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My favorite podcasts don't come out quickly enough. Help me find more?


Jenny in Florida
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I listed to podcasts while I walk with the dog in the morning, while I'm driving if I'm alone in the car, occasionally when I'm cooking/baking and sometimes when I'm having trouble going to sleep. (I used to read until I conked out, but now that I wear glasses for reading, that doesn't work out as well.) I like audiobooks for these times, too, but I seem to have run through everything available from our local library in which I have any interest and don't have a budget to actually purchase them.

 

The problem is that I can't seem to keep my iPod stocked with as much new material as I actually listen to in a week. I went browsing on iTunes last night, hoping something new would catch my eye (ear?), but I didn't find anything promising.

 

I'm hoping that maybe, if I list the ones I already listen to regularly, you all might have some suggestions?

 

My favorites are:

 

- Pop Culture Happy Hour (NPR)

- The Dinner Party Download

- This American Life

- Freakonomics

- Marketplace Money

- Planet Money

- RadioLab

- Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me

- Ask Me Another

 

I occasionally listen to the Moth, but I find it so uneven that I get frustrated sometimes.

 

As you can deduce from my list, I'm an NPR junkie. I'm not actually all that interested in economics, normally, but I like the storytelling and "vibe" of the money-themed shows I listed.

 

When I'm not listening to podcasts, I often have the radio on and tuned to my local NPR station. So, most of the podcasts that are just collections of stories and bits played on regular morning or afternoon programs (book and movie reviews, for example) are repeats for me.

 

Any thoughts? What wonderful, fascinating, smart and entertaining (and preferably at least a little bit funny) podcasts are out there that I haven't discovered yet and you just know I'd love?

 

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After reading your list, I thought I had a great suggestion, and then I got to the part about not actually liking economics. :-) Oh, well. I'll still suggest Econ Talk. It's a bit heavier than Freakonomics, but they have a large selection of archived programs that you can look through for topics of interest.

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I listen to a few of the podcasts you listed and I also have browsed through the archive of the BBC podcast, In Our Time, which has historians on discussing whatever (seemingly random) topic the show is about.

 

In the credits, they always mention that BBC has a wide variety of topics available, so perhaps you can find something that interests you from that side of the ocean.

 

You listen so consistently, have you thought about working casually on a foreign language? There are podcasts available in other languages that are geared toward learners (I use a Spanish one).

 

Let us know if you find any gems!

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We like " What You Missed in History Class". They have had some hosts we like better than others but the topics are interesting and there are lots of them.

 

That's my recommendation too. I also like selected episodes from the archive of "Pop Stuff" and occasionally "Stuff Mom Never Told You," though I find the hosts to be grating.

 

Looking at your list, I also like "Says You." It's one of my favorite NPR shows, but not sure if they have a podcast.

 

ETA: It looks like they don't. Darn. If your local NPR station carries it, you might be able to stream it each week.

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Do you listen to the daily (evening--not the short morning and noon reports) Marketplace shows besides the weekly Marketplace Money? That's another half hour (well, 25 min maybe) per day.

 

I also like Friday Night Comedy from the BBC.

 

I listen to almost everything on your list (Not Freakanomics--dh listens that one) plus a bunch of WDW-related podcasts.

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Do you like "The Diane Rehm Show"?  Tthere are two hour-long shows a day, so you can't possibly keep up, so you don't feel guilty about skipping a subject that isn't interesting.

 

I would also like to listen to ItunesU classes, but there are so many, it would be nice to get good recommendations.

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I echo Laura and others' suggestions of "In Our Time."  I also wonder if you would like A History of the World in 100 Objects?  (Link is here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/).  That's another BBC series with 10 minute podcasts by the director of the British Museum, recounting the historical context of many different objects from the museum from pre-history to the present.

 

 

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Do you like "The Diane Rehm Show"? Tthere are two hour-long shows a day, so you can't possibly keep up, so you don't feel guilty about skipping a subject that isn't interesting.

 

I would also like to listen to ItunesU classes, but there are so many, it would be nice to get good recommendations.

I've been listening/watching the American revolution class from yale(?) I think. When my iPad charges I'll verify the school. Anyhow, it's pretty entertaining and I'm learning a lot about the AR that I never learned in college. I watch it when I'm walking on the treadmill; it keeps me from being bored out of my mind.

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Also...

 

You Are Not So Smart

The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe

The Infinite Monkey Cage

Quirks and Quarks

StarTalk (Neil deGrasse Tyson)

John Ronson On (I think you'd have to download these from his website)

The History Chicks

History of Rome

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