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You might have heard that we here at Vulture recently welcomed a new member to the family.
Into It pronounced emphatically is Vultures flagship podcast, an aural vessel for the sites many madnesses and enthusiasms.
Relatedly, I think I might make this listening Q&A concept a recurring feature.
The only problem is the name.
Whats in Your Rotation?
Ill figure it out later.
Okay, lets get to it.
Do you listen to other podcasts much?
Sam Sanders:I listen very critically, which means I dont listen as much as most podcast fans.
If I listen to anybody elses podcast, without fail, Im giving edits in my mind.
So when I really want to relax, I have to watch the worst TV show.
1.5x: Like what?
Sanders:You know what show really takes you out of your own head?
This Netflix show calledAlone.
1.5x: Oh, I love that show.
Sanders:That shit, any problem you have is not as bad as their problems.
1.5x: But when youarentreally relaxing, what do you listen to?
I have my news programs.
[Fellow Vox Media show]Today, Explainedis my favorite daily news podcast.
And then Ill get inThe Dailyevery now and then, when they have an episode thats speaking to me.
Weekly.The Readhas stopped publishing, but Ive been a fan of that podcast since the start.
In many ways, the tone and voice of that show is something Ive been chasing throughout the years.
Im sad they arent making shows right now, but I totally get it.
We get enough podcasts where three Chads on a mic get to fully embody themselves and their persons.
To hear Chrissle and Kid Fury do it for so long and so well, thats the gold standard.
1.5x: When you say podcasts with three Chads, do you have one in mind?
Sanders:Im not going to say anything.
Could be four Chads, could be five Chads.
1.5x: Ive heard you talk a lot aboutLas Culturistasbefore.
Tell me about your relationship with that show.
I just geek out.
It is, in many ways, a podcast version of the Great American Love Story.
Weeklyhas many of the same qualities youve laid out withThe ReadandLas Culturistas.
Feels like youre drawn to a very specific thing with your Holy Trinity.
Sanders:I likedWho?
Weeklybefore the pandemic, but Ireallygot into them during the pandemic.
What I love about them is their skepticism thats always behind the laugh.
They understand that weve left the moment of the imperial celebrity.
Were never gonna have celebrities that big again because of the fragmentation of media.
Yet celebrities still want to perform celebrity and it increasingly feels like a farce.
1.5x: Thats gotta be a little bit interesting for you, at least.
Dont you technically occupy celebrity territory?
Sanders:No, not really.
I live in L.A., a city withrealcelebritiesand shit.
1.5x: Thats an interesting tension.
I mean, if theWho?
Sanders:Well, I do think theres a certain safeness in achieving any notoriety in an audio-first space.
Fewer people know what you look like, and I like it that way.
And lets keep it that way.
1.5x: Earlier, you said that when you listen to other podcasts, you tend to listen critically.
What are you listening for?
Thats not always the case.
You need a sense of pacing and a respect for the listeners time.
You have to decide on one or the other.
If youre gonna be totally loose, then do that and track for two hours.
But if youre presenting to me any sense of timeliness, let there be good pacing.
Ive really enjoyedDecoder Ring, that Slate podcast.
Shell nail this thing that makes you reconsider the world.
1.5x: Aside from pacing issues, what are your pet peeves with a podcast?
Sanders:I think a lot of interview podcasts dont respect how sacred a good interview can be.
Theres an arc to good interviews.
Theres a flow to them and when they work well.
They can be so fulfilling.
Can I say that?
Its a fun, lovely piece.
Keep an eye onShameless Acquisition Target, which has shades of early Hollywood memoirs.
Song Exploders been busy with spinoffs.
Cues90s X-Mentheme song
R.I.P.
Larry Josephson, pioneer of independent and freeform radio.
