Curated by Malia Politzer, executive editor for piqd.com, an audio discovery platform that recommends and reviews podcasts and audio episodes about your favorite subjects, every day. Visit Piqd for more podcast recommendations.
March is Women’s History Month—an opportunity to honor the remarkable contributions of women through the ages, and to both celebrate how far we’ve come on issues related to women’s rights, as well as reflect on how far we still have to go.
The voices of women past and present are a conduit for keeping history alive, and to honor their words and experiences, we’ve selected some of our all-time favorite podcasts hosted by women, for women, and about women.
View, follow, and listen to the whole collection of shows on RadioPublic, available on iPhone and Android.
Unladylike
Unladylike is a feminist, deeply reported podcast that takes on some of the issues that are truly relevant to modern women—and explores what happens when women “break the rules” of social expectations. In one episode they take on sexism in the workplace, while others lays out at how to get a rape kit, have the “money” talk with a partner, or how to break the silence on domestic abuse. All episodes provide witty, sharp commentary on the challenges facing women today. Read a full review of one of the episodes.
The Cut on Tuesdays
The Cut is essentially a weekly news podcast that hones in on issues relevant to women, from the perspective of women. Host Molly Fischer takes on different issues—from sex, to politics, culture and fashion. One episode looks into the women on the migrant caravan to the U.S.-Mexico border, while others look at issues facing women in politics, the abortion debate, or even women and weed. Read a full review of one of the episodes.
The Double Shift
The Double Shift “is a reported, narrative podcast about a new generation of working moms”. This is not a parenting podcast, nor is it about children—but about what it’s like to be a woman who is both a parent, and working in the modern world, from what it’s like to run for office with small children, to moms who also work in sex work, to a woman (and mother) who started a childcare center for shift workers, to everything in between. Read a full review of one of the episodes.
History Chicks
You’ve probably noticed that most history books focus on the stories of men, and mentions of prominent women are few and far between. History Chicks aims to right this wrong, by telling the biographical stories of prominent women from the past—from well known people such as Marie Antoinette and Catherine the Great, to lesser-known (but no less important) figures like Ada Lovelace and Belle Starr, to the infamous Elizabeth Báthory. Read a full review of one of the episodes.
Seeking Peace
Seeking Peace is a podcast that debuted this year about the role of women in preventing conflict and achieving peace worldwide. Produced by Georgetown’s Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS) it seeks to shift the narrative of the role women in conflict from that of victims to leaders, mediators, and agents of change. Guests include such notables as former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, to Kristen Bell and Ashley Judd, among others. Read a full review of one of the episodes.
Bodies
Each episode of Bodies explores a medical mystery, centered on a woman’s pain: In the first episode, the host tries to find an answer to why sex always hurts. In another, a woman struggles to understand why she has extremely painful, disruptively heavy periods. On a meta-level, the podcast looks into why women’s pain is so often ignored or minimized by society and the medical industry, what that says our about our society, and what we can do about it. Read a full review of one of the episodes.
The Ilm with Ayesha Aleem
“Ilm” is an Arabic and Urdu word that means knowledge: the more we know, the more we learn about people, places, issues, we’re richer for it. Journalist Ayesha Aleem explores the lives of women through interviews with people who exemplify the different facets of issues such as work, motherhood and safety. Read a full review of one of the episodes.
Night Shift
This podcast series tracks the lives of four women: a cab driver, a bar dancer, a bouncer and a home guard. All of them venture out to work after nightfall. In a country where women are encouraged to return home before dusk, this series dives deep into the lives of Indian women who work at night. Read a full review of the series.
Black Girls Talking
A simple yet effective premise: four Black women meet to talk about culture, work, and life. The conversations are engaging, funny, and full of valuable perspectives. Read a full review of one of the episodes.
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Want to create your own collection of shows that dovetails with your area of interest? Add shows to your Smart Folder on RadioPublic, then inform the Podcast Librarian of your collection: librarian@radiopublic.com.
