Geographically diverse podcasts; generic or in specific fields

September 20, 2017 10:49 AM

What are some great podcasts that talk about things from around the world and not only, or mostly, from any specific country?

I have noticed that many good podcasts are either country specific, or region specific. For example, Revisionist History talks mostly about issues and events from the USA. And while they are good I feel disconnected from them after an extent.

Same goes for Serial and even Radiolab. Or LORE, or Criminal. Well, as far as Serial is concerned that is kind of obvious as this podcast is from the creators of the show This American Life. I loved S-Town too and while it was indeed about a small town in USA it was a very different kind of podcast. Also, it was a series consisting of just few episodes.

I would like to follow podcasts which, let's say, one day talk about something from Russia, next day from Oslo, then Tokyo, Hanoi, Delhi, Chile and so on. That kind of diversity keeps my interest intact I think.

I like History Hit. It deals with diverse topics from history and from various places (even though a little more focussed on Europe).

I have looked at some MeFi threads like this one - What is the best episode of the podcast? and the one on movie discussion podcasts but I thought maybe this specific question has not been touched upon here on MeFi.

Please suggest anything interesting. However to make it easier to recommend - my preferred areas of interest are - espionage, history, crime, mystery, and literature. And follow some more podcasts like Revolutions, Martyr Made, Hardcore History, and Tides of History.

posted by amar to Media & Arts (11 answers total)

The new NPR podcast Rough Translation may be right up your alley.
posted by General Malaise at 10:58 AM on September 20, 2017 [3 favorites]

The BBC's History of the World in 100 objects would seem to fir your bill.
posted by mmascolino at 11:19 AM on September 20, 2017 [1 favorite]

Stuff You Missed in History Class covers a wide variety of topics.
posted by ringu0 at 11:46 AM on September 20, 2017 [1 favorite]

BBC Radio 4's From Our Own Correspondent fits the bill!
posted by HandfulOfDust at 11:59 AM on September 20, 2017 [1 favorite]

The new NPR podcast Rough Translation may be right up your alley.

I was just coming in here to suggest that myself. Although I've only listened to one episode so far ("Anna in Somalia"), that episode was absolutely gripping.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 12:08 PM on September 20, 2017 [1 favorite]

The Documentary from BBC World Service! It's top-quality journalism featuring stories from all over the globe—recent episodes have been set everywhere, from New York to Afghanistan to Lagos. Some episodes deal with specific aspects of culture, or politics, but some are just odd little human interest stories, too; it's very diverse. There's a lot of sonic texture and foreign-language interviews from these global locations, too, as I'm pretty sure the journalists record on-site. (The interviews are dubbed over in English, but you can hear the original texture of the language in the background.)

Another vote for A History of the World in 100 Objects. Fits your requirements quite well.
posted by stellarc at 1:10 PM on September 20, 2017 [1 favorite]

I feel like 99% Invisible does a nice job of covering themes that span the world. Their most recent episode discusses the idea of universal basic income in Finland.
posted by sucre at 3:36 PM on September 20, 2017 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Awesome answers! I am yet to listen to Rough Translation but I think I would love it. Read couple of descriptions.

I had tried A History of the World in 100 Objects earlier but didn't find it very compelling. I think I must give it another try. I had Stuff You Missed... in Podcast app but when I moved to Overcast I think I had removed it or forgot to add. Will check it ASAP.

As a fan of BBC Hindi Service since I started to listen to it and till it closed down I am looking forward to From Our Own Correspondents.
posted by amar at 7:08 AM on September 21, 2017

Spirits covers mythology and folklore from around the world. The last episode was on a Javanese goddess, and the one before that had werewolf myths from around the world.
posted by _bartleby at 1:23 PM on September 21, 2017 [3 favorites]

I asked a similar question years ago and From Our Own Correspondents fits the bill for me, so in light of that, some other ones I found:

BBC People Fixing the World, what it says on the can. Hopeful, inspirational, and all that jazz. Good for breaking out of misanthropic funks.

Another BBC podcast, The Conversation, takes two women who do the approx the same jobs but come from different cultural backgrounds (sometimes different countries), and gets them to talk about their experiences.

Last BBC one, I swear: Witness, stories told by individuals from all over the world who were there for the big story that happened way back then.

If you've ever read The Economist, they too have a podcast. Can be a bit too news & current events for me.

Myths and Legends would be like the Spirits recommendation above, I think. It's on my list but I haven't gotten around to it yet. So YMMV.
posted by jyorraku at 10:06 PM on September 21, 2017 [2 favorites]

Response by poster: Hey @jyorraku, thanks.

I added these podcasts except Economist. Finance and economics aren't my forte. I think I may like Myths and Legends. Will give it a try.

In my country podcasting has just started to catch up so there are not really quality podcasts from here. but I am keeping an eye on a couple.

I listened to 99% Invisible and it's very interesting.
posted by amar at 10:43 PM on September 21, 2017