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What do these great podcasts have in common?

These podcasts aren't part of any particular genre, although they are all primarily nonfiction. (A few of these podcasts occasionally broadcast fiction pieces as part of a mix of content). What they have in common is a strong host personality that infuses the podcast, and use of audio as an art form to tell stories. I wish I had a name for this "genre." I have a sense that there's a lineage here where these great creators influenced each other, so I'm organizing this list in chronological order by the date each show started. In some cases, I'm aware that the podcast creator started doing the thing they do either on a different show, or on radio, and where possible I've used the date each creator started doing what they do.I am deliberately excluding "Serial"-style shows-- shows where each season tells a story in many episodes-- though I love many of those shows also and they certainly have a place in the overall chronology of the medium.

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Curated by
dchaploeb

Created March 08, 2020

Updated November 15, 2021

4 Likes

1 Follower

  1. Progenitors

  2. This American Life

    298
    6911810.9k
    Each week we choose a theme. Then anything can happen. This American Life is true stories that unfold like little movies for radio. Personal stories with funny moments, big feelings, and surprising plot twists. Newsy stories that try to capture
    SocietyCulture

  3. Radio Diaries

    11
    21340
    First-person diaries, sound portraits, and hidden chapters of history from Peabody Award-winning producer Joe Richman and the Radio Diaries team. From teenagers to octogenarians, prisoners to prison guards, bra saleswomen to lighthouse keepers.
    SocietyCultureDocumentary

  4. The Kitchen Sisters Present

    3
    934
    The Kitchen Sisters Present… Stories from the b-side of history. Lost recordings, hidden worlds, people possessed by a sound, a vision, a mission. Deeply layered stories, lush with interviews, field recordings and music. From powerhouse NPR pro
    SocietyCulture

  5. Love and Radio

    15
    21450
    Nick van der Kolk's Love and Radio features in-depth, otherworldly-produced interviews with an eclectic range of subjects, from the seedy to the sublime. Get inside the mind of a rogue taxidermist. Find out what it's like to experience a stroke
    SocietyCulture

  6. Radiolab

    222
    461225.8k
    Radiolab is on a curiosity bender. We ask deep questions and use investigative journalism to get the answers. A given episode might whirl you through science, legal history, and into the home of someone halfway across the world. The show is kno
    ScienceNatural Sciences

  7. 2006-2012

  8. The Heart

    7
    11659
    Since 2014 this longstanding podcast favourite has been creating hard-hitting cinematic stories about love, bodies and all of the things between humans that we don’t know how to name. Creator Kaitlin Prest works with her friends, idols and all
    SocietyCulture
    user avatar

    dchaploeb

  9. the memory palace

    54
    1544186
    the memory palace
    HistoryArts

  10. Planet Money

    174
    48928.2k
    Wanna see a trick? Give us any topic and we can tie it back to the economy. At Planet Money, we explore the forces that shape our lives and bring you along for the ride. Don't just understand the economy – understand the world.Wanna go deeper?
    BusinessNews

  11. 99% Invisible

    273
    491215.3k
    Design is everywhere in our lives, perhaps most importantly in the places where we've just stopped noticing. 99% Invisible is a weekly exploration of the process and power of design and architecture. From award winning producer Roman Mars. Lear
    ArtsDesign

  12. Snap Judgment

    28
    92197
    Snap Judgment mixes real stories with killer beats to produce cinematic, dramatic radio. Snap’s raw, musical brand of storytelling dares listeners to see the world through the eyes of another. It's storytelling... with a BEAT.
    ArtsPerforming Arts

  13. 2013-2014

  14. The Nod

    16
    418379
    The Nod tells the stories of Black life that don’t get told anywhere else, from an explanation of how purple drink became associated with Black culture to the story of how an interracial drag troupe traveled the nation in the 1940s. We celebrat
    SocietyCulture
    user avatar

    dchaploeb

  15. Reply All

    351
    741166.3k
    "'A podcast about the internet' that is actually an unfailingly original exploration of modern life and how to survive it." - The Guardian. Hosted by Alex Goldman and Emmanuel Dzotsi from Gimlet.
    TechnologySociety
    user avatar

    dchaploeb

  16. StartUp Podcast

    45
    1025717
    A series about what it's really like to start a business.
    EntrepreneurPersonal Journals

  17. Criminal

    197
    44922.4k
    Criminal is the first of its kind. A show about people who’ve done wrong, been wronged, or gotten caught somewhere in the middle. Hosted by Phoebe Judge. Named a Best Podcast of 2023 by the New York Times. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
    SocietyCulture

  18. Song Exploder

    60
    1260454
    Song Exploder is a podcast where musicians take apart their songs, and piece by piece, tell the story of how they were made. Each episode features an artist discussing a song of theirs, breaking down the sounds and ideas that went into the writ
    Music

  19. Working

    513
    Hosts Isaac Butler, Ronald Young Jr., and June Thomas interview creative people about how they write, compose, paint, and more.
    BusinessCareers

  20. How to Be a Girl

    19
    6927
    How to Be a Girl is an audio podcast I produce about life with my six-year-old transgender daughter. It stars the two of us -- a single mom and a six-year-old "girl with a penis" -- as we attempt together to sort out just what it means to be a
    KidsFamily

  21. Nocturne

    16
    91438
    A sound-rich storytelling show that explores the night, the landscape of the unseen, and how thoughts, feelings and behaviors transform in the dark. Topics range wildly, encompassing a unique and surprising exploration into the darkness.Epis
    SocietyCulturePersonal Journals

  22. Invisibilia

    91
    2061835
    Unseeable forces control human behavior and shape our ideas, beliefs, and assumptions. Invisibilia—Latin for invisible things—fuses narrative storytelling with science that will make you see your own life differently.
    ScienceSocial Sciences

  23. 2015

  24. Mystery Show

    76
    162397
    A podcast about mysteries, hosted by Starlee Kine. From Gimlet.
    gimlet mediaSocietyCulture

  25. Surprisingly Awesome

    2
    2310
    A show that delves into topics that seem mundane, annoying and sometimes downright boring - to reveal that they're surprisingly awesome.
    gimlet mediaComedy

  26. 2016

  27. Twenty Thousand Hertz

    108
    3653393
    The stories behind the world’s most iconic and fascinating sounds.
    ArtsDesign

  28. Love Me

    1
    410
    Celebrate the beauty and messiness of human connection. From the nuances of grief to chaotic dating fails, each episode of Love Me challenges the way we think about belonging. Award-winning documentary storytelling that cuts right to the heart.
    SocietyCulture

  29. More Perfect

    43
    73498
    We’re taught the Supreme Court was designed to be above the fray of politics. But at a time when partisanship seeps into every pore of American life, are the nine justices living up to that promise? More Perfect is a guide to the current moment
    HistorySociety

  30. 2017

  31. Every Little Thing

    42
    926176
    Why do news anchors all sound the same? Do wolves really howl at the moon? How did Elvis imitators take over Las Vegas wedding chapels? On ELT, you call with a question, we find you an answer. Our helpline is open 24-7. Call 833-RING-ELT or sen
    EducationComedyScience

  32. Uncivil

    12
    32036
    America is divided, and it always has been. We're going back to the moment when that split turned into war. This is Uncivil: Gimlet Media's new history podcast, hosted by journalists Jack Hitt and Chenjerai Kumanyika. We ransack the official ve
    HistoryNews

  33. What Roman Mars Can Learn About Con Law

    17
    2933
    Professor Elizabeth Joh teaches Intro to Constitutional Law and most of the time this is a pretty straight forward job. But when Trump came into office, everything changed. During the four years of the Trump presidency, Professor Joh would chec
    Government

  34. Twice Removed

    4
    238
    A new family history podcast hosted by A.J. Jacobs. They say we’re one big family: this is the show that proves it. You will be filled with delight… or abject horror. You never know. It’s family.
    gimlet mediaHistory

  35. Ear Hustle

    78
    2339611
    Ear Hustle is prison slang for eavesdropping, and that’s what listening to the show feels like: a raw, often funny, and always surprising peek into the reality of life inside prison. Hosts Nigel Poor and Earlonne Woods co-created the show tha
    SocietyCultureDocumentary

  36. Radiotopia Presents: We're Doing the Wiz

    8
    2823
    In 2004, a racial controversy erupted at a small, mostly white performing arts high school in rural Massachusetts. There were protests. TV news crews. A tense all-school assembly. And then, an announcement: the school would stage an iconic Amer
    FictionSocietyCulture

  37. Nancy

    8
    32136
    BFF Kathy Tu and Tobin Low are super queer, super fun and ready to take over your podcast feed. Join them for provocative stories and frank conversations about the LGBTQ experience today. Because everyone’s a little bit gay. WNYC Studios is a
    SocietyCulture

  38. 2018

  39. An Arm and a Leg

    21
    827550
    An Arm and a Leg is a podcast about why health care costs so freaking much and what we can (maybe) do about it.If you’ve ever been surprised by a medical bill, you’re in good company. But as our team of seasoned journalists has learned from y
    SocietyCulture

  40. Articles of Interest

    16
    51554
    Articles of Interest is a show about what we wear.Produced and Hosted by Avery Trufelman
    ArtsFashionBeauty

  41. 2019

  42. Cautionary Tales with Tim Harford

    47
    1329210
    We tell our children unsettling fairy tales to teach them valuable lessons, but these Cautionary Tales are for the education of the grown ups – and they are all true. Tim Harford (Financial Times, BBC, author of “The Data Detective”) brings you
    HistorySocietyCulture

  43. Throughline

    37
    839210
    Throughline is a time machine. Each episode, we travel beyond the headlines to answer the question, "How did we get here?" We use sound and stories to bring history to life and put you into the middle of it. From ancient civilizations to forgot
    HistorySociety

  44. Against the Rules with Michael Lewis

    16
    631227
    Journalist and bestselling author Michael Lewis explores the figures in American life who rely on the public's trust, whether in sports, in business, in the courtroom, or on TV. What happens when that trust erodes and we can no longer agree on
    SocietyCulture

  45. Dolly Parton's America

    36
    942114
    In this intensely divided moment, one of the few things everyone still seems to agree on is Dolly Parton—but why? That simple question leads to a deeply personal, historical, and musical rethinking of one of America’s great icons. Join us for a
    MusicSociety

  46. 2020

  47. The Last Archive

    15
    41854
    The Last Archive​ is a show about the history of truth, and the historical context for our current fake news, post-truth moment. It’s a show about how we know what we know, and why it seems, these days, as if we don’t know anything at all anymo
    HistorySocietyCulture

  48. Far Flung with Saleem Reshamwala

    3
    14669
    Far Flung with Saleem Reshamwala is a journey across the globe in search of the world's most surprising and imaginative ideas. It's not a travel show, exactly. It's a deep dive into the ideas that shape a particular spot on the map, brought to
    SocietyCultureTravel

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