Friday, October 6, 2017

WIRTW #479 (the “pod” edition)

I am recently back on the podcast wagon. For reasons that I never understood, I abandoned the platform as a media source a few years ago. But I’m back with a vengeance.

Here are the five podcasts to which I’ve been most listening lately (along with their official descriptions and my favorite recent episode of each):


1. James Bonding

Matt Gourley and Matt Mira love James Bond so much they decided to make a podcast about it. Each episode they invite a guest to dive deep into one movie from the greatest film franchise known to man.

Favorite recent episode: Cold Openings (Matt, Matt and James sit down and do a full ranking of every single James Bond movie’s pre-title sequence.)


2. My Favorite Murder

Lifelong fans of true crime stories Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark tell each other their favorite tales of murder and hear hometown crime stories from friends and fans.
Favorite recent episode: Hither and Yon (Karen and Georgia cover Jack Gilbert Graham and the Son Of Sam.)


3. Weird Work

The professional working world seems typical. At your desk by 9. Sneak out at 5. Sit in traffic. Do it all again tomorrow. But it’s a big world out there, and people’s lives (and livelihoods) are far weirder than we could have imagined. This podcast looks at all the jobs that leave us saying... “Wait, you make money doing that?”

Favorite recent episode: “I press human ashes into vinyl records.” (Jason Leach founded Andvinyly as a way to face his own mortality. He heard Hunter S. Thompson had his own ashes set off in fireworks, and Jason wondered how he could be best remembered. Then it hit him: Vinyl records.)


4. How Did This Get Made?

Have you ever seen a movie so bad that it’s amazing? Paul Scheer, June Diane Raphael and Jason Mantzoukas want to hear about it! We’ll watch it with our funniest friends, and report back to you with the results.

Favorite recent episode: My Stepmother Is An Alien (Stand-up comedian Whitney Cummings joins Paul, June, and Jason to discuss the 1988 comedy science fiction film My Stepmother Is an Alien.)


5. Sincerely, X

Some stories are too sensitive, painful or potentially damaging to share publicly -- unless they can be shared anonymously. TED and Audible present Sincerely, X: an original audio series featuring talks from speakers whose ideas deserve to be heard, but whose identities must remain hidden. The first season features a compelling program of victims, perpetrators, investigators, activists, empaths and more.

Favorite recent episode: Gifted Kid (A gifted child. A rough neighborhood. A teacher who knows how to break the cycle.)


What podcasts have you been listening to? Which am I missing? Share in the comments below.


Here’s what I read this week.

Discrimination

Technology

HR & Employee Relations

Wage & Hour

Labor