Top 5 political podcasts
Say your mind with Kelechi Okafor
Remainiacs
Next is Remainiacs. I will forever be grateful for my friend Jonathan recommending this podcast to me after the Brexit vote. It is not just about Brexit though, fear not! Hosted by music journalist, Dorian Lynskey, this is a podcast which feels more like a group of mates sitting in the pub, although you end up learning so much more than sitting in a pub with my friends (sorry, guys). The regular guests are a mix of political experts, academics, actors, campaigners. The chemistry between them is great, you can tell that they enjoy each other’s company.
It is the warmest and funniest political podcast in the country.
I am obsessed with podcasts. Here are my top 5 political podcasts, in no order.
First up is Say Your Mind with Kelechi Okafor. Warning, this is not for sensitive types as Kelechi doesn’t hold back with her assessment of current news. She starts off by doing a tarot card reading of which I am not a big fan but meh, it is still interesting to hear. Then we have Say Your Magnificence which allows us to feel good about the world. Kelechi or her listeners will nominate a fabulous person and share what a wonderful person they are and why. A favourite one recently was a young black woman who was asked to advise an acting group on racism. Her response was quite incredible.
The part of the podcast that really stays with me however is Suck Your Mum where we hear of people and companies and what wildly stupid and harmful thing they have done that week that affects Black people. I have learned so much from Kelechi, she really is a remarkable woman and has come a long way.
I don’t agree with her stance on everything but I don’t really think that’s the point of a podcast. I am not a Black woman, a dark skinned one at that and I have a lot to be grateful for to know that these women “are out here giving it all doing their bits”. Love it.
Ezra Klein
Ezra Klein’s podcast is also wonderful. Ezra is my favourite privileged white New Yorker. He does so much with that privilege and this podcast in one of them. I have learned so much from his guests and they cover such a wide range of topics. I also love how politely he seethes about Trump. It’s more of an neverending embarrassment that he is their president. Recently Ezra was recently discussing how during the pandemic, he noticed people’s reactions as he walked in their direction, their panic, irritation and some would walk out of their way to avoid him. His Black guest said he knows what Ezra was describing but it has happened to him so often and for such a long time that he no longer noticed it.
Often heartbreaking, Ezra’s generous nature and eagerness to learn from his guests, despite being an intellectual, is really good for a podcast. The only small niggly thing is argh, his accent. I know he can’t help it but it’s that Kardashian way of speaking and you have to get over that hump to enjoy the podcast. Here’s a link to the Beginner’s Guide.
Intercepted with Jeremy Scahill
Okay the next two are a little weird. Both are left leaning but one is bonkers in a Sanders / Chomsky kind of way, Intercepted, and the other is a bit extreme on the other side of the liberals, Real Time with Bill Maher. Now, I am not saying either of these shows present to me the way I like to think about things. But I have learned a lot from both, and they also bring in excellent guests. A little american-centric so avoid if you have had enough of Trump, I find both of these podcasts enormously enjoyable, if only to challenge myself about how to think about things. Sometimes I listen to both of these podcasts and almost disagree with everything they have to say but that is good. Get out of that bubble! Enjoy :-)