
Ask HN: What Podcasts are you listening right now and why? - dirtylowprofile
I am new to this Podcast thing on iPhone, and I&#x27;m looking for either something funny or about startups.
======
georgespencer
Two which I really enjoy:

\- In Our Time. Legendary BBC Radio 4 show in which four experts discuss a
topic (e.g. 'enzymes', 'The Egyptian Book of the Dead', 'The Paleocene-Eocene
Thermal Maximum') in terms a layperson can understand for about an hour,
guided by a host who asks all the dumb questions for the listener.

\- Norm Macdonald Live. Former SNL castmember spends a couple of hours
interviewing e.g. Billy Bob Thornton, Adam Sandler, etc.). One of the most
consistently funny and off-key shows I've ever heard.

~~~
teh_klev
I couldn't agree more about In Our Time. It's my weekly go-to programme on
Radio 4 regardless of what subject they're discussing. On many subjects
they've discussed I've usually picked up one or two books to learn more about
events, people and things I didn't even know existed.

------
FlorianOver
[http://99percentinvisible.org/](http://99percentinvisible.org/)
[http://freakonomics.com/](http://freakonomics.com/)

Both a great in different ways.

~~~
makach
those and also; Hanselminutes, RadioLab

------
rubayeet
[0] Tell Me Something I Don't Know - Trivia show with a twist, hosted by
Steven Dubner of Freakonomics fame.

[1] How I built this - Interviews successful entrepreneurs on their
background, motivations, challenges etc. in building their businesses.

[2] Revolutions - Podcast on some of the biggest political revolutions in
history. I am going through season 2 (American Revolution against the British
Empire).

[3] War Stories - "Traces the evolution of warfare through the eyes who lived
it". Season 1 focused on armoured warfare (a.k.a. Tanks). Waiting on Season 2.

[4] Science Vs - Researches the fads/opinions (organic food, meditation,
ghosts etc.) to figure out if they are based on science.

[0] [http://tmsidk.com/](http://tmsidk.com/) [1]
[http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-
this](http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this) [2]
[http://www.revolutionspodcast.com/](http://www.revolutionspodcast.com/) [3]
[https://angrystaffofficer.com/war-stories-
podcast/](https://angrystaffofficer.com/war-stories-podcast/) [4]
[https://gimletmedia.com/science-vs/](https://gimletmedia.com/science-vs/)

------
doe88
New season of _Revisionist History_ by Malcolm Gladwell has just started
[http://revisionisthistory.com/](http://revisionisthistory.com/)

Worth it.

~~~
mars4rp
this should be on the top, thanks

------
Pandabob
Econtalk for its usually insightful discussions.
[http://www.econtalk.org/](http://www.econtalk.org/)

Conversations with Tyler for the same reason as Econtalk.
[https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/conversations-with-
tyler...](https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/conversations-with-
tyler/id983795625)?

Bodega Boyz because nothing makes me laugh like Desus and Mero.
[https://soundcloud.com/bodega-sushi](https://soundcloud.com/bodega-sushi)

------
teekert
Linux Unplugged (Jupiter Broadcasting) [0]: Informal chat with some cool
people from the Linux world, often guests like Martin Wimpress (Ubuntu Mate,
Raspberry Pi enthusiast), Frank Karlitschek/Jos Poortvliet (Nextcloud), Ikey
Doherty (Solus/Coreboot), etc.

Linux Action News (Jupiter Broadcasting) [1]: 30 min overview of news from the
Linux world.

No Agenda: For a healthy news diet [2].

TWIT: Loving the over-friendliness and forced extravertedness less and less
and missing Dvorak, but still, a nice Tech overview.

Story Grid: (From time to time) In depth analysis of books from the
perspective of a writer and editor. Very insightful.

[0] [http://linuxactionnews.com/](http://linuxactionnews.com/) [1]
[http://www.jupiterbroadcasting.com/115911/halls-of-
endless-l...](http://www.jupiterbroadcasting.com/115911/halls-of-endless-
linux-lup-202/) [2]
[http://www.noagendashow.com/](http://www.noagendashow.com/)

~~~
adamrezich
ITM & TYFYC

~~~
teekert
ITM to you too ;)

------
akurilin
To Be Continuous ([https://www.heavybit.com/library/podcasts/to-be-
continuous/](https://www.heavybit.com/library/podcasts/to-be-continuous/)) has
been my go-to.

It's great if you're interested in continuous delivery, startups, fundraising,
product development, best practices etc. from two founders who have been and
continue to be successful at their roles.

------
bitslave
Lou Reads the Internet for YOU! -
[http://loureads.com/feed/podcast/](http://loureads.com/feed/podcast/)
Mysterious Universe -
[http://mysteriousuniverse.org/feed/podcast](http://mysteriousuniverse.org/feed/podcast)
Worm Audiobook - [http://audioworm.rein-
online.org/category/chapter/feed/](http://audioworm.rein-
online.org/category/chapter/feed/) No Agenda -
[http://feed.nashownotes.com/rss.xml](http://feed.nashownotes.com/rss.xml)
History of Westeros -
[http://www.acast.com/westeroshistory](http://www.acast.com/westeroshistory)
Lexicon Valley -
[http://feeds.feedburner.com/SlateLexiconValley](http://feeds.feedburner.com/SlateLexiconValley)

------
aaronbrethorst
The Daily - An NPR-like ~20 minute podcast from the NYT.
[https://www.nytimes.com/podcasts/the-
daily](https://www.nytimes.com/podcasts/the-daily)

Indie Hackers - Insightful 1:1 interviews with founders of smaller 'lifestyle'
businesses.
[https://www.indiehackers.com/podcast](https://www.indiehackers.com/podcast)

In Our Time - Wonderful history podcast from the BBC
[http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qykl](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qykl)

Lovett or Leave It - Insightful weekly political podcast from Jon Lovett, a
former speechwriter for Barack Obama who was once called "the funniest man in
Washington." [https://getcrookedmedia.com/lovett-or-leave-
it-6077c7aca95c](https://getcrookedmedia.com/lovett-or-leave-it-6077c7aca95c)

The Perceptive Photographer - 10-15 minute podcast released every Monday from
my favorite photography teacher. Insightful and brief snippets about a variety
of topics of interest to fine art photographers.
[https://www.danieljgregory.com/perceptivephotographerpodcast...](https://www.danieljgregory.com/perceptivephotographerpodcast/)

Pod Save America - Twice-weekly podcast from four guys who used to be in the
Obama White House. Super-insightful political commentary. Lots of coarse
language. [https://getcrookedmedia.com/here-have-a-
podcast-78ee56b5a323](https://getcrookedmedia.com/here-have-a-
podcast-78ee56b5a323)

Pod Save the People - DeRay McKesson's weekly podcast on social justice and
activism. Even if you don't know DeRay's name, you'd probably recognize him
based on his blue Patagonia vest. [https://getcrookedmedia.com/pod-save-the-
people-56bc42af53d](https://getcrookedmedia.com/pod-save-the-
people-56bc42af53d)

S-Town - A co-production from Serial and This American Life. It starts off as
a murder mystery and then goes off into left field. A beautiful, sort of
American Gothic look at our country. The ending left me feeling a bit...empty
maybe? Still, an incredibly worthwhile way to spend seven hours.
[https://stownpodcast.org](https://stownpodcast.org)

~~~
tuomosipola
In Our Time covers everything from history, religion, literature to science.
Recommended!

------
akras14
Hardcore History

~~~
kapauldo
You can't beat this for sheer quality.

------
torbjorn
The History of Rome - An excellent 191 episode series covering, well, the
history of Rome by Mike Duncan.

~~~
tuomosipola
The History of Rome is really informative, I've been into ancient history
since forever but this podcast is still very enjoyable.

------
smkellat
I mostly listen to things from the BBC due to the World Service no longer
broadcasting to North America as of 2001. There are some CBC programs since
the loss of Radio Canada International. Mostly comedies plus The Archers
Omnibus.

These are for listening pleasure. CBC & BBC both have comedy of the week
podcasts. Because News on CBC is hilarious. Drama of the Week on BBC is good
though sometimes off the wall.

I could listen to Larry Kudlow for business reasons but lately I cling tight
to my comedies. I need the escape.

------
unicornporn
Zero Books: Advancing Conversations:

[http://zero-books.net/blogs/zero/feed/podcast/](http://zero-
books.net/blogs/zero/feed/podcast/)

Team Human:

[https://teamhuman.fm](https://teamhuman.fm)

Internet History Podcast:

[http://www.internethistorypodcast.com](http://www.internethistorypodcast.com)

Featured Voices:

[http://www.peakprosperity.com](http://www.peakprosperity.com)

------
eddyg
I listen to the SANS Internet StormCast ("daily 5-10 minute information
security threat updates") every morning:
[https://isc.sans.edu/podcast.html](https://isc.sans.edu/podcast.html)

Many of my other favorites have already been mentioned, but I also listen to:

Twenty Thousand Hertz ("stories behind the world's most recognizable and
interesting sounds") [https://www.20k.org](https://www.20k.org)

and have started listening to this new NPR podcast:

Wow in the World ("a new way for families to connect, look up and discover the
wonders in the world around them. Every episode, hosts Mindy and Guy guide
curious kids and their grown-ups away from their screens and on a journey.
Through a combination of careful scientific research and fun, we'll go inside
our brains, out into space, and deep into the coolest new stories in science
and technology") [http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510321/wow-in-the-
world](http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510321/wow-in-the-world)

------
cjCamel
Not technical, but tech related:

[http://exponent.fm/](http://exponent.fm/) Exponent by Ben Thompson (of
Stratechery) and James Allworth is great for analysis of big tech issues and
news.

[https://trackchanges.postlight.com/](https://trackchanges.postlight.com/)
Track Changes by Paul Ford and Rich Ziade can be quite light, but they have
some interesting guests and have lived on the web since it started.

Funny stuff - if you like Football (Soccer) then The Football Ramble is
essential.
[http://www.thefootballramble.com](http://www.thefootballramble.com)

For british nonsense humour two of them have just stated a spin off. Humour is
subjective though so YMMV and don't judge me!
[http://stakhanovindustries.com/lukeandpeteshow](http://stakhanovindustries.com/lukeandpeteshow)

(edited all of my beautifully crafted markdown links because I forget HN can't
do that)

------
kageneko
I listen to a lot of horror fiction podcasts like Darkest Night, the No Sleep
Podcast, some other fiction stuff like Rabbits and Alice Isn't Dead, and then
some other stuff.

Planet Money -- my favorite

99% Invisible

Marketplace with Kai Ryssdal

History Honeys

Six Feats Under

My wife is more into Sunday School Dropouts than I am, but I listen to it
occasionally. She also listens to some other history podcasts but I don't
recall what they are.

~~~
torbjorn
Another great podcast from the Marketplace team is Make Me Smart with Molly
Wood and Kai Ryssdal

------
jogundas
I am surprised that the omega tau (
[http://omegataupodcast.net](http://omegataupodcast.net) ) has not been
mentioned yet. Many episodes on aviation, but also quite a few on hardware,
software, and science. The style is incredibly nerdy, which I guess is an
advantage for the HN crowd.

------
scarface74
Knowledge @ Wharton - sometimes interesting, I end up skipping about half of
the episodes.

Exponent -Ben Thompson of Stratechery -- very insightful commentary on
business and technology/

NPR Planet Money -- Economics is a second love of mine.

Startup -- by Gimlet Media -- Stories about the startup culture

Science vs -- Researches fad and compares them to the actual science.

Acquired -- discusses technology acquisitions

Internet History Podcast -- just what it says it is.

Freakonomics -- Because it's Freakonomics, should be required listening for
anyone who wants to talk about economics.

Political Gabfest -- definitely liberal leaning political commentary.

Career Tools/Manager Tools -- I suggest these two podcasts to anyone who is
working. Binge on them from the beginning and skip the ones that aren't
relevant to you.

The Talk Show w/John Gruber -- required listening for Apple nerds.

Accidental Tech Podcast -- same as above/

Slate Money -- Did I mention I'm an economics nerd?

------
dmoreno
Security Now -- great weekly review of security and IT news

Stuff to blow your mind -- has some great in depth analisys about science and
more

Techstuff -- loved the series about all the story of Sony, Nintendo,
Samsung...

The Bikesheed -- two very technical guys, very funny

The changelog -- great interviews

Software engineering daily -- some guest with some technical topic every day.

------
Dowwie
About startups:

1\. "How I Built This" with Guy Raz
[https://www.npr.org/rss/podcast.php?id=510313](https://www.npr.org/rss/podcast.php?id=510313)

2\. "Startup" by Gimlet media
[http://feeds.gimletmedia.com/hearstartup](http://feeds.gimletmedia.com/hearstartup)

3\. Stanford's DFJ ETL:
[https://web.stanford.edu/group/edcorner/uploads/podcast/Educ...](https://web.stanford.edu/group/edcorner/uploads/podcast/EducatorsCorner.xml)

4\. "This week in startups" [http://feeds.feedburner.com/twist-
audio](http://feeds.feedburner.com/twist-audio)

------
ghostwreck
Masters of Scale - just started and really great, Reid Hoffman talks about
startups and growing them.

~~~
gaastonsr
I started to listen the first episode but felt a lot of overlap with How I
Built This that I had to stop listening.

------
flarg
Not seen Floss Weekly mentioned thus far. Features some really amazing
projects and the presenter somehow makes complex topics understandable. This
and HN are the main sources of my tech knowledge.

------
apstyx
Hardcore History

The Economist (Paid for but worth every cent, 8 hours of news)

The Economist asks

Tim Ferris

No such thing as a fish

Radiolab

All songs considered

------
VelNZ
I'm a big fan of Skeptoid
([http://www.skeptoid.com](http://www.skeptoid.com)). Brian does a great job
of telling the story of many popular
pseudoscientific/conspiratorial/unexplained things and then addresses them
with evidence and scientific skepticism but in an insightful way without
mocking or being judgemental.

------
gaastonsr
How I Built This with Guy Raz

------
mvindahl
Mostly

\- Reply All

\- Planet Money

\- Hanselminutes

Reply All is about the internet and planet money is about money, but in both
cases it's as much about people and the interesting things that we do.

Hanselminutes is Scott Hanselman interviewing interesting guests about aspects
of software development. It has a laid back and friendly pace. Scott is always
well prepared and a very nice host.

------
ajdlinux
My podcasts aren't hugely funny, or startup centric, but everyone else is
sharing their list... Not an American, but with a strong interest in what's
going on across the Pacific.

Risky Business, Pod Save America, Lawfare Podcast, Chat 10 Looks 3, The
Dollop, Bombshell (War on the Rocks), FiveThirtyEight Politics

------
arcticfox
In addition to what I consider the usual suspects (Startup [Gimlet] / Radiolab
/ This American Life), I just added two a little more off the beaten path:

The Pitch - Shark Tank on a podcast essentially. Somewhat deeper. The more
recent episodes are way better than the first ones so just skip to the end.

Waking Up - so refreshing to hear someone as thoughtful as Sam Harris on a
regular basis. I love that he is so calmly rational that he can have
productive conversations with everyone from left to right, atheist to Muslim.

~~~
BadassFractal
LOVE Waking Up, been both a reader of Sam Harris' books and a Patreon
supporter for a while now. Dave Rubin also manages to bring a lot of
interesting guests to his show.

~~~
arcticfox
I've heard Dave Rubin's name thrown around so I was going to check him out
until I saw his performance here a few days ago. I didn't like it. Of course,
you simply mentioned his guests, and I'm certain he has some really good ones!

[https://np.reddit.com/r/Classical_Liberals/comments/6ipull/h...](https://np.reddit.com/r/Classical_Liberals/comments/6ipull/hey_this_is_dave_rubin_lets_talk_about_classical/?limit=500)

------
2m
My list
[https://lists.pocketcasts.com/d4460e3f-2edc-4d23-b6da-8c62d0...](https://lists.pocketcasts.com/d4460e3f-2edc-4d23-b6da-8c62d07cce82)

If I would recommend one from the list it would be Ted Radio Hour

------
amerkhalid
Side Hustle School -
[https://sidehustleschool.com/](https://sidehustleschool.com/)

It is short and quick, and very interesting to see creativities of people to
generate some side income.

------
raleighm
I'm only a few episodes in but engaging thus far:
[http://argumentninja.com/podcast-episodes/](http://argumentninja.com/podcast-
episodes/)

------
epinifrim
Google Cloud Platfrom Podcast is really good one, especially if you are
interested in google technologies.
[https://www.gcppodcast.com](https://www.gcppodcast.com)

------
phillc73
The Final Furlong Pod:
[http://www.attheraces.com/finalfurlongpodcast](http://www.attheraces.com/finalfurlongpodcast)

Why? Because I love horse racing and it is funny.

------
azizsaya
My list
[https://lists.pocketcasts.com/86a256a3-66a6-4418-9325-5416c8...](https://lists.pocketcasts.com/86a256a3-66a6-4418-9325-5416c8396e46)

~~~
2m
How do you decide which one to listen to?

------
divan
NPR's podcasts: \- How I Built This \- Planet Money \- Ted Radio Hour \-
AltLatino

\- 99% invisible \- Hanselminutes

\- GoTime

NPR's podcasts (and How I Built This especially) is of incredible quality -
they even write music for each episode.

------
aatchb
Some that haven't been mentioned:

Security Now - Steve Gibson basically reviewing the week in software and
hardware security.

Rationally Speaking - Intellectual stuff

No such thing as a fish - fun trivia from the people behind the QI tv show.

~~~
SyneRyder
If you're interested in Security Now, you might like Risky Business:
[https://risky.biz](https://risky.biz)

It feels like an upgrade to me, by people who spend their days working in
infosec. They've had interviews with members of LulzSec, the NSA's General
Counsel, and the guy behind PwnAllTheThings. They also broke the inside story
of what actually happened in Australia's national census outage.

My one hesitation is it's starting to feel like pro-5eyes propaganda. They
were very dismissive of the Shadow Brokers last year (because "NSA
superiority"), and have had to rewrite history since the actual 0-days &
WannaCry were released. So I don't listen to every episode anymore, but I do
find it informative.

------
jansho
Not related to startups specifically (unless edtech?) but I highly recommend
Metalearn for personal development. It's interview-based but that's what I
like about it!

------
ropeladder
Reply all is funny and about the internet. The Dig is not funny or about
startups but I just discovered it and wanted to share. Smart policy discussion
with a lefty viewpoint.

------
aquilax
Artifexian [http://www.artifexian.com/](http://www.artifexian.com/) \- two
guys discussing world building

------
fpgaminer
The IndieHackers podcast has been really great so far.

------
wqweto
[http://www.nerds2nerds.com/](http://www.nerds2nerds.com/) \-- just to troll
demigod :-))

------
crispytx
Revisionist History with Malcolm Gladwell

------
alphabettsy
Surprised nobody mentioned Car Talk in the funny column. You don't have to be
a car person to enjoy it.

------
tmccrmck
I highly recommend Embedded.fm if you're interested in any thing in the
embedded software world.

------
dirtylowprofile
Damn! Thanks for the suggestions! Right now I'm listening to Masters of Scale
for starters.

------
dejawu
\- Accidental Tech Podcast (Marco Arment's podcast about Apple tech)

\- Harmontown

\- Obsessed with Joseph Scrimshaw

~~~
swah
+1 for ATP. I don't even have any Apple hardware but I like their style, not
so much technical, but focusing on other aspects engineers tend to care about
(UX, product quality, economics, etc).

------
skyisblue
React native radio. Currently trying to build an app in React Native.

------
nunez
None because I've been in a music kind of mood lately.

------
tzhenghao
1\. a16z

2\. Acquired - Podcast about Tech Acquisitions + IPOs

3\. Recode Decode by Kara Swisher

------
forkLding
Software Engineering Daily, has some focus on startups

------
mike128
Tim Ferriess Show

------
evanb
What Trump Can Teach Us About Con Law

The West Wing Weekly

Planet Money

Heavyweight

The Adventure Zone

This American Life

In Our Time with Melvyn Bragg

Invisibilia

StartUp

Freakonomics

Radiolab

99% Invisible

The Tobolowsky Files

S-Town

Coffee Break German

------
dayve
a16z podcast by Andressen Horowitz

Gadget Lab podcast by Wired

State of America with Kate Bolduan (CNN)

------
rthille
The Political Gabfest - Slate The Ezra Klein Show - Vox The Weeds - Vox Waking
Up - Sam Harris

------
adomanico
Sam Harris - Waking Up Podcast

Bill Burr - Monday Morning Podcast

Joe Rogan - PowerfulJRE (not every episode)

------
jaymenon
Upfirst

why oh why

planet money

radiolab

all songs considered

Dinner party Download

Hidden Brain

Radio Lab

The Splendid Table

Gastropod

You are not so Smart

------
Duckton
Waking Up with Sam Harris. Very informative, interesting guests. Especially
lately with everything going in US politics.

------
SirLJ
On the Wind Sailing

------
boltzmannbrain
Coding: Talk Python to Me, Software Engineering Daily

AI: Talking Machines

Misc: Waking Up with Sam Harris, a16z

