Talking points
At a time when standup comedy is wrestling with issues from cancel culture to the #MeToo movement, new podcast The Last Laugh provides a fascinating insight into what it’s like to work in the industry. Each episode will see Daily Beast writer Matt Willstein interview a different star about comedy’s role in the ‘current cultural and political moment’, starting with Sarah Silverman.
In news of another podcast niche you probably didn’t know existed, the Wall Street Journal has published a (paywalled) report on the world of internal corporate podcasts. Apparently a number of companies, including Netflix and Verizon, are producing them for their employees. Unsurprisingly, the vast majority are quite dull.
Finally, a couple of podcast-related pieces from the Guardian that are worth your time: Frank Skinner is currently working on a podcast that he hopes will do for poetry what his series Fantasy Football League did for the beautiful game. And Guardian Australia has profiled the stars of Shameless, a podcast for “smart women who like dumb stuff”.
Picks of the week
The State of …
The London Review of Books’s literary essays often float on the borders of pop culture and current affairs (see its epic piece on Bitcoin founder Satoshi). But you may not know that the publication also has a sideline in podcasts, with this latest series aiming to assess “the condition of the arts, politics and society”. Episode one is all about the internet, from MySpace to Alan Bennett memes, and features authors Patricia Lockwood and John Lanchester alongside editors Joanna Biggs and Tom Crewe. Hannah J Davies
Throughline
There has been a glut of strong history podcasts in recent years (see also: Uncivil, The Memory Palace and Hardcore History – terrible name, great series), and here’s another to add to regular rotation. Hosts Ramtin Arablouei and Rund Abdelfatah contextualise present-day events through half-forgotten events of the past. So, we learn why a CIA coup in the 1950s explains the tensions between the US and Iran now, as well as why wild conspiracy theories have been a part of US history since the war of independence. Gwilym Mumford
Guardian pick: Chips with Everything
In 1959, the American Toy Fair in New York City welcomed one of our longest-serving icons: Barbie. And to celebrate the doll’s 60th birthday, this week’s episode of Chips with Everything looks back at her diverse and illustrious career, including her emigration into the digital world and her stint as a game developer. Max Sanderson
Producer pick: Accession
Chosen by Katherine Godfrey (Head of Audio)
I found this thanks to the always insightful Hot Pod and their career spotlight section with Amanda McLoughlin, the proprietor of indie collective Multitude. McLoughlin recommended Accession, a podcast in which TH Ponders’ poetic scripting takes us inside an artwork acquired by a major gallery or museum, removing the barriers that often stand in the way of art being for everyone. I dove in with the latest episode, a thought-provoking exploration of Chicago Art Institute Accession 1992.89, Archibald Motley’s 1943 work Nightlife.
