Summer is the perfect time to discover a new podcast, whether you’re looking to pass time on a long road trip or simply need a new audio adventure. We asked Globe staffers to share their playlists, and we’ll be letting you know what they told us in this space over the next few weeks. Here’s what to tune in to this weekend:
Once Upon a Time…At Bennington College
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Lili Anolik’s Once Upon a Time…At Bennington College is a fantastic, gossipy look at life at the rural Vermont school where a handful of future literary superstars were doing their best to be the coolest kid on campus amongst fellow eccentric students and faculty. Donna Tartt, who based much of her bestseller The Secret History on her time at the school, as well as Bret Easton Ellis and Jonathan Lethem, were all part of the class of 1986. And the stories of their time at the school – including tales that include murder and a suitcase full of drugs – are fascinating. – Dave McGinn, reporter
Fur and Loathing
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This six-part true-crime series looks at an unsolved gas attack on a Chicago-area convention for furries, the fandom culture that involves roleplay with anthropomorphic animal personas (or “fursonas”). Journalist Nicky Woolf uncovers details from the criminal investigation with help from members of the often-misunderstood furry community. The series strikes the right balance of sensitivity and humour, and it’s a fascinating case study of how extremist wings can take off in online communities. Woolf’s interviews with the two main suspects had me at the edge of my seat. – Holly McKenzie-Sutter, content editor
Hit Parade
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For a long time there, I worried my kids weren’t listening to enough music (who could hear anything amid all the noise in the house?) – e-mails to send, dinners to make, whose socks are those sitting on the floor the past three days? On a road trip with my music-loving nephew a couple years ago, I was desperately searching for a podcast we could all agree on. And there it was: Hit Parade hosted by Slate’s Chris Molanphy, ready to give my kids the musical education they were lacking. Each monthly episode, going back to 2017, is a deep dive into an artist or genre or moment in music history. I don’t always love what the kids are listening to as they take over household DJ duties, but at least they’re listening. – Lori Fazari, deputy head of editing
Who Owns the Ocean
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Ottawa recently gave B.C.’s open-net salmon farms five years to move their operations inland. The podcast Who Owns the Ocean by The National Observer has been tracking this story since 2022 and keeps you hooked by unpacking the politics and science, while also feeling at times like an (audio) mystery novel. – Chris Wilson-Smith, Business Brief editor
Laugh Out Loud
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Our son is a baseball player. Which means that for several summers now, our family has spent many (so, so many) evenings and weekends fighting the GTA traffic (so, so much traffic) to get to games and tournaments. How to repress our screams? Laugh. CBC’s Laugh Out Loud podcast is our staple, providing tidy little packages of all-Canadian stand-up that make us actually look forward to the long drives. And it’s so much more amusing than being misdirected by Google Maps. – Dave Parkinson, deputy head of newsroom development
Greeking Out
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Greeking Out, a family-friendly podcast by National Geographic, just wrapped up its 10th season and has found a winning formula in its retelling of classic Greek myths (and myths and tales from other cultures, increasingly). Episodes are around 30 minutes long and feature narrator Kenny Curtis, with helpful interjections from “the Oracle of WiFi.” Don’t miss the episode “The Olympians and the Titans” from Season 4, which offers an entertaining primer on some of the major gods of Greek mythology. – Mason Wright, content editor
Dr. Dante
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Dr. Dante by Campside Media is a fascinating look at one of the greatest con men who ever lived. Dr. Ronald Dante, a hypnotist, once got a famous Hollywood actress to fall in love with him and subsequently marry him. Host Sam Mullins is curious, funny and dogged in his attempts to paint the most fulsome picture of the swindler. The eight episodes are filled with twists and turns, including the time he founded a university. – Angela Pacienza, executive editor
The Rewatchables
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Our summers includes plenty of three-hour-plus trips to a family cottage. To keep the mood light when stuck in heavy traffic, we opt for The Rewatchables. Host Bill Simmons, founder of The Ringer podcast network, gets a couple of buddies together to talk movies, focused on hits from the 1970s, 80s and 90s. The films are mainstream, the banter is informed yet irreverent. Simmons, a Boston native, hooked us with an episode on Argo, the Oscar-winning story of the CIA and Canadian ambassador rescuing American diplomats trapped in Iran, made by fellow Bostonian and Simmons buddy Ben Affleck. We are looking forward to recent Rewatchables episodes on Breaking Away and Fast Times at Ridgemont High. – Andrew Willis, Report on Business reporter
Song Exploder
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Song Exploder is a podcast that takes one song per episode and blows it up to tell the story behind it. Artists and their collaborators peel back the layers of a single piece of music to show how it came together. You’ll hear Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac explain how they hold instrumental “tension” on Go Your Own Way and Billie Eilish open up about her depression on Everything I Wanted. Favourite episode: Black Pumas break down their hit, Colors. – Nicholas Van Praet, Report on Business reporter
Acquired
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Want to listen to two venture capitalists chit-chat about the history of Nvidia for seven hours or Berkshire Hathaway for nine? The Acquired podcast is a favourite of CEOs and tech types with hosts Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal digging into the histories of storied corporate institutions, ranging from Costco and Lockheed Martin to the NFL. Their deeply researched but engaging, casually conversational explorations of origin stories, personalities and strategies can stretch for hours and multiple episodes, but it’s a novel and accessible form of business narrative. I recently spent half a trip to Boston listening to the fascinating history of Ozempic maker Novo Nordisk and much of the return trip learning about Microsoft’s first 20 years. Next up for me is a tossup between Visa and Porsche. – Sean Silcoff, Report on Business reporter
A Field Guide to Gay Animals
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I was intrigued after hearing co-host Laine Kaplan-Levenson at a Tribeca Festival panel say it was not at all hard to find examples of homosexual animals, both in the wild and in our homes. I’m excited to listen to a series that explores the implications of understanding our world as naturally queer and learn more about how that truth has been misunderstood and suppressed. After all, an exploration of gay animals is an exploration about us, too. And judging from the easy and comedic camaraderie between the co-hosts in episode 1, it’ll be a fun adventure. – Kasia Mychajlowycz, senior producer, audio
Normal Gossip
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Don’t worry about running out of things to talk about on a long drive with Normal Gossip. Listeners get to laugh and scream and cringe along as host Kelsey McKinney tells each episode’s unwitting guest a totally real, anonymized gossip story from a friend of a friend. And your road trip crew will have plenty of time to discuss what you would have done and who’s the villain along the way. – Moira Wyton, content editor
Proxy
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The podcast captivating me right now is a new venture from former Invisibilia host Yawei Shaw, who’s created Proxy in the wake of her layoff from NPR. Digging in on her particular brand of “emotional journalism,” she sets out to explore various personal questions each episode, by way of interviewing a “proxy” expert on the subject. Her warmth, humour and good old reporting skills make it a joy to listen to, even when the subject matter is a downer. As a one-time recipient of a layoff myself (sadly par for the course in journalism), I found “#3 The Layoff Trilogy, Part 3: HR by Proxy” fun, painfully honest, and yes, a little bit healing. – Rebecca Zamon, manager of audience growth