10 Black Podcasts That Explore Politics, Culture And Current Affairs That Impact The Community
Podcasts have emerged as a go-to broadcast medium for news, entertainment and views about a range of topics. Nearly half of Black Americans (46 percent) listened to a podcast in the past years – a figure that’s roughly the same as other racial and ethnic groups – according to a Pew Research Center survey published in April.
The survey, conducted Dec. 5-11, 2022, found that Black Americans are more likely to listen to podcasts about race and ethnicity (43 percent), compared to Hispanic (19 percent) and White (9 percent) listeners.
And when it comes to news, Black listeners were also more likely to seek out podcasts that explain a news topic in-depth, those that feature hosts’ opinions about the news and those that summarize major news stories of the day.
With the first GOP presidential primary debate on the horizon, the candidates are trying to impress the Republican base with their right-wing credentials. Many in the Black community are no doubt searching for answers about the possible consequences of having a Republican in the White House, including how that would impact movements for voting rights protections, social justice and police reform?
Here’s a list of 10 important Black podcasts that address those and other issues that impact the Black community.
In addition to her TV program, MSNBC’s The ReidOut host Joy Reid also conducts one-on-one conversations with politicians and newsmakers in a podcast. In a recent podcast, Reid spoke exclusively with Vice President Kamala Harris about the abortion rights landscape one year after conservative justices on the Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade decision.
Bakari Sellers, CNN political analyst and former Democratic representative from South Carolina, discusses a range of cultural and current affairs topics. He recently interviewed author Santi Elijah Holley about his new book, An Amerikan Family: The Shakurs and the Nation They Created, that chronicles the Black Panther movement from the 1960s to the present through the lives of the Shakur family.
Emmy Award-winning sports journalist Jemele Hill doesn’t shy away from sharing her opinions on news, culture, politics, and sports. In a recent podcast, she talked with Jason Wilson, founder and operator of the Cave of Adullam Transformational Training Academy, about mentoring Black boys. In that episode, Hill also discussed her views on Brittney Griner’s official return to the WNBA.
Benjamin Dixon weighs in on the political news of the day on his podcast from a progressive perspective. He tackled the presidential candidacy of South Carolina GOP Sen. Tim Scott in one of his latest episodes, in which he argues that the U.S. Senate’s only Black Republican is in the primary race to provide cover for racists in his party.
In this NPR podcast, the hosts lead honest discussions about race “with empathy and humor.” They take a deep dive into how race permeates politics, culture, history, food and much more. In the June 21 episode, co-host B.S. Parker explored how to honor the legacy of one’s slave ancestors.
Comedian Kevin Fredericks (@KevOnStage) and actress Angel Laketa Moore (@ThatChickAngel) use humor to make their point about topics of interest to the Black community. In their June 18 episode, they tackle the case involving a jury award of $25.6 million to a white woman who alleged that Starbucks fired her because of her race.
Media personality Van Lathan and attorney Rachel Lindsay, perhaps best known as the first Black lead on ABC’s The Bachelorette, join forces to discuss issues that matter to Black America. In a recent podcast, they explained former President Donald Trump’s federal indictment for mishandling classified documents and broke down the “Stop Cop City” movement in Atlanta.
Jermaine Fowler is the author of The Humanity Archive: Recovering the Soul of Black History from a Whitewashed American Myth, a New York Times best-seller. The podcast is billed as a narrative-based documentary showcasing people unknown and stories untold. Fowler recently delved into James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time to explore how Baldwin’s epic work speaks to the current generation of Black Americans.
Hosted by civil rights activist and scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw, editor of the book Critical Race Theory, Intersectionality Matters unpacks some of the complex issues of the day and how they impact the Black community. In one recent episode, Crenshaw examined the controversy over the College Board’s proposed AP African American Studies course.
In this NPR podcast, journalist and activist Kai Wright hosts conversations about
race, power, democracy and other pressing issues of the day. He puts them in historical and cultural contexts and encourages listeners to share how these issues impact their lives on a personal level.
