Brian Reed hosts the new podcast Question Everything, a real-time quest to make journalism better, produced by KCRW and Placement Theory.
He is also host and executive producer of the groundbreaking podcast series S-Town, and co-host and executive producer of The Trojan Horse Affair, from Serial Productions and The New York Times. Brian was also a longtime staff member at This American Life, where he oversaw the show as its senior producer and created stories about the Federal Reserve’s failure to prevent the 2008 financial crisis, multiple FBI investigations gone wrong, and atrocities in Egypt and Guatemala. Reed has received the Dart Award for Reporting on Trauma, two Overseas Press Club Awards, multiple Webby Awards, an Education Writers Association Award, as well as two Peabody Awards. One of the Peabodies was for S-Town, of which Rebecca Mead wrote in The New Yorker: “Among the half-million products released in podcasting’s brief history, it is “S-Town”…that seems most likely to endure as a work of art.”
The Town with Matthew Belloni
A show about the business of Hollywood — which of course includes media, tech, and by extension, audio. Matt Belloni and frequent guest Lucas Shaw are both very good reporters who are rooting for the craft at the heart of their beat to succeed. This hits the sweet spot of being just applicable enough to my own work life, while also offering me something novel, a window into a world that I’m not quite a part of.
Shell Game
Fifteen years ago, reporter Evan Ratliff wrote one of my favorite magazine stories ever: he attempted to go off the grid – to fully vanish from the digital world – and challenged Wired readers to find him, with a bounty as reward. It would’ve made a great podcast. And Evan’s latest tech experiment for our AI-age does. In Shell Game, he sets out to discover what happens when he creates an AI voice agent based on himself and lets it loose in the world. Headspinning stuff, and perfect for audio.
Club Random with Bill Maher
I don’t really know how to describe my relationship with this podcast. I find Bill Maher ornery and full of himself. And yet I’ll discover myself in these stretches where I’m mainlining this show, and I can’t turn away. Bobby Lee, Bill Burr, Quentin Tarantino, Katie Couric – all great guests in the last year. Have me on the show Bill!
In the Dark: The Runaway Princesses
My favorite narrative series of the last year or two. First off – more limited series should be four episodes! Podcast companies and networks push for them all to be at least 6 or 8 but most stories don’t warrant that many and I’d much rather be left wanting more than thinking “oof this got boring”. In The Dark’s first spin-off in collaboration with the New Yorker, “The Runaway Princesses” left me feeling the former. I inhaled these four eps. So good.
Therapy for Black Girls
I’m not a Black girl, but everyone else in my house is, and listening to Dr. Joy Harden and her guests helps me access parts of their experiences that I don’t have ready access to. Dr. Harden gives thoughtful advice on how to nurture your mental health, Black girl or not. But if you are a Black woman, and the world of therapy has not always been the most natural or welcoming place for you, this show might be a refuge.
Search Engine
A show that makes the tax code, media business models, and political yard signs interesting, while also pondering belief in God, the effects of fame, and various altered states of consciousness. It’s hard to find a show with more range and delight than this brainchild of PJ Vogt and Sruthi Pinnamaneni.
The Brian Lehrer Show
I usually listen to Brian Lehrer live on the radio, but if I miss it I’m grateful that I can catch up in my podcast app. There’s no better way to feel connected and caught up with your fellow citizens. And sure, it’s about New York, but I’d argue it holds up nationwide as well.
The Ezra Klein Show
You gotta give credit where credit is due – Ezra Klein has invented a new form for our medium, and frankly, one I would’ve been skeptical of before hearing him pull it off. An audio opinion column is not something I would’ve thought I’d want to listen to, but not only do I, at least in the capable hands of Ezra and his editorial team – they’ve shown it can have a serious impact. Ezra’s episode calling back in February for Joe Biden not to run again might be the most consequential piece of journalism this year.
Heavyweight
Heavyweight may not be putting out new episodes right now, but it is by no means dormant. The library is evergreen, rich with humor and humanity. We’ve been fortunate to get to work with host Jonathan Goldstein as an editor on Question Everything while he and his team search for a new home for Heavyweight, and it’s given me a newfound appreciation for his show, which I’ve always loved. A great podcast to dip back into as you’re traveling for the holidays.
The Cutting Room Floor
Recho Omondi, who hosts this show about fashion, might be my favorite interviewer. She has this mischievous approach to asking questions that I love. She pairs that with a deep knowledge about her field, which she uses to make her questions sharp and insidery. It leads to some unforgettable moments: Paul Kavaco on whether he was in a love triangle; Yasiin Bey on whether Drake is hip hop; and Law Roach on whether Annie Leibovitz can be trusted to photograph Black women.
The Cutting Room Floor is available exclusively through Patreon. You can add your Patreon feed to Pocket Casts by pasting it into the app’s search bar, or submitting it here.
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