Apple isn’t going to fix podcast discovery, so where can you go instead?
Discovering the discovery community
Podcast directories are like old school video rental stores. You go in with so much hope but end up wandering the aisles until you just grab something based entirely on its cover art. Not the best discovery experience in the world. Blockbuster went bankrupt, but Apple still insists on limiting its podcast discovery mechanisms to this frustrating loop..
When someone recommends something to check out, along with context on why, it’s a completely different experience. Some stranger on the internet could write a few sentences about a podcast episode that blew their mind or had an emotional impact on them, and I’ll immediately download it and move it to the top of my queue. The personal connection is so much more fun and useful.
Luckily, there is a vibrant internet community of people who love to help podcast fans discover new shows. As I mention in this exploration of the podcast discovery problem, this community can be a little challenging to piece together. This list is an attempt to collect all the places where you can discover podcasts with some personal context.
I try to update this list every few months, adding new sources of recommendations and removing defunct ones. (last updated: 11/7/19).
Email Newsletters
There’s a lot in this category, but honestly, do yourself a favor and just subscribe to all of them (each link brings you to their sign up page). You can easily unsubscribe from the ones that don’t fit what you are looking for. I’ve learned about some great shows from every single one of the publications below.
Bello Collective: If you are reading this, I hope you are a subscriber! Each email newsletter includes industry news, links to articles (like this one), and, most importantly, a great set of recommendations from a collection of podcast super fans with different tastes in shows. Check out the Patreon page if you would like to see how you can help grow this independent publication.
Podcast Brunch Club: Like book club, but for podcasts. You can start up a local chapter to meet with people in person or subscribe to the monthly newsletter to get a great selection of podcasts, with a new theme each month.
Hurt Your Brain: My side project where I try to learn about the world through podcasts. Get recommendations on podcasts and links that will make you think.
Audio Dramatic: If you are looking for some thoughtful writing around audio dramas, you really need to check out this fantastic newsletter from the talented Elena Fernandez Collins.
Hot Pod: Nick Quah provides the most in-depth coverage of the podcast industry, including major new show announcements and shows/episodes of special note. Update: Caroline Crampton and her Podmail newsletter have now been folded into Hot Pod, with Crampton contributing her journalism from a UK perspective. Check out Hot Pod Insider for extra reporting and content.
Earbuds Podcast Collective: Get an email every Sunday with five episodes to check out for the following week. Each playlist has a different theme and recommendations come from a varied group of podcast lovers.
Podcast Gumbo Newsletter: Wake up every Wednesday morning with a set of three podcast recommendations (plus extras). Paul Kondo injects some very welcome personality and humor into the podcast writing space and Podcast Gumbo is the perfect name because this newsletter has excellent taste.
podnews: Daily email with a short list of podcast industry news, which regularly includes new show announcements. This has become a favorite of everyone I know who follows the podcast industry. Also check out their podcast version.
Inside Podcasting: By far my favorite of the growing Inside network of newsletters. Get podcast news and show recommendations in their easily digestible format. Be sure to also check out the new Inside Podcasting podcast from newsletter writer/curator Skye Pillsbury.
Podcast Maniac: Varied recommendations, podcast playlists, and links to articles that appear on the Podcast Maniac site.
Podcast Problems: Wil Williams gives us some of the best podcast writing and criticism around and much needed love for the audio drama community.
Hear Here podcast newsletter from The Guardian: Some great weekly picks from the fine folks over at The Guardian.
Podcast Delivery: A nice and simple once-weekly newsletter that has one podcast recommendation per email. They have excellent taste.
Pod People: Weekly podcast recommendations from Melissa Locker, who writes about audio for The Guardian.
7 on 7 podcast reviews: Get seven podcast recommendations each email. A nice mix between popular shows and more obscure treasures.
Sara’s Podcast Newsletter: An excellent and comprehensive collection of industry news, new show announcements, and recommendations, sent out occasionally by Sara Weber.
This Week in Podcasts: Michael Yessis provides more recommendations than any other email on this list, with quotes, take aways, and new show announcements. The guests of note that have appeared all across the podcasting landscape is particularly unique and helpful.
Audible Feast: Sent out bi-weekly and offers a great selection of shows worth listening to. Sara listens to a wide array of shows and provides honest reviews and excellent recommendations on what to fill your feed with.
Podcast Notes: If you like self-improvement podcasts, this will be perfect for you. Get notes on popular shows like The Tim Ferriss Show so that you can make the most of the best lessons without having to listen to everything.
The Podhead Newsletter: From the same folks that bring you Podtalk Podcast (industry news, interviews, recommendations) and the Podhead website, comes this great newsletter full of podcasting news and recommendations.
AudioDramaRama: From Alex, an audio drama enthusiast who wants to make you enthusiastic too. Alex’s site is full of great links and scroll down to subscribe to new posts by email.
Audio Drama Reviews: A site/newsletter that gives in depth reviews of audio dramas, in print as well as in audio form.
The Podcast Dragon: A newsletter that gives mini and full length starred reviews to audio dramas and specific episodes.
The newest additions (as of 8/28/19):
The Listener: From the prolific podcast writer Caroline Crampton comes this free weekly email of three podcast recommendations (paying subscribers get daily set of three). If you are always on the hunt for excellent audio stories that aren’t mainstream, you’ll love this.
The Venn: “A curated list of informed political podcasts.” This weekly newsletter is polished and provides excellent roundups and analysis of political topics via the podcasts that discuss them. Their aim is to take a non-partisan perspective and is an overall excellent way to stay informed.
Podcast Business Journal: A website that sends out a daily email of podcast industry news and podcast related columns. This site provides a great way to stay informed and learn about new shows/trends.
Podcast Review: An in-depth podcast review/interview site from the talented critics at The Los Angeles Review of Books. Their weekly newsletter sends out episode recommendations and reviews.
Find That Pod: You’ll get five podcast recommendations each week in this recently launched newsletter. The format is stylish and the taste in podcasts are top-notch.
Best Evidence: This newsletter comes from The Blotter and The Blotter Presents, a true-crime focused website and podcast, respectively. The free weekly email (paid version is more frequent) contains discussions of all things true-crime, including books, tv shows, and of course, podcasts.
Fiction Podcast Weekly: A weekly email that brings you the latest from the world of audio fiction, audio drama, and sound storytelling.
Great British Podcasts: From the folks behind the British Podcast Awards comes this weekly newsletter that highlights and recommends, as you might guess, great British podcasts.
Podcast The Newsletter: This was recently started by Lauren Passell as a place to recommend and write about podcasts. The newsletter has a fun, conversational vibe that is a nice change of pace for my inbox.
Podbrief NYC: A new indespensible weekly newsletter for anyone in the New York City area. You’ll get a collection of podcasting news, events, and career opportunities.
PodMov Daily: An email every weekday from the wonderful folks at Podcast Movement, the largest annual podcast conference. You’ll get short bites of news and curated topics about the podcast industry.
Added 2/4/2020:
Podcast Perspective: Get the latest podcast news and trends delivered through this weekly report from Jeff Umbro. The newsletter lives within LinkedIn, and once you subscribe you’ll be notified every Thursday when a new edition is released.
Websites and Social Media
I prefer anything that will send recommendations directly to my email inbox, but if you don’t mind going into your favorite social media apps or bookmarking websites, the below are excellent places to regularly visit.
Facebook: Bello Collective cofounder Dana wrote up a list of 12 podcast groups you can join. There is also The New York Times Podcast Club where a new podcast is picked each week for discussion.
Reddit: The main podcasts subreddit is a great place to discover new shows or to ask for recommendations. Stop in about once a week and sort the posts by “top” and “last week” for a guaranteed selection of interesting discussions. Also, here’s a list of podcast specific subreddits.
Bello Slack: Bello Collective has a Slack workspace that I just love. There is a #listening channel where I find out about new shows constantly from other podcast superfans and creators. Anyone can join the conversation as a member.
Discover Pods: Get playlists, reviews, and excellent articles about podcasts.
Podchaser: A site in beta that aims to be the IMDB for podcasts.
Podmass: Criticism and reviews from The AV Club.
RadioDoc Review: Academic critiques of podcasts and radio documentaries from really smart people.
Podcasts in Color: The largest podcast directory in the world for podcasts from people of color and an overall amazing tool for podcast discovery. It’s put together by Berry Syk. Be sure to follow along the conversation on Twitter with #Podin and #PodsInColor.
Podcasts about Podcasts
We all love the extra context audio can bring, so you can’t really beat hearing about a podcast from an actual podcast. These shows still carry the torch that Sampler let fizz out, through either talking to other podcast creators or sampling clips from other podcasts to whet your appetite.
Radio Drama Revival: A long running and thoughtful show that is dedicated to showcasing the diversity and vitality of modern audio fiction, hosted by David Rheinstrom.
Podcast Junkies: Interviews with podcasters from a variety of backgrounds and interests. Showrunner Harry Duran also put together a much more exhaustive list of podcasts about podcasts.
Podcast Digest: Interviews with some top names in podcasting, which include recommendations on other podcasts they would like people to check out.
The Podcast Playlist: The host puts together a curated list of shows within a theme, with introductions to each clip. Kind of like a podcast DJ.
The Big Listen: “A broadcast about podcasts”.
Apps
Most podcast apps have some kind of directory, but except for a few outliers, not many do anything unique or interesting around podcast discovery. For a full list of podcast apps and the ones that do deserve your love, check out these one sentence reviews of the podcast landscape and the round two with even more.
Say Goodbye to Podcast Inbox Zero
The upside to checking out the places on this list: you’ll always have a varied, never ending selection of shows to check out. The downside: you might quickly realize your podcast app of choice kind of sucks at handling dozens of subscriptions and dozens of one off episode downloads.
I plan on keeping this list updated, so please let me know what I missed and I’ll be sure to check it out!
The Bello Collective is a publication + newsletter about podcasts and the audio industry. Our goal is to bring together writers, journalists, and other voices who share a passion for the world of audio storytelling.
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