America is experiencing a truth crisis. Newspapers are dying, cable channels offer drastically different (sometimes fact-free) world views, and social media (where most Americans get their information) has literally become a high-tech disinformation factory.
Enter podcasts.
Podcasts can be a great vehicle for real information and entertainment. They’re free, they’re full of personality, and they are a great way to fill your brain — as long as you find a podcaster who traffics in truth, or the pursuit of it. Here are some favorite channels — on news and politics to pop culture:
Conversational brainfood
Pod Save America — hosted by former Obama aides Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett, Dan Pfeiffer, and Tommy Vietor — offers thoughtful (and profanity-laden) conversations about the week’s news with a focus on what matters and how we can save democracy. They’re regularly joined by journalists, activists, politicians, entertainers and world leaders.
What Now? with Trevor Noah. I started listening to Trevor Noah’s podcast when he interviewed Jon Stewart of The Daily Show. Stewart “discovered” the South African comedian and recruited him to take over The Daily Show’s reins. It was a fascinating conversation. Of course, Noah is funny and smart, but (especially when the guests are good) his podcast contains more thought-provoking conversation than empty banter.
On with Kara Swisher — Tech journalist Kara Swisher (with her executive producer Nayeema Raza) grills tech experts, journalists and thought leaders in a truly conversational format. In another podcast, PIVOT, Swisher teams up with NYU Professor Scott Galloway to offer sharp, unfiltered insights into the biggest stories in tech, business, and politics.
TED Talks Daily. Hear thought-provoking ideas on subjects ranging from Artificial Intelligence to zoology and everything in between by the world’s leading thinkers and creators.
Time: Person of the Week. Time Correspondent Charlotte Alter hosts candid conversations with the people who shape the world, about the forces that shape them.
Daily news
Up First — NPR’s news team gets you up to speed in just 10 minutes, and it’s available by 6 a.m. weekdays, and 8 a.m. on weekends. This is where radio skills shine. You feel smarter and up to date on world events in just a few minutes.
The Daily — This New York Times podcast is an easy way to stay informed on the news of the day, in a way that’s easy to digest. Listen to hosts Michael Barbaro and Sabrina Tavernise twenty minutes a day, five days a week.
Start Here — This ABC News podcast, hosted by Brad Mielke, takes you through the days news in about 20 minutes.
Storytelling at its best
Rachel Maddow Presents: Ultra. Maddow — a master of radio storytelling — takes us back to the 1930s and 40s, when sitting members of Congress aided and abetted a fascist plot to overthrow the U.S. government. Ultra is the all-but-forgotten true story of far-right American extremism, when elected officials were caught plotting against American democracy with the Nazis, and the violent ultra right went to great lengths to cover its tracks. Season 2 of Ultra looks at post-WWII America, where Nazi sympathizers in American government continued to support Hitler’s violent far-right fascism. Sen Joseph McCarthy had deep Nazi ties and went on offense using big lies to destroy political enemies. Think Trump is an anomaly? The parallels to today’s far right extremism are eerie.
Maddow newest podcast, “Déjà News,” (with co-host Isaac-Davy Aronson) seek a deeper understanding of a story in today’s headlines by asking: Has anything like this ever happened before… and what might happen next?
Autocracy in America. The Atlantic’s Anne Applebaum and Peter Pomerantsev host a podcast that exposes authoritarian tactics already at work in the United States.
Slow Burn. Slate Podcasts‘ Slow Burn does a deep dive on historical events, from Watergate to Roe vs. Wade to Biggie and Tupac. On Season 8, host Joel Anderson explores the history of Clarence Thomas from youthful radical to conservative icon. You’ll hear about why he came to despise the race-based admission policies that personally benefited him, how he credited his political rise to the Black self-sufficiency preached by Malcolm X, and what the American people didn’t hear during his explosive confirmation hearings.
One Year. Slate Podcasts’ One Year explores the people and struggles that changed America — a year at a time. Host Josh Levin uses storytelling at its best to explain moments that transformed politics, culture, science, religion, and more. From George H.W. Bush’s war with broccoli to the surprising origins of the song the Macarena to American terrorism in Oklahoma City. So far, One Year has explored America in 1942, 1955, 1977, 1986, 1990 and 1995.
Fun and quirky infotainment
Wiser Than Me. Julia Louis-Dreyfus starts her award-winning podcast with an endearing, often hilarious story, then interviews a woman she deems to be “wiser than me.” There’s a reason it’s killing it on Apple Podcasts.
Smartless. More fun than fact, Smartless is the brainchild of actors Will Arnett, Sean Hayes and Jason Bateman. In each episode, one of the hosts reveals his mystery guest to the other two. What ensues is a genuinely improvised conversation.
Wind of Change. This podcast launched during the COVID shutdown, when it was comforting to sit with a glass of wine and have time to hear this absolutely bizarre story unfold. It’s also aging well as Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine (with a bonus track from the Scorpions’ 2022 NYC concert). Here’s the gist: It’s 1990. The Berlin Wall just fell. The Soviet Union is on the verge of collapse. And the soundtrack to the revolution is one of the best-selling songs of all time, the Scorpions’ metal ballad “Wind of Change.” Decades later, journalist Patrick Radden Keefe heard a rumor: the song was written by the CIA. This is his journey to find the truth. This podcast stuck with me, not only because of its great storytelling filled with secrets and spies, but it continues to make me think about how America at its best used to promote civil rights and democracy around the world. It also makes me ponder how art has the power to move people to fight for …. democracy?
Read More:
The New Yorker: Best Podcasts of 2024 and Best Podcasts of 2023. Staff Writer Sarah Larson reveal’s her picks for the year’s ten best podcasts on everything from politics to late-night comedy.
Pulitzer Prize winners for Audio Reporting. Here are the annual winners of audio journalism that serves the public interest, characterized by revelatory reporting and illuminating storytelling.
Webby Awards. Find Webby Podcast of the Year winners, along with dozens of other intriguing categories. Winners must limit their acceptance speeches to five words.
