June Thomas
June Thomas is senior managing producer of Slate Podcasts and a host of The Waves. Follow her on Twitter here.
What are the qualities of a good podcaster?
The podcasters I love to listen to are people who are able to sound like they’re having a fun, casual conversation with their buddies (or colleagues) while dropping serious knowledge—the team on the FiveThirtyEight Politics Podcast or Thirst Aid Kit’s Nichole Perkins and Bim Adewunmi are standouts at this. I love podcasters who can express deep insights without sounding pompous—my colleagues on The Waves are great at that. I also love hearing people wonk out. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an NBA game, but I never miss an episode of The Lowe Post, in which ESPN’s Zach Lowe interviews basketball writers and players. I also love The Pen Addict, in which Brad Dowdy and Myke Hurley talk about pens and stationery every week. (They’re currently on Episode 387!) To give you a sense of how much I love quality chat, I’ve never owned an Android device, but for years I had a weekly appointment with All About Android.
When did you start podcasting?
Starting in 2003, when Slate collaborated with NPR on the midday radio show Day to Day, I would occasionally serve as substitute Slate talent wrangler when Andy Bowers, Slate’s representative at NPR West, was on vacation. (This was crazy—I did know the Slatesters, but I knew pretty much nothing about radio, at least as it is practiced in the 21st century—I’d worked in college radio and on feminist radio collectives, but back in the days of magnetic tape!) On one of these occasions, in 2005, Andy got back in time for us to have lunch, and he told me about podcasts. I was hooked. (He’s pretty persuasive.) By day I was Slate’s foreign editor, but by night I became a podcast producer. Every weeknight I would read the Explainer column into a digital recorder, then edit and upload Slate’s Explainer podcast. I did that for longer than I can now believe, and afterward I was involved with several other Slate shows—I subbed on the Culture Gabfest for a few months; I made Afterword, an author interview show; I did a bunch of TV recap podcasts with Seth Stevenson. Then in 2013, I joined The Waves, Slate’s podcast about feminism and gender, which was then known as the DoubleX Gabfest.
If you were going to start another podcast that would be wildly successful no matter what (so don't worry about it succeeding...this is JUST for you...) what would it be?
My journalistic obsession is the challenge millions of Americans face accessing dental treatment. Perfect topic for a podcast, right?
Describe your listeners in 3 words.
Waves listeners are smart, sassy, engaged. (And when they think we’ve strayed from the path of right-on feminism, they let us know.)
How has podcasting changed your life?
Podcasts are my job now—I’m the senior managing producer of the Slate Podcast Network. Being one of the hosts of The Waves is a small part of my workload. I spend most of my time keeping the production trains running on time, offering editorial feedback, and working with hosts and producers.
Give us another podcast recommendation.
Although I haven’t lived there for more than 35 years, I grew up in Britain, and I am still obsessed with British politics. Although I don’t share the Spectator’s politics, I’m a huge fan of Coffee House Shots, the magazine’s daily politics podcast. I love how efficient they are—episodes rarely exceed 12 minutes. Listening makes me feel like a Westminster insider.
Thanks, June!