For many years I resisted whenever someone asked me “Do you follow such and such podcast?” What I've noticed over the last few years is my interest in video versions of podcasts so in many ways I guess I am a podcast person? There are several podcasts that regularly catch my attention. I watch them on YouTube (not an endorsement!) but they’re available on multiple platforms. Please enjoy Part 3 of my three-part series on the best culture of the year so far. Part 1 focuses on television and Part 2 on music, film, books, and museum exhibits. My favorite pod/videocasts include the following:

Comedy, Hot Takes, and General Gossip

Talk Your Head Off with Kathy Griffin

I have always enjoyed Kathy Griffin especially when she starred on the celebrity skewing Bravo series My Life on the D-List and regularly released comedy specials. Ever since she came back from a kind of blacklisting that happened after she mocked Trump, she has been telling her story which has included issues related to her mental and physical health, a failed marriage and other challenges. But she's such a resilient, good-humored and refreshing voice I am very excited to catch up with her every week on her relatively new YouTube show. On Talk she does what she does best which is dish on various people and situations both in her past and the present. She's a gifted storyteller rather than a joke comic, and thrives in the moment whether it's navigating her dogs who sleep next to her while she's filming the show, or just really owning whatever moment she's in. She's routinely shared that she had a very successful comedy tour and is hoping to have it aired by someone despite her apparently radioactive reputation in the industry. The nearly 30-minute weekly dose we got on her YouTube show reiterate everything we enjoyed about her in a succinct package.

Keep It (Ira Madison III and Louis Virtel)

Las Culturistas (Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang)

If you love to hear two sharp-tongued and sharp-witted gay guys share their opinions on popular culture, celebrity feuds, industry tea, and everything else you have two great options. First, on Keep It writers Ira Madison III and Louis Virtel offer irreverent and insightful “hot takes” on popular media and home in on all things Zeitgeist-y. They also include great guest commentators periodically and regularly feature interview interesting guests they genuinely like such as Janelle James (Abbott Elementary), Jennifer Grey (Dirty Dancing), and Billy Porter (Pose, Kinky Boots). (Madsion is departing in August 2025 and a new co-host will be announced soon). Second, since 2016 actors Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang have created a buoyant space for joyful, wide ranging conversations with pop culture icons including Joel Kim Booster, Mariah Carey, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Chappell Roan, among others. They also host a goofy awards show annually called the Las Culturistas Culture Awards.

Pivot (Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway)

Pivot is a refreshingly varied conversation about politics, culture, and technology between Kara Wisher, one of the leading journalists covering the post-internet tech world for decades and Scott Galloway, a business management professor and writer who is a nice compliment and partner to Swisher. They possess an acerbic but informed perspective on a variety of topics. While a lot of their discussion relates to the tech world, such as obnoxious tech billionaires and the corporate world, which isn't for everyone, their free-flowing conversation and easy rapport is very accessible. As seasoned industry folks they have the inside scoop on a range of pertinent issues

Conversations with Interesting People

Blocks (Neil Brennan)

Comedian and writer Neil Brennan is best known for collaborating with Dave Chappelle and hosting singular comedy specials like 3 Mics and Blocks. On this podcast he and a single guest both chat casually and focus on personal challenges we have in navigating everyday life, hence the title. He is a skillful conversationalist who specializes in gabbing with Mike Birbiglia, Carol Leifer, Hassan Minhaj, and Tig Notaro and engages with a wide range of folks such as retired basketball player Blake Griffin, singer Josh Groban, and actors like Ron Livingston. Blocks like perfectionism, failing to fit in, or feeling that you must always outpace yourself are common themes discussed thoughtfully and vulnerably. Even though this sounds a little bit like pseudo pop-psychology it's a more personal approach to things that people navigate even if they are incredibly successful and accomplished.

Hasan Minhaj Doesn’t Know (Hasan Minhaj)

Hassan Minhaj ‘s Hassan Minaj Doesn't Know is a vibrant one-on-one interview show. Every episode varies depending on the type of guest he welcomes. He manages to engage one of the broadest range of guests. He asks probing questions of politicians like Jasmine Crockett and Chris Murphy, spars playfully with journalist (and friend) Mehdi Hasan, and has a very rich conversation about the contemporary role of journalism with journalist and professor Jelani Cobb. In each interview he conveys curiosity and passion fitting for the show’s title. One of the funniest and smartest episodes is his episode with London’s mayor Sadiq Khan whose intelligence, diplomacy, and humor shine through especially in various bits and quizzes. You’ll probably know a little bit more about a lot after each episode.

Mostly Politics + Culture

New York Times: The Interview (David Marchese and Lulu Garcia-Navarro)

New York Times: Cannonball (Wesley Morris)

The New York Times has been working to adapt some of its more iconic features to the podcast world. Two that I particularly enjoy are The Interview, a regular weekend item with interviews by either Lulu Garcia Navarro or David Marchese. Even though visually we see a very straightforward composition with limited visual flair the scope of subjects and the varied nature of the conversations is a genuinely exciting and often Illuminating experience. For example, Garcia-Navarro's pre-election interview with future VP JD Vance revealed more about his aggressive persona than he might have liked. Similarly, I appreciate it Marchese's willingness to share his own life with interviewees such as his discussion of his mother’s death with Vince Vaughan and briefly exploring his difficult relationship with his father with Dr. Lindsay C. Gibson author of Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents. Both journalists excel at integrating things they’re genuinely curious about with authentic aspects of their life experience in a well-balanced and evocative way.

Somewhat lighter and more focused yet rich is the new-ish Cannonball led by Wesley Morris one of our most thoughtful cultural critics and a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner. Morris and his weekly guests dive into popular culture armed with both a love for cultural forms and a willingness to go beneath their seductive surfaces. Conversation about topics as varied as the arc of Bruno Mars’s career and broader cultural questions it raises, the authenticity of The Bear for professional chefs, and the results of the New York Times recent Top100 movies of the 21st century list are just a few recent topics. Though the times’ reporters have acknowledged the awkwardness of shifting from audio to video and representations the substance of both shows prevails over the video aspect.

Crooked Media Empire (Numerous shows and hosts)

The folks at Crooked Media which produces numerous podcasts, is the podcast universe that I find myself dwelling in most frequently. Founded by former Obama era White House staffers Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett, Dan Pfeiffer and Tommy Vitor, its shows are well-produced, energizing, and impressive in their coverage. My regular diet includes the society and technology themed Offline, hosted by Favreau, the politically focused Pod Save America, featuring Favreau and Pfeiffer primarily, the cheeky comedy and politics blend of Lovett or Leave it, hosted by Lovett, and the topical Assembly Required hosted by the brilliant Stacey Abrams. (Keep It is also produced by Crooked Media). Collectively these series provide a kaleidoscopic view of things happening in multiple sectors and their overlaps.

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So, I guess I am a podcast person? Now about those Substack newlsetters…

Catching up with The Culture Part 3: Favorite Video/Podcasts

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