Alex Sujong Laughlin is supervising producer and co-owner at Defector Media and the co-creator of the podcast Normal Gossip. Her writing has been featured in Harper’s Bazaar, New York Times, Study Hall, Literary Hub, and more. She has created podcasts for The New York Times, The Washington Post, BuzzFeed, NBC, and Spotify, and she has taught journalism at NYU and CUNY Graduate School of Journalism.
There’s this idea that the average podcast listener only has room for about eight podcasts a week. Some people’s listening habits can support more podcasts than others, depending on how much you can tolerate the sound of your own thoughts in your head (couldn’t be me). I subscribe to 91 podcasts, but I definitely don’t listen to every single episode in my feed. Here’s a list of my never-skips:
ICYMI
Rachelle Hampton, Candace Lim, and Se’era Spragley Ricks consistently curate the smartest analysis of internet culture I find anywhere.
Switched On Pop
I love how the Switched On Pop team breaks down what’s happening in pop music from a musical and historical perspective.
Love to See It with Emma and Claire
When Bachelor is in season, I’m locked in. I watch the episodes, and then I listen to three or four recap podcasts. Love to See It is my old standby. I’ve been a weekly fan of Emma Gray and Claire Fallon’s Bachelor content for years. They always have something smart to say about the politics of the Bachelor, which is why I love watching it, too.
Game of Roses
Speaking of The Bachelor, Game of Roses is a game-changer when it comes to recap podcasts. They’ve created an entire vernacular and worldview for the Bachelor fandom that mixed sports with media criticism and I’m such a big fan.
The Ezra Klein Show
My partner and I are always asking each other, “Did you listen to the latest Ezra?” Ezra Klein is one of the few political pundits who doesn’t make me want to claw my eyes out. I appreciate his curiosity and humility, and I love that he doesn’t make interviews about himself.
Tested
This new show from Rose Eveleth and produced by Ozzy Llinas Goodman is a fascinating look at the history of sex testing in women’s sports.
Text Me Back! With Lindy West And Meagan Hatcher-Mays
Women of my micro-generation are probably still mourning Call Your Girlfriend, but Text Me Back has inherited its place in my heart. Lindy West and Meagan Hatcher-Mays are ridiculous, silly, and smart, and listening to Text Me Back always feels like checking in with my two best pals.
The Women’s Game
I’m a recent NWSL convert and this has been a great way to learn about the league in an accessible way. Sam Mewis is a delightful host and I have been loving her Olympics coverage.
The Cutting Room Floor
Recho Omondi’s interviews with people in the fashion industry are smart and courageous and always leave me with so much to think about.
Dark House
This is a seasonal show from House Beautiful about the architecture and design of haunted houses. Every fall I do a little dance when it’s Dark House time.
The NPR Politics Podcast
Probably my longest podcast subscription at this point; I appreciate the consistency of the show and I can always rely on it to have current analysis of the batshit story of the day.
Pocket Casts Blog 