Its shows are aloof, even indifferent and immensely listenable.
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Oh, you like podcasts?
Its hard to argue that theres much fresh energy among news podcasts of late.
To be sure, this doesnt necessarily constitute a problem.
I myself remain a regular listener.
But the settled nature of the category has resulted in a lack of novelty.
That newness may already be here.
Lately, my desire for exciting, new news podcasts has led me to an unexpected source of adrenaline.
They also seem to be catching on.
A spokesperson forTheEconomisttells me that its podcasts averaged around 25 million downloads in March.
The momentum is inspiring further investment.
This is our fastest-growing platform, said Bob Cohn,The Economists president, over email.
The Economists history with podcasts extends far beyond this contemporary iteration.
The magazines modern podcasting era earnestly began in 2019 with the launch ofThe Intelligence.
Im noTooze bro, but theres something distinctly appealing about the somewhat unmodern nature ofThe Economists podcasts.
Youre conditioned to develop a feeling of closeness with a daily news podcast and its hosts.
In style, there is often a lot of hand-holding, informationally and emotionally.
But there are ways in which it can sometimes be off-putting, even condescending.
In contrast,The Economists podcasts are pleasantly aloof, even indifferent.
This quality connectsThe Economists podcasts to something Ive always felt was fundamental about the appeal of great talk podcasts.
All this seems to resonate with John Shields, who leadsThe Economists audio division.
People can be so snooty about true-crime podcasts, he said.
But the genre is very much about how its your job as the listener to do work.
Thats where the satisfaction comes from.
Beyond counter-intuition, theres another reason to pay close attention toThe Economists nascent adventures in audio.
It has begun to display an expanding sense of ambition at a time when podcast studios havegrownincreasinglycircumspect.
Nowhere is this more expressed than inThe Economists push into audio documentaries.
Last summer,The EconomistlaunchedThe Prince, an eight-part series tracing the rise of Chinese president Xi Jinping.
I ate it up, Taberski told me, adding that he would gush if he ever met Wong.
Thats been our most successful launch so far, said Shields.
The magazine has since deepened its push into the audio-documentary format.
Nearly 12 hours had passed since the invasion began.
Outside there were no signs of a coup, no obvious evidence that the world had transformed overnight.
The same shops, the same traffic, the same cafes.
Ostrovskys delivery is quiet, matter-of-fact.
In places, you could reasonably mistake the series for a grim journal or a dark travelogue.
Tone is something we talk about a lot, said Shields of the new project.
The series is dense, heady, and challenging in a way that prompts you to match its vibe.
Its still early days for us, but were pleased with how successful things have been, said Shields.
Were keen to find other spaces where we can own territory that others arent necessarily going to occupy.
