Sharing Podcasts

I have the privilege of time to listen to a variety of podcasts during the day. I hope that I might point to some that I’ve enjoyed and/or found useful. I also hope that you might recommend new podcasts for our review and enjoyment as well.

I’m not really interested in fiction pods, although I think there are lots of great ones out there. I listen to a diverse collection of non-fiction pods with no particular focus. My library is NPR-heavy at this point because podcasting is how I access most of my NPR content now that I don’t really drive all that much. But I am gradually expanding my library.

I use Castbox as my listening platform, but I have no investment in one platform over another. I assume you can find the relevant shows on your favorite platform. Anyway…

It’s been another full morning of listening. My Podcast of the Day is the current episode of the NPR show, Hidden Brain. The episode is called “BS Jobs,” and it focuses precisely where the title points. In large part it is a conversation with David Graeber from the London School of Economics. If you have ever worked at a pointless job, you’ll probably enjoy this one. If you have elements of your job that seem pointless (and who doesn’t?), there will be some useful insights here.

You might think that a behavioral economist would be dull and boring. But Graeber has engaging stories, personal perspectives, counter-intuitive insights and a bemused distance from it all that makes the conversation fun and fascinating.

I am a great fan of Talk of Iowa as well. Today Charity Nebbe introduced me to a newly-minted podcast called Mid-Americana: Stories from a Changing Midwest. It is produced by two faculty members from Central College in Pella, Iowa (my alma mater). The focus is on what “Midwest” can and does mean beneath the folksy stereotypes. I listened to an espisode telling the story of a Jewish-Latina artist with deep Iowa roots and remarkable experiences, especially in connection with the United Farm Workers. I look forward to more episodes.

In the category of newly-discovered podcasts, I’m enjoying the Simply Wholehearted podcast from the Gravity Center for emanuel Activism here in Omaha. More on that one when I’ve listened to some more.

I look forward to hearing about your favorites (and not-so-favorites). I wish you productive listening!