February 4, 2018

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THE LIST

1. Hidden Brain - "Lost in Translation"
It's not topical, it's not from a new show, it could hardly be described as sexy. But this episode of Hidden Brain stuck with me all week, and served as inspiration to rededicate myself to learning Spanish. New language learners will find this especially fascinating, regardless of the level of mastery attained. Even if you've never tarried far from your native tongue, this will get you thinking about the way people communicate within cultures.

2. More Perfect - "One Nation, Under Money"
This one, on the other hand, is extremely timely. The Superbowl kicks off in a matter of minutes (or has recently happened, depending on when you happen to be reading, or is happening right now, depending on how attuned you are to popular culture and/or any friends that may be huddled in your living room glued to the screen), and with it the centerpiece of American commerce with the commercials found within. All that said, this season finale of More Perfect delivers a story underlining the limits government has created to monitor the exchange of goods and services. So, ok, maybe it's a stretch to call it timely, but nevertheless it is worth your time.

3. Still Processing - "We're Still Here For Janet"
Finally, we've got an episode that is interwoven with the big game. (Well, the halftime show. Cut me some slack.) This is essential contextualizing for anyone old enough to remember the last time Justin Timberlake performed at the Superbowl. Wesley Morris and Jenna Wortham stand up for Janet Jackson, and elucidate the finer inequalities of the demise she suffered just as Timberlake's star power morphed and blossomed all over the cultural map.
HONORABLE MENTION
Desert Island Discs - "Gary Kasparov"

SOMETHING NEW

Slow burn. It's a phrase reserved for tantalizing dramas that play out oh-so-gradually while stringing along an audience cheering on a flame descending a long fuse headed toward a climactic explosion. The thing is, within the confines of a television show or piece of music or any piece of media, this framework is clearly visible from start to finish and an inherent part of a performance. No one at a Skrillex concert hears a drop and shouts "What the hell?! I totally didn't see that coming!" But in the newest hit Panoply show Slow Burn: A Podcast About Watergate, host Leon Neyfakh takes a retrospective lens to the ever-burgeoning chorus or events that lead to Richard Nixon's plunge into infamy.

The beauty of this show is that it serves an incredibly broad audience. If you were alive in the years before and after Nixon's impeachment, listening to Slow Burn may jog old memories and provide analysis with the beauty of hindsight. If you were but a twinkle in the eye of someone who lived through this period, the show will heap massive amounts of context upon a brain that, if you're like me, knew little more about the whole event than the phrase "I am not a crook." Regardless of the amount of background knowledge brought to the table, listeners will find a detailed investigation from Neyfakh that is as thorough as it is compelling.

Slow Burn's obvious connection to the present is it's parallel with the ever-unraveling revelations from the Mueller investigation. The show doesn't beat this angle into the ground, allowing it to be a good deal less politicized than it had the potential to be. That said, the release of this show (which concluded this past week) draws out how similar the public reaction might turn out to be. In the days, weeks, and months before the whole watergate hubbub exploded, people had no real sense of it's severity. Today, unprecedented access to up-to-the-minute reporting (and the tumultuous news cycle in general) may have inured people to investing much effort in understanding anything related to the Mueller investigation. 

As is the case with most groundbreaking events, those experiencing something in real time have no sense of the resounding impact that will ripple throughout history. Who knows where the current upheaval will land, but maybe someone will put together a thoughtful podcast picking it all apart 45 years from now. Until then, check out Slow Burn for a (re)introduction to a touchstone of American political history and let it endow your imagination with a lens to place over current events as you see fit.

Slow Burn: A Podcast About Watergate
From: Panoply
Recommended for: History buffs, history ignoramuses, young people, old people, fans of quality podcast productions
Drop Schedule: Seasonal:Weekly (Completed)
Average episode length: 30 minutes
Rating: Gotta Have It

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