Saying Goodbye - Brought to You By...

This is one of those podcasts I was truly sad see come to an end. It's started out called Household Name with a tagline of "Brands you know, stories you don't". The entire idea was a deep look into one aspect of a brand that was a household name - Pizza Hut, Coca-Cola, Jack Daniels, Whoopie Cushion, etc. The show was produced by Business Insider and the original host was Dan Bobkoff. When Dan left Business Insider in 2019, Charlie Herman became the new host and the show got a new name, though you can see the branding didn't change.

Brought to your by... Logo

Household Name Logo

The content didn't seem to change much either, for which I was grateful, and episodes continued to be produced throughout 2020, for a total of 62 in the show's run. This means if you haven't listened to it yet, you've got plenty of listening to enjoy.

Brought to you by... (aka BTYB) was a business show at the core, something that isn't always a win for me. Some business podcasts are really boring if you aren't actually into finance or a specific industry. But the cool thing about this was that the vast majority of these brands were either ones you actively used, had used, or were familiar with. I've never used an electric scooter, but the episode about the Scooter Wars was relevant because they are everywhere. Pan Am was before my time but learning about their involvement in the Vietnam War was eye opening. 

They also did listener stories about their interactions with various brands. Listener stories have a way of irking me (mostly because I'm somewhat sensitive to certain tones and that seems to resonate more over headphones of any kind) but I found they kept them short, relevant, and generally funny. They also had people who would call in and ask product questions, then a producer or researcher would come on to answer those questions after they found answers. You get the sense that they all enjoyed learning these new aspects about brands and we all know authenticity is a key component to podcasts.

I highly recommend this in both forms. Episode 1 posted on July 25, 2018 with an episode about TGIF being the Tindr of the 60s. The podcast can be found here or wherever you get podcasts. Farewell, BTYB, you're missed.

Current State of (my) Podcast World

For reasons I won't expound on, I temporarily lost access to my phone and had to use a substitute until the global chip shortage allowed me a new one (new phone acquired, order is restored). However, in doing so, I spent a month with little storage or processing space and a phone that could not run some apps, including my Google Podcast app. I love the Podcast app, I like the layout and interface, but for a month, I had to access podcasts on my phone via the web. This showed me exactly how many podcasts I am subscribed to and it's...a lot. 

Most of them are single season investigative reporting or limited series sort of things, which are nearly always my favorite. But they're cluttering my space and trimming dead wood is my current focus, so I want to unsubscribe from them if they are no longer publishing to that feed. As long as I stay on one podcast from each studio, I'll still get the new show updates that I currently get a dozen times over from podcasts that have been done for a few years. 

Before I remove them, though, my sense of completion and desire to get things I loved more visible means I need to review them here. So I'll be doing that and adding the label "complete" to indicate the run is done and unlikely to update (i.e. some of the investigations are ongoing or in courts so those I will keep while they keep updating as developments unfold). 

Also, a note on this - Parcast has decided to move all their shows exclusively to Spotify. As I don't use Spotify, I am no longer listening to anything they put out except International Infamy by Ashley Flowers (of audiochuck) because it's still updating. It's a limited series as well, so hopefully it finishes out on Google. Parcast was always hit or miss since they get very sensational about true crime in a way that can be uncomfortable, but a few of their shows were enjoyable (Cults and Medical Murders were my favorites). I really hope this does not start a trend of moving to exclusive platforms but given Spotify has decided to get aggressive about beating Apple Podcasts, I have to assume this is something we're going to see. 

The other side of this is that Crime Junkie has decided to make an app for their show. It's incredibly well done and I unsubscribed from them on Google Podcasts after confirming it won't hurt any of their metrics. I'd love to see an audiochuck app since I follow all of their shows, but the CJP app is really good if you listen.

Why I Support...Swindled

 

There is very little that makes me as angry at white collar crime. Partly because it so often takes advantage of people in precarious situations and partly because it's so rarely prosecuted. But hearing about it is key, especially since the lack of prosecution often allows this brand of criminal to return to public life without any consequences. Enter Swindled.

Swindled in an independent podcast produced by an anonymous host called A Concerned Citizen (ACC). He speaks in an even and almost monotonous voice, which took me a little time to adjust to. I've grown to truly appreciate it because it lands some of his sarcasm incredibly well and because the topics are so infuriating that outrage on his part would be overdone. Each episode covers 2 swines - an intro and then a connected main story. ACC is unafraid of backlash and, in true Millineal fashion, posts the complaint emails and DMs he gets to his IG feed (which I also follow). This is also seen in his choice of targets - he's gone after Dole and the banana republics, Mother Theresa, the Space Program, con artists, politicans, and public servants. The first episode I listened to was about the Dalkon Shield, which Crime Junkies also did as a crossover. I have never been so enraged by a podcast and I was hooked.

From a design perspective, the music is excellent (music is produced by Deformr (aka Trever Howard) and each episode gets some killer artwork, much of which becomes available as various types of merch. ACC clearly cares a lot about his work and I appreciate how much research and sheer time is involved since he's a mostly single-man enterprise.

I am a Patron on Patreon for Swindled and I've been eyeballing merch though I haven't gotten any yet. Mostly, I needed access to extra episodes (I have a problem). As large podcast networks start popping up and consume independent entities, supporting independent or small podcast entities it critical in determining what kind of programming will be available in this media as it continues to grow. As ACC likes to say, it sucks to live in late stage capitalism and try to create something, but rent must be paid.

Money truly is the root of all evil.

Why I Support...NPR's Up First

We all know the world is on fire and there are very few outlets any of us have right now where that isn't on display. That's not necessarily a bad thing - we should be aware of and invested in the lives and experiences of others, especially when it's outside our usual functioning. Empathy for the struggles that others face should be our goal. But the overwhelming nature of how many things are currently awful does not make it easy to digest what else is happening in the world or actual newsworthy items among the chaos.

Up First is an NPR podcast, so my support for it is part of my donations to the local NPR station (mine is KJZZ in Arizona). I've always supported NPR, wherever I lived, starting with WAMU in DC. It both acclimates me to the local culture, which is crucial when you move often, and keeps me nationally and internationally informed and aware. I listen to a lot of NPR podcasts I'll eventually go through, but this one is first.

Up First is a brief morning podcast Monday - Saturday. The hosts are familiar to anyone who listens to NPR -  Rachel Martin, Noel King, David Greene and Steve Inskeep during the week, Lulu Garcia-Navarro and Scott Simon on the weekend. It's short - about 15 minutes - and covers 3 major stories. It's not the full Morning Edition but it is a really brief overview of major stories of the day.

The true value I have found in this is that getting this brief update on news that is valuable helps innoculate my mind from doom scrolling through various feeds, numbingly seeing but not really absorbing anything. It has done wonders for my mental health. I enjoyed it before all of this started as a quick update, but now it is a tool against the mental stress of the current world. 

Why I Support...Crime Junkies

True crime is a genre that is everywhere. Between Netflix, podcasts, and miniseries, it's having a moment. The problem I run into is that I get pretty gross feelings about true crime as entertainment. It's someone's life you're gawking at and, by the nature of the genre, not one they usually have any say in how it's portrayed. So I have some benchmarks for consumption of true crime that basically come down to if it feels like advocacy vs shock factor or pure entertainmnet.

Crime Junkie is a podcast produced by friends Ashley and Brit. They talk through one case every Monday. The cases are often designed around advocacy - they have contributed money to the DNA Doe project as well as family member's advocacting for changes in laws or attention being paid to their case. They try to focus on underreported demographics, such as people of color, whose disappearances don't get as much attention as white victims. And this is why I support them - I am a Patron on Patreon, as well as a purchaser of their merch (the Season of Justice muscle shirt is my favorite yoga shirt). They are self-produced and if you listen through their backlog, you can hear the way they've grown. 

Ashley and Brit are a super relatable friendship that has spanned most of their lives. They are also big supporters of dogs (Ashley's dog, Charlie, signs off every episode and their company, audiochuck, is named for him). Once a month they do a Pruppet of the Month to showcase a listener's dog and use it to raise awareness for dogs available for adoption in various areas. The pictures on their website of the Pruppets are too cute. Also, go back in the history and listen to Brit force Ashley to give up doing Pruppet of the Month because she couldn't get through them without crying. Brit runs them and now Ashley's sniffles are just in the background. 

Their friendship is what makes it an enjoyable listen to me, their heart for victims and advocacy work does good for my soul. I've donated to their causes, signed petitions, and supported the podcast and merch store. 

Take a listen. Check out the information on their website. Maybe make a If I Go Missing file. If you like true crime, this one might be for you - especially if you get the icky feeling using someone's worst day as entertainment.

Be weird. Be Rude. Stay Alive.

A Little Realignment

It's been not quite a year since my last post. Things have been busy and I have had little bandwidth for unnecessary and added stress. But I like blogging about the podcasts I'm listening to, so I decided to reformat.

I will be going over individual podcasts, which will be categorized as:

Why I Support... for podcasts I financially support on Patreon or through merchandise purchases

Why I Listen... for podcasts I listen to but do not support

I will tag them with various categories, including by podcast studio if they have one, and keep a running list in the sidebar of the blog.

So that's the plan. Hopefully I can update regularly until they are all up and then it's just a matter of keeping current. The goal, to provide information on podcasts for those seeking something to listen, remains the same. Let's see how this works.

Februrary Podcast Review

This month I added to my ongoing, cleared 3 more terms ones (OMG Slow Burn is so good), and added to my On Deck circle. Oh, and the biggest news...I have a pretty logo, courtesy of my friend GG. It allows me to post on Instagram!

See, I can social media...

Ongoing

10 Things That Scare Me - This one calls itself a tiny podcast, which is accurate given the episodes are about 6 minutes. They are just people running through a list of what scares them, with some elaboration. There are a lot of people that are familiar and it's a nice background noise kind of podcast.

After the Fact - biweekly - Every episode is centered around a statistic and digs deeper into the background of that statistic. The episodes are around 20 minutes.

Anthropocene Reviewed - John Green - monthly - John Green reviews 2 unrelated topics on a 5 star scale. This month it was Velociraptors and the film Harvey. The latter was particularly touching. The former was recommended by his son.

Awesome Etiquette - Lizzie Post and Daniel Post Senning - weekly - This is presented by two of the Post kids on behalf of the Emily Post Institute. An ongoing foray into modern and historical etiquette.

Battle Tactics for your Sexist Workplace - Jeannie Yandel and Eula Scott Bynoe - biweekly - I heard these hosts on Unladylike and I love them. They tackle different aspects of work life, how it's sexist, and how to address it. I'm excited for the second season to get under way.

Cults - Greg and Vanessa - weekly on Tuesdays - This covers a cult, usually in two episodes. I find cults and the psychology of the people who lead and join them really fascinating. My only quibble is this group puts everything older than 6 months behind a paywall at Stitcher. These hosts also host one on Serial Killers, which might end up on my list at some point.

Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness - Jonathan Van Ness - weeklyish - JVN, of Queer Eye fame, goes into a different topic each week with an expert. I've gotten a lot of other podcasts from him and he's the reason I joined Instagram. Mostly, he's pure joy, though some people might find his boundless enthusiasm, quick delivery, and vernacular somewhat grating. He's definitely a post-tea listen for me, but then I can listen for hours. I've been slowly listening through his back catalogue.

Lifemancy - Rachel Wilkinson - 2x a month (new moon and full moon) - The newest podcast on my ongoing list, this one is presented by my friend Rachel and explores various aspects of magic and the occult, where it overlaps with science and culture, and how you can take aspects away from it even if you don't buy into it all. If nothing else, listening to Rachel will make you laugh and leave you happier.

Make Me Smart - Kai Ryssdal and Molly Wood - weekly - Kai and Molly deep dive into various economic, technologic, and cultural topics, some of which connects back to things touched on in Marketplace.

Marketplace - Kai Ryssdal - daily Monday-Friday - I loved Marketplace on NPR, but I'm never in my car anymore since I bike to work. I listen to the previous evening every morning. My understanding of world and national economics is due to this program and Kai's voice doesn't grate me early, so this is the first one I listen to at work.

Marketplace Morning Report - various - 3x daily Monday-Friday - To add onto the Marketplace knowledge, these are short (around 7 minutes) updates in the morning that give a brief view of financial and economic news. They're done via the BBC.

The Moth - 2x a weekish - The Moth hosts live storytelling and the podcasts are collections around a topic. The individual stories are around 10 minutes each and the episodes are generally about an hour.

The New Yorker Radio Hour - weekly - This podcast pulls on writers and contributers to the New Yorker, highlighting books reviewed or stories published.

NPR Politics - I love this podcast! A few reporters on differet topics (Congress, The White House, voting, etc) get together when there is political news to report, including an end-of-week roundup. Generally pretty short and covering a variety of topics, but awesome. A good nonpartisan overview.

On the Media - Brooke Gladstone and Bob Garfield - 2x a week- Another NPR segment I like that looks into various issues related to the media, usually around a central topic. They are often very critical of their own industry, which I like hearing.

This Movie Changed Me - Lily Percy - biweekly - I caught an episode of this on a long car ride on NPR and started listening to it when it released. Every episode is a conversation with someone about a movie that changed their life. It's amazing. Hasn't updated since October 2018, so I'm itchy for a new episode.

Unladylike - Cristen Conger and Caroline Ervin  - weekly - All caught up! These girls are great in their continued exploration of the patriarchy and its effects. A personal favorite - they are the first to say that, as white women, they don't have a full view of the damage patriarchy does since they're protected by whiteness, so they have taken a lot of efforts to showcase women of color, as well as queer women.

Term

Broken Harts - Remember the story about the two white women who adopted 6 black kids and then drove off a cliff, killing everyone? I'm a sucker for true crime and this one was intriguing. Also, it's presented by Glamour, which is a magazine I've been subscribed to for 14 years. Very interesting, very detailed.

Slow Burn - I got this one from the NPR Politics podcast. Season 1 covers Watergate in incredible detail. Season 2 is the Clinton Impeachment. The focus of both is what it was like then, in the moment of it happening, and the results are incredible. I've thought a lot about the similarities between them since listening and there's probably a future blog post about it. They haven't said anything about a season 3 so I'm calling it term.

Standoff: What Happened at Ruby Ridge? - This one came from Slow Burn, as both are productions of Slate. It's a 5 episode dig into what happened during the standoff at Ruby Ridge and the results of the investigations and cultural impact. I have never really understood it so it was a really great listen.

On Deck

Boom! Lawyered - I heard about this one from Unladylike when one of the hosts was on the show. Looking forward to getting a better view of the legal system.

BackStory - I heard one of the hosts (Nathan Connolly) on one of the Slow Burn live episodes and it made me want to listen to him more, so I found his podcast. There are others on here as well but he's why it's on my list.

Katie Couric - I listened to Katie on JVN's podcast and adored her, so I want to give her show a listen.

Rachel Maddow presents The Bag Man - I love Rachel Maddow. I want to see if I love her podcast. It's about corruption in politics so...probably.

Small Doses with Amanda Seales - I heard Amanda Seales on Unladylike (so many good guests!) and I liked her, so I want to see if I like her for a number of episodes.

Still Processing - Wesley Morris was on Slow Burn. I loved his commentary so I'm following his podcast.

Tilted: A Lean In Podcast - So I have some serious issues with the whole Lean In thing, mostly because it was aimed a very specific segment of the population but presents itself as doable for anyone. That said, the podcast is supposed to be about the challenges and ingrained misogyny in the workplace. I'm withholding judgment.

January Podcast Review

As I mentioned in my last post, I have been listening to a lot of podcasts lately. My job ensures at least a few hours, and sometimes all of them, are spent at a computer and so I can listen. Podcasts are interspersed with music.

To me, podcasts are defined in two categories: Ongoing and Term. The first is as it says - an ongoing podcast that revolves around a topic or a presenter. The latter is one that is a limited number of episodes based on the topic. The last set are the ones on deck for my next listening.

I've linked to the podcasts and I listen on Google Play, to which I have a subscription. These should all be available anywhere you listen.

Let me know if you start listening and what you think. Also, I'm always looking for recommendations!

Ongoing

Anthropocene Reviewed - John Green - monthlyish - This is my first introduction to podcats. John Green (of vlogbrothers and authorial fame) reviews 2 unrelated aspects of the anthropocene (the era of humans) on a 5 star scale.

Awesome Etiquette - Lizzie Post and Daniel Post Senning - weekly - This is presented by two of the Post kids on behalf of the Emily Post Institute. An ongoing foray into modern and historical etiquette.

Cults - Greg and Vanessa - weekly on Tuesdays - This covers a cult, usually in two episodes. I find cults and the psychology of the people who lead and join them really fascinating. My only quibble is this group puts everything older than 6 months behind a paywall at Stitcher. These hosts also host one on Serial Killers, which might end up on my list at some point.

Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness - Jonathan Van Ness - weeklyish - JVN, of Queer Eye fame, goes into a different topic each week with an expert. I've gotten a lot of other podcasts from him and he's the reason I joined Instagram. Mostly, he's pure joy, though some people might find his boundless enthusiasm, quick delivery, and vernacular somewhat grating. He's definitely a post-tea listen for me, but then I can listen for hours.

Lifemancy - Rachel Wilkinson - 2x a month (new moon and full moon) - The newest podcast on my ongoing list, this one is presented by my friend Rachel and explores various aspects of magic and the occult, where it overlaps with science and culture, and how you can take aspects away from it even if you don't buy into it all. If nothing else, listening to Rachel will make you laugh and leave you happier.

Marketplace - Kai Ryssdal - daily Monday-Friday - I loved Marketplace on NPR, but I'm never in my car anymore since I bike to work. I listen to the previous evening every morning. My understanding of world and national economics is due to this program and Kai's voice doesn't grate me early, so this is the first one I listen to at work.

On the Media - Brooke Gladstone and Bob Garfield - 2x a week- Another NPR segment I like that looks into various issues related to the media, usually around a central topic. Brooke's issues with Roseanne Cash was incredible and made me very sad that I couldn't get her albums via Google Play.

This Movie Changed Me - Lily Percy - biweekly - I caught an episode of this on a long car ride on NPR and started listening to it when it released. Every episode is a conversation with someone about a movie that changed their life. It's amazing.

Unladylike - Cristen Conger and Caroline Ervin  - weekly - I'm almost caught up with this one! These girls are great in their continued exploration of the patriarchy and its effects. A personal favorite - they are the first to say that, as white women, they don't have a full view of the damage patriarchy does since they're protected by whiteness, so they have taken a lot of efforts to showcase women of color, as well as queer women.

Term

Dear Franklin Jones - I like cults (see above) and I found this one via another one (there's a lot of recommendations in podcasts). A man who grew up in a cult unpacks his parents' involvement and his own feelings towards the cult leader. It's really interesting. 7 episodes

Solid in America - I cannot recommend this one enough. Noor Tagouri created a documentary about sex trafficking and the sex trade in America and this podcast was produced in conjunction with it. It's incredible and goes into sex work from a variety of angles, talking to people we don't often hear from in conversations about the sex trade - the people who work in it. It's a challenge to all assumptions and may require quite a bit of introspection. 9 episodes though Noor has commented there might be some ongoing work here which I would love.

Unerased: The History of Conversion Therapy in America - This one was a bit rough to listen to, but it goes trough conversion therapy and it's history. This was released in conjunction with the film Boy Erased and talks to some of the subjects that inspired the film. Everyone should listen to this, especially if this has never been something in your face before (as it hasn't for most straight people and even a large number of queer people who may have come out later or were from accepting communities). If conversion therapy as a topic brings back bad memories, proceed with caution. 4 episodes.

On Deck

Boom! Lawyered - I heard about this one from Unladylike when one of the hosts was on the show. Looking forward to getting a better view of the legal system.

Katie Couric - I listened to Katie on JVN's podcast and adored her, so I want to give her show a listen.

Tilted: A Lean In Podcast - So I have some serious issues with the whole Lean In thing, mostly because it was aimed a very specific segment of the population but presents itself as doable for anyone. That said, the podcast is supposed to be about the challenges and ingrained misogyny in the workplace. I'm withholding judgment.

Ever Heard of SANEs? Me neither.

I have a planned post that will go over my current and recent podcast list, but one episode in particular struck me and I wanted to share.

An episode of Unladylike discusses the role of the SANE - Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner. This wasn't something I knew existed but is such an incredible role. They are RNs who have taken hefty additional coursework and are able to conduct forensic examinations following a sexual assault, trained to collect DNA and other forensic data in a patient and care centered manner, reducing retraumatizing the patient. They are also connected to and aware of the state and federal rights and guidelines, so they can provide next steps for law enforcement, mental and physical health, as well as patient's rights.

This is incredible...but there aren't many. The SANE who spoke to the program in in Georgia and she's one of just 25 in the entire state. I checked their website and there are none in VA emergency rooms that I saw.

I'm not sure how to create more of these other than to raise awareness. I'm going to look into lobbying the VA to require them in their hospitals, maybe via the DAV (what's the point of having a membership if I'm not using it?).

For more information, you can listen to the podcast and go to the International Association of Forensic Nurses to see what the closest hospital in your area with one is.