June 18 - 24, 2017
1. Invisibilia - "Future Self"
Everyone has had a moment where actualizing the potential of life has been tantalizing real. The idea of "the future" is so great at engendering optimism because it seems completely unknown. But can it ever be dangerous to dream of what your life might one day become? Can it even be deadly? Invisibilia takes on the question of aspiring to be something more, and the various pitfalls that could snag us along the way. A must for any educator or mentor who seeks to influence the life of another human.
2. Hidden Brain - "Rap On Trial"
Freedom of speech is one of those topics that seems to have been in the public conscious for ages. America likes the idea that people have the power to use words in whatever way we see fit. Of course, as is the case with many things, general privilege becomes subconsciously fragmented. My words are not dangerous, but that's because I'm a good person. You may speak your mind, but not if it's in a format that makes me uncomfortable. Beyond that, "Rap On Trial" asks the listener to ponder when words spill over into the real. Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can frame me as a terrorist.
3. Criminal - "Becoming Chief Brown"
I was sitting on the edge of my earbuds as the story of former Dallas police chief David Brown unfolded. We get insight into the lives of politicians, athletes and celebrities of all stripes, but how often do you hear about the events that shaped the life of someone generally outside the public eye? Brown settling into the ranks of the police system juxtaposed with key moments in the man's life proved utterly compelling and shed a little more light on the incredibly difficult things police all over the country must endure.
HONORABLE MENTION
Ear Hustle - "Cellies"
Strangers - "Franky Carrillo: Life"
Planet Money - "What the Falcon's Up With Qatar?"
SOMETHING NEW
Prison is becoming highly integrated into everyday life for Americans. If you haven't served time or know someone who has, you are still implicated in the system by virtue of your tax dollars. Many people (myself included) probably have some image of the penal justice system that is rooted solely in movies or television portrayals. The occasional documentary attempt to capture life behind bars is almost always slanted with some kind of agenda, even if the only intent is to frame the circumstances as dramatic. But now, fellow citizens and international friends alike, we've got a new window into the world of doing time. Radiotopia's latest offering, Ear Hustle, comes to us directly from Earlonne Woods and Antwan Williams - inmates at the famed San Quentin State Prison.
Woods and Williams approach this semi-autobiographical podcast with a sense of brevity and earnestness, which endows it with the much-sought-after authenticity so often missing from this subject. In addition to the content of the show, I am very curious to see more on the production side of this cast. Woods and Williams collaborate with Bay Area artist Nigel Poor, and everything the team publishes must be approved by the prison's communication officer. I gobbled up their first episode, "Cellies," and I can't wait to see how much depth of exploration these folks flesh out through the podcast that seems to have cornered the market on prison.
Ear Hustle
Recommended for: Curious civilians
Rating: Gotta Have It
Everyone has had a moment where actualizing the potential of life has been tantalizing real. The idea of "the future" is so great at engendering optimism because it seems completely unknown. But can it ever be dangerous to dream of what your life might one day become? Can it even be deadly? Invisibilia takes on the question of aspiring to be something more, and the various pitfalls that could snag us along the way. A must for any educator or mentor who seeks to influence the life of another human.
2. Hidden Brain - "Rap On Trial"
Freedom of speech is one of those topics that seems to have been in the public conscious for ages. America likes the idea that people have the power to use words in whatever way we see fit. Of course, as is the case with many things, general privilege becomes subconsciously fragmented. My words are not dangerous, but that's because I'm a good person. You may speak your mind, but not if it's in a format that makes me uncomfortable. Beyond that, "Rap On Trial" asks the listener to ponder when words spill over into the real. Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can frame me as a terrorist.
3. Criminal - "Becoming Chief Brown"
I was sitting on the edge of my earbuds as the story of former Dallas police chief David Brown unfolded. We get insight into the lives of politicians, athletes and celebrities of all stripes, but how often do you hear about the events that shaped the life of someone generally outside the public eye? Brown settling into the ranks of the police system juxtaposed with key moments in the man's life proved utterly compelling and shed a little more light on the incredibly difficult things police all over the country must endure.
HONORABLE MENTION
Ear Hustle - "Cellies"
Strangers - "Franky Carrillo: Life"
Planet Money - "What the Falcon's Up With Qatar?"
SOMETHING NEW
Prison is becoming highly integrated into everyday life for Americans. If you haven't served time or know someone who has, you are still implicated in the system by virtue of your tax dollars. Many people (myself included) probably have some image of the penal justice system that is rooted solely in movies or television portrayals. The occasional documentary attempt to capture life behind bars is almost always slanted with some kind of agenda, even if the only intent is to frame the circumstances as dramatic. But now, fellow citizens and international friends alike, we've got a new window into the world of doing time. Radiotopia's latest offering, Ear Hustle, comes to us directly from Earlonne Woods and Antwan Williams - inmates at the famed San Quentin State Prison.
Woods and Williams approach this semi-autobiographical podcast with a sense of brevity and earnestness, which endows it with the much-sought-after authenticity so often missing from this subject. In addition to the content of the show, I am very curious to see more on the production side of this cast. Woods and Williams collaborate with Bay Area artist Nigel Poor, and everything the team publishes must be approved by the prison's communication officer. I gobbled up their first episode, "Cellies," and I can't wait to see how much depth of exploration these folks flesh out through the podcast that seems to have cornered the market on prison.
Ear Hustle
Recommended for: Curious civilians
Rating: Gotta Have It
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