The Pod Piper in 2019

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It's not too late to look back.

In some cultures, it is customary to celebrate the closing of a year by counting down it's final seconds amidst a band of revelers. In my culture, it is customary to celebrate the closing of a year by feverishly pouring over the culture I've consumed in the previous 12-ish months and futilely attempting to rank what I most enjoyed. On December 31, 2019 I went to sleep at 8:30 PM, and my annual list is only now coming to your eyeballs as January scootches ever closer to February. Here now, friends, is what I've got.


2019: The Year in Podcasts 

From: The Pod Piper
Recommended for: Conceivably everyone.
Drop Schedule: Annually (December/January)
Average episode length: A couple minutes to read or skim, several hours if you follow all the links  
Rating: Gotta Have It

THE NEW SHOWS

Is it cheating because this is kind of a sequel to a book? Maybe. But it was the show whose new episodes jumped to the top of my queue as soon as they dropped.

Lovable narrator, novel format, and a story that made me tear up more than once. A triumph of fictional podcasting.
A show about failed utopias that also happens to be hosted by the incomparable Avery Trufelman? I don't even care if this show is a sponsored pod from an online real estate (media company?), it is amazing.

Another "hey, isn't this kind of cheating because of it's literary host?" entry. But Michael Lewis is an author by trade, not a podcaster, which made this timely series intriguing to follow from a production standpoint.
The story behind Theranos and all the craziness therein, this was the podcast portion of ABC's multimedia documentary coverage. 

This speculative ethical podcast has shades of Flash Forward if Rose Eveleth were more interested in venture capital. That is intended to be a compliment to both shows.

The ever gracious musician melded his curiosity and creativity into a series of reverent meditations about women lost to history. It would be a compelling schtick even if the music was drivel, but fortunately for us the songs easily stand on their own.
Privacy never felt so accessible! The winning team of Alia Tavakolian and Bob Sullivan bring listeners along as they journey from matters that are as personally relevant as they are societally troubling.

This continues to be the podcast I'd most recommend for anyone who is more accustomed to watching 60 minutes than downloading audio files to a mobile device. And yes, it is another show with connections to the written word (but who's counting?).

Admittedly the later episodes lose a bit of steam amidst that dreamy monotonous narration, but the first six-episode season about Pitcairn is spectacular.

HONORABLE MENTION
Aria Code
Total episodes listened to in 2019: 1,898 (268 fewer episodes than last year, cue sad trombone sfx)
Most listened to show - Track Changes (114)
Highest volume month, by episodes listened: December (210)
Lowest volume month, by episodes listened: July (87)
Average composite score across all episodes with a rating: 6.71 (out of 10)
Average blog page views per post (including, I think, myself): 21.3
Number of newsletter subscribers: 24
Members of my immediate family who subscribe to my newsletter (excluding my wife): 0

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