Great Writing for the Ear: Podcast Recommendations

Great Writing for the Ear: Podcast Recommendations

February 24, 2023

Dig into the world of mining, technology, and innovation with the new podcast Why We Mine. From the household products you use every day, to the green energy revolution, find out how the mining industry is helping to build our sustainable world today and for the future. [Sponsored]

CuratorAndrew Beck Grace, Chip Brantley, and Connor Towne O'Neill, writers and producers of NPR's White Lies

Why did you choose this theme?

Collaborating on a longform nonfiction show like White Lies requires us to work through many, many drafts of each episode. And that iterative, workshop-y process can sometimes disrupt the rhythm and squeeze the intimacy out of a piece of writing. When that happens, we revisit some of our favorite moments from shows and love to remind ourselves what great writing for the ear sounds like. 

PODCAST PICKS:Click on the podcast art to listen đź‘‚

Meanwhile, In TampaMaybe the all-time best episode of Serial? The last three and a half minutes are peak Sarah Koenig: clear and colloquial with a striking visual image to sum it all up. The "small fire smoldering" paragraph is one of the most evocative pieces of writing for the ear that EarBuds hosts Andrew, Chip, and Connor have ever heard. 

FloodlinesAntediluvianHave lots of people already recommended this episode of Floodlines? Yes, because it is just a flat-out stellar piece of writing, especially Vann Newkirk's lyrical prologue, which works like a light shining down through the rest of the show.

Wind of Change

Coming out of a Scorpions concert in Kyiv having learned the story of how the sinking of a Soviet nuclear submarine, the K-129, led to the infamous GLOMAR response to FOIA requests, Patrick Radden Keefe pulls off podcasting's best

.

Deliberate Indifference Punt Bama PuntIn a standout episode of this dynamic series, host Mary Scott Hodgin elegantly synthesizes a sprawling and complex political and social history to explain how Alabama's modern prison system came to be such a disaster. 

Detention by Design 'To risk your life through a shark visa is better than to just stay'This podcast delves into the roots of the modern immigrant detention system and, as such, is a great companion piece to the second season of White Lies. The host, Danny Rivero, makes the compelling case that our modern immigration system didn't emerge out of conflicts on the southern border but was instead born in the immigration conflicts that happened in the state of Florida in the 70s and 80s. 

SPONSOR:

Why We MineDig into the world of mining, technology, and innovation with the new podcast Why We Mine. From the household products you use every day, to the green energy revolution, find out how the mining industry is helping to build our sustainable world today and for the future.

Bad WatchdogWhat happens when the government watchdog tasked with overseeing the largest law enforcement agency in the country doesn’t do its job?In Bad Watchdog, a new narrative, investigative series, the Project On Government Oversight discovers a shocking pattern of misconduct at one of the most powerful offices in our federal government. 

Black Podcasters AssociationBlack Podcasters Association is a vibrant community that unites a diverse range of Black podcasters, creatives, and professionals within the podcasting industry — all of whom are passionate about reshaping the podcasting landscape and amplifying our unique voices.Join BPA and let's transform the podcasting world together!

If I Go Missing the Witches Did ItWhere true crime and witchcraft meet!Oscar-nominated actress Gabourey Sidibe stars in this 2022 Webby Award winner about a Black writer who goes missing, and the white podcast host with a savior complex who takes up the cause of finding her. With a coven of influencers pulling the strings, they might find themselves suffering a fate worse than being canceled.

FEEDBACK WITH EARBUDS:

Andrew, Chip, and Connor, hosts of the podcast White Lies, are on Feedback to share podcasts that exemplify great writing for the ear. PLUS: We've got a voice clip from the host of this week's spotlight pick, Deep Cover: Never Seen Again. This third season explores a case of identity fraud and the nationwide search for one woman. 

COMMUNITY:

🎤This week in Podcast The Newsletter: Lauren Passell writes about 12 of the best podcasts celebrating Black history and culture. Read it here. âš™ď¸ŹCreate the Future is an engineering podcast from the Queen Elizabeth Prize For Engineering. Hosts Roma Agrawal MBE and 2022 Young Engineer of the Year George Imafidon chair conversations with visionary scientists, technologists, and academics about how we might rebuild the world, from the smallest cells to sustainable cities.🏆Tell Me About It is a madcap game show about proving that the things you like are actually interesting and cool. Adal Rifai is an eccentric billionaire who forces someone new every episode to share, argue, and defend the thing they love the most. He’s wrangled his audio butler Eric to lead the contestants (special guests such as Janet Varney and Matt Young) through a series of absurd challenges and games, all to gain points and get on the Most Interesting Thing High Score Board. Tell Me About It: the most fun podcast run by a multibillionaire. New episodes every other Thursday.On the EarBuds Blog:

  • Yvette Gentile and Rasha Pecoraro share six podcast recommendations for facing and overcoming evil. Read it here. 

  • EarBuds newsletter and podcast coordinator Devon DiComo interviewed Sophia Lopez, creator of the new QCODE show, How to Win Friends and Disappear People.

✨Send your updates for us to include in our Community section. Submit!

CLASSIFIEDS:

🎧Podimo, the fastest growing podcast and audiobook subscription service in Europe, arrives in Mexico this March and will invest in 20+ original productions in the UK throughout 2023.

SPOTLIGHT:

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jake Halpern returns with season three of his hit investigative podcast series Deep Cover. This season starts with the story of Brooke Henson, who disappeared from her home in South Carolina. Seven years later, detectives receive a tip that Brooke Henson is a Columbia University student living in New York City. But when the police come knocking, “Brooke Henson” disappears again.In Deep Cover: Never Seen Again, Halpern unravels a case of identity fraud that led local police, federal investigators, and even the U.S. army on a nationwide manhunt for one woman – Esther Reed.

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