My Favourite Podcast of 2017.

Podcasts It's The Rachel Maddow Show. Which is probably a bit controversial considering the depth of real podcasting when this is really just the commercialess broadcast of the audio from a previous night's cable news programme. But my other regular jams have been FiveThirtyEight Politics, S-Town and the Kermode and Mayo film review and I've written quite enough about those already.  There was a brief dalliance with Biden's Briefing which is handy if for offering audio versions of essays from the New York Review of Books but is otherwise whatever happens to be on Bloomberg's front page that day.

Although Seth Myers, Sam Bee and John Oliver have been a useful way of keeping up with US politics, The Rachel Maddow Show has been the ideal way of digging deeper, especially the meticulous reporting of the Russia investigation which she's covering in a detail which I've not seen elsewhere as she highlights the work of the print and online media making connections between them.  But it's in a style which matches carefully thought through arguments or release of information with the just the correct level of cynicism.  Admittedly the mode sometimes trends towards a liberal Infowars, but replacing conspiracy with facts or at the very least solid reporting.

I usually listen walking to and from work and Maddow's discursive style works well on audio, often repeating information a couple of times for emphasis which is useful if you zone out because you're crossing the road or using the self-service checkout in Tesco.  If anything I've been listening too much; there can be repetition between days and listening to 225 minutes of this a week is time consuming not to mention anxiety inducing given the content.  So in 2018 I've decided to cut down a bit, try and catch up on my Big Finish backlog.  But you can bet I'll be back there for the major events.  Except of course in the current climate, what feel like major events happen every day.