6 Progressive or Left Leaning Podcasts you Should Listen to
Talk radio has been a strong influencer in American politics for as long as I can remember. AM and FM talk stations are dominated by uber-right wing media voices hosting local and syndicated shows. The hosts are loud, boisterous, rude, and actually, kind of fun to listen to. It’s easy to get sucked into, and entertained by, their one-sided hate tornadoes. If you listen to them long enough you will end up believing that there is a media conspiracy and the left-wing media is out to get them. Only problem is, there isn’t a real left wing media, or one at least that can come remotely close to competing with the power and influence of these hate-filled voices.
The right-wing talking heads dominate the radio waves. Sure, NPR exists, but I would hardly call them true left-wing media. They are as moderate as moderate gets and as their corporate donors/sponsors allow. There is a real vacuum on our airwaves. And without the proper backing, it’s a vacuum that will exist for our foreseeable future. This is one of the reasons why independent journalism is so important. But let’s face it, independent journalism is serious and hardly entertaining. These right wing talk show hosts are controversial buffoons who probably don’t believe their own dribble. But they know how to stay on the air. I’m not suggesting that we need to have progressive buffoons on the air to compete with the right wing buffoons. I am suggesting that we need entertaining progressive voices to listen to on the radio. But we can’t count on that happening for a sustained period of time (see Air America). With that said, thank goodness for podcasts.
Programs that would never be allowed on radio waves are now finding homes on ITunes, Android Play, Stitcher, etc. They curse, they are funny, insightful, and are available whenever you want them, as long as you know they are available. They might never compete with the reach of a (insert your favorite right-wing talking head here), but they can be shared, and most importantly, they can provide a counterpoint to the jibber-jabber on the other side.
Below is a list of some good left-leaning and / or progressive podcasts, mostly by respectable independent journalists. Please note, this is not a complete list, nor is it the definitive list. It is simply a list. Let me know if you know of any that should be added and I’ll include them. Some are radio shows, like Democracy Now!, but they are available in the podcast format, which is why they make the list.
List of Progressive or Left Leaning Podcasts
1. Ralph Nader Radio Hour — On this show, Ralph Nader baffles us with his absolute awesomeness. He talks about the current political climate, but also will cover topics as varied as the importance of industrial hemp, vertical gardening, the role of satire in political discourse. It’s a great show well worth listening to.
2. Democracy Now! — The definitive progressive news source.
3. Slate Political Gabfest — The hosts of this show are extremely well respected journalists, David Plotz of Slate, Emily Bazelon of the New York Times Magazine, and John Dickerson of Face the Nation. It’s a terrific and often funny show that summarizes the week in politics, and is something to look forward to every Friday morning.
4. Trumpcast — A podcast dedicated to all things Trump, hosted by Jacob Weisberg, who is the editor-in-chief of Slate Group. This podcast is totally worth it just to hear John Di Domenico read Trumps Tweets in the voice of the Trumpster.
5. Intercepted — A weekly podcast hosted by The Intercept’s, Jeremy Scahill. Often funny (Jeremy once juxtaposed a Bob Ross episode with Trump’s nonsense, very clever), and always insightful.
6. Intercept (spoken edition) — An article of The Intercept is read allowed. Not necessarily a podcast, but for those that do not have time to read an article, it’s read to you.
The best thing about podcasts is that the power is in the hands of the creator. Unlike radio, where the power lies in the hands of the sponsors and the stations. This is a fairly new, grass roots medium that we should get behind. While Rachel Maddow is on TV harping on about Russia, these shows are often times talking about issues that are slipping under the national and progressive radar. Let’s not let these shows slip under our radar. The only way we can keep good journalism alive is by supporting it.
To subscribe to these shows, you can type the name of the podcast into the podcatcher of your choice and subscribe.
