Dash MacIntyre's Podcast Recommendations
The podcasts that influence my weekly thoughts
I travel a lot for work and am often going on long drives, and because I’m addicted to content I have found several podcasts that keep me company and make my transit time educational and thought-provoking.
If you enjoy my commentary and comedy, you’ll likely enjoy these shows that inform some of my meandering thoughts:
The Bulwark Podcast with Tim Miller
My readers know I am a fully credentialed liberal, so my endorsement of the quality of the conservative-leaning Bulwark Podcast is I think noteworthy. The Bulwark’s daily podcast is hosted by Tim Miller (he recently took over for Charlie Sykes, who was also a great host), who is a former Republican operative and campaign staffer, and one of the original #NeverTrumpers who refused to shrug and join up with the deranged MAGA movement despite the opportunity for easy money and influence. Miller recaps the news each morning, and coaxes my favorite political commentary from a wide variety of guests including many stalwart conservatives like Bill Kristol, Will Saletan, Tom Nichols, and Adam Kinzinger who have been so startled by their former party’s beeline into ethno-nationalist and personality cult lunacy that they’re now basically Democrats.
Pod Save America with Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett, Dan Pfeiffer, and Tommy Vietor
This podcast offers the best recap of current political news with a mostly objective though passionately liberal lens. All four are former Obama staffers, called sometimes derisively as the “Obama Bros,” but they’ve worked in the White House and get politics. Their interviews are okay, but their analysis and reactions to the daily news headlines help dictate what direction the winds of the Democratic Party are blowing. If you think Democrats are the sane political party in America, this has got to be in your podcast lineup.
Pod Save The World with Tommy Vietor and Ben Rhodes
Rhodes was Obama’s Deputy National Security Advisor, and Vietor was Obama’s National Security Spokesman, and they recap the week’s international news better than anyone else with extremely informative interviews with US national security officials and surprisingly high-profile figures in other countries’ governments and media spheres. Their perspectives on America’s role in the world, liberalism abroad, and global democracy are both idealistic and pragmatic, and they are not shy to critique Democratic presidents, including their former boss.
The Ezra Klein Podcast
Klein goes deeper into political policy and the application of governance than anyone else. He’s a very curious person, so he occasionally strays from politics to topics such as literature, sleep and attention, but he’s best when getting deep into the weeds of how government works. His podcast is a real thought-driver within the Democratic Party, and he probably more than anyone else got people thinking seriously about replacing Biden on the 2024 presidential ticket. He also has meaningful conversations with some of the MAGA-phobic conservative thinkers who can still debate and argue in good faith.
The Unspeakable with Meghan Daum
Daum is a very thoughtful host who leads some of the most genuine conversations I’m aware of about the thorniest Culture War issues of the day, conversations that really just aren’t around anymore because our culture is so obsessed with policing and taking offense to open dialogue and nuance. It’s refreshing to watch her and her guests muddle through some of the subjects toughest to have an opinion on you’d be willing to publicly die on the hill for.
The Gray Area with Sean Illing
Illing is an extremely thoughtful and philosophical interviewer. He covers an expanse of subjects, and the strength of his show is the variety. A brief scan of recent interviews includes topics as diverse as Nietzsche, liberalism in India, Ozempic, George Orwell, potential new Constitutional Amendments, psychedelics, anarchism, the Iliad, and Werner Herzog. The conversations are accordingly pretty timeless, so you can delve deep into Illing’s backlog.
The Marc Maron Podcast
Maron is a curmudgeonly liberal comedian who helped invent the contemporary podcast with his personalitied rants and long conversations that are somewhat self-guided therapy for himself and his guests. He interviews lots of artists, heavy obviously on comedians, but he also gets a lot of big actors on press tours and has interviewed Barack Obama. His podcasts often go long, and are great listening while driving.
Misquoting Jesus with Bart Ehrman
A very random subject I love learning about, despite not being religious at all, is Biblical scholarship on the New Testament, and Ehrman has had a 40-year career teaching at the university level. He has also published a library shelf of books for both highly technical and lay audiences on the historical context and literary intent of the various books in the New Testament combining his grasp of several ancient languages and deep study of the Bible. He’s extremely fair about differing schools of thought on the subject thanks to his endless scholarship as well as his former fundamentalism, and this podcast is truly high-calorie food for your brain. If you have the occasional competitive religious conversation, this podcast will train you how to coax Christians into critically examining the New Testament.
Conversations With Tyler with Tyler Cowen
Cowen is a libertarian, so I don’t often agree with his political or economic suggestions, but he has my vote for the most prepared and curious interview host of all time. He interviews impressively intelligent people, and there is no biological detail or publicly expressed opinion of his guests that he doesn’t somehow learn about and ask a poignant question regarding. Cowen has an encyclopedic mind for everything from economics, to Bayesian statistics, to seemingly all of history, to specific regional cuisines in various travel destinations, to assorted composers and writers from centuries past, and he can be forgiven for having opinions on everything because he actually seems to have studied and genuinely considered nearly everything. This podcast will definitely make you smarter.
Conan Needs A Friend with Conan O’Brien
This podcast is not the most enlightening but is just fun. O’Brien is one of the most quick-witted interviewers of all time, and there is a serene joy that comes from listening to him and his comedy friends dance comedically around each other on long tangents of improvved jokes.
Are there any podcasts you think I should listen to? Recommend your favorites in the comments!
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And Check out my podcast, Brain Milk, I do with Adrian Polk where we discuss politics, economics, history, and Millennial culture (put that baby on 1.5x speed so we sound smarter).
I think Rachel Maddow’s Ultra was one of the best. The shit they don’t teach you in school…..
I used to adore Tim Miller. Then his take on Gaza turned me away completely.