Month: August 2019

Here are a few of the informative, funny, thrilling and downright addictive podcasts that deserve your listening attention. Read Variety’s cover story, a deep dive into the podcast revolution with Conan O’Brien, right here. CaliphateThe New York TimesRukmini Callimachi’s reporting about the Islamic State is harrowing boots-on-the-ground journalism at its finest. Conan O’Brien Needs a

More than a year after announcing plans to do so, Facebook has started to roll out a tool to let users better control their privacy — to see which apps and websites are sharing their activity with Facebook, and to delete it if they choose to. However, the Off-Facebook Activity feature will initially be available

The Beatles’ body of work has been so worshipped, scrutinized and dissected that 50 years later, one could wonder what’s left to discover. After all, how much more can one say about “Abbey Road”? It’s arguably the greatest album by the greatest group of all time, and is one of the premiere artistic statements of

Apple launched Apple Card, a new credit card tied to iPhones that it’s offering in partnership with Mastercard and Goldman Sachs, broadly in the U.S. The card, available to all qualified users in the U.S. starting Tuesday, is designed to encourage people to make more purchases from Apple — including apps, games, media content and subscriptions

Barstool Sports isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. The site trades in a style of raw humor and commentary that some find offensive. The company has a shoot-from-the-lip founder whose gags having included joking about union-busting, a move that would violate federal labor laws. But the brazen media outfit has drawn a large and loyal fanbase.

“Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend” is an irresistible mixture of philosophical discussions about art and life and pure zaniness. It’s a program from the late-night host turned podcasting ringmaster that defies easy characterization, and a show that manages to move seamlessly from moments of hilarity to unexpected instances of confession. In one episode, Jeff Goldblum

August 20, 2019 7:02AM PT Apple Music today launched the “Shazam Discovery Top 50,” a weekly, global ranking of 50 artists that it describes as “on the move and trending” — in other words, new and emerging artists. While the company wouldn’t say much specifically about how the chart is tabulated, it uses “Shazam’s proprietary algorithms [to

Three years ago, Michael Barbaro was a reporter on The New York Times politics desk who had no experience with radio or podcasting. Now he’s the face — and voice — of what has become a fast-growing vector for the Gray Lady’s digital future. About 2 million listeners per day tune in to the Barbaro-hosted

Leading Indian film distributor Eros International has secured a deal for its video streaming service Eros Now in China. Several Indian films, including Eros “Andhadhun,” have recently performed strongly in Chinese movie theaters, sparking growing audience interest in Bollywood and Indian regional cinema. The deal with state-backed Wasu Media enables Wasu to provide Bollywood content as a

Conan O’Brien never planned on becoming the darling of the podcasting world. “It’s not the natural career step,” he says. “I have a talk show, and it felt like maybe you do the podcast in order to get on TV. But when my staff approached me about it, I kind of thought what the heck?

Apple is reportedly looking to launch the Apple TV Plus subscription-video service in November — around when Disney Plus is set to debut — for $9.99 per month. Apple TV Plus will bow in November with a “small selection” of shows, Bloomberg reported, citing anonymous sources. At $9.99, which analysts have guessed would be the