Endorsement Monday: Slate’s Culture Gabfest & Linebreak

I’ve recently become obsessed with the Slate Culture Gabfest podcast, which I stream from Stitcher during my interminable car rides to and from work. I’ve become so dependent on this trio of snappy commentators to make my work commute bearable that I become quite surly when I realize that I’ve already listened to this week’s episode.

It’s not just that they talk about things that I’m interested in (recent movies, Internet happenings, cool art, etc). They’ve also thought about what they have to say and found a way to say it that is thoughtful, witty and funny. Stephen Metcalf, Dana Stevens and Julia Turner are just good eggs who could probably dissect any subject and find something worthwhile to consider about it. And they have the best audio in the podcast business (don’t get me started on the terrible sound of most podcasts – do these people not have friends who can tell them they sound like crap?).

The Culture Gabfest follows a simple formula: three main subjects, punctuated by quick little ads for their sponsor, and then each commentator gets to offer their endorsement for the week – one thing they recently discovered and want their audience to know about and enjoy. I’ve heard about tons of cool things from these guys, and I like that it’s only one thing per person – pretty easy to remember, even for this memory-addled writer.

So I thought I’d pay homage to them by stealing this great idea. So every Monday (for as long as I can remember, which should last about a week) I’ll post my own endorsement.

For this inaugural endorsement, I’m recommending two things: firstly, the Slate Culture Gabfest, of course. If you listen to one episode and don’t like it, well, I don’t know that we can continue to be friends. I’m serious. It’s that good. I look forward to my Wednesday evening drive home, knowing that the week’s newest episode should have been posted by then. So, the Culture Gabfest…it’s where it’s at.

And then, since it’s Week 1 of Endorsement Monday here at Jho in the City, I’m giving myself the space to tout one more thing: the website Linebreak, which posts a new poem each week from a different author, read by a fellow writer. I can’t remember how I found this site, but it’s been a great place to find (and hear) new poetry. Yup, you heard it here first: they post both the text of the poem and the audio of the same poem being read by another person. As a writer myself, I love to hear other people read my work, not just because I’m a giant egomaniac, but also because it helps me to hear where the poem is working or not, where it stumbles or heats up.

So, check ’em out, people: the Slate Culture Gabfest and the Linebreak poetry website. You’ll thank me.