Silver Lining: 5 podcasts you'll love for general listening

October 6, 2016

5 podcasts you'll love for general listening

I am woefully late to the podcast game. In fact, my podcast listening was very recently born of late-night desperation. I used to watch Netflix every night when I was up feeding the twins. I really love a lot of shows on Netflix, but after hours upon hours upon hours of staring dumbly at the TV screen while feeding babies I started craving something a little smarter, something that would make me think.

Enter podcasts. It's great listening to something intellectually stimulating - and entertaining and fun! - when I'm doing that midnight shift. (Or while doing laundry, dishes, running errands, etc.) Now I absolutely love podcasts, and try to bring them up in every conversation so I can find new ones to add to my queue.

Today I'm listing 5 podcasts that are fantastic for the new podcast listener. They're popular, fresh, new, and entertaining. But watch out. You might get hooked like me.


SERIAL
Serial is a hugely popular podcast. In fact, some say it's responsible for a resurgence in podcasts of all genres. It follows the real-life case of Adnan Sayed, a man who is currently in jail for murder - except some evidence points in a different direction. His case is researched and dissected through interviews and court case sound clips, so YOU can decide who you think committed the murder. It's now on Season 2, where it follows the interesting case of an Army deserter and the crimes he is accused of.

PLANET MONEY
I love this podcast and never skip an episode. Each short podcast answers an interesting economics-related question. You'll understand things like the real reason the milk is always in the back of the store, why textbook prices are so high, and how zoos get their animals when buying and selling them is illegal. These episodes are short and fun and always catch my interest.

STUFF YOU SHOULD KNOW
This is another podcast I almost always listen to. Like the title says, each 45-minute episode talks about one thing you probably should know. Learn from the experts about how landfills really work, how triage systems in emergency rooms work, and all about wooly mammoths, mermaids, tornadoes and professional snake handlers. It's got everything.

TED TALKS
We all know what a TED talk is, right? (If not, learn here.) You can find TED talks in podcast form for almost any category or topic: Technology, Kids & Family, Business, Health, News & Politics. Basically, whatever you're interested in, you can find a TED podcast channel that will give you short, powerful speeches about your subject.

THIS AMERICAN LIFE
This podcast is a very popular radio show that covers a relevant topic in America every week. There are lots of human interest stories, trending topic issues, and behind-the-scenes interviews and commentary (along with some humor too). I sometimes skip episodes because I'm not interested, or because the topic is a little more PG-13 than I prefer in a podcast, but overall, this is another great one to get you started.

BONUS: 2 MORE POPULAR PODCASTS

FREAKONOMICS
The mission of Freakonomics (which started as a book) is to explore the hidden side of everything. From interviews with Aziz Ansari to a cashless future to the positives of racially profiling restaurant employees, this is another great podcast that makes you think. (I skip some episodes if the topic doesn't sound interesting to me.)

THE DAVE RAMSEY SHOW
This is a weekly radio show hosted by financial guru Dave Ramsey. Most of the podcast consists of callers phoning in and talking about their financial questions - downpayments, escrow, paying off debt, etc. - and getting expert advice from Dave. I don't personally listen very often, but it's so popular that I'd be remiss not to include it.

99% INVISIBLE
This show is dedicated to design - to how things work behind the scenes, how everyday things like food pouches and the color of the year got started, and the crazy "invisible" process of creative designers. These episodes are short and cover interesting topics from the half-houses in Chile to how the "average" consumer ideal was formed.

Are you a podcast listener?
What podcasts do you love?
Which would you add to this list?

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