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Podcasts Worth The Time?
Calling all podcasts: Can anyone recommend some portable audio worth the time?
I'm afraid I don't know where to start.
I wrote about them in their infancy, more than three years ago, when my fave was this lo-fi creation called the Dawn and Drew Show, which was put together in an old Wisconsin farmhouse by an invitingly twisted couple of ex-gutter punks. I'm guessing the genre has grown up since.
But it's passed me by. I haven't kept up at all.
What I'd like to do is figure out a way to load up the iPod with a good 45 minutes of stuff twice a day as a walk the dog -- you know, a sort of personalized NPR.
I want news, sports, weather. But more quirky stuff, too -- mondo interviews, exotic travel, dangerous adventure, forgotten music, great escape, fettuccine szechuan.
So, those who've got this figured out, what have you found to be keepers???
'sup, duder, how you been? start here: http://ask.metafilter.com/72171/I-require-awesome-podcasts-for-boring-commutes dig through here: http://ask.metafilter.com/tags/podcast you're welcome.
Your article interested me since I was thinking about this recently. I love my iPod, and on the rare occason I jsut feel like listening to a lesson, or to someone talk, and I happen to be in an environemnt where I can 100% concentrate on the topic, then I love podcasts. However, rarely am I in this environment. I still primarily use my iPod for music despite its movie/picture/podcast capabilities. I llike a few podcasts out there. The Slate Magazine pdcast is like NPR for Gen X Y Z and despite the boring readings, the articles are good. I am also teaching myself Spanish so I like the Coffee Break Spanish and the PRinceton Review vocabulary review.
my top picks... the problem is, a lot of them are weekly. nonetheless, in that category: garrison keillor's news from lake wobegon, michael feldman's whad'ya know (though the podcast is only the first hour), npr's it's all politics, and of course the standards car talk and wait wait, don't tell me. npr also does a twice-weekly music podcast that ranges from 20-40 minutes depending on the length of stories. not everything, but way shorter than their jazz podcasts. i've also heard that the inquirer does some podcasts on baseball and college basketball that are pretty good, but that's just what i've heard. in the daily category, i really like garrison keillor's writers almanac, the washington post's politics podcasts, and what is for me the king of radio shows, tony kornheiser's yakfest. granted you have to like his sense of humor, and it's long (90 minutes or thereabouts usually). but it's the one show i absolutely have to listen to every day.
Damn, this mic IS on. thanks for these. a great start. but please, sir, i want more!
What could be better Podcast listening than a podcast of music that you may never hear anywhere else. www.coverville.com is a several times a week podcast done by pj Brian Ibbott that is all about what its name suggests: covers of songs. The twist is that they are covers you probably won't hear on the radio and in many cases, will be amazed to learn even existed. My all time favorites are the cover of the Nat King Cole & Natalie Cole duet "Unforgettable" done by .Jackie Chan and Ani Di Franco (no, that was not an extended typo!) and a version of "Honkey Tonk Women" done by the Pogues that sounds less of a cover than a song that could have been their original. Each show has a theme, sometimes covers of songs by one artist or band, sometimes seasonal, and every once in a while, "N Degrees of Coveration", where a sequence of covers leads back to the artist of the first song doing a cover of a song by the artist that did the previous cover in the chain. I just checked site, and it's up to 414 podcasts, all archived with descriptions and playlists, going back to 9/2004. all on one long scrolling page.(actually handy to search using browser find command (Alt-F or its tactile equivalent) for whatever might pique your interest.) Enjoy!
If you are into running, check out 'Phedippadations' on steverunner.com. He's based in Massachusetts but he recently did a show on running in the Philadelphia marathon.
My fave is NPR's Splendid Table---that's the place for fettuccine Szechuan for sure!!
You need to start paying more attention... http://bol.cnet.com
I love listening to "Grammer Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips" Each episode is only 5 or so minutes, but they tackle simple questions we all think about re: style, writing, punctuation. Okay, maybe I'm the only one :)
try Creative Screenwriting Magazine's weekly podcasts. they usually have solid, interesting interviews with writers and directors of some of the top movies out there.
My absolute favorite is NPR's This American Life. Perhaps an obvious choice, but it can really make the hours fly by -- I get so totally engrossed.
Preston and Steve from WMMR 93.3 FM. Daily podcast about two hours long and it is definitely one of the funniest things that you will ever hear. Give it five days and you will be hooked! (it may not even take that long!)
You should cruise through Itunes sometime and check out the University podcasts. There are tons of free video and audio podcasts on a whole range of Majors. I'm learning about Electromagnetics from the MIT Open Course Ware project.
I want to be totally shameless and just plug my podcast, as a friend who sent me this link suggested I do. We talk weekly about all things sports, pop culture, politics and I think, at least I hope, it will hold your attention. First, I will suggest listening to the podcast of Tony Kornheiser's radio show out of DC. It's nothing like he is on PTI or Monday Night Football. It's the smartest show on the radio. It's on XM as well, but you can grab the podcast at www.3wtradio.com. Oh, and if you take the time, mine is available at http://609design.com/podcast
If you're into techy stuff, almost anything at itconversations.com is good. Lots of interviews and conference presentations. There are also some good books like 7th Son and anything by Scott Sigler (if you're into sci-fi and gore). Our friends across the pond have one called "In Our Time" about science and philosophy, but it's hit or miss depending on the subject and guests.
Check out " A Way with Words" from Kpbs San Diego, a sort of "Car Talk" for language.
One of the joys of podcasts is that non-US radio programs are much more accessible. I'm very fond of Street Stories from the Australian Broadcasting Company - sort of a 1/2 hr weekly "This Australian Life." I get my non-US sports fix from the BBC weekly Sportsweek and tech(ish) news from The World's technology podcast. Also, on the domestic front, Radio Lab from WNYC is excellent, and This Week in Science is a low-budget, funny and informative take on current science news. Sorry I don't have URLs handy but google and itunes search should turn them all up. (Unfortunately most of the "non-broadcast" podcasts to which I subscribe are video, and not so good for dog-walking.)
Check out Bloomberg on the Economy with Tom Keene. http://mortyandmoishe.blogspot.com/2008/01/good-idea-as-heard-on-bloomberg-news.html
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