#Podcast30 Recommendations from EarBuds Founder Arielle Nissenblatt
By: Arielle Nissenblatt
When I started EarBuds in 2017, I did it because I wanted to listen to more podcasts. I listened to a bunch already, but they weren’t very diverse in terms of genre, host background, geography…anything really. It was your typical public radio / public radio-adjacent shows. And they were awesome. But I KNEW there was more out there. And I wanted to find it.
The idea behind EarBuds was (and still is) that if someone new curates a list each week, we can all find new podcasts to check out, from perspectives all over the world.
Since 2017, I’ve been VERY active on Twitter. Mostly sharing podcast recommendations and thoughts about the industry. I’ve met a lot of amazing creators throughout the years. And I’ve listened to a lot of their shows.
This past November, I was on a road trip — I always get the best ideas in cars — and I decided that I wanted to share the podcasts I was listening to via a hashtag. I had just finished (or was about to finish) participating in Jay Clouse’s #tweet100 challenge, and was inspired by the daily commitment of it all. I usually do share what I’m listening to in some way or another: either on Twitter, Instagram, with friends in DMs, wherever. But I wanted to make an effort to listen to, screenshot, share, and tag podcasts and creators in posts on Twitter.
Thus, #podcast30 was born.
I encouraged other podcast listeners to join! The goal was to share at least one podcast that they listened to each day using the hashtag #podcast30. That’s it. nothing fancy.
What I found within the first day of posting about the challenge was that people were PUMPED to participate. My initial tweet got re-shared a ton, and people from all over Podcast Twitter were excited to jump in come December 1st.
Shortly after the challenge began, I was surfing through the hashtag and not only finding a huge volume of people participating but also lots of diversity in folks’ podcast picks. I was not expecting the recommendations to lean so indie, female and POC-hosted, but I was glad that was the case.
So, I encourage you to check out the hashtag if you’re looking for recommendations. In the meantime, here are my #podcast30 recommendations from December 2021.
#Podcast30:
P.s. there are more than 30.
Bodies (KCRW, Allison Behringer)
An Eyesore and a Plague (Paulina Salmas, John Borducci)
Forever is a Long Time (Ian Coss)
4. Eclipsed (Campside Media)
5. The Allusionist (Helen Zaltzman)
6. A Slight Change of Plans (Maya Shankar, Pushkin)
10. Cheat! (Somethin’ Else)
11. You’re Dead to Me (BBC, Greg Jenner)
12. The Pod Broads (Alexandra Cohl)
13. Anatomy of Murder (Audiochuck)
14. Mississippi Goddam (Reveal)
15. The Beach Speaks (Paige Friend)
22. Spectacular Vernacular (Slate)
23. History Daily (Airship, Noiser)
24. This is Love (Criminal Productions)
Then, the omicron surge happened. And I had to wait in a really long line to get a test. So, lots of listening happened.
25. Grammar Girl: Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing (Mignon Fogarty)
26. The 11th (Pineapple Street Media)
27. Behind the Bastards (iHeart)
28. Detours (Antiques Roadshow, GBH)
29. The Allusionist (Helen Zaltzman)
30. Midnight Burger (Pansy Productions)
31. Bridge Boys (Wait Pods)
32. Last Known Position (QCODE)
33. Today, Explained (Vox)
34. Private Parts Unknown (Pleasure Podcasts)
Some notes:
This is not necessarily my best-of list for 2021 or even for December 2021, though I did thoroughly enjoy all of the above.
I listened to way more than what’s documented above. These are just the podcasts I decided to mark as #podcast30.
In my Twitter thread, I share either by screenshot or by name, the episode of each show that I listened to. If you want to see those, check it out here.
Thanks for reading! Happy 2022!
