The NPR Politics Podcast - Podcast Rankings and reviews

This podcast has been a regular staple of mine for quite some time now, in addition to Up First. The commentary and reporting on this podcast is is phenomenal, and the hosts do a wonderful job of breaking down the most current topics in politics in a way that is easy for any listener to grasp. There’s seriousness on the day-to-day topics, but also a bit of laughter — most of which comes from one of my favorite parts of the show, which is a weekly bit called “Can’t Let it Go.”

Overall, a top-notch podcast that any political junky should have in their news rotation.

I love listening to the NPR Politics Podcast - all the hosts are fantastic at giving listeners a good overview of the situation, the people, and the implications and potential consequences. They explain different facets of government and policy, as well as spelling out jargon so that I’m not lost. Plus, the hosts are a lot of fun! (The “can’t let it go” segment is always a blast.) This is the one podcast that I consistently make time for, daily.

I appreciate this pod for keeping me updated on the many political issues going on every day AND for putting these things into a broader historical and contemporary context. Their deep knowledge and experience allow me to understand the daily workings of politics in our country far more than I could have without that scaffolding.

I was so disappointed to read the reviews specifically negative about Ayesha Rascoe. I will admit - when Rascoe first appeared on the pod, I had to confront some of my own racism that I had been blind to despite working actively for years against it. Rascoe reports with intelligence, insight, AND incisive humor (which is also employed by many of the other hosts of the pod). If you struggle to hear what she is actually saying past her manner of speaking or humor, but this doesn’t happen with the other hosts, I’d encourage you to step back enough to engage with what in yourself may be causing that. Thank you, NPR politics, but specifically Ayesha Rascoe, for being consistently clear, delightfully funny, and representative of many of the ways to be an American engaged with our political system. You have become voices I look forward to hearing from daily.

I started listening to this show about a year ago, and I have enjoyed getting the facts about political news without the rhetoric that I used to get from other news outlets. As a result, I actually feel better informed and more confident about the American political system. The information is presented clearly, and the hosts seem like they are enjoying their job; that’s a refreshing change from other shows that always make it sound like the end is near.

One suggestion that I would make, though, is about Mara Liasson. Too often, her bias comes through. Since the other hosts rarely if ever let their biases show, the contrasts really makes her stand out in a bad way. She should not be removed from the show, but definitely needs to present the facts and let the listener make their own decisions.

This podcast has an identity crisis.. They try to be both seriously informative and funny and they fail at both by trying to straddle the line in between.. It seems to be more something like a radio version of “ The View “ It’s like a gossip column that laughs off very serious news in ways that seem to just belittle serious issues.. I expect something more from Public Radio. While there are lots of people on TV like Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers, Bill Maher and Samantha Bee who excel at both informing and showing the ridiculousness of our politics, this podcast fails on all points and just repeats things we have already all heard over and over. Much of the time, it just sounds like the hosts seem to feel they need to talk to fill the air time even when they are not very well informed about the issues at hand. They sound like they are having fun and doing the podcast mostly for their own pleasure and not to really inform the public in any meaningful way.. There is also a “ Both sides “ kind of attempt to make themselves appear unbiased and it does not work.. We would all be better served if they took off the kid gloves and not normalize things that are most certainly not normal.. I hope NPR might dump this show and try to make a more professional and informative politics podcast that tells us something new and might even spur some new thoughts on these serious subjects.. The circus type music does fit this podcast though as it sounds more like people clowning around and joking than attempting to inform people.

I was a huge fan of the “It’s All Politics” podcast. It was packed with insightful and objective political analysis that covered the gambits that each party was making as they took certain positions on issues. I subscribed to this podcast after “It’s All Politics” was discontinued because one of the hosts left NPR.
This new podcast was left leaning, but you kind of expect that from NPR. Once Trump was elected, the hosts started became vitriolic and hateful toward conservative and, over time, moderate positions. This current version of the podcast is really nothing more than a regurgitation of ultra-progressive talking points with no analysis (or insight) at all.
What finally caused me to unsubscribe after 5 years was two podcasts in particular:
1) March 20 2021 “What If We Don’t Need to ‘Fix’ Polarization?” where the guest effectively says “I’m not sure that’s a bad thing” when talking about violence breaking out along party and racial divisions. This was not challenged by the host. Let’s just say I found that strange. No facts (or opinions) were offered as to how we could avoid that violence.
2) June 3 2021 “… The First Term With A New Conservative 6-3 Majority On The Supreme Court.” The hosts spoke ad nauseam about the justices themselves and possible court appointments by Democrats, but never discussed a single fact of any case in the entire term! The entire episode was devoid of information. It was just a long speculation session on whether Breyer would retire to guarantee the Democrats get to appoint his successor before the 2022 mid-term elections.
So… I can’t do it anymore. NPR has lost me. If you are a political moderate who is just looking for mainstream progressive and conservative positions so that you can stay informed, keep looking. This podcast ceased being both mainstream and informative quite some time ago.