What are your sources of information? Specifically podcasts*

Howdy All

When reading the news, certain things often catch my eye and I try to research them using multiple sources for verification.

However, and I am sure this is no surprise to anyone out there, I tend to skew left and socialist, so when I am not actively reading the news, I tend to casually listen to podcasts that reflect my values.

I am looking for some alternative podcasts so I can get some views from other sides of the spectrum; podcasts that reflect conservative values, the virtues of capitalism, and more traditionally conservative perspectives or more moderate perspectives.

Was hoping I could get some recommendations here.

They don't even need to be in opposition to left-leaning stances; if you have a political podcast to recommend that's just plain interesting, I'd love to hear it.

Please do not recommend any MAGA or Trump aligned stuff; I'm open to just about anything but I'd sooner sit down and read Mein Kampf than listen to Ben Shapiro talk about sex or how Jordan Peterson thinks men should act or how Marjorie Taylor Greene is doing god's work.

As for what I listen to:

Pod Save America: a bunch of former Obama staffers (I think speech writers plus a cabinet member here and there) discuss current events. Their main goal was to discuss politics as they would if they were in a room together, without the constraints of the public eye and having to self-censor. Obviously skews left, but they're not extreme left and there is a lot of good knowledge to be gained from them.

Pod Save the World: a little drier than Pod Save America, former security advisor to Obama Ben Rhodes and Tommy Vietor (of Pod Save America) discuss current events as they are occurring across the world. Obviously there's been a lot of talk about Ukraine, but they tend to cover some more obscure stuff as well. I like this podcast because it get's me out of my bubble; as an American, most of the news I read is about America (as it is all over the world, journalism caters to their domestic audience, whoever that may be), so it's nice to know what's happening in Burma or Egypt or Ukraine and so on.

Behind the Bastards: more of a historical podcast than political, Robert Evans (an anarcho-socialist writer with a flippant attitude and dark sense of humor) delves into figures both past and present and tells you why they are bastards. He covers a wide range of topics and subjects--how the Roman Empire became a police state, Clarence Thomas, and Robert Moses: The Man Who Ruined New York--but somehow he always manages to make these things relevant to modern times. This podcast skews waaaaaaaaaaay left--the dude hates police, thinks democrats are conservative, and lives on a compound where he farms and owns guns--but if you're a fan of Hunter S. Thompson you might like this guy.

Knowledge Fight: the counter and foil to Alex Jones' "Info Wars", the two hosts of this show review one or more episodes of Info Wars and then argue against the points, generally making Alex Jones look like a complete idiot. It's tough to listen to because Alex Jones is a complete nutjob and frankly depressing as all hell, but hearing the hosts completely destroy everything he says and everything he stands for brings closure.

I try to avoid political podcasts. I stick to history, documentary-style, or various takes on pop culture/current events (excluding politics).

I don't listen to political podcasts. Definitely wouldn't be conservative if I did. FYI all right leaning pundits that produce media for mass consumption play fast and loose, and sometimes, outright lie.

Contrasting viewpoints would be fine, but that isn't what the right does.

Been a while since I listened (I've kinda sworn off peofessional opinion-havers), but The Hoover Institute (based in Stanford University) had interviews with fairly reasonable conservative voices back in the day. Might still be worth checking out.

@mrbojangles25: I didn't know there were any fellow btb fans. I really can't stand Robert's other podcast with Katy and Cody that is meant to cover current affairs/politics because it's just such a circle jerk, but bastards is a fun podcast.

At any rate I also listen to 538 and npr politics pod for my strictly political news podcasts as well as the occasional Diane Rheme "On my mind" episode, but that's really far and few between at this point.

Money podcasts include Planet Money, The indicator (an offshoot of PM), Bad With Money with Gaby Dunn, Her Money with Jean Chatzky, and just recently Financial Feminist by Tory Dunlap.

Fun podcasts include Secretly Incredibly Fascinating with Alex Schmidt formerly of Cracked.com, The Truth podcast which tells fictional stories with sound effects and voice acting, The Always Sunny podcast, Girls on Boys (all the show The Boys), Just Between Us bu Gaby Dunn and Allison Raskin which is more about emotions and friendships, aaaand some others as well.

@mrbojangles25: if it can't be aligned with MAGA in anyway I got nothing to share with ya. Everything else is pretty much liberal/Democrat content.

What MAGA aligned sources are your favorite?

I'm not a gullible rube who thinks real news is fake, so I get my news from sources with journalistic integrity and standards - CNN, MSNBC, nbc, abc.

I enjoy listening to Armstrong and Getty because it's not *just* politics and they're regional. Sports, entertainment, and other topics are thrown in and they're pretty fair in their coverage.

I only watch two podcasts frequently. lex fridman for general knowledge and science and Andrew hubberman for self improvement and biology.

Fridman touches on politics from time to time and you can tell him and hubberman are center right. But neither of them is very opinionated and I tend to skip the political guests of fridman.

A couple of times I have listened to Ben Shapiro and Jordan Peterson.

I don't like Shapiro. He is too socially conservative for me and far to concerned about social topics whereas I care more about económics.

I like Jordan Peterson a bit more. I was a fan of his self improvement podcasts. But I also find him a bit too emotional and overly concerned about social topics.

Overall the best recommendation I can make for a good right wing podcast is listening to lex Fridman when he has political guests. This is with two caveats. 1 I am myself personally not terribly interested in political figures expressing their point of view (they express emotions over ideas), so I don't have any specific guest to recommend.

2. Lex doesn't often challenges his guest, so you will mostly get the guests opinion (which will be from all over the political spectrum)

So why do I recommend lex?

Simply he is a moderate, pro science, open minded and mild manner podcast host that leans right wing.

That explains a lot.

Yeah, I know. It explains gullible people who watch garbage like Breitfart and OAN.

News:

• NPR News Now
• NPR: Up First
• ABC World News Tonight

Deeper Dives Into Current Events:

• The Daily - New York Times
• Throughline - NPR

Politics:

• Pod Save America
• The Rachel Maddow Show

Those are the podcasts I listen to or watch for news. I get far more of my information from various news sites in my aggregator - ABC, BBC, NBC, New York Times, PBS, Washington Post, Business Insider, and much more

Thanks! Their names sound kind of familiar, and for good reason: I guess they are a national show and have been around for over 20 years.

Nice that they cover a range of topics as well.

Yeah and this is why I am leery of them and looking for more moderate ones.

Obviously the left has its share of liers, but I think there is a lot more accountability and integrity as well. If there is anything, it's generally bias and not lies. Also let's be honest: the left is legitimately the moderate group in the US now, you have to be pretty damn far to the left to be a liberal (at least in the sense that the far right worries about).

There's simply no need for them to lie.

I refuse to believe that all conservatives are MAGA supporters by default. I mean yes they voted for Trump but only because he was the Republican option; the current MAGA crowd does not reflect conservative values; in fact, I'd argue they prey upon them.

There have to be organizations, journalists, podcasts, etc. that reflect more moderate and conservative values without going into extremism.

Hey that works for me! Thanks 😀

Yeah BTB is great, and I agree; the other shows, not so great. Cody is especially annoying.

Thanks for the recommendations, I'll have to check out NPR and 538. I know NPR skews left but they are pretty moderate for the most part.

Soooooooo do you have anything to contribute, or just wasting space like usual?

Would legitimately like to hear your recommendations, if you have any.

@mrbojangles25: I would skip the interviews to Michael malice If you are trying to avoid maga. (And to Jordan Peterson and Joe Rogan If you don't like them)

I would check his interviews to Elon musk, mark Zuckerberg, jack Dorsey, Noam Chomsky, Garry Kasparov, Albert bourla (Pfizer CEO), if you are looking for interviews that touch politics.

Also just for good advice on life i recommend his first interview to Andrew hubberman.

Pravda - it's in the name, right?