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.

Beycomé? Seems like every other podcast this week featured Beyoncé and/or James Comey. Lots from and about them — and so many more compelling people and topics.

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

1) “How the fuck I’m gonna tell his daddy he’s dead as a doorknob from catering?”

Listen: The Nod: Taco Bout It (14:03)

• That’s Chef Ocho, upon witnessing his good friend and co-worker shot and killed at a party they catered.
• Host Brittany Luce tells Ocho’s heartbreaking and heartwarming rise from selling tacos from his front lawn in Watts to popular purveyor of “Black tacos” in L.A.
• My take: The most compelling pod I listened to this week.

2) “When you’re spending $600,000 on leather in three years, that’s an addiction.”

Listen: Dear Sugars: Buyer’s Remorse — With Buzz Bissinger (3:54)

• That’s Bissinger, who’s no shopaholic. The term, he says, minimizes his and others’ life-altering affliction.
• The “Friday Night Lights” writer lays bare his behavioral addiction to the Sugars.

3) “All pet names should end in a vowel.”

Listen: Judge John Hodgman: Yappy Trails (6:22)

• The assertion by Chris, recounted by his son Chase in Hodgman’s court, earns nine seconds of uninterrupted laughter.
• Chase’s case against Chris: His dad talks too much about pet names and other topics during their hikes instead of quietly enjoying the surroundings.
• Hodgman adds: The best name for a dog is Hambone.
• Spoiler: Hodgman sides with Chase. His dad should STFU.

4) “Any place that’s called an innovation center isn’t, almost by definition.”

Listen: The Tim Ferriss Show: Astro Teller, CEO of X – How to Think 10x Bigger(12:33)

• That’s Teller, guest on a very-short-by-Ferrissian-standards pod about shifting one’s perspective vs. aiming for incremental growth in business.
• Says Teller, aka Captain of Moonshots at X, a division of Alphabet: Think Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory vs. a more traditional incubator.

5) “It’s almost as though it’s impossible to make a distinction between malice and ignorance.”

Listen: Monocle 24: The Big Interview: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (17:01)

• Adichie laments the “increasing orthodoxy” on the political left that people need to say things a certain way, or be banished.
• The conversation with the author and Ted Talk fave Adichie ranges from her issues with the left to fashion to feminism.
• She says: “I want us to get to a world where we no longer need feminism. That’s my big dream.”

6) “It’s like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.”

Listen: All Songs Considered: Swan Songs: Music For Your Final Exit (32:09)

• So says co-host Robin Hilton, amid a rundown of songs ASC listeners want played at their funerals.
• Hilton’s take expresses the opposite sentiment of one of the top song picks, the Avett Brothers’ “No Hard Feelings.” Holding grudges = taking poison.
• Other notable picks: “This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody),” by Talking Heads; “The Rainbow Connection,” by Kermit the Frog; and “Do You Realize??,” by The Flaming Lips.

7) “What would it really be like to live through an alien invasion? You wouldn’t be on the team with Morgan Freeman.”

Listen: Culture Gabfest: Apocalypse Mom Edition (16:04)

• That’s Julia Turner, in support of the premise of the hit film “A Quiet Place.”
• She likes that the movie twists the alien-invasion premise, asking, “What would it be like to be a bystander, and not the hero?”

8) “This is the part of the movie ‘Conspiracy Theory’ where we find out that Mel Gibson is crazy because it all really happened to him.”

Listen: Pod Save America: “Not a scrupulous individual.” (26:21)

• That’s Jon Lovett’s pop culture-lensed interpretation of one of the week’s (many) big news stories: The feds raided President Trump’s attorney/fixer Michael Cohen’s office, home and beyond.
• The crux: Trump’s business dealings may now be under investigation.
• The question: Are we now, as the headline of guest Adam Davidson’s The New Yorker piece suggests, at “The End Stage of the Trump Presidency”?
• My take: May Davidson be prophetic.

One Podcast That Mesmerized Twitter

Caliphate

The New York Times audio documentary by Rukmini Callimachi‏ (@rcallimachi) on how ISIS emerged went live to non-subscribers Thursday. The early response:

• “Couldn’t be more impressed.” — @theGeoffMcQ
• “[T]akes your breath away.” — @hemicker
• “@rcallimachi deserves an award just for making me ignore the snow that’s still falling in mid-April.” — @MarieLamensch84
• “[T]ruly extraordinary.” — @magicalhill

• “@rcallimachi is my journalism hero.” — @vermontgmg

Go Deep

1) James Comey

Listen: Fresh Air, The Daily, 5 Things, The New Yorker Radio Hour, Pod Save America, Channel 33, The Ben Shapiro Show, FiveThirtyEight, NPR Politics, The Gist, Fake the Nation, Political Gabfest

• The former FBI director achieves podcast saturation, saying his piece about Trump and his new book on Fresh Air, 5 Things, The New Yorker Radio Hour and The Daily.
• Podcasters, too, say their piece about Comey: “[He’s] just 6-foot, 8-inches of pure moral rectitude,” says Pod Save America’s Jon Favreau, with a laugh.

• More Comey critique on the other pods listed above and many more not listed here, to be sure. Dude was everywhere this week.

2) Beychella

Listen: Still Processing, The Read, Keep It!

• Beyoncé’s Coachella performance blew up podcasts all week.
• Wesley Morris and Jenna Wortham tossed their original show to talk Beychella for more than an hour, ranking her show among America’s greatest concert performances.
• The Read goes 2 hours, 15 minutes on the performance.

3) Life on (Fake) Mars

Listen: The Habitat

• The seven-part pod about six volunteers living in an imitation Mars habitat — somewhere in Hawaii — dropped Thursday.

4) U.S./Mexico Border Policy

Listen: Radiolab’s Border Trilogy

• The last episode of a three-part series investigating the U.S. Border Patrol’s “Prevention Through Deterrence” policy drops today.

5) The DC vs. Marvel Comics Rivalry

Listen: Business Wars

• Backstabbing, spying and petty grudges — and the story of the birth of superhero culture — fill this seven-part series on the comic book rivalry.

6) David Ortiz

Listen: David Ortiz: The Big Papi Story

• The four-part profile of the baseball great dropped Monday.

Guest Appearances By…

Albright, Madeleine The Atlantic Interview

Almond, Steve Otherppl

• One of the Sugars talks about his new book during his Otherppl trifecta.

Alvarez, Gustavo The Sporkful

• On the value of food in prison. “It’s everything,” says Alvarez.

Anderson, Louie WTF With Marc Maron

Banderas, Antonio ID10T

Bangs, Lance R U Talkin’ R.E.M. RE: ME?

• Filmmaker nerds out over “Green” with other R.E.M. nerds.

Bryant, Kris Pardon My Take

• Cubs’ 3B on life-changing power of success, Bryce Harper’s pizza preferences.

Carden, D’Arcy It’s Been a Minute With Sam Sanders

• Janet!

Chandrasekhar, Jay The Big Picture

• The director of “Super Troopers” on the sequel, being Indian-American in Hollywood.

Couric, Katie Armchair Expert With Dax Shepard

Cryer, Jon How Did This Get Made?

Del Toro, Guillermo Talkhouse

• Two-part conversation with Academy Award-winning director William Friedkin.

Ellis, Kelly Decrypted

• She’s suing Google for discrimination.

Falco, Edie Bullseye with Jesse Thorn

Friedkin, William Talkhouse

• Two-part conversation with Academy Award-winning director Guillermo Del Toro.

Gaffigan, Jim Maltin on Movies

Gerhardt, Sarah Outside Podcast

• Big wave surfer says big waves distill life to its “experiential essence.”

Grant, Adam Stay Tuned With Preet

Hamilton, Mindy Strictly Business

• For those curious about Lexus’s product placement in “Black Panther.”

Hari, Johann The Ezra Klein Show

• “We’ve been getting less and less good at meeting people’s deep underlying psychological needs,” says “Lost Connections“ author.

Harris, Sam The Joe Rogan Experience

Henry, Brian Tyree Fresh Air

• Convo with Paper Boi from “Atlanta.”

Hickenlooper, John The Axe Files

Hodson, Christina Scriptnotes

• Writer Hodson and host John August aim to solve Hollywood’s issues surrounding inclusion and representation in 59 minutes. “That’s very achievable,” deadpans Hodson.

Hunter, Michael The Joe Rogan Experience

• “Venison is the new kale,” wrote the restaurateur. He tells the tale of the ensuing chaos.

Isbell, Jason Sound Opinions

• “When somebody puts out an album that’s not political right now, if they’re not just a straight-ahead entertainer…everybody goes ‘What the hell are you doing? Why aren’t you talking about politics?’” says the singer/songwriter.

Khalilzad, Zalmay The Axe Files

• Convo with former U.N. Ambassador on the future of conflict in the Middle East.

Kilgariff, Karen Duncan Trussell Family Hour

• My Favorite Murder host talks murder. And comedy.

Lemon, Don The Jamie Weinstein Show

• Trump! Trump! Trump! with the CNN host.

Mendes, Shawn The Dan Wootton Interview

Middleditch, Thomas Comedy Bang! Bang!

Neumann, Ann Deviate With Rolf Potts

• On death and dying with author of “The Good Death.”

Schwartz, Ben Comedy Bang! Bang!

Shriver, Timothy Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

• Convo with chairman of the Special Olympics.

Simien, Justin Keep It!

• The creator of Dear White People raves about Beychella.

Tyler, Aisha WTF With Marc Maron

• She talks about her directorial debut, handling big life changes.

Wright, Lawrence Fresh Air

Pick From a Podcaster

This week’s podcaster: Through Friends at Work, Ade Toye explores how to improve emotional intelligence (EQ) in the workplace one conversation at a time.

• He adds: “As someone who has worked in a few industries and lived in multiple countries and cultures, I understand how easy it is to misunderstand and be misunderstood. EQ skills have helped me adapt quickly and thrive and they will help you too.”

His Pick: The Communication Guys Podcast: This is For Your Own Good [Episode 84].

• He says: “Tim Downs and Dr. Tom Barrett do a great job of looking at the factors involved in how to offer badly-needed criticism to a co-worker who might not take it well. I learnt a lot from what they had to say. I highly recommend their podcast for anyone seeking practical advice on how to communicate effectively in different contexts.”

Reviews and Recommendations

“Trump, Inc.”: A True-Crime Podcast About the President’s Business Dealings(The New Yorker, Sarah Larson)

• Larson’s sold: “If you like true-crime podcasts, in other words, have I got the podcast for you.”

Paul Bae Helps Spearhead the Audio Drama Movement (Discover Pods, Kevin Goldberg)

Why the New York Times Is Making a Podcast About ISIS (Vulture, Nicholas Quah)

Behind ‘Ear Hustle,’ The Podcast Made In Prison (NPR, Ari Shapiro)

Sandra Is an Anxious Tech Thriller for the Age of Siri and Alexa (Vulture, Nicholas Quah)

If you like The Week in Podcasts, please pass it along to someone else who might like it, too. Thanks for reading!

Find us on Twitter @WeekInPodcasts.

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

1) “What happens when the thing that you’re really good at is the thing that is killing your soul.”

Listen: Pop Culture Happy Hour: Barry (7:05)

• That’s Eric Deggans, who adds, “and the thing that you find emotionally sustaining, you are terrible at.”
• He’s talking about Bill Hader’s character in the new HBO show, a skilled assassin with an acting problem.
• My take: Interesting dilemma. Phenomenal show.

2) “There’s a lot of conformity in America’s hippest and coolest cities.”

Listen: The Indicator from Planet Money: Tyler Cowen Rates America (4:19)

• Cowen’s take gets a knowing laugh from host Cardiff Garcia.
• Cowen calls cities “a bit overrated.”
• He adds: “The suburbs is where the action is,” arguing people in the ‘burbs are more connected to what he would call “real life.”
• My take: Cowen’s recurring segments on The Indicator? Underrated.

3) “If you want to stay ahead of the curve as an architect, it’s good every now and then to visit Las Vegas.”

Listen: 99% Invisible: Lessons From Las Vegas (24:28)

• Says architect Stefan Al, one of many compelling voices in an excellent pod about Las Vegas architecture and its influence on modern buildings.

4) “We cannot be feeding people in America anymore with MREs.”

Listen: Ted Talks Daily: José Andrés: How a team of chefs fed Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria (15:48)

• That’s humanitarian and chef Andrés, who spearheaded efforts to feed real food to people in hurricane ravaged Puerto Rico, not military-grade meals ready-to-eat.
• On some days, he and everyone helping him cooked and served tens of thousands of meals.
• My take: Andrés is a hero.

5) “Every relationship is an interfaith relationship.”

Listen: The Sporkful: Love and Chopsticks (6:58)

• That’s Helen Rosner, amid a conversation about relationship issues that involve food.
• The New Yorker food writer and host Dan Pashman answer questions from people with food tensions in their relationships.
• My take: By showing up with a sack of McMuffins, Rosner sets a high bar for gift-bearing podcast guests.

6) “I can just pick up anything and knock it against a guitar, and it’s good.”

Listen: This Song: Kelley Deal of the Breeders (7:15)

• Deal learns her lesson to follow her muse while watching Jimmy Page play guitar with a violin bow in “The Song Remains the Same.”
• My take: An inspiring pod. May you know the joy of finding your thing to knock against your Stratocaster.

7) “This is like basketball-level interest in what Ohtani’s doing.”

Listen: The Ringer MLB Show: New York and Boston Go Nuts, and We Go Nuts About Shohei Ohtani (24:48)

• That’s Michael Baumann, talking about the jaw-dropping hitting and pitching prowess of baseball’s newest star.
• Baumann admits baseball season’s young. But Ohtani’s Babe Ruth-ian feats demand attention.
• My take: Baumann’s underplaying Ohtani’s impact.

8) “I fear Donald Trump’s taint has been smeared all over the American people.”

Listen: The Gist with Mike Pesca: It’s Regulation Time (27:06)

• Yup, Pesca goes there.

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.

One Podcast That Mesmerized Twitter

The Ezra Klein Show: Sam Harris Debate / Waking Up with Sam Harris: Identity & Honesty

Klein and Harris have been debating/fighting/feuding for much of the last year.

• The issue, very condensed: Klein and Vox called out Harris for a podcast Harris did with “The Bell Curve” author Charles Murray about the biological differences and intelligence levels of different races.
• Klein and the stories at Vox said Murray and Harris got the underlying science and its implications very wrong. Harris strongly disagreed.
• After a subsequent back-and-forth spilled onto Twitter and a private email exchange Harris made public, they spoke. They released their conversation on both their feeds.

A taste of Twitter’s take:

• “Understandably, more exasperation than science in yesterday’s Harris/Klein podcast.” — @rjhaier
• “‘The weight of American history is completely irrelevant’ is quite a take.” — @mattyglesias
• “The great thing about this debate is that Ezra Klein really shows how politeness can be a deadly weapon.” — @HeerJeet
• “Just listened to the sam harris / ezra klein podcast. Now to head over to twitter to watch the confirmation bias play out.” — @yannikyriacos
• “I’m now looking forward to the sitcom where you two have to share an apartment together.” — @jefftinevez

Go Deep

1) “This is Us”

Listen: It’s Been a Minute with Sam Sanders, Scriptnotes, Jamie Roxx’s Pop Roxx Talk Radio Show

• The show that gives everyone feelings basks in the pod spotlight.
• Chrissy Metz speaks with Sanders about the show and her new book. “This is Us” writers Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger talk to the Scriptnotes guys about running the show. Isabel Oliver Marcus appears with Roxx.

2) The Motown Museum

Listen: Rockin’ the Suburbs: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

• Jim Lenahan visits Detroit’s Motown Museum and comes back with a three-part series about the landmark of American music.
• “They came up with their own sounds. And they came up with their own styles,” says Paul Barker, the museum’s director of development, of Motown’s musical innovators.

3) “Westworld”

Listen: Binge Mode

• Mallory Rubin and Jason Concepcion explore consciousness and the theory of bicameralism in the first five episodes of Season 1 of HBO’s hit.
• Deep dive, deep stuff.

Guest Appearances By…

Abrahams, Jim The Adam Carolla Show

• Convo with one of the guys behind hall-of-fame comedy “Airplane!”

Brownlee, Marques Recode Media with Peter Kafka

• YouTuber with 6 million (!) subscribers shares his story and his YouTube tips.

Callard, Agnes Conversations With Tyler

• Philosopher talks about her new book and how to care about things you don’t care about yet.

Coles, Joanna Skimm’d From the Couch

• “I have an intense curiosity,” says the Chief Creative Officer of Hearst.

Cook, Tim Recode Decode

Couric, Katie The Tim Ferriss Show

Díaz, Junot Bookworm

• He talks about his children’s book, not his New Yorker piece about being raped as a child that resonated this week.

Ehrenreich, Barbara I Have to Ask

Fieri, Guy The Moment with Brian Koppelman

• “Don’t ever call me a food critic,” says man savagely taken down by a food critic.

Gates, Bill Danny in the Valley

Gelb, David Forked Up

• Convo with the filmmaker behind “Jiro Dreams of Sushi.”

Graham, Lauren Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard

Hamm, Jon Comedy Bang! Bang!, Maltin on Movies

Kasich, John Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me!

John, Daymond How I Built This with Guy Raz

• The story of the rise of the founder of FUBU.

Johnson, Jake The Watch

Leaf, Ryan Pardon My Take

• Former NFL bust talks addiction and overcoming regrets.

Manson, Shirley The Bob Lefsetz Podcast, This Must Be the Gig

Murphy, Stephanie Pod Save America

• Congresswoman from Florida guests live from Orlando.

Nair, Mira Cooking by Ear

• The director makes fattoush and talking about the partition between India and Pakistan.

Newman, Laraine ID10T

• Early SNL cast member recounts her career and personal struggle.

Nichols, Rachel Pardon My Take

Norris, Michele The Atlantic Interview

Payne, Alexander Bullseye with Jesse Thorn

• The director believes all films, no matter what, should be charming.

Rolston, Matthew Monocle 24: The Big Interview Series

• Convo with the photographer and the retrospective of his ‘80s work.

Schriock, Stephanie The Axe Files with David Axelrod

• The president of Emily’s List talks about the wave of woman running for office in 2018.

Simmons, Bill WTF with Marc Maron, House of Carbs

• One podcast heavyweight visits another. Also, on HOC, he ranks NBA cities by their food scenes.

Toobin, Jeffrey Here’s the Thing

Williams, Michael K. The Nod

• The actor talks Janet Jackson and self-help books.

Pick From a Podcaster

This week’s podcaster: Allison Carter hosts Not Your Little Lady, a podcast about women living outside of socially accepted norms in the American South. The format is conversational/interview. New episodes debut every other Wednesday.

• Allison adds: “I began the podcast as an extension of my career as a photojournalist with hopes to create a space where guests tell their stories and listeners open their minds to think about the lives of others.”

Her pick: The Alabama Take: Louisa Amber Murray – The Bear

• Allison says: “Alabama has a piece of my heart and always will. So, I’m for any podcast that highlights the art and culture of a state that — sometimes rightfully, sometimes not —  has a bad reputation. With that in mind, I recommend The Alabama Take not only because (full disclosure) I’m friends with the host and guest, but also because the music scene in North Alabama, aka The Shoals, is on fire.”
• More: “The podcast introduces listeners to bands and people, and the host does it in a way that makes the listeners feel as if they’re listening to their friends.”

Reviews and Recommendations

The Podcast Killed Kevin Williamson, But God Save the Podcast! (The Daily Beast, Matt Lewis)

• Lewis writes: “Today, it is podcasting — mostly unsupervised, often a labor of love, frequently uninterested in ratings and revenue — that is providing the best content.”

Breakmaster Cylinder: A Conversation with Podcasting’s Most Prolific (And Mysterious) Artist (Discover Pods, Kevin Goldberg)

Podcasting’s New World: Groupies, Stage Fright and Sold-Out Shows (The Wall Street Journal, John Jurgensen)

America’s Next Generation Of Muslims Insists On Crafting Its Own Story (NPR, Leila Fadel)

• NPR’s series “Muslims in America: A New Generation” features the makers of the Identity Politics pod.

If you like The Week in Podcasts, please pass it along to someone else who might like it, too. Thanks for reading!

Find us on Twitter @WeekInPodcasts.

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

1) “You don’t need antipathy and acrimony to create great art.”

Listen: The West Wing Weekly: Hamilton Special (with Lin-Manuel Miranda and Thomas Kail) (27:15)

• That’s “Hamilton” director Thomas Kail, on a lesson learned from “The West Wing.”
• Adds Kail: Thinking otherwise is “a load of [bleep.]”
• My take: A must-listen episode for anyone who can’t get enough of “Hamilton.” That’s everyone, right?

2) “The real lesson is that you can never win and still become the cartoon editor of The New Yorker.”

Listen: The New Yorker Radio Hour: How Not to Write a Caption (7:04)

• So says New Yorker cartoon editor Emma Allen, who, during high school, regularly submitted to the magazine’s caption contest.
• Number of Emma Allen wins: zero.
• Allen shares how caption entries are whittled down (an algorithm) and interviews Willy Staley and Matt Jordan, whose Shitty New Yorker Cartoon Captions Tumblr chronicles their imbecilic and hilarious efforts to win the caption contest.

3) “The Pacific Northwest is Disneyland for serial killers.”

Listen: My Favorite Murder: I’ll Be Gone in the Dark at Skylight Books (16:47)

• That’s Patton Oswalt, master of squeezing comedy out of tragedy, guesting on MFM to speak about the crime book of his late wife, Michelle McNamara.
• Oswalt says undercover police photograph crowds during true crime book readings at Powell’s bookstore in Portland, Oregon. Apparently serial killers have been known to attend.
• My take: The pod takes you into the mind of a true-crime writer. It’s a fascinating, scary place.

4) “Accepting an appointment from Donald Trump is about a 98 percent indicator of the lack of any integrity.”

Listen: Trumpcast: Sinclair’s Local News Propaganda Bomb (16:55)

• So says Jacob Weisberg. “That’s exactly right,” echoes WaPo’s Erik Wemple, in a conversation about the people serving in Trump’s cabinet.
• Spoiler: The swamp is growing.

5) “I think we’re at year 10, or year 15, maybe year 20 of a truly revolutionary crack-up of what we’ve typically expected from stories.”

Listen: Longform Podcast: Tom Bissell (11:07)

• That’s Bissell, a magazine, book and video game writer on the potential impact of VR and new storytelling technologies.
• He and host Aaron Lammer agree: Technology is starting to rewire how our brains process stories.

6) “When you’re doing something that nobody else is doing, you’re either the smartest or the stupidest person in the room.”

Listen: How I Built This: Stitch Fix: Katrina Lake (0:37)

• Says Lake, who turned out to be on the smart side the equation with her online personal shopping service.

7) “It’s an act of defiance to watch the show.”

Listen: Pop Culture Happy Hour: Roseanne and What’s Making Us Happy(20:50)

• That’s Invisibilia co-host Hanna Rosin, guesting on PCHH and talking about the reboot of “Roseanne.”
• It’s another insightful, nuanced discussion from the PCHH crew about hot-button pop culture.
• Spoiler: They’re split on the execution and success of the show.

8) “They were like the sandwiches your mom made you in 1978.”

Listen: House of Carbs: Bill Simmons and Adam Rapoport on Meals From the Masters at Augusta National (26:33)

• Simmons, Joe House and Bon Appetit EIC Rapoport have the podcast gig of the week: Taste testing the sandwiches served at the Masters golf tournament.
• Spoiler: Mayo abounds.

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.

One Podcast That Mesmerized Twitter

Missing & Murdered: Finding Cleo

With the 10th and final episode of the series about a missing Cree girl come more accolades.

• “[S]ome of the best storytelling I’ve ever come across.” — @MatthewTeague
• “No podcast has ever moved me as much as this one has.” — @ipitysnails
• “Spellbinding.” — @Lpal87
• “Journalism at its most meaningful.” — @maryannbarr1
• “[R]edefines the podcast format.” — @michelle_furlow

Go Deep

1) Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Last Year

Listen: King’s Last March

• On the 50th anniversary of King’s death, a five-part series on the events of his final year.

2) Lin-Manuel Miranda

Listen: My Brother, My Brother and Me, The West Wing Weekly

• Miranda tweets he and “Hamilton” director Kail considered creating a podcast, but never developed a “sustainable” idea.
• He gets his pod fix as “visiting gadfly” on MBMBaM and with a guest spot on The West Wing Weekly, talking about his love for “The West Wing.”
• That “mind at work” Angelica Schuyler’s looking for in “Hamilton”? That’s a Sorkin-ism, uttered first on “The West Wing” by Rob Lowe.

3) Songs that Misrepresent Artists

Listen: Rockin’ the Suburbs

• A fun and enlightening five-part series from Patrick Foster and Jim Lenahan about bands whose biggest song misrepresents their body of work.
• Bands and songs covered: Soul Asylum, “Runaway Train”; Extreme, “More than Words”; Nada Surf, “Popular”; Thomas Dolby, “She Blinded Me With Science”; Chumbawamba, “Tubthumping.”

4) Mark Zuckerberg

Listen: The Ezra Klein Show, Freakonomics Radio, Today, Explained

• The Facebook CEO makes the pod rounds in advance of his appearance before Congress next week.
• Klein’s interview with Zuck is “a master class in an interviewer making sophisticated points himself while still listening closely and responding to his subject’s answers,” tweets Steven Johnson.

5) “Butterflies,” by Kacey Musgraves

Listen: Switched On Pop

• Nate Sloan and Charlie Harding take 29 minutes to break down Musgraves’ latest.
• Their take: The song “is a master class of creativity.”

Guest Appearances By…

Albright, Madeleine Fresh Air

Andrew W.K. Bullseye with Jesse Thorn

• Throw down with W.K. and some new “inspirational party rock”

Attenberg, Jami Otherppl With Brad Listi

Barkley, Charles The Axe Files with David Axelrod

Berg, Alec Scriptnotes

• Exec producer of “Silicon Valley” and “Barry” on the craft of comedy

Braff, Zach Armchair Expert With Dax Shepard

Bragg, Billy Talkhouse

Cannon, Kay The Big Picture

• Writer/director on transitioning from writing to directing

Cena, John ID10T, Pardon My Take

Fleming, Renée How to Be Amazing with Michael Ian Black

Gates, Melinda Decrypted

• On the dearth of women in tech

Gilroy, Tony The Moment With Brian Koppelman

• Convo with the prolific screenwriter

Goldblum, Jeff The Bill Simmons Podcast

Gondelman, Josh But That’s Another Story

• “Last Week Tonight” writer on “Infinite Jest”

Harris, Neil Patrick WTF With Marc Maron

Kloss, Karlie The Tim Ferriss Show

Kulash, Damian The Limit Does Not Exist

• OK Go singer says he’s “always tried to strike a somewhat reasonable balance between pragmatism and living in Fantasyland.”

Landrieu, Mitch The Atlantic Interview

Letterman, David Edge of Fame

Odom Jr., Leslie Late Night Whenever With Michelle Buteau

• “Hamilton” star talks about his new book

Phair, Liz The Joe Rogan Experience

Porowski, Antoni Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness

• Two guys from “Queer Eye”

Robbins, Tim It’s Been a Minute with Sam Sanders

Robinson, Phoebe U Talkin’ U2 To Me?

• “2 Dope Queens” co-host on her U2 obsession

Sehgal, Parul I Have to Ask

• Interview with a book reviewer for The New York Times

Toobin, Jeffrey The Josh Marshall Podcast

• Trump, Trump, Trump…

Wendell, Sarah Deviate With Rolf Potts

• On romance novels and the foundations of storytelling

Yousafzai, Malala Oprah’s SuperSoul Conversations

• Malala and Oprah for 33 beautiful minutes

Pick From a Podcaster

This week’s podcaster: Erika Ettin of So, We Met Online… The online dating coach and her co-host Chris Hood “share their own dating stories — the hilarious, the poignant and the unthinkable — while providing advice and insights.”

• Erika adds: “If you like to talk about love, sex and dating, then this podcast is for you. Season 3 comes out April 14 — catch up in the meantime!”
• Her pick: The Mortified Podcast: A Montana Love Triangle
• Erika says: “Do you like to laugh? Say no more. Each episode of Mortified takes you through the childhood writings of an awkward adolescent. The naivety of the woman in this week’s episode makes it all the more endearing…and hilarious. Hint: She likes a boy in jail, and this doesn’t faze her.”

Reviews and Recommendations

Scott Aukerman, Lauren Lapkus and Paul F. Tompkins Tell Us Why Podcasting Is Good (and Slightly Bad) for Comedy (The Wrap, Tim Molloy)

• Says Lapkus: “Now my mom has somehow figured out how to listen to my podcasts, so that’s changed the whole game.”

This Week in Comedy Podcasts: David Letterman on ‘Edge of Fame’(Splitsider)

True Crime, Fake Homicide: The Onion’s ‘A Very Fatal Murder’ Podcast (NPR, Audie Cornish)

This Is Normal puts young people at the helm of their own mental health narratives (AV Club, Podmass)

10 Audio Drama Podcasts to Get You Hooked on Fiction (Discover Pods, Wil Williams)

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