🏀 Mad boosties 👄 juicy gossip🚶🏼♀️walking 🏰 Disney adults 🚋 the “stand clear of the closing doors guy”🚗
🍭 👂 You're in for a treat! 🌈 🤸♀️
Bonjour!
Today is Monday, April 4. There are 33 days until I go on my next Disney cruise. If you want me to send you a postcard from the cruise, fill out this form. In case this email is too long, two of my favorite podcasters have a new show here, a new podcast all podcast lovers and makers will love here, an academic look at Oprah here.
Quick note:
[Stealing this idea from Arielle of EarBuds.] If you’re a reader of Podcast the Newsletter, I want to get to know you better! Respond to this email and answer the following:
Name, what you do or why you’re here.
Which write-ups you prefer: episode descriptions or new show descriptions?
Do you read the whole thing?
What’s a recommendation I’ve made that’s been helpful for you?
Okay now let’s get down to business. This week we’re getting to peek into the listening life of Mila Atmos, the host and executive producer of Future Hindsight.
Describe your show in ten words. Inspiring action from big ideas about civic life and democracy.
What do you hope your show does for people? My hope with Future Hindsight is that it empowers our listeners to take action. I believe that we all need to give of ourselves to make our society better, instead of relying on others to address the issues that we face. After the 2016 election, many people felt powerless and helpless, but they didn’t know how to make an impact beyond voting but short of running for office. In fact, I myself want to be someone who looks back years from now—in hindsight—and realize that I did something. That’s how I came to start the podcast. Our guests are citizen changemakers who shed light on the issues that they care about and inspire us through their engagement. I’ve learned so much about what’s possible! Future Hindsight is the place to get informed about the state of our democracy and find tangible action items for your civic action toolkit.
What speed do you listen to podcasts? Depends! I definitely want to understand the content, so I listen between 1 and 1.75. As a mother, independent podcaster (who is often listening to research for my own!), and an avid community member (I'm on three boards, president of one, and a volunteer at my sons' school), sometimes my time is very limited but I still want to get my listening in! The extra busy days are the ones I'll opt for 1.75.
How do you discover new shows? Recommendations from friends. Earbuds Podcast Collective. Twitter, specifically @aapodcasters, Lauren Passell, @amywestervelt, @allisongill, @MuellerSheWrote, and more!
What's a podcast you love that most people don't know about? Things Fell Apart with Jon Ronson. It’s a series of unexpected stories about the history of the culture wars in the US. It’s totally out of left field, and utterly fascinating!
What's a podcast you love that most people already love? Words to Win By with Anat Shenker-Osorio and Hidden Brain with Shankar Vedantham!
xoxo lp
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👋q & a & q & a & q & a👋
Glory Edim
Glory Edim is the founder of the reading network Well-Read Black Girl and the host of the podcast Well Read Black Girl. Follow her on Twitter here. Follow Well Read Black Girl on Twitter here.
How many years were people begging you to start a podcast?
I mean, FOREVER! The podcast is the natural evolution of the Well-Read Black Girl community. The book club was totally ready to hear directly from authors and learn more about their individual journeys to become writers.
What’s your relationship with your voice and how would you describe it?
I'm still learning my voice. I do my best to lean into the uncomfortable parts and be authentic. I'm driven by curiosity! I want individuals to listen and respond with their own stories. Whether they share their admiration or frustration with the books they're reading or the creative process of writing! Hopefully, they'll exclaim, “Hell yeah, I’ve been there, too.” The vibe is similar to the book club; it's about reflecting on all of the ways literature offers us courage and inspiring us to try our best.
You sounded like such a podcast natural on your first episode. Congratulations! Was it easy to get on the mic for the first time?
Wow! Thank you. Honestly, the mic can sometimes feel intimidating. I'm learning so much about how to be a podcaster. For example, writing a book is completely different from developing a script that needs to be narrated. I have to inject enthusiasm into my voiceover and capture the listener's attention. It's a lot of hard work but it's worth it.
I have heard you talk about learning to be vulnerable as a writer. Is sharing vulnerability different for a podcaster?I’d like to think I’ve done a few daring things in my life; starting a podcast is one of them! Although I love reading & talking to authors, I entered a whole new realm as a podcast host. It requires a specific type of vulnerability. You have to listen deeply and step-up your interview skills. I find myself feeling more present in my conversations and looking for connections in my own life. I'm in awe of authors I chat with; I want them to understand I value their craft. It's a really special exchange with every episode.
How has The Well-Read Black Girl changed your life?
Well-Read Black Girl has completely changed my life! I mean, I've published two whole BOOKS and I host a podcast! The platform has become part of my larger legacy. I take a lot of pride in my work and pay homage to the writers that have come before me. I envision a future for the platform in which we become a cultural institution. The podcast allows me to introduce audiences to creative work developed by Black artists and writers.
hey.
✨Adela Mizrachi (of Podcast Brunch Club) and I are starting a podcast, Feed the Queue, which will be a feed drop show, featuring episodes of our favorite indies that aren’t getting enough attention. You can hear the trailer here, we’d love for you to leave a rating and review about HOW EXCITED YOU ARE!!! Get pumped to hear our absolute favorite things, things you’ve probably never heard before. We’re hand delivering you the best. Hear the trailer.
✨I’m hosting another podcast marketing session with Radio Boot Camp on 6/6. This time it’s an hour longer, which means more time nerding out. Sign up here.
✨On Thursday at 12pm EST, I’ll be joining Katy Katy Hearne-Church of Acast for an Aclass Insider class on podcast marketing. We’ll be focused on three things in particular: in-app promotion, pitching yourself to newsletters, and promo swaps. Join here.
✨Arielle Nissenblatt spotlighted the podcast The Trail Ahead in her newsletter and podcast.
🚨If u only have time for 1 thing🚨
Look under your seat… it’s a new podcast! (I stole this copy from their website.) From Kellie Carter Jackson (This Day in Esoteric Political History) and Leah Wright Rigueur comes Oprahdemics, an academic look at the queen of talk TV. Kellie and Leah, historians, best friends, and Oprah obsessives, are going through the archives to relive some of the most iconic episodes from the Oprah Winfrey Show, explaining what these moments meant to us then, and what they mean to us now. The first episode brings us back to 2011, when Oprah and her staff at Harpo Studios went vegan for a full week. Kellie and Leah bring on Marcia Chatelain, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for History for her book Franchise to suss out what this episode was trying to accomplish vs what it actually did accomplish. There is so much packed in here it could be a series in itself (the Vegan episode of the Oprah Winfrey Show probably also should have been a series—one hour to cover all facets of veganism?) There wasn’t a single second of this episode that didn’t carry its weight—it both took me back (I still think “Oprah’s on!” every day at 4pm) and gave me fresh perspective on the Winfrey empire and how her television show shaped (and shapes) our culture.
⚡️News from Sounds Profitable⚡️
On Sounds Profitable (check out the newsletter and podcast) Brian Barletta gets into competitive separation in podcast advertising, and how baked-in, dynamic ad insertion, and programmatic ads struggle to communicate with each other. And how we can create ad decisions that make business sense and are better experiences for the listeners. Read/subscribe here.
💎BTW💎
🎙️Awakened Underground is an investigative talk show that explores the ancient art of healing yourself with plant medicines and psychedelics, which sounds like it could be bland but was so much more than what I had expected. Cody Blue, filmmaker and son of (straight-edge) Twisted Sister front man Dee Snider, opens the show up sharing his own experiences growing up on Western medicine, and his path to experimenting with psychedelic plant medicines. The first episode was so entertaining because it felt like a family phone call (aka a listen-in on people who love each other, talking over each other) with Cody and his mom and sister, who followed Cody’s path to psychedelics and have stories to tell, and Dee Snider, who doesn’t drink or do drugs of any kind, and acts as a casual observer of the benefits these methods have had on his family. It feels like an ad for psychedelics and made me want to sign up for Ayahuasca. At one point Dee says he wants to spread the “good news,” which is fitting. If you replaced the word “psychedelic” with “God,” the episode would not be that different—this feels like a religion Cody and his family are trying to convert you to. They did touch upon some of the bad parts about Ayahuasca, but not the shitting in buckets part, which I learned about on a series of Private Parts Unknown, and that’s what I really need to hear about before I call up a shaman. Listen here.
🎙️On No Harm in Asking, Eric Byron and Michael Kerr are breaking down popular podcasts, their format, voice, structure and techniques, to find out what makes a great podcast, and where podcasters are going right and wrong. I was so pleased to hear that they aren’t here to just rave about podcasts (as I am, in this newsletter) but to give something podcasting needs—real criticism. They find the good and the bad in shows like A Slight Change of Plans and Christine Blackburn’s Story Worthy. You can even submit your show to be reviewed. This is a lot of fun for people who love podcasts, and could be very helpful for those making them. Listen here.
🎙️I usually think of The War on Cars as a thinkey, pretty straight-forward interview show, but a recent episode about pedestrians stuck out as just a beautifully produced and well-informed piece. The episode begins with a reading from Ray Bradbury of his 1952 short story “The Pedestrian” (that was published in a small antifascist publication and predicted a world in which automobile dominance was so complete that walking for any purpose would be seen as a sign of mental illness.) It sparks a conversation about what we lose when are aren’t free to walk in our own environments, the history of humans walking, and the joy of being a Black pedestrian. I’m no podcast marketer (oh wait, I am) but if I was the War on Cars team, I would send this episode to Outside/In. It’s feels like an Outside/In episode to me, in the best way, and I’d wonder if they’d want to weigh in on the piece or share a bit of it with their listeners. Also, WOC team, your ad reads for Cleverhood always impress me. Listen here.
🎙️On Everything I’ve Learned, Mark Armstrong talked to Michael Hobbes, where we learn that the two are friends and used to go biking together. (Imagine seeing that.) It’s a great episode for podcasters—Michael gets into why the “teacher/learner” format of You’re Wrong About and Maintenance Phase works, why he is dabbling in video once again, and what kind of stories don’t work for audio. He also explains why he left You’re Wrong About (his heart wasn’t in it anymore and he wanted to quit while he was on top.) He talks about parasocial relationships and how his fans may love him but he’s just “a piece of shit like everyone else,” and how he’s used podcasting to tell people things they don’t want to hear in a way that’s impossible in print. (h/t Podcast Review) Listen here.
🎙️If we’re building for tomorrow, how can we predict the future? On Build for Tomorrow, Jason Feifer talks about the logical way we can envision what’s to come, and what decisions we should be making now by talking to a member of the Superforecaters, a group of people who were part of a cool experiment that tested and trained a team of ordinary citizens to compete in a forecasting tournament sponsored by the U.S. intelligence community. Jason tests our own ability to be Superforecasters by giving us a “Gandhi test,” which is really a confidence test, which is what superforecasting is all about. The key to superforecasting is not having too much confidence about what we know will happen, and gives us freedom to live in the grey spaces. I’m also very excited to hear the announcement of Jason’s upcoming book, Build for Tomorrow, something I’ve already preordered. Hear the episode.
🎙️Those Happy Places, the podcast that treats amusement parks as literature, is one of my most beloved shows. I almost fell off my chair when I discovered it’s back and will be returning weekly. To kick things off again, Buddy and Alice talk about the world returning to Theme Parks, which since Covid, have largely changed the systems they use to get people through lines and onto rides. Are the new systems, like Genie+ and Lightning Lane, making things better or worse? (If everyone has Genie+, no one has Genie+.) What kind of world are we living in that a kid whose mom doesn’t have a smart phone can’t get to see an attraction they’re excited about? We’re so reliant on our phones to get onto these rides that we roam the parks with our noses planted in them, and so much spontaneity has been stripped from the amusement park experience. If theme parks are literature, are reservations the table of contents? Listen here.
🎙️I kind of locked my body up to listen to the recent episode of Sounds Like a Cult, where Amanda Montell & Isabela Medina-Maté dive into the world of Disney adults. I didn’t have to. Amanda and Isabela have a fair conversation about Disney adults, offering points that both illustrate them as kooks and also harmless enthusiasts who know how to embrace what they’re into. I loved how they compare looking at Disney adults to seeing the salad section on a menu—they’re annoying, but harmless. I was relieved to find that they think we should live and let live, when it comes to critiquing adult Disney nerds, even though much of the things they do seem creepy and strange. (After listening to some of the stories, I wasn’t even sure I wanted to be identified as a Disney adult anymore.) Amanda and Isabela interview Disney influencer Francis Domonic, who makes being an adult Disney nerd sound like a lot of fun. The reasons people hate us—yeah, I’m back with calling myself one of them—tells us more about them. Let us live our Disney lives! Listen here.
🎙️20 Thousand Hertz has an episode about the sounds of transit, particularly the voices that greet us on the NYC subway and the London Tube. Martin Austwick reports on NYC’s “stand clear of the closing doors guy” Charlie Pellett, who might might have the most recognizable voice of New York. That’s followed up with a love story about the voiceover couple, husband and wife Phil and Ellen who remind you to “mind the gap” on the London Tube. When Phil died, Ellen was reminded of Phil every time she took a ride on the Tube, and relived his death every time a station replaced his voice with a more updated one. This one’s a strange story about loss and they’re both about the strange way sound can connect a diverse group of people in busy cities. Listen here.
🎙️Jack O’Brien and Miles Gray have launched a podcast with the NBA, Mad Boosties, and when I heard this I was excited (because I will listen to anything they do,) but more excited to hear they won’t be going over stats or basketball news, but will be using clips from the NBA archive to remember great moments and tell compelling stories about basketball, the sport that I think most lends itself to storytelling. On the first episode Jack, Miles and guest Jacquis Neal talk about Lance Stephenson blowing in LeBron’s ear, the psychis-defying plays from Ja Morant, and more. This could make you fall in love with the sport if you haven’t already. Listen here.
🎙️There is gossip in the air! Soon after the final episode of Normal Gossip comes Solomon Georgio’s The Juice, a show that celebrates low-stakes gossip. Awhile back, Georgio tweeted out a call for everyday gossip and the overwhelming response led him to create The Juice, which will interview comedians and listeners about their own petty rumblings. I have been a fan of Solomon appearing on other podcasts, and it will be a treat to tune in with him every week. The first episode stars Nicole Byer. Listen here.
🎙️One of the best parts of Bridget Todd’s There Are No Girls on the Internet is that Bridget is shining the light on people making waves in digital spaces, but not necessarily getting the credit for it. It’s a show about other people’s stories. But if you’ve ever wondered about Bridget, tune into her episode of The JV Club, where Janet Varney turns the mic on her. It’s all the stuff I’ve ever wanted her to share on TANGOTI. Consider this a companion piece for Bridget’s show. Listen here. (Please click that link to see an amazing pic of Bridget as a teen.)
🎙️You’re Wrong About did something a little bit different with Chelsey Weber-Smith of American Hysteria. YWA and AH share similar DNA, both Sarah and Chelsey are satanic panic maniacs, and they approach their shows in similar ways, debunking common belief and getting to why we tell stories the way we do. This episode is like a variety hour of the different topics they’re obsessed with but aren’t sure could make a full episode. Where did the phrase “well-behaved women seldom make history” originate? How are baby carrots made? Why do we think there was a balcony in Romeo and Juliet? (“This is basically Shazaam.”) You laugh the whole way through (Sarah and Chelsey have a way with words that make even the tiniest observations seem hilarious) and learn so much you’ll want to listen twice to become the most interesting (or annoying) person at your next dinner party. (“Um, actually guys? The impact of the 1938 War of the Worlds radio broadcast has been completely inflated.”) Listen here.
🎙️Elizabeth Day has been hosting the podcast How to Fail for years, and it’s had a huge impact on me, based on how many minutes I’ve spent listening to it and how it’s actually changed my life trajectory. (One episode gave me the courage to quit a job, something that took me years to realize was a great decision.) She’s launched something new with a friend, Best Friend Therapy, where she talks with psychotherapist Emma Reed-Turrell about the things that plague our minds every day. I listened to the first episode about boundaries like a failed-dieter reading a dieting magazine. I know I should have boundaries, they fascinate me, but I don’t know how to activate them. I need to listen to this conversation again and again, perhaps every morning. It was fun and full of mantras I need to steal. Listen here.
🎙️On The Bechdel Cast, Jamie Loftus and Caitlin Durante produced the thing you didn’t know you need but do: an expert analysis of the AMC Theaters ad starring Nicole Kidman. Does it pass the Bechdel Test? Listen here.
🎙️A few podcasts have shared intimate first-hand accounts from people in Ukraine, giving us a front row seat to witness what it’s like to be separated from your family, take up arms (when your regular job is a window installer) and worry about being killed every minute of the day. Science Vs. published an episode of the Ukrainian podcast Fuck War, mixing in interviews with the hosts Pyotr Ruzavin and Natalka Gumenyuk. Private Parts Unknown squeezed in an interview with another Ukrainian podcaster who had to drop the phone to immediately pick up his gun to protect himself, and Radio Diaries published an audio diary of a Ukrainian woman who was forced by war to make a difficult decision—flee Kharkiv for her life or stay to tend to her elderly aunt. Rough Translation has a first-person account of a Russian journalist named Naira Davlashyan, who shares news of a hokey-sounding but powerful anti-war chain letter making its way around Russia, and how it’s challenged her to think about her identity. An episode of War on Truth connects conspiracy theories about the war and Covid, why some people are skeptical of both.
🎙️I love you!