[Swprograms] Podding Along - Issue 280

[John Figliozzi <jfiglio1@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Most radio listening takes place in the car or while doing other things that allow freedom for the ear, but not the eyes and hands.  Podcasts permit a shift of listening time from a set appointment to virtually any convenient occasion.  I do it while “power walking” (most) every morning in what sometimes seems like a vain attempt to diminish the results of sitting behind a desk for 35 years.  The act of putting one foot in front of the other can be pretty monotonous and by “podding along” while plodding along the mind also gets something useful to do.  So it is with the time spent commuting to work day after day.

Podcasting has expanded almost exponentially so very quickly that it can justly be considered a medium all its own.  Therefore, the attempt here has to be to highlight only a small portion of it, just one corner where excellence reigns.

Some of the best radio comes from the public networks of the UK, Australia, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand and the U.S.  Apart from the originating program’s web site, most programs are made available through any number of other amalgamation sources such as iTunes and TuneIn. 

Admittedly, these are thoroughly subjective recommendations, but my interests and tolerance for incompatible views are pretty wide-ranging. Here’s another in a continuing series of small samplings, offered in a 90 minute scope (more of less):

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“Italy’s Invisible Enemy" 
FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT - BBC World Service
- Italy marked a grim milestone at the end of this week as its number of deaths from the coronavirus exceeded those in China. Yet most Italians are supportive of the country's struggling authorities says Mark Lowen who has covered the crisis from its outset. 
- Across the world ten of millions of people are having to adapt their way of life to avoid infection. Fergal Keane has spent decades reporting on conflicts and natural disasters across the globe. He reflects on what it means to be caught up in the universal war against a potentially fatal disease. 
- In New York all non-essential businesses have been ordered to close. For the army of low paid workers and small business owners in particular, this is an exceptionally difficult time says Laura Trevelyan. 
- Young men and women looking for love often turn to their phone and swipe through a gallery of faces. But the leaders of the Indonesia's anti-dating movement say casual relationships are expensive, get in the way of study, and go against religious teaching. Josephine Casserly met a pair of newly weds who have made not dating cool. 
- In these days of self-isolation and working from home, many turn to the comforting familiarity of favourite books – and memories of where we first encountered them. Forty years ago Kevin Connolly fell for a largely forgotten thriller. His love was rekindled by a recent trip to the Bulgarian capital, Sofia. (30”)
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0878l7h

“The Digital Welfare State" 
FUTURE TENSE - ABC RN
A growing number of human rights academics and activists are worried that our notions of welfare in the democratic west are changing – and not for the better.  They’re concerned that the tools of the digital era are being used to create a new form of welfare state directed against the poor and the disadvantaged, not in their interests.  Guests:  Professor Philip Alston – United Nations Special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights; Associate Professor Virginia Eubanks – Political Science, Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy, The State University of New York, at Albany; Professor Ilan Katz – Director, Social Policy Research Centre, UNSW.  (30”)
https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/futuretense/the-digital-welfare-state/11994542

“Series 56, Episode 5”
THE NOW SHOW - BBC Radio 4
Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis get to satirical grips with the continuing COVID-19 lock-down and disruption with sketches and guests.  With comedians Geoff Norcott and Robin Morgan plus music from Tim Sutton and Sooz Kempner. Additional voices from Luke Kempner and Gemma Arrowsmith. (28”)
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000gvmx

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A monthly (well, mostly monthly) compendium of these newsletters, plus on occasion additional pertinent material, is now published in The CIDX Messenger, the monthly e-newsletter of the Canadian International DX Club (CIDX).  For further information, go to www.cidx.ca

John Figliozzi
Editor, "The Worldwide Listening Guide”
NEW! 184 page 9th EDITION available NOW from Universal Radio [universal-radio.com], Amazon [amazon.com], Ham Radio Outlet [hamradio.com]

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