Culture

Smarten Up and Get Right With the 5 Best Podcast Episodes of the Week

Telepathy, Hamilton, and espionage: Welcome to your commute.

Wish you could skip work to go see Hamilton, or the Copa América? We can't score those seats, but we can offer you five amazing podcasts about soccer and theater---plus paranormal powers, espionage, and self-worth. Cheer up, commuter: these episodes might be just the ticket you need.

  • Revisionist History, “Saigon, 1965”

    In Revisionist History, Malcolm Gladwell takes his signature style of exploring the motivations behind our everyday choices to audio. In the second episode, “Saigon, 1965,” Gladwell hits his stride, exploring modern American military intelligence during the Vietnam War. Gladwell provides a sound explanation of how we learned about enemy morale through 62,000 interviews with the Viet Cong in the early 1960s, but the real highlights of the episode are characters like Konrad Kellen, a veritable Forrest Gump of 20th century European history. Listen here.

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  • LatinoUSA, “The Beautiful Game”

    Fútbol brings people together all around the world---except in the US. But that’s about to change. Thanks to the Copa América, Champions Cup, and Olympics, this is the best summer yet to become an American soccer fan. Listen up to hear why the beautiful game is worth your attention, from 2002's infamous "Dos a Cero" Mexico-U.S. game, to the heartbreak that comes with rooting for Peru, to why the women's world champion US team remains so white. Listen here.

    NPR

  • This American Life, “Tell Me I’m Fat”

    Fat people shouldn’t have to apologize for their bodies, or want to change them. In this episode of This American Life, comedian and author Lindy West, producer Elna Baker, and writer Roxane Gay tell harrowing first-person accounts of how living as a fat person means being treated as a second-class citizen. As West says, people see a fat person as “a thin person who's failing consistently for your whole life.” Vivid and alarming, this episode will stay with you. Listen here.

    <a href="http://www.photojj.com/" target="_blank">Jenny Jimenez</a>

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Charley Locke writes about growing up and growing old for publications including The Atlantic, The New York Times Magazine, and WIRED. ... Read More
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