One of the interesting things about podcasting is that there are a wide variety of forms. Some podcasts are short and of the moment. Some are simply two people talking about a topic. Others are highly produced and edited and seek to maximize the storytelling punch. In this episode of StartUp from Gimlet Media, Alex Blumberg and company document how they came up with the new idea for a podcast and the amount of time and effort they put into optimizing each episode.
For those interested in taking an even deeper dive into the world of podcasting, Paul Kedrosky (@pkedrosky) recently recommended the The Podcast Dude. Episodes cover topics like audio quality, post production, getting your podcast into iTunes, and what to do when you run out of topics. If nothing else, it shows that there is likely a podcast for any topic in which you may be interested.
If you have already checked out last week’s edition of Essential Listening, let’s move on to some new podcasts I think are worth listening to this week — or any other:
- Toby Carlisle talks with James O'Shaughnessy,author of What Works on Wall Street, about the birth of quantitative value investing. They discuss why quantitative strategies work and what two mistakes investors make when implementing a quant strategy. (The Investors Podcast)
- Barry Ritholtz of Ritholtz Wealth Management talks with Jeff Maggioncalda, co-founder and former CEO of Financial Engines. They discuss how Bill Sharpe came up with the idea for Financial Engines and how the founding team turned these insights into a large, profitable investment business. (The Big Picture)
- Have people ever asked you to describe alternative assets like hedge funds, venture capital, or private equity? From now on, you can point them to this podcast, featuring Felix Salmon, Cathy O'Neil and Jordan Weissman, where they discuss the ins and outs of these increasingly popular asset classes for a lay audience. (Slate Money)
- Love him or hate him, Carl Icahn is one of the more entertaining people on the investment scene. In this video from the DealBook Conference, Icahn talks with Andrew Ross Sorkin. In their wide-ranging discussion, they explore activist investing and how US Federal Reserve policy has affected how companies manage their balance sheets. (Market Folly)
- Bill Singer talks with Josh Brown of The Reformed Broker and a new media star in the world of investing. They discuss how blogging changed Brown's professional life and how the old model of wealth management is evolving. (Wealth Management)
- All anybody in and outside of Silicon Valley can talk about is whether we are in the midst of another tech bubble. Jay Yarow and Farhad Manjoo speak with someone who should have some insight into the issue: Sam Altman, president of Y Combinator, a leading start-up accelerator. (The Jay & Farhad Show)
- Michael Covel and Kathleen Eisenhardt, co-author of Simple Rules: How to Thrive in A Complex World, discuss how simple rules often outperform complex ones and how this can be applied not only to investing and business, but to all endeavors. (Trend Following)
- Investment professionals with a quantitative bent will enjoy this final podcast that explores the application of science to an ancient art: cooking. Stephen J Dubner talks with J. Kenji López-Alt, author of The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science, about how structured experiments can show us how to cook dishes better than how they are traditionally taught. (Freakonomics)
As you can see, the podcast world is large and varied. Feel free to leave a comment with podcasts other Enterprising Investor readers might enjoy. I could highlight your suggestion in the next edition of this podcast roundup.
You can read more from Tadas Viskanta on his blog Abnormal Returns or follow him on Twitter @abnormalreturns.
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All posts are the opinion of the author. As such, they should not be construed as investment advice, nor do the opinions expressed necessarily reflect the views of CFA Institute or the author's employer.
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