosts.

5) Hey Babe

• Missy and Bryan Lanning offer “a behind the scenes look into what it’s like running a family and multiple YouTube channels.”

6) Hollywood in Color

• The pod that covers “the stories of the stars usually left out of entertainment history — the people of color in front of and behind the camera” returns for its second season.

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this newsletter, please forward it to a friend. Also, find us on Twitter @WeekInPodcasts.

The rest of this week’s newsletter? Trump free.

Thanks to everyone who sent feedback during the last few weeks. I tightened things a bit, and I’ll continue to calibrate. Send more suggestions my way and, as always, thanks for subscribing!

7 Pod Takes: Provocative Thoughts From This Week’s Podcasts

1) “Computers don’t understand brains. Brains don’t understand computers.”

Listen: WSJ The Future of Everything: Hacking the Brain’s Code (6:07)

• That’s Justin Sanchez, director of the biological technologies office at DARPA, setting the playing field for a discussion about hacking human brains.

• Sanchez adds: “We’ve got to figure out what the dialog is going to be there.”

• Scientists are already connecting computers to paraplegics.

• My take: Fascinating pod. Humans can be amazing.

2) “There’s no cost to cruelty.”

Listen: Crazy/Genius: Is Online Dating Destroying Romance? (10:25)

• Host Derek Thompson sums up the position of his guest, sociologist Eric Klinenberg, who argues online dating is destroying romance.

• Spoiler: When dating outside of our traditional communities, he says, there’s less incentive to be polite.

• Adds Klinenberg on the rise in cruel behavior: “It can be a little titillating. People get off on it.”

• My take: Fascinating pod. Humans can be awful.

3) “You don’t have to be a natural to get really, really good at something.”

Listen: Hidden Brain: When Everything Clicks (41:49)

• That’s Shankar Vedantam, stating the position of his guest, Martin Levy, who uses a clicker — you know, the kind used to train dolphins and animals — to teach skills to humans without verbal feedback.

• Spoiler: It works. Removing emotions from learning can improve it.

• Levy adds: “Everyone isn’t going to be a wizard. We just want you to be really, really good.”

• My take: Another terrific, enlightening Hidden Brain ep.

4) “If you look at moon rocks, most of ‘em are kind of boring to look at. They have a bit of an image problem.”

Listen: Houston We Have a Podcast: Moon Rocks (2:31)

• So says planetary scientist Ryan Zeigler, who does his part to rehabilitate that image. The NASA pod goes 34 minutes on rocks from the moon.

• My take: It’s 34 riveting minutes.

5) “Imagine having that much power that people just want to applaud you for existing.”

Listen: Pop Culture Happy Hour: Ocean’s 8 and What’s Making Us Happy (4:11)

• That’s Bim Adewunmi on the power of Rihanna, as evidenced by audiences’ responses to her on-screen appearance in early screenings of “Ocean’s 8.”

• My take: I love heist movies. Can’t wait to see this.

6) “All the stat nerds are like, ‘Momentum doesn’t matter. Momentum’s a myth. There’s no statistical proof for momentum.’ Momentum exists.”

Listen: The Bill Simmons Podcast: Curry’s Electric Game 2, Plus Andy Samberg and Desus and Mero (40:14)

• Simmons gonna Simmons. His Exhibit A: Overtime of game one of the Warriors/Cavaliers NBA Finals, in the wake of J.R. Smith’s boneheaded play that extended the action.

• He and Samberg talk basketball and the parallels between NBA teams and “Saturday Night Live” casts.

7) “If you’re not punchable in your twenties for a while you’re doing something wrong.”

Listen: Inbox: Snickers Bar Mysteries with Rembert Browne (1:13)

• That’s co-host Matt Stroup, highlighting a pitfall of youth.

Go Deep

1) Stories of the World Cup

Listen: Men in Blazers, Ringer FC, American Fiasco, We Came to Win, Planet Futbol with Grant Wahl

• Soccer pods are acing Cup coverage before the games even start. Previews are table stakes. Deeper coverage abounds. Binge-worthy highlights:

• American Fiasco dropped the first five episodes of its series about how not to win a World Cup, aka the story of the U.S. men’s soccer team’s failure at the 1998 World Cup.

• We Came to Win has so far dropped nine episodes chronicling the Cup’s most memorable historical moments.

• Ringer FC covers the USMNT’s failure to qualify for 2018.

• On Planet Futbol, Wahl poses a question to Russian chess master Garry Kasparov: “Should we feel conflicted about being excited to watch a World Cup from Russia?”

• MIB goes the preview route, but host Roger Bennett deserves shouts. He recently became a U.S. citizen. Welcome, Rog!

• My not-so-hot World Cup take: Go Iceland!

2) What’s Happening in “Charm City”

Listen: The Daily

• The daily news pod goes long with a five-part series “about the life and death of a Baltimore teenager known as Nook, who was fatally shot by a police officer a year after the killing of Freddie Gray.”

• Binge time: 3 hours, 54 minutes.

3) “The Dynamo of DNA”

Listen: American Innovations

• The pod wraps up its seven-part series on the revolution spurred by our knowledge of DNA.

• Binge time: 5 hours, 1 minute.

4) An Outsider in Silicon Valley

Listen: StartUp

• StartUp completes its six-part series on Silicon Valley outsider Arlan Hamilton.

• Hamilton’s “a venture capitalist like no other — black, female, gay — and she’s out to prove that investors in the Valley are overlooking big returns they could tap into by investing in more outsiders.”

• Binge time: 3 hours, 3 minutes.

5) “Blue”

Listen: Sound Opinions

• A 59-minute dissection of Joni Mitchell’s classic album by hosts Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot.

Guest Appearances By…

Aster, Ari The Big Picture

• Convo with the filmmaker behind “Hereditary.”

Auletta, Ken The Moment With Brian Koppelman

• Author and The New Yorker writer talks curiosity.

Baker, Simon Talkhouse

• Actor-turned-director in conversation with actor-turned-director Griffin Dunne.

Batuman, Elif Longform Podcast

• Convo with the novelist and writer of “Japan’s Rent-a-Family Industry” for The New Yorker.

Brand, Russell The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast

Brewster, Paget Curious with Josh Peck

Brooker, Charlie The Watch

Brooks, David Conversations with Tyler

• Writer and New York Times columnist on Springsteen, “religious bisexuality” and why failure is overrated.

Burke, Doris The Lowe Post

Byrne, David This Must Be The Gig, The New Yorker Radio Hour

Chang, Dave Eater Upsell

• Convo with the chef recorded at the Code Conference.

Chastain, Brandi Upon Further Review with Mike Pesca

• Soccer star on “the mixed legacy of women’s soccer in the U.S.,” with Julie Foudy.

Christensen, Erika Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard

Clapper, James The Gist with Mike Pesca

Cusack, John This Song

• Actor talks about the influence of The Clash on his life and politics.

Dunne, Griffin Talkhouse

• Actor-turned-director In conversation with actor-turned-director Simon Baker.

Farrow, Ronan The Axe Files

Fitzgerald, Pat Stay Tuned with Preet

• Convo with the former federal prosecutor, current attorney for former FBI director James Comey.

Foudy, Julie Upon Further Review with Mike Pesca

• Soccer star on “the mixed legacy of women’s soccer in the U.S.,” with Brandi Chastain.

Fuzz, Fakkah Lost in America

• Convo with the Singaporean comedy star.

Gaitskill, Mary Bookworm

Griffin, Kathy Keep It

Guthrie, Savannah The Axe Files

Harbour, David WTF with Marc Maron

Hardwick, Chris Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum

Hart, Hannah Forked Up

• YouTuber talks pasta, food texture.

Hayden, Gen. Michael The Josh Marshall Podcast

Hernandez, Keith Fresh Air, Pardon My Take

• Convo with baseball player arguably best known for his guest appearance on “Seinfeld.”

Khosrowshahi, Dara Recode Decode

• Convo with Uber’s CEO, recorded at the Code conference.

Kim, Chloe The Dave Chang Show

• Gold medal-winning snowboarder talks Pyeongchang Olympics, growing up Korean American.

Klein, Naomi If Then

• Writer/activist on how corporations and politicians are approaching Puerto Rico’s rebuild.

Jae, Lady Ear Hustle

• On being transgender in San Quentin State Prison.

Long, Brock Weather Geeks

• Convo with the head of FEMA.

Mandel, Howie ID10T

Mayer, Jane The Ezra Klein Show

• One of the investigative reporting greats talks breaking stories, right-wing politics.

Mendelsohn, Spike Beyond the Plate

• Convo with the chef who made his name on Top Chef.

Murdoch, James Recode Media with Peter Kafka

• Media mogul talks about the media biz.

Oakley, Charles The Bill Simmons Podcast

• Simmons calls him “the toughest guy in NBA history.”

Peace, Metta World Bullseye

• The man formerly known as Ron Artest talks about his new book, “No Malice: My Life in Basketball.”

Prine, John Death, Sex & Money

• One of Bob Dylan’s fave songwriters talks about his elevated, late-career profile.

Reynolds, Dan Pardon My Take

• Imagine Dragons singer (and musical invader of my house, whenever I give my 10 year old DJ power) talks songwriting, show riders.

Rose, Jalen The Bill Simmons Podcast

Scovell, Nell Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

Spiegel, Evan Recode Decode

• Convo with Snap’s CEO, recorded at the Code conference.

Thurston, Baratunde Remade in America with Bassem Youssef

• Writer/comedian/activist on being black in America.

Taitz, Hope Skimm’d From the Couch

will.i.am Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

Notable New Podcasts

1) The RFK Tapes

• The creators of the excellent Crimetown are back with a 10-part series on the 1968 assassination of Robert F. Kennedy.

2) American Fiasco

3) Great Women of Business

• The pod “spotlights inspiring careers, savvy decisions, and catastrophic failures.”

4) Obscure with Michael Ian Black

• In reading “Jude the Obscure” out loud and commenting along the way, Black does some “light caressing” of the classic. Also, “a lot of complaining.”

5) Smashed

• Ali Bloom and Olly Robinson “get smashed and talk SMASH, episode by episode.”

6) Committed

• Jo Piazza promises to chronicle “the hilarious, heartbreaking and inspiring stories of couples of all kinds who’ve soldiered through unimaginable circumstances”

RIP Anthony Bourdain

I’m devastated by Anthony Bourdain’s death. He was such a lively, intelligent and important voice. We once published one of his stories on World Hum. It’s a highlight of my career as an editor.

Of course, Bourdain once went long with Marc Maron, who re-posted their 2011 interview yesterday. It’s a snapshot of the man’s depth and brilliance. The New Yorker, where Bourdain got his big writing break, also re-posted an interview.

RIP Anthony Bourdain.

8 Pod Takes: Provocative Thoughts From This Week’s Podcasts

1) “Memes are people too.”

Listen: Endless Thread: I, Ken Bone (23:50)

• Ben Brock Johnson advocates for humanity on the internet, specifically regarding those who’ve been memed. Like Ken Bone.
• Bone guests on the pod, sharing what it was like being a meme and lessons learned from the experience.
• Refresher: Bone and his red sweater became a meme at a 2016 U.S. presidential debate. You may also know his “Make America Bone Again” leisurewear.
• My take: The pod takes something most of us gave two seconds of thought and gives it a lot of thought, recontextualizing it and making us see that thing a different way. One of my favorite kinds of pods.

2) “You can say a lot of things about pineapple pizza, but you can’t call it boring.”

Listen: Episode 5: The Anthropocene Reviewed: Hawaiian Pizza and Viral Meningitis (9:40)

• That’s John Green, near the end of a winding and highly entertaining review of Hawaiian pizza.
• Stops along the way: The Islamic calendar, the agricultural revolution, the Columbian Exchange, King Ferdinand’s first taste of pineapple, lead poisoning, Canada and Australia’s affinity for pineapple as a pizza topping.
• Spoiler: Green awards Hawaiian pizza two stars.
• My take: Too many stars, John Green.

3) “He wasn’t changing lanes. He was being sucked into the inflow of the tornado.”

Listen: Weather Geeks: El Reno – Storm Chasing’s Deadliest Tornado (13:21)

• That horrifying observation comes from Mike Bettes, who was on the scene during the 2013 El Reno tornado, the largest tornado ever measured.
• The pod marks El Reno’s 5-year anniversary with a difficult yet enlightening look at the storm’s impact and those who chased it.

4) “I’m talking to you about what the spirit can do, and it’s not measurable.”

Listen: Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations: Diana Nyad, Part 1: The Swim of Her Life (2:53)

• That’s Nyad, legendary swimmer. New and not-so-legendary swimmer Oprah says Nyad has “transcended her humanness” in pursuit of physical feats. Like swimming for 53 hours straight.
• Adds Nyad: “There is something beyond what the body is capable of.”

5) “You don’t need to be in a different country to have problems given to you by parents.”

Listen: Remade in America with Bassem Youssef: Don’t Play a Terrorist and Other Lessons from Maz Jobrani (8:01)

• That’s Youssef, aka “the Jon Stewart of Egypt,” during the debut of his new pod. It’s about being an outsider in America.
• Youssef moved to the U.S. recently after living in Egypt for more than 40 years.

6) “I’m a hispanic woman and you’re a black woman, and yet we both related to this blonde white lady.”

Listen: This Movie Changed Me: Bridget Jones’s Diary (16:44)

• That’s Lily Percy, talking with Samantha Powell about the significance to their lives of Renée Zellweger’s portrayal of Bridget Jones.
• Percy adds: “It says something about the writing.”

7) “Somebody’s entire body of work and their fate in history, at least for some period of time, can depend upon the actions of a single human being.”

Listen: Otherppl with Brad Listi: Michelle Dean (21:40)

• That’s Listi, talking to Dean about the fickleness of artistic legacy and her book, “Sharp: The Women Who Make an Art of Having an Opinion.”

8) “It took a year of marriage to love my husband more than cheese.”

Listen: Modern Love: Love Stories in 13 Words (1:53)

• That’s one of 9,000 people who responded to Modern Love’s call for 13-word love stories. This bonus pod highlights dozens of them, in the tellers’ own words. Some standouts:
• “He said ‘I love you.’ I whispered ‘I love you,’ to his dog.” (4:55)
• “Both widowed young. Never going to try again. Married 31 years.” (8:51)
• “I was sad. He sent me dinosaur erotica. I knew it was love.” (11:05)

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Go Deep

1) “The Americans” Finale

Listen: Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air, I Think You’re Interesting, The Americans Podcast

• The pods go deep on Wednesday’s series finale of “The Americans,” with analysis and guests ranging from the show runners, to stars Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys, to the guy who played the other FBI agent.
• Spoiler: Paige got off the train.
• If you’re looking for answers about why Paige got off the train, good luck finding them here.
• My take: WTF Paige? You shouldn’t have got off the train.

2) Video Game Wars

Listen: Business Wars: Nintendo vs. Sony

• The six-part series chronicles the ongoing battle between two tech giants.
• Spoiler: Sony’s PlayStation almost didn’t come out.
• Binge time: 2 hours, 54 minutes

3) “The Wizard of Oz”

Listen: Unspooled

• A 1 hour, 1 minute deep dive into the No. 10 movie on the AFI top 100 list.

4) “Training Day”

Listen: The Rewatchables

• A 1 hour, 26 minute reassessment of the Denzel Washington/Ethan Hawke crime thriller.

Guest Appearances By…

Apatow, Judd The Treatment

Aronoff, Kenny The Bob Lefsetz Podcast

• Convo with drummer who’s played with everyone.

Avenatti, Michael Trumpcast

• Stormy’s lawyer takes time away from promoting himself to promote himself.

Barnes, Julian Men in Blazers

• Man Booker Prize-winning author talks novels, Leicester City.

Brosnahan, Rachel WTF with Marc Maron

• Convo with “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” star.

Clapper, James The Axe Files

• Former U.S. Director of National Intelligence talks security challenges.

Coppola, Sofia A24 Podcast

• In conversation with Paul Schrader.

Davidson, Adam The Josh Marshall Podcast

• The New Yorker writer talks Trump.

Emmerich, Amy The Limit Does Not Exist

• Convo with Refinery29’s content chief.

Enten, Harry I Have to Ask

Feig, Paul Late Night Whenever with Michelle Buteau

Friedberger, Eleanor This Must Be the Gig

• Still love this song.

Gethard, Chris The Gist with Mike Pesca

Hader, Bill Sooo Many White Guys

Hefner, Christie Skimm’d From the Couch

Jacobs, Gillian Comedy Bang! Bang!

Jordan, Lindsey Celebration Rock

• Convo with the “wisest teenage indie rocker,” according to Pitchfork.

Jurvetson, Steve The Tim Ferriss Show

• An almost 3-hour convo with the venture capitalist.

Klepper, Jordan It’s Been a Minute with Sam Sanders

Knoxville, Johnny Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard

Krasinski, John The Director’s Cut

Lawson, Nigella The Sporkful

Legend, John Pod Save America

• Singer talks about elections for local prosecutors.

Mars, Roman Recode Media with Peter Kafka

• The 99% Invisible host talks about the state of podcasting.

Neyfakh, Leon Longform Podcast

• Convo with the host of Slow Burn.

Pollan, Michael Waking Up with Sam Harris, How to Be Amazing With Michael Ian Black

• He’s baaaack!

Rankin, Molly Celebration Rock

• Convo with the writer of one of my favorite songs of the last few years.

Retta Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me!

Roberts, Michele The J.J. Redick Podcast

• The podcaster/NBA player talks to National Basketball Players Association executive director.

Rosner, Helen The Dave Chang Show

• The New Yorker food correspondent talks food journalism, #MeToo.

Schrader, Paul A24 Podcast

• In conversation with Sofia Coppola.

Sedaris, David Fresh Air

Smith, Kevin The Joe Rogan Experience

• Three hours, 17 minutes with the filmmaker/comedian/podcaster/comic book writer.

Talley, André Leon Fresh Air

Tompkins, Paul F. Comedy Bang! Bang!

Wagner, Aly Planet Fútbol

• Convo with the first woman to do game commentary on U.S. English-language TV for men’s World Cup soccer.

Warren, Elizabeth Pod Save America

Whitford, Bradley The West Wing Weekly

Wu, Tim Why is This Happening? with Chris Hayes

• Exploring why the internet “feels pretty crappy these days.” Only pretty?

Yates, Sally The Axe Files

• Convo with the former acting U.S. Attorney General.

Pick From a Podcaster

This week’s podcasters: Bryan Gould and Peter Villa, co-creators and co-hosts of the weekly show “How Was Your Run Today?”a comedy and interview podcast about their love/hate relationship with running.

• Peter adds: Bryan and I both ran the Boston Marathon in 2015 and couldn’t stop talking about the experience of training for, and actually completing, the historic race. Our friends and family got tired of hearing us talking about it, so we decided to start recording our conversations and posted them on the internet. Turns out runners LOVE to listen to other runners talk endlessly about running!

Bryan’s pick: 99% Invisible’s Curb Cuts.

• He says: If you’re not familiar with the show, they explore design, mostly in architecture, which most people either don’t notice or take for granted, thus it is 99% invisible. This episode is a mini-documentary about the history of the sidewalk curb cut. While this, of course, is interesting on its own, the second half of the show explores the “Curb Cut Effect,” including how everyone can benefit from universal design in buildings and digital curb cuts.
• Peter adds: You are going to be amazed by the origin story of the football huddle.

Notable New Podcasts

1) Covert

• The pod “takes listeners on a heart-pounding journey through the most dangerous military operations of all time.” Hosted by Jamie Renell.

2) Remade in America

3) Unravel True Crime: Blood on the Tracks

• It chronicles a five-year investigation into the death of 17-year-old Mark Haines, whose body was found on an Australian railway line in January 1988.

4) She Says

• Sarah Delia’s working to “unwrap the case of ‘Linda,’ a Charlotte-area woman who was sexually assaulted by a stranger in 2015… and is still struggling to find answers.”

5) Cover-Up

• The first podcast from People Magazine investigates “the hours after Ted Kennedy’s car went over the bridge in Chappaquiddick.”

6) The Gateway

• The six-part series focuses on Teal Swan, “a new brand of spiritual guru, who draws in followers with her hypnotic self-help YouTube videos aimed at people who are struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts.”

7) The Good Place: The Podcast

• Marc Evan Jackson hosts “a rotating slate of co-hosts and special guests, including actors, writers, producers and more” in an official deep dive into the NBC show.
• As the pod’s promo goes, “Holy motherforking shirtballs!”

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8 Pod Takes: Provocative Thoughts From This Week’s Podcasts

1) “Probably the biggest intellectual change in my lifetime is the fact that we’ve moved from this period where knowing about the past meant you were smart, and now knowing about the past kind of means you’re irrelevant almost.”

Listen: Celebration Rock: Chuck Klosterman On The Rise And Fall Of Classic Rock (47:31)

• That’s take-machine Klosterman, who blames Twitter for fostering a culture that elevates ignorance.

• Klosterman’s exhibit A: The response when Kanye and Rihanna made “FourFiveSeconds” with Paul McCartney. Klosterman says it inspired a Buzzfeed listicle of tweets from people who had no clue Macca existed.

• My take: Bad take, Klosterman. My exhibit A: Slow Burn, American History Tellers and many more popular backwards-looking podcasts. There’s a cultural thirst for understanding the past.

• One more (good) take from host Steven Hyden: With streaming services, “no genre of music really ever has to die.”

2) “Synchronous movement is a language of its own.”

Listen: Hidden Brain: Baby Talk (8:25)

• That’s Shankar Vedantam, highlighting guest Laura Cirelli’s insight about the power of synchronization in human communication.

• It’s a language of affection, says Cirelli.

• My take: A fascinating and enlightening pod that cracks some of the mysteries of baby babbling.

3) “Scientists must be free to fail.”

Listen: Ted Talks Daily: Scientists must be free to learn, to speak and to challenge (4:32)

• That’s Kirsty Duncan, Canada’s first Minister of Science, on how most science doesn’t lead to Hollywood endings.

• But failures can lead to unintended discoveries that, nevertheless, contribute to science.

4) “Ruth Bader Ginsburg did change the way the world is for American women whether they know it or not.”

Listen: It’s Been a Minute with Sam Sanders: How Ruth Bader Ginsburg Became ‘Notorious RBG’ (8:25)

• So says NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg, summing up the life and legacy of the U.S. Supreme Court Justice.

• Sanders adds: “She was living this kind of Sheryl Sandbergian have-it-all life before we had a name for that.”

• Adds guest Julia Cohen, co-director of the film “RBG”: “She was leaning the heck in before leaning in was a thing.”

5) “It’s like they loaded a shotgun with commas and fired it at the Second Amendment.”

Listen: Revisionist History: Divide and Conquer (19:15)

• That’s Malcolm Gladwell, clearing his throat during an (inevitable?) Gladwellian deep dive about “the world’s most controversial semicolon.”

• Spoiler: An obscure law review article leads Gladwell to punctuation that means Texas could break into five different states and “turn American politics upside down.”

• My take: Gladwell and grammar. Great combo.

6) “What more does she have to do on this Earth to be regarded as a genius?”

Listen: Still Processing: We Unpack Black Male Privilege (25:18)

• Rembert Browne’s talking, of course, about Beyoncé.

• Context: In the wake of Donald Glover’s elevation to genius post-”This is America,” Browne and Wesley Morris discuss how our cultural genius bar has evolved.

• Spoiler: Black women, they say, don’t seem to make the cut.

7) “Nixon retained the soul of a benchwarmer throughout his aborted presidency.”

Listen: Upon Further Review: What If Nixon Had Been Good At Football? (17:48)

• Host Leon Neyfakh ties Nixon’s Nixon-ness back to his days as a football wannabe at Whittier College.

• Neyfakh speculates how Nixon’s life — and American life — might be different had he been better at the sport he loved.

• My take: Love this premise for a pod: revisiting what ifs from sports history.

8) “Now we can lose money legally, Cousin Sal. What a day. This is the greatest day of our lives.”

Listen: The Bill Simmons Podcast: Sports Gambling Is Legal (!) With Cousin Sal, and Ethan Hawke Breaks Down Every Fun Movie He Ever Made (3:19)

• So says Simmons, loving the Supreme Court’s decision to eliminate the federal ban on sports gambling in the U.S.

• My take: You’re exaggerating, Simmons. But only slightly.

Go Deep

1) The Royal Wedding

Listen: When Meghan Met Harry

• Hurry! There’s only a little time left to binge all 22 full episodes of this royally obsessed pod before Meghan and Harry get hitched.

• Binge time: 11 hours, 34 minutes.

2) The Saga of the Bundy Family

Listen: Bundyville

• A seven-part pod chronicles armed uprisings in Nevada and Oregon by the Bundy family.

• The central question: Are the Bundys patriots or domestic terrorists?

• Binge time: 3 hours, 23 minutes.

3) “Yeezus”

Listen: Heat Rocks

• Dissect’s Cole Cuchna helps dissect Kanye’s album.

• Length: 43 minutes.

4) “No Tears Left to Cry”

Listen: Switched on Pop

• Nate and Charlie break down Ariana Grande’s latest track.

• Length: 39 minutes.

Pick From a Podcaster

This week’s podcaster: Conor Reid, whose Words To That Effect is a literary podcast of the intriguing, the curious and the unexplored.

• Conor adds: The show is created in Dublin, Ireland, and it’s a research-based, storytelling show which explores the places where literature, history and science collide. Why did the creator of Sherlock Holmes fervently believe in ghosts and fairies? How do we reach utopia? What is transhumanism? What is the cultural history behind zombies?

Conor’s pick:  Documentary on One’s “Don’t Go Far”

• Conor says: I love storytelling podcasts with great sound design that really bring you into the world of the story. Documentary on On, the multiple award-winning documentary unit of RTE (the Irish national radio station), has been producing stories of this type for decades.
• He adds: “Don’t Go Far” tells the story of two young Dublin boys, aged 10 and 13, whose spur-of-the-moment adventure made national news in the 1980s. After a quick journey on a local train, they bluff and lie their way past security guards onto a ferry to Britain, a train to London… and a plane all the way to New York City. It’s a great story, recounted years later by one of the boys, and full of mischief and humour.

Guest Appearances By…

Albright, Donald The Adam Carolla Show

• “Atlanta Monster” podcaster talks murder, with co-producer Payne Lindsey.

Ames, Jonathan Otherppl with Brad Listi

• Convo with “You Were Never Really Here” author.

Andrés, José The Axe Files

Avenatti, Michael Pod Save America

Bloom, Rachel Scriptnotes

• Convo with “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” co-creator, with Aline Brosh McKenna.

Brolin, Josh WTF with Marc Maron

• Thanos!

Brooker, Charlie The Adam Buxton Podcast

• Convo with “Black Mirror” creator.

Cena, John The Adam Carolla Show

Corcoran, Barbara How I Built This With Guy Raz

• Mogul recounts path from real estate to “Shark Tank.”

Donelly, Tanya This Song

• Throwing Muses and Belly musician talks about the influence of “All You Need is Love” on her life and music.

Falcone, Ben The Big Picture

Ferguson, Niall The Jamie Weinstein Show

• Famed history professor on Trump, China, North Korea.

Fieri, Guy Beyond the Plate

Filkins, Dexter Why is This Happening? with Chris Hayes

• Convo with The New Yorker foreign correspondent.

Gil, Gilberto The Bob Lefsetz Podcast

• Convo with the eminent Brazilian musician and social activist.

Guthrie, Savannah Skimm’d From the Couch

Hachisu, Nancy Singleton Bon Appetit Foodcast

• Convo with the author of “Japan: A Cookbook.”

Hawke, Ethan The Bill Simmons Podcast

Heti, Sheila Longform Podcast

• “I think my mom always had this idea that writing is playing, and it is playing, but it’s a serious kind of playing,” says the author of “Motherhood: A Novel.”

Ifill, Sherrilyn Stay Tuned With Preet

• Convo with the president of the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund.

Jacobs, Gillian Bullseye

Johnson, Rian The Dave Chang Show

• “The Last Jedi” director talks innovation and criticism, with Karina Longworth.

Kelly, Kevin Deviate With Rolf Potts, The Tim Ferriss Show

• “If you have a chance to travel, just do it. You won’t regret it,” says Wired magazine co-founder.

Kotb, Hoda Skimm’d From the Couch

Laguens, Dawn Queery

• Convo with EVP of Planned Parenthood.

Lanier, Jaron Danny in the Valley

Leist, Libby Skimm’d From the Couch

Lindsey, Payne The Adam Carolla Show

• “Atlanta Monster” podcaster talks murder, with co-producer Donald Albright.

Longworth, Karina The Dave Chang Show

• “You Must Remember This” host talks innovation and criticism, with Rian Johnson.

McKenna, Aline Brosh Scriptnotes

• Convo with “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” co-creator, with Rachel Bloom.

Mitski All Songs Considered

• Musical artist talks about her new album.

Nolan, Christopher The Treatment

• Filmmaker talks about reviving 70mm reprint of “2001: A Space Odyssey.”

Notaro, Tig Fresh Air

Oates, Joyce Carol Bookworm

• Prolific author discusses her 2,923rd* book. (*estimated)

Pao, Ellen How It Is

• She talks about her stand against sexism in Silicon Valley.

Penn, Mark Recode Decode

• “The first thing people get rid of when they get more money is kids,” says the pollster and author of “Microtrends Squared.”

Pollan, Michael The Ezra Klein Show, Fresh Air, Recode Decode

• Food guru talks and talks and talks about his new book about mind expansion.

Rexha, Bebe The Dan Wootton Interview

Richardson, April R U Talkin’ R.E.M. RE: ME?

• Comedian talks “Monster” with Scott and Scott.

Scheer, Paul The Watch

• Convo with the actor/filmmaker/podcaster.

Scovell, Nell How to Be Amazing with Michael Ian Black

Serrano, Shea House of Carbs, The Bill Simmons Podcast, The Gist

• Teacher turned best-selling author on Houston and San Antonio as food cities, “Cobra Kai,” bank robbery movies, Becky Hammon.

Sietsema, Robert Eater Upsell

• Chemist turned food critic takes food tour of Queens.

Smigel, Robert Bullseye

Solo, Hope We Came to Win

• Convo with U.S.A.’s World Cup-winning goalkeeper.

Steenburgen, Mary WTF with Marc Maron

Thomas, Louisa The Gist

• Convo about Becky Hammon’s potential to be the NBA’s first female head coach.

Thompson, Tessa Late Night Whenever with Michelle Buteau

Tyler, Steven The Joe Rogan Experience

Union, Gabrielle Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

Urban, Keith Required Listening

Waithe, Lena How It Is

• On the importance of giving zero fucks.

Yang, Jimmy O. Sooo Many White Guys

Notable New Podcasts and New Seasons

1) Unspooled

• Paul Scheer and Amy Nicholson kick off 100 podcasts, one for each of the films on AFI’s list of the 100 best movies.
• First episode: “Citizen Kane.”

2) The Wonderland Murders

• It’s “the tale of a violent home invasion robbery and the revenge rampage that followed. It involves a drug-fueled gang of criminals, a crazed crime kingpin — and the world’s most famous porn star on a downward and deadly spiral.”

3) Dissect

• Cole Cuchna’s song-by-song dissection of albums returns for a third season, exclusively on Spotify.
• This season’s albums: Frank Ocean’s “Channel Orange” and “Blonde.”

4) Upon Further Review

5) Business Wars

• The Wondery pod’s latest season recalls the Sony vs. Nintendo video game wars.

6) The Space Race

• American History Tellers begins a deep dive into the post-war space race.

7) Revisionist History

• Gladwell’s pod’s back for its third season.

8) Love + Radio

• Another season of “otherworldly-produced interviews.”

Meta Podcast Moment of the Week

“Every time they say podcast, drink.”

Listen: The Gist: Becky Hammon’s Next Big Shot

• On his podcast, Mike Pesca shares the drinking game he created for “Alex, Inc.”, a TV show about a podcast company where they say “podcast” many, many times.
• Spoiler: “Alex, Inc.” has been cancelled.
• Perhaps Pesca can revive the game for the TV version of “The Daily.”

Thanks for reading! Find us on Twitter @WeekInPodcasts.

8 Pod Takes: Provocative Thoughts From This Week’s Podcasts

1) “Rooting for the underdog is a form of moral weakness.”

Listen: Revisionist History: Malcolm Gladwell debates Adam Grant (33:58)

• Gladwell’s gonna Gladwell. The Revisionist History host delivers hot pod takes galore in this crossover with Grant, host of WorkLife.
• On parents (3:57): “Parents are never more crazy than when they are interacting with the teachers of their children.”
• On teaching vs. stand-up comedy (5:24): “If you’re asking me would I rather teach a class of first graders or do a stand-up performance, the answer is: I would do a stand-up performance a million times before I would teach.”
• On specificity (7:45): “All the interesting people I know are people whose speech and thinking has a great deal of specificity to it.”
• On bureaucracy (22:29): “You don’t want bureaucracies run by Marine Corps guys. The worst thing that can happen if you’re in a bureaucracy is that the bureaucracy gets really, really good.”
• My take: The most entertaining pod I listened to this week. Can’t wait for Season 3 of Gladwell’s pod.

2) “This is the beginning of the end of all smartphones.”

Listen: WSJ The Future of Everything: What’s Next for AI? (14:43)

• It’s not a prediction, Amy Webb stresses. It’s what she’s reading in the data about shifts and changes in mobile.
• What to look for in 10 years, according to Webb: More voice interactions with machines, image and object recognition, and biometric tools.
• She adds: “Every human alive needs to think good and hard and long about ourselves as oil, and how we’re being mined and refined in exchange for what?”

3) “It’s the most exciting video probably since Beyoncé’s Formation.”

Listen: The Watch: This is Donald Glover’s Moment (16:01)

• That’s Andy Greenwald’s take on Glover’s/Childish Gambino’s powerful video for “This is America.”
• He adds: “The video is not just commenting on America’s obsession with entertainment and obsession with guns, and our ability to block out one constantly in the service of the other. It’s also…a comment on who he feels he is in the world.”
• More takes on his SNL/”This is America” achievements: The Brilliant Idiots, Keep It, Damage Control.

4) “I’m not really interested in books about who shot John, because everybody in prison has shot John.”

Listen: Ear Hustle: Catch a Kite 2 (8:04)

• That’s Kevin Sawyer, who’s read 371 books during his 22 years in prison.
• Few of them have been about murders. Those kinds of books? To a prisoner, they’re “not so entertaining.”

5) “Food is such an intersection of culture, of politics, of inequality. We can’t not address those issues.”

Listen: Bon Appetit Foodcast: The Current State of Restaurant Criticism (13:51)

• That’s Bon Appétit EIC Adam Rapoport, with a complex double negative about the complexity of writing about food and restaurants in 2018.
• Spoiler: Given the challenges facing media, food criticism is shrinking in some big cities.

6) “I’m not sure Donald Trump needed to give Kim Jong-un a five-star rating on Airbnb.”

Listen: Pod Save America: “Essential Bribery, LLC” (5:12)

• So says Dan Pfeiffer, who credits President Trump for the release of three hostages from North Korea before jabbing him for his crack that North Korea was “excellent” to the people it held against their will.

7) “We want to experience Berlin as a Berliner, without having to speak German or deal with Holocaust guilt or really enjoy public nudity or any of the other things that also signify authentic Berliner-ness.”

Listen: Public Intellectual “Travel Writing is Bad” (w/Haley Swanson) (1:11)

• That’s Jessa Crispin, introducing her conversation with Swanson about modern travelers’ desire for “authenticity” and how that quest impacts travel writing, as well as local communities.
• They start with a critique of the much-hyped New York Times’ 52 Places column.
• Says Crispin: “I should have been aware that it was going to be…bad.”

8) “You’re stuck in an old way of looking at cereal.”

Listen: The Great Debates: Sneezing is a Pleasant Experience. (11:59)

• So says Dave King, debating the pro side of the topic: Cereal is better at night.
• Spoiler: King wins. If you see nighttime cereal on store shelves soon, blame these guys.

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Go Deep

1) Love and Heartbreak

Listen: Love Letters

• The Boston Globe pod about love and relationships finished its eight-episode season, which focused on breakups.
• Among the topics covered by host Meredith Goldstein: Rebound sex, social media fallout, mementos, breakup songs.
• My take: A raw, intimate and binge-worthy pod.
• Binge time: 2 hours, 48 minutes.

2) “Divorce Song”

Listen: Song Exploder

• Liz Phair and producer Brad Wood break down one of the most celebrated songs on her landmark album, “Exile in Guyville.”
• Phair says: “I wanted to write about all the in-between moments that people have with a relationship, where you disagree about things, or just the ordinary things that happen that if you’re in that relationship are incredibly dramatic and they mean so much.”
• Length: 24 minutes.

3) Rush

Listen: Rockin’ the Suburbs

• Wouldn’t expect anything less than a five-part, week-long series about Rush from the Rockin’ the Suburbs guys.
• Albums covered: Moving Pictures, 2112, Permanent Waves, Signals.
• Binge time: 2 hours, 8 minutes.

Pick From a Podcaster

This week’s guest: Rolf Potts, whose Deviate podcast features experts, public figures, and interesting people exploring fascinating topics that meander off-topic.”

• Adds Rolf: “Each episode tends to begin with an issue that has piqued my curiosity. What’s it like to be a black police officer? What happens in a dominatrix dungeon? Why is it so hard for Americans to talk about death and dying? From there I encourage guests to explore these issues in a digressive way that gives listeners a perspective that goes beyond sound bites and click-bait.

Rolf’s pick: The Truth: Brain Chemistry

• Rolf says: “I recently binged on podcasts during a multi-stop journey to the West Coast. Much of what I listened to was, as usual, nonfiction (highlights include Snap Judgment’s “The Badlands,” Unfictional’s “Louie Louie,” and Bill Simmons going meta with Marc Maron on why podcasts are a great format).
• He adds: “But what set this trip apart is that I dug into fictional podcasts for the first time — and I was mesmerized by The Truth, which is the podcast equivalent of a sci-fi TV series like Black Mirror. The anthology format lets you skip around the archives in any manner you wish, and while there are many episodes to love (Moon Graffiti, for example, or The Decider), “Brain Chemistry” stood out for its whimsical exploration of what’s at stake when a cryogenically frozen man is revived in the future.”

Are you a podcaster who’d like to be featured? Let me know.

Guest Appearances By…

Andrés, José Recode Decode

Baker, Mike The Joe Rogan Experience

• Almost 3 hours with the former CIA covert operations director.

Berninger, Matt Celebration Rock

• Convo with The National singer, with guitarist/keyboardist Aaron Dessner.

Bloom, Rachel WTF with Marc Maron, ID10T

• “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” star and co-creator tells Maron, “The way I treat roller coasters is the way I think my husband thinks about women.”

Brie, Alison How Did This Get Made?

Brooks, Danielle 2 Dope Queens

Case, Neko Bullseye

• Still so good.

Close, Glenn The New Yorker Radio Hour

Collison, John and Patrick How I Built This with Guy Raz

• Convo with the brothers behind Stripe.

Daniel, Britt Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me!

• Spoon co-founder plays the game.

Davidson, Adam Longform Podcast

• New Yorker staff writer on Trump, money, writing.

Dessner, Aaron Celebration Rock

• Convo with The National guitarist/keyboardist/songwriter, with singer Matt Berninger.

Dowd, Ann Late Night Whenever with Michelle Buteau

Edwards, Kellee Outside Podcast

• On her journey from bank teller to Travel Channel show host.

Eisenberg, Jesse Kondabolu Brothers

Eubank, Zac Nerdificent

• Convo with the “Chief Executive Overlord” of Hyper RPG.

Fallows, Jim and Deb The Ezra Klein Show

• Couple talks about their new book, “Our Towns.”

Fugelsang, John Fake the Nation

Gay, Roxane Queery, Ask Me Another

• “Do what you want to do, and be good to other humans,” says the writer.

Giamatti, Paul The Moment with Brian Koppelman

Haberman, Maggie I Have to Ask

• Convo with New York Times White House correspondent/Trump whisperer.

Hanh, Thich Nhat Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

• Convo with the Buddhist monk, author and Nobel Peace Prize nominee.

Hammond Jr., Albert Talkhouse

• Strokes guitarist and maker of this excellent song in conversation with Andrew W.K.

Hodgman, John Fake the Nation

Hung, William The Word from Mouth

• Even that guy from American Idol has a podcast.

Hsu, Hua The Treatment

Jamison, Leslie Bookworm

• Author of “The Recovering: Intoxication and Its Aftermath” talks about the relationship between longing and what it means to drink alcohol.

King, Peter Sports Media with Richard Deitsch

• Convo with longtime football writer for Sports Illustrated.

Lawson, Nigella Eater Upsell

Malkmus, Stephen The Watch

Martin, Brett House of Carbs

• Convo with writer of GQ’s Best New Restaurants in America, 2018.

McCarthy, Melissa WTF with Marc Maron

McHale, Joel Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard

Marcario, Rose Recode Decode

• “Capitalism is great, but it needs to morph and change and evolve into something that makes work more meaningful,” says Patagonia’s CEO.

Meyers, Seth Off Message

Moby The Bob Lefsetz Podcast

Plepler, Richard Strictly Business

• Convo with HBO’s CEO touches on competition from Amazon and Netflix.

Pollan, Michael The Tim Ferriss Show

• Pollan goes 2+ hours with Ferriss about the science of psychedelics, the subject of his new book
• “The brain is still very poorly understood,” says Pollan.
• Ferriss says it might be his most important podcast of the last two years.

Reitman, Jason The Big Picture

Riggle, Rob The Adam Carolla Show

Schneiderman, Eric Here’s the Thing with Alec Baldwin

• A pre-resignation conversation with the former New York Attorney General.

Scovell, Nell Recode Decode

• Writer and comedian talks about her new book.

Sinclair, Ben 2 Dope Queens

Stamos, John Curious with Josh Peck

Tapper, Jake The Gist, Larry Willmore: Black on the Air

Toobin, Jeffrey The Axe Files with David Axelrod

Thune, Nick Comedy Bang! Bang!

Wain, David R U Talkin’ R.E.M. RE: ME?

• Movie director talks about being in an R.E.M. tribute band.

Weisz, Rachel Modern Love

• The actress reads Kristen Scharold’s story about looking for a husband.

W.K., Andrew Talkhouse

• Party rocker in conversation with Albert Hammond Jr.

Yang, Jimmy O. It’s Been a Minute with Sam Sanders

Youssef, Bassem Stay Tuned With Preet

• Heart surgeon turned “Jon Stewart of Egypt” talks politics, his upcoming podcast.

Zamata, Sasheer Late Night Whenever with Michelle Buteau

One Podcast That Mesmerized Twitter

Reply All: INVCEL

The gist: “How a shy, queer Canadian woman accidentally invented one of the internet’s most toxic male communities.”

• “This week’s @replyall on incels was SO GOOD. I demand they be given their own HBO series.” — BrandyZadrozny
• “Every single person that thinks feminism isn’t absolutely necessary needs to listen to the latest episode from @replyall INVCEL” — @katiekoff
• “Expected more from this episode. Didn’t like that it solely focussed on the toxic masculinity of incel, giving a platform to sick individuals like the monster who killed 10 in Toronto. Injustice to the families of he victims. This left sour taste in my mouth” — @k1ttykat_
• “This weeks @replyall podcast may be the greatest/ funniest/ saddest allegory for organised religion ever. The @Gimletmedia team should be very, very proud of the quality of their ‘content’ as the non-kids call it.” — @JohnPudney
• “Of course a woman invented (even if by accident) something that men turned toxic. This @replyall ep on Incels is blowing my mind.” — @MereMay87

Notable New Podcasts

1) American Innovations

• Hosted by the excellent Steven Johnson, it focuses on “dramatic stories of the bright ideas and the brilliant men and women whose work has transformed the world over the last century.”

2) Lend Me Your Ears

• A six-part series on Shakespeare and politics.
• The questions at hand: “So what political currents are likely influencing Shakespeare while he’s writing his plays? What can we learn about our present political moment from reading his works now? How have theater makers wrestled with staging the politics of Shakespeare’s plays?”

3) Crazy/Genius

• The Atlantic’s new pod, hosted by Derek Thompson, offers “[b]ig questions and provocative conclusions about technology and culture.”

Thanks for reading! Find us on Twitter @WeekInPodcasts.

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Subscribe to This Week in Podcasts!

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8 Pod Takes: Provocative Thoughts From This Week’s Podcasts

1) “Nothing cuts tension better than Rick Astley.”

Listen: Love Letters: The Night I Became Roy Orbison (3:35)

• So says Patrick Garvin, maker of song mixes for people who’ve been dumped. The episode explores “the healing power of music after a breakup.”
• A “breakup mix is a Trojan horse for letting someone know they’re not going through it alone,” says host Meredith Goldstein.
• Here’s Garvin’s go to Astley song.
• My promise: I’m never gonna Rickroll you.

2) “We had to wake up and watch Fox & Friends, which is something I would not wish on my worst enemy.”

Listen: Pod Save America: “It’s your Justice Department!” (1:47)

• Cracks Dan Pfeiffer, about Trump’s interview on the Fox News morning show. His ramblings gave political pods material to fuel panel conversations for weeks.
• Or at least until the next thing happens in … a few hours?

3) “You have to let people be disappointing.”

Listen: It’s Been a Minute With Sam Sanders: Meg Wolitzer on “The Female Persuasion” (16:33)

• That’s Wolitzer, author of book-of-the-moment, “The Female Persuasion,” being persuasive about why some of her characters annoy each other — and readers.
• My take: That’s life.

4) “Usually children’s books challenge us to be better, and adult novels don’t really do that anymore.”

Listen: Ministry of Ideas: Child’s Play (24:04)

• The insight comes from Christina Phillips-Mattson, children’s literature scholar and guest on this terrific pod exploring why we shouldn’t be dismissive of adults reading “Harry Potter” and others books primarily marketed to younger readers.
• “When you finish a children’s book…most of the time you’re not holding an object that’s morally neutral,” says Phillips-Mattson.

5) “There is a rhetoric…of panic right now. Something has gone wrong at a level that is almost unique in American political history.”

Listen: The Ezra Klein Show: Is American democracy really in decline? A debate. (19:27)

• So says Klein, who cops to being part of the problem at times.
• This episode isn’t part of it. It’s a welcome, sober, fact-filled discussion about just how panicked we should be.

“6) Do you think that 18 million people moved here because of Hollywood?”

Listen: The Indicator from Planet Money: 3 Things You Didn’t Know About L.A. (2:36)

• That’s NPR’s Sonari Glinton, repping the economic diversity of Los Angeles.
• The Indicator spends the week reporting stories from a city that’s as much “There Will Be Blood” as it is “La La Land,” says host Cardiff Garcia.
• Biased newsletter maker from L.A. says: “Tell ‘em, guys.”

7) “Aren’t we in the post-4/20 world at this point?”

Listen: The Press Box: Trump and Haberman, LeBron’s Sideline Interview, and the Meltdown at Harper’s (1:10)

• David Shoemaker’s tired of the media’s 4/20 obsession.
• He adds: “If we’re at a point where professional athletes are smoking weed on camera for sports media outlets, aren’t we past the point where we need to peg this on, like, national elbow-you-in-the-ribs, tee-hee, weed-smoking day?”
• My take: Yes.

8) “We are New York City public high school graduates. And that is like Navy SEAL training for roasting people.”

Listen: The Bill Simmons Podcast: NBA Craziness Plus the Return of Desus and Mero (1:34:33)

• Viceland’s Desus & Mero know their edge. You’re warned.

Go Deep

1) The Golden State Killer

Listen: My Favorite Murder, Generation Why, Crime Writers On…

• It’s a justified nine fucks, two shits intro for Karen and Georgia on My Favorite Murder. Like everyone in the true crime podcast community (and all of humanity, presumably), they’re blown away by the arrest of the Golden State Killer.
• Background: A decades-ago string of unsolved murders and rapes in California became an obsession for writer Michelle McNamara. She tragically passed away before publication of her book on the GSK, “I’ll Be Gone in the Dark.” The book became a bestseller, and helped lead to this week’s arrest.
• Crime Writers On… commemorates the moment with the release of its inaugural true crime book club pod about IBGINT, and a second pod reacting to the arrest.

2) The Struggle for Equality in Global Women’s Soccer

Listen: Planet Futbol with Grant Wahl (Part 1, Part 2)

• A panel discussion comprises this two-part pod about the status of women’s soccer worldwide.
• Panelists: Jean Williams, Shireen Ahmed, Gwendolyn Oxenham.

3) “Mr. Brightside”

Listen: Punch Up the Jam

• PUTJ goes deep on The Killers’ classic.
• My take: Stop it. The song needs no punch up.

4) “Put Your Money On Me”

Listen: Song Exploder

• Arcade Fire’s Win Butler takes 22 minutes to break down his band’s song and declares his love for the 808.
• His other inspirations: Marvin Gaye, Harry Nilsson and ABBA.

Guest Appearances By…

Burgess, Tim This Must Be The Gig

• The Charlatans frontman once put a headlock put on Iggy Pop.

Burke, Tarana WorkLife with Adam Grant

• Founder of #MeToo movement appears with Ronan Farrow and Ashley Judd.

Crosby, David Here’s the Thing with Alec Baldwin

Danner, Blythe The Goop Podcast

• Gwyneth and her mom on mothers and daughters.

Farrow, Ronan The Josh Marshall Podcast, The Gist, WorkLife with Adam Grant, Stay Tuned with Preet

• So. Much. Pulitzer. Winner.

Gawande, Atul Freakonomics Radio

• Surgeon/professor/writer for The New Yorker on the state of health care.

Gay, Jason House of Carbs

• WSJ sports columnist tried to eat at a nice restaurant accompanied by children, talks about it.

Green, Seth Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard

• Actor talks zero gravity and working with bears.

Hader, Bill The Watch

Inslee, Jay Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

• Gov. of Washington on decarbonization, standing up to Trump.

Jacobson, Abbi Modern Love

• “Broad City” actress/writer reads an essay about a carboholic.

Judd, Ashley WorkLife with Adam Grant

• “Silence breaker” talk’s #MeToo with Ronan Farrow and Tarana Burke.

Kendzior, Sarah Otherppl with Brad Listi

• Convo with the author of “The View from Flyover Country.”

Manning, Chelsea Talkhouse

• In conversation with Pussy Riot’s Nadya Tolokno.

Martin, Giles The Bob Lefsetz Podcast

• Convo with legendary producer George Martin’s son.

Nissenblatt, Arielle Bitrate

• EarBuds Podcast Collective founder talks about the power of listening.

Oswalt, Patton Maltin on Movies

Payne, Alexander Cooking by Ear

• Make vegetable gratin with the director of “Election”/former Chez Panisse intern.

Riggle, Rob The Adam Carolla Show

Robinson, Phoebe Comedy Bang! Bang!, Late Night Whenever with Michelle Buteau

• On the beginnings of “2 Dope Queens,” a visit to a hot tub.

Ross, Tracee Ellis Ted Talks Daily

Schumer, Amy Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

• Oprah goes 64 minutes with the comedian/actress/author.

Sinclair, Ben Late Night Whenever with Michelle Buteau

• Convo with the “High Maintenance” star.

Smith, Ben The Jamie Weinstein Show

• Buzzfeed’s EIC talks politics, defends publishing the Steele Dossier.

Srinivasan, Balaji Conversations With Tyler

• CTO of Coinbase on the promise of the blockchain.

Tapper, Jake Fresh Air

Thile, Chris You Made it Weird with Pete Holmes

Thompson, Nicholas The Tim Ferriss Show

• Convo with the EIC of Wired.

Tolokno, Nadya Talkhouse

• In conversation with Chelsea Manning.

Vande Hei, Mark Radiolab

• The astronaut dials in to the pod. From space.

Whitford, Bradley WTF with Marc Maron

• “If you’re good and you want it, maybe you won’t be an actor, but you can have a life in storytelling,” says the actor.

Winkler, Henry The Watch

Yorn, Pete Celebration Rock

• Musician talks about his upcoming collaboration with Scarlett Johansson.

Zhao, Chloé The Treatment

• Convo with the director of “The Rider.”

One Podcast That Mesmerized Twitter

The Habitat

Gimlet’s seven-part pod about six volunteers living in an imitation Mars habitat dropped last Thursday. Listeners are still digesting it. Also, they havefeelings.

• “Stop what you’re doing and listen to The Habitat by @Gimletmedia. Most bingeable podcast since Serial.” — @mentink21

• “It sure is a podcast about six people who do fuck all for a year.” — @ThePodReport

• “I literally threw my headphones across the room. Lookin at you@Gimletmedia. I loved Habitat but the chewing was TOO MUCH” — @Bazteki

• “Highly recommend if you like science, claustrophobia and gossiping.” — @pageantmalarkey

• “i never thought i would be into a podcast about space and rockets and@NASA but turns out: i just needed @LynnRLevy.” — @almutheva

Pick From a Podcaster

This week’s podcaster: Adela is founder of Podcast Brunch Club, which is like book club, but for podcasts. The PBC podcast is a podcast version of the monthly conversations that are happening at Podcast Brunch Club chapter meetings IRL all over the world.

Adela’s pick: The Moth Radio Hour: Surviving Being Human

• Adela says: “The episode includes stories about overcoming adversity, fear, and the power of the human spirit. The second story wrecked me. When given an opportunity to find out about his past, he asked, ‘My mother?’ and his voice cracked as he told the audience about that conversation.”
• She adds: “That was the moment during his story that I got the chills and tears welled up in my eyes.”

Are you a podcaster who’d like to be featured? Let me know.

Notable New Podcasts

The Dave Chang Show

• A food and culture pod from influential chef/aspiring media mogul Dave Chang.

• “Dave and a rotating cast of smart, thought-provoking guests talk about their inspirations, failures, successes, fame, and identities.”

How It Is

• A pod from Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine media brand, where “women tell our own stories, in our own words, and share the truths we’ve learned and lived through.”

• Diane Guerrero hosts.

We Came to Win

• Gimlet’s first sports pod focuses on the stories of “the greatest moments of the World Cup.”

The Infinite City

• “[S]tories of people and place, design and belonging, survival and celebration.”

• The first six-episode season focuses on Belfast.

Thanks for reading! Find us on Twitter @WeekInPodcasts.

1) “I, for one, am very excited to stay at the Trump Pyongyang.”

Pod Save America: “Give Ruth a Break.” (LIVE from Houston, March 9 (6:05)

• Jon Lovett senses a motive in President Trump’s acceptance of Kim Jong Un’s invitation to talk.

2) “We all need to cultivate a more relaxed attitude about what we’re eating.”

The Sporkful: Why Won’t Anyone Invite Michael Pollan To Dinner?, March 5 (4:45)

• Says Pollan, who is indeed the same man who says don’t eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.
• Invite him to dinner, though, and he promises he won’t ask you the provenance of your eggs.

3) “When your life’s at stake, it’s easy to do research.”

Deviate With Rolf Potts: Adventure writer Tim Cahill on fear, and what it’s like to be dead for ten minutes, March 6 (15:55)

• Cahill, the “godfather of literary outdoor journalism,” riffs on his motivations and his near-death experience in the Grand Canyon.

4) “The kids are born with information warfare in their DNA.”

The Bill Simmons Podcast: The “Infocalypse,” Conspiracies, and the Future of the Internet With BuzzFeed’s Charlie Warzel (Ep. 334), March 5 (25:27)

• Says Warzel, analyzing the social media response of the survivors of the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting vs. trolls.
• Warzel focuses on the internet’s evolution. Prevailing thought: It’s gonna get dark. Much darker.

5) “They hate us. They really hate us.”

Recode Decode: Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg on techlash and #MeToo, March 7 (10:48)

• That’s host Kara Swisher, with her take on Americans’ current attitude toward tech companies.
• She and Sandberg talk Facebook and #MeToo at the Lesbians Who Tech summit.

6) “The Presidency didn’t break him.”

“And he didn’t break the country.”

Still Processing: We Paint the Town Obama, March 8 (24:36)

• Takes from Jenna Wortham (quote #1) and Wesley Morris (quote #2) upon seeing President Barack Obama’s portrait at D.C.’s National Portrait Gallery.
• The pair recorded in the gallery, beautifully capturing their giddy, raw reactions and their extended analysis of Barack and Michelle’s portraits. A mesmerizing pod.

7) “[It’s] kind of crazy to say it’s a crazy story about Josephine Baker, because her whole life is just unimaginable.”

The Nod: Josephine and the Amazing Technicolor Rainbow Tribe, March 5 (1:59)

• That’s Emanuele Berry, on the entertainer/activist/spy’s attempt to build a “racial utopia” by adopting kids from multiple races and bringing them home to a 16th century French chateau.

8) “Love is a verb, and not a noun.”

This Movie Changed Me: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, March 6 (21:35)

• Says Chaitanya Kumar, about lessons learned from the 50 times (!) he’s seen “Eternal Sunshine.”

9) “It’s kind of a bummer that only a certain type of dude is being allowed to play with these action figures.”

The Watch: ‘Star Wars’ to TV and ‘The Sopranos’ to the Big Screen, Plus the Shib Sibs, March 8 (6:20)

• That’s Andy Greenwald’s take on Disney tabbing Jon Favreau to lead the “Star Wars” series for its upcoming streaming service.
• On the other hand, with Favreau, the opportunity opens up for Greenwald’s slightly off-target “Swingers” joke: “Luke is gonna leave the longest series of voicemails for Leia.”

10) “If those farts are powerful enough to upend a demon, they’re probably going to be potent enough to disturb my competition for nine innings.”

The PosCast: PosCast Draft: The Good Place Characters with Mallory Rubin, March 2 (57:15)

• That’s Rubin, with a reason she made the (obvious) first pick of Good Janet in a draft of characters from “The Good Place.”
• Good Janet, she suggests, can adopt Bad Janet’s, uh, superpower.
• A flaw in the hilarious draft: Nobody picked Maya Rudolph’s Judge Gen.

Subscribe to This Week in Podcasts! Enter your email below and every Friday I’ll email you a skimmable recap of the week’s podcasts, highlighting provocative takes, great binges, new pods and a comprehensive list of notable podcast guests.

Go Deep

Eight Degrees of Bruce Springsteen

Celebration Rock: 20th Century Boss, Feb. 12-March 5

Bruce Springsteen “had one of the great runs in rock history” from the mid-70s to the ‘90s, says host Steven Hyden. He and eight musicians dig into The Boss’s 20th century work, in eight episodes that explore Springsteen’s cultural significance and rise.

• If you have any romantic ideas of New Jersey (it’s possible!), Bruce probably implanted them, says Hyden.
• Hyden leads the conversation with a sharp critical eye, but it’s the musicians who lend a fascinating perspective.
• Musicians Brian Fallon, Jeff Rosenstock, Julien Baker, Patrick Stickles, Phoebe Bridgers, Patterson Hood, John Darnielle and Tim Showalter all share their love.

If you listen to just one: Try Phoebe Bridgers on “Nebraska,” the rawest and most intimate of the releases covered.

• Hyden places the 1982 album on a continuum with Bob Dylan’s Basement Tapes and Bon Iver’s work.
• Says Bridgers: “One of my favorite things about him as a writer is I feel like the craziest things are the things he leaves in the spaces.”

Spoiler: The best Springsteen album is “Nebraska.”

Go deeper: Hear Marc Maron’s celebrated interview with Springsteen, David Remnick’s New Yorker Radio Hour interview and The Moment’s Brian Koppelman on “Nebraska” on My Favorite Album.

Guest Appearances By…

Achatz, Grant The J.J. Redick Podcast

• El Bulli made the influential chef feel like he was on Mars

Bosh, Chris The Bill Simmons Podcast

• Two-parter with two-time NBA champ

Buck, Joe Pardon My Take

Callen, Bryan The Joe Rogan Experience

Carden, D’Arcy Lovett or Leave It

• “The Good Place” actress plays the woman who’s never heard of Trump

Coe, Tyler Mahan Rockin’ the Suburbs

• Three-part series with New Yorker-praised Cocaine & Rhinestones host

Eisen, Norm Pod Save America

• Former Ethics Czar for Obama administration

Finley, Ron Forked Up

• “Gangsta Gardner” talks changing underserved communities

Flake, Jeff The Axe Files

Gebbia, Joe The Tim Ferriss Show

• Almost 3 hours with a co-founder of Airbnb

Grann, David The New Yorker Radio Hour

• Shares his amazing story about Antarctic explorer Henry Worsley

Kennedy, Joe The Ezra Klein Show

• The Democratic house member from Massachusetts

Kimmel, Jimmy The Bill Simmons Podcast

• A post-Oscars debrief from the jet ski giver away-er

Mayer, Jane Fresh Air, The New Yorker Radio Hour

• She talks about her jaw-dropping Christopher Steele story

Medine, Leandra Skimm’d from The Couch

• Convo with Man Repeller founder

Miller, Von Pardon My Take

• Dancing with the Stars contestant/Super Bowl MVP talks football

Nash, Steve Planet Fútbol with Grant Wahl

• Basketball legend talks about his passion: soccer

Oliver, John Fresh Air

Oprah The Goop Podcast

• First guest on Gwyneth’s new pod

Oyelowo, David WTF with Marc Maron, Bullseye with Jesse Thorn

Reid, Robert This Week in Travel

• Travel media neglects Russia, says travel writer

Schiff, Adam Stay Tuned with Preet

Scott, Adam Armchair Expert

• The actor/RU Talkin’ R.E.M. RE: ME? host loves Will Ferrell and Spike Lee

Shields, Kevin All Songs Considered

• He goes deep about his seminal record with My Bloody Valentine, “Loveless”

Simpson, Sturgill The Joe Rogan Experience

• Three-hour pod with critics’ fave country artist

Stone, Sharon WTF with Marc Maron

Whitaker, Forest Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air

Will.i.am I Am Rapaport

• He’s got a nuanced take on Fergie’s national anthem performance at the NBA All-Star Game

Pick From a Podcaster

This week’s guest: Matt Elzweig, whose Falling Uphill is “a podcast about ordinary people in unthinkable situations, flying blind and hoping for the best.”

• Adds Matt: “I made the first episode as a one-off with no specific purpose in mind except to record a friend’s insane job interview story. Then I realized it had a common theme which became the basis for the podcast.”

Matt’s pick:  Happy Hour: “Blend In and Stay Out the Sun”

Happy Hour, a podcast from It’s New Orleans, “is a cocktail-fueled 60 minutes of random conversation with folks who have nothing in common, other than being New Orleanians in a bar.”

• Matt says: “If you love New Orleans, this podcast is the next best thing to actually being there. Even if you don’t, it brings together the most unlikely of companions and a host who isn’t afraid to push his guests’ buttons to get them talking. The latest features a singer, a lawyer, and a developmental psychologist.”

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