Here in 2009, it’s mushroomed to a 25 count list. Mainly because I struggled with which ones to leave out of the top 10 list and cordon off into an “honorable mentions” bracket. So, in haste, decided to dump my whole iTunes podcast subscription suite (almost, there’s actually a few more that I don’t have listed here). The ones occupying the bottom of the list are either relatively new entries or shows that pile up but are infrequently played.
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This American Life — fellow family members and friends are puzzled about my adulation on what I believe to be the greatest radio show ever… …I find the program to be fascinating and riveting, even on matters I am faintly interested in… …and it’s high quality, professionally produced fare too, a delight for the auditory organs.
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Bill Moyers Journal — there is just not any other program like this on television right now, providing a forum for knowledgeable subject matter experts in long form (at least for the medium it is created for) interviews… …sort of the un-Larry King of talk shows. Moyers can meander into excessive preachy mode, but again, the guests and the questions that are not asked on all those other shows make this show.
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This Week in Tech — Leo Laporte’s podcast universe’s flagship product… …of recent, quality has started to suffer as I believe (a) Leo has too many irons in the fire, (b) is increasingly coming across a spoiled tech debutante far detached from typical tech users and (c) needs to shuffle some of the panelists off. This ranking is mainly reflective of past years and Leo’s pioneering in this realm.
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Thom Hartmann Show — Probably the talk show host that comes closest to mirroring my political views. Which makes me wonder if his program would rate so high if I did not. As a radio host, he’s full of flaws: (a) still hasn’t mastered inflection and speaking into the microphone, though he’s conducted a radio show for many years now and (b) his intro segments where he “duels” with libertarian thinkers, neoconservatives and paleoconservatives are too short, and worse, he’s often “bested” in debate, especially when engaging with a crafty righty like Frank Luntz. I keep wishing he’s eschew the whole token 10 minute “debate an opponent” affair and instead, slot an hour where he could invite a full panel — one additional person for his “side”, who’s much more knowledgeable in the subject up for discussion, and two in opposition, along with time in the second half hour for callers to get a crack at the panelists.
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Media Matters with Bob McChesney — Professor McChesney’s program is one of the few places where I can listen to Howard Zinn, Noam Chomsky, Mark Weisbrot, John Pilger, etc.… …all the voices shunned on mainstream outlets.
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Three Moves Ahead — I don’t even own a Windows machine anymore so most of the banter on strategy computer games flies past me but I do harbor an affection for strategy games (card, board, or electronic) and the host and panelists do talk about the greatest turn based strategy game ever. One of the frequent panelists, Bruce Geryk, was the author of the Dominions 3 manual.
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MacBreak Weekly — by next year, this show may not even be on this list. Outside of the annual MacWorld and Mac developer conferences, the panelists struggle for subjects, and the conversation descends into silliness. And the way they use their Macs may be congruent with those adorning money hats, it’s just not that practical for me.
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Woodland Hills Church - Sermon messages from Pastor Greg Boyd, author of The Myth of a Christian America and The Myth of a Christian Religion.
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The Media Squat with Douglas Rushkoff — Media pontificator and modern day McLuhan wannabe Douglas Rushkoff ventures into radioland.
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Real Time with Bill Maher — I think Bill Maher is a detestable fellow. But he’s funny.
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Antiwar Radio — The program’s web page title still lists longtime Phoenix radio jock Charles Goyette as a host, but I think it’s a strictly Scott Horton (not to be confused with this Scott Horton) run enterprise now.
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Democracy Now — Amy Goodman’s enterprise delivers news from a leftist point of view.
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FLOSS Weekly — A podcast featuring interviews with interesting figures from the world of free and/or open source software. Hosted by Randal Schwartz and sometimes Leo Laporte.
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KunstlerCast — James Howard Kunstler’s acerbic rants are better delivered in written form. In audio, his blustering frequently comes across as “get off my lawn you infantile baggy pant wearin’, tatoo stamped sluggo”.
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Behind the News with Doug Henwood — Economics commentary and interviews, hosted by Left Business Observer publisher Doug Henwood. I enjoy listening to Henwood, though he seems awfully jaded, often firing many more darts at those on the left, who at first take, would seem to be more sympathetic to his worldview. Or maybe we can just award him with +1 in objectivity.
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Brain Science Podcast with Dr. Ginger Campbell — Dr. Campbell explores discoveries in the world of neuroscience. Fascinating, but there is a major annoyance (have not listened recently, so it may have been remedied since my last podcast consumption) in that the commercial advertisement inclusions are at a decibel level exponentially greater than the content in the rest of the program.
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EconTalk — Professor Russ Roberts discusses economics with a right/libertarian Hayekian bent.
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Le Show — the voice of the Simpsons Mr. Burns and Waylon Smithers (along with a slew of other characters) has his very own NPR comedy show. It’s a hit or miss affair, and Shearer isn’t bashful about letting his politics seep into the comedic material. Still, some funny bit gems to be discovered here.
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Kevin Pollak’s Chat Show — Actor Kevin Pollak has jumped into the podcast game, and from my brief listening experience to date, he’s got an engaging show. Interesting, lengthy (his podcast clocks in at over 2+ hours, though that includes his intro bits) interviews with directors, actors and celebrities like Kevin Smith and Felicia Day. And listeners get a chance to play the Larry King game.
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Glenn Greenwald Radio — is a professionally produced quality affair, but the schedule is just so sporadic.
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Rebooting the News — Dave Winer and Jay Rosen on rebooting journalism in the age of the interwebs.
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Berkman Center for Internet and Society — I love the subject matter and the speakers, but the audio quality is extremely poor. It sounds like somebody is recording from a Sports Illustrated sneaker phone in the back of a conference hall.
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Trinity Mennonite Church — Sermon messages by local Glendale, AZ pastor Shane Hipps, author of Flickering Pixels.
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Truth Seekers — Fellow Valley native and friend Dani Cutler.
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NPR Fresh Air — Fresh Air with Terry Gross. Gross’s interviews, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, are “a remarkable blend of empathy, warmth, genuine curiosity, and sharp intelligence”.
