For previous week recommendations, please click here.

Monday, July 20th

• Pardon The Interruption: The Finish to The Open: 7/20/15 [length: 21 minutes]
  • Ever since I’ve been a sports fan, I’ve watched PTI.  I recommend today’s episode because these two were off for a couple of weeks and I just missed them so damn much.  I’m very grateful that they release their shows as podcasts, and I listen to these every day.  The chemistry between Tony Kornheiser and Mike Wilbon is unparalleled as far as I’m concerned, which translates to a supremely entertaining podcast, even though we are in the dog days of summer with no NBA and NFL to really talk about.
• Upgrade: Upgrade 46: The S Could Stand for Snell [length: 84 minutes]
  • Speaking of chemistry, I love this tech podcast hosted by Myke Hurley of Relay FM and Jason Snell of Six Colors (& more!).  Today’s topics were a discussion of the new iPod Touches and how decisions that Apple’s making with this line might translate over to the iPhone.  Any time there is a new release of a product it leads to interesting discussion, even though at this point in the company’s history an iPod refresh ranks pretty low in terms of Apple excitement.  Still, really good podcast, and Myke and Jason had a really funny discussion about American geography which I much enjoyed.  Nice try, Myke!

Tuesday, July 21st

• Tomorrow With Joshua Topolsky: Episode 15: Brian Stelter and the Future of Josh [Posted Sunday July 19th, length: 64 minutes]
  • Joshua Topolsky is a media figure I’ve been following since his days at Engadget.  He was the founding Editor in Chief of The Verge and very recently moved on to work for Bloomberg.  While I was sad he left, it seemed like a great opportunity for him.  In surprising news, however, he has also moved on from Bloomberg (or was forced out, depending on which media rumors to believe).  I mention the back story because it makes this podcast even more interesting as Joshua and Brian Stelter of CNN discuss the current state of media.  Josh has a great personality, is a really interesting guy, and I know I will enjoy whatever he does next.

Wednesday, July 22nd – Elite Status

• The Talk Show With John Gruber: Ep. 126: ‘Tommy Got Made’, With Guest Jason Snell [Posted Monday July 20th, length: 172 minutes,
  • The Talk Show is my favorite tech podcast, it is hosted by my favorite Apple/tech writer/thinker today (John Gruber) and was joined by possibly my 2nd favorite tech media personality Jason Snell of Six Colors.  As you can tell, I was thrilled by this one.  What was great about this was there wasn’t a lot of product news or rumor news to parse through, this discussion was far more interesting as a result.  They discuss in general the state of the web and mobile web, and the economics behind many of these unstable high-overhead media companies and the steps they need to take (like selling their souls) to make it work.  This discussion was greatly aided by Jason Snell’s background with MacWorld magazine.  Fantastic listen, more please!
• Fast break Breakfast NBA Podcast: Fastbreak Breakfast Ep. 36 “Croissant Crossfire” [length: 57 minutes]
  • Bittersweet podcast for me.  These guys make me laugh so much, I look forward to listening to them talk about the NBA every chance I can, and this was the last episode most likely until October (which makes sense).  Out of all the podcasts that I listen to, this is the single podcast that resonates with my personality the most.  Literally laugh out loud funny, and I have to keep mentioning this: they know their basketball.  Informative, hilarious, and oh I should actually mention what they talked about.  Keith spent more than a week in Vegas for Summer League, and this was generally a break down of his experience, on and off the court.  I actually got to hang out with him for one of the days he was there, and I couldn’t have had a better time.  I appreciate the shout out Keith, the pleasure was all mine.

Thursday, July 23rd

• Doug Loves Movies: Nick Offerman, Harland Williams and TJ Miller guest [Posted Tuesday July 21st, length: 63 minutes]
  • Recorded at the Pemberton Music Festival, Doug has 3 amazing guests on.  All three have their supremely unique personality and are all hilarious in their own way.  If you’re a fan of movies and a fan of laughing, this was a great way to spend an hour.  I hope to have more Leonard Maltin game down the road, but today’s games were super fun!  Doug really is a fantastic host and has mastered the “keep the show moving along, but keep the show super loose” thing, that’s what makes this show great.
• All Weather Fan Podcast: Football and Domestic Violence, Fantasy Football Strategy, Lakers/NBA Picks and Predictions [length: 120 minutes]
  • I discovered this new podcast hosted by Will Reeve Jr.  based on some feedback I had gotten on Twitter and because I knew one of the guests, Anthony Irwin of Lakers Outsiders.  It was a really interesting discussion that started off with CEO of Black Sports Online (BSO) Robert Littal to talk about cultural issues and how they relate to the current state of on and off field/court behavior and the way it’s reported on.  Then, Anthony Irwin hopped on for a discussion about the Lakers and what the future holds for them.  I find Anthony’s points are often spot-on and in general this podcast was thought-provoking and entertaining.  I didn’t always find myself agreeing with every single point, and that’s what makes it even more fun.  Podcasting is great because you can get other people’s perspectives and that person has time to flesh out their arguments, so what if you don’t agree? It makes you think.  Stylistically I would say this podcast is a little bit “tighter” than a lot of the podcasts I listen to and like, but it didn’t hurt it at all.  For those interested, there’s a fantasy football segment at the end with Justin Barlow, but I did not listen to this portion as I didn’t have time (full disclosure).

Friday, July 24th

• The Lowe Post: Jared Dudley: 07/23 [length: 64 minutes]
  • Shocker: I recommended a Zach Lowe NBA podcast. Jared Dudley, along with JJ Redick, have really become off-court stars and I can see them making a seamless transition into broadcasting once they have retired.  This discussion was aided greatly by the fact that Dudley is ready to talk about the whole Association, not only himself, and offers very candid opinions about players and storylines throughout the league. In particular, I enjoyed Dudley sharing the contract process that he went through this summer in which he ended up joining the Wizards. No-brainer for NBA fans.
• Accidental Tech Podcast: 127: Not a Cactus in Sight [length: 112 minutes]
  • I love the Accidental Tech Podcast hosted by John Siracusa, Marco Arment, and Casey Liss.  I have recommended them before and this was a fantastic episode.  In particular, I REALLY appreciated Marco talking out minor dilemma’s in his update to his podcast app Overcast for a few reasons.  First of all, it is a rare behind-the-scenes look at app design and secondly it’s a great reminder to us all that enjoy these apps about the level of effort and thoughtfulness needed alongside technical expertise to make them happen.  I personally take apps for granted all the time, and I’m glad I’ve discovered this podcast to get more insight into the development process.  In addition, I really enjoyed their discussion of Reddit at the end.  In general, I felt they might have been too harsh, Reddit has a great community BUT this is Reddit’s fault.  Reddit has not done a good job “growing up” and maturing as a company, and only they are to blame.  I really appreciated John Siracusa’s take in particular.
  • Again, a reminder: the podcast may get a little technical at some points, but it doesn’t hurt the product for the “average” tech fan like me.  Yes, I don’t always understand what they’re talking about, but hey, maybe we’ll learn!

The Weekend, July 25th and July 26th

• Dunc’d On Basketball Podcast: July 23 (Bobby Marks) [length: 61 minutes]
  • Nate Duncan is joined by former Brooklyn Nets Assistant GM Bobby Marks, who also has become a twitter sensation with the amount of information he is able to provide about how the structure of deals and how they affect teams cap situations.  It is rare to get somebody who is so inside to discuss the league openly, and also provide insight into older Nets transactions (most notably the trade with Boston that yielded them Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett).  Really good podcast, a recommended listen for any NBA fans, especially those amongst us that are salary cap nerds.
• SI Media Podcast with Richard Deitsch: Bomani Jones [Posted July 24th, length: 61 minutes]
  • I’m a huge fan of Bomani Jones, and Richard Deitsch conducts an as-usual great interview.  I’ve always been fascinated with Bomani’s strong personality, and I’m glad Richard shed light on Bomani’s incredible family’s history that has cultivated such an interesting individual.  Bomani had some great points about radio, preparing for shows, how race plays into sports talk, and also gave some insight as to how difficult it must be for women to cover sports.  Lastly, Richard and Bomani discussed their twitter presences and some notable interactions they’ve had in the past.  One point I’d disagree with Bomani about: as somebody who has been blocked by him for reasons that I’m still not sure of, it does really feel bad, especially while still being such a big fan.  Definitely recommend listening, and I will be catching up on old podcasts with Richard as he really is a great host.
  • At the end, Richard also talked about Bill Simmons and his next home at HBO.  I’m sure he’ll have more about it in the coming months, but I agree with him that HBO seems to be a really great fit for both parties.