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Leon Neyfakh on political scandals and his favourite podcasts

Leon Neyfakh is the co-creator of the podcasts Slow Burn and Fiasco — two shows that take a closer look at big political scandals from the past. In this episode he shares a clip from the latest season of Fiasco and some of his favourite podcasts.
CBC Radio ·
Leon Neyfakh is the co-creator of the podcasts Slow Burn and Fiasco — two shows that take a closer look at big political scandals from the past. (Submitted Leon Neyfakh)
(Submitted by podcast)

Let's talk about failure.

After all, failure is something that everyone in this world experiences. 

And when it happens to you — when you just don't make the cut, it can be hard to believe you'll ever recover.

For the average person this all happens in private. But for some — celebrities, organizations and politicians — failure happens in front of the world.

Our guest curator this week has built a career around untangling massive, public failures. Leon Neyfakh is the co-creator of the podcasts Slow Burn and Fiasco. He joined us in the studio to talk about some of his favourite podcasts. In fact, he curated this episode! You can find his picks below.

Podcasts featured this week:

(Submitted by podcast)

Fiasco: "This is the story of Iran-Contra. A secret war, a secret deal, and a scandal that threatened to destroy Ronald Reagan's presidency — until it didn't."

The Cut on Tuesdays: "An episode all about anxiety — from panicky thought-spirals to demented self-soothing techniques. Plus, Aparna Nancherla shares how she made anxiety funny."

30 For 30: The Sterling affair seemed as cliche as you could imagine. Powerful older real estate mogul caught with a young mistress in LA. But this affair ended up breaking open one of the NBA's biggest scandals. And it all started with a confrontation between Shelly Sterling — Donald's wife, and V. Stiviano — Donald's mistress. Warning this clip has racist content. 

The Gravy Train: "After months of absences and whispers and rumours, all of Mayor Rob Ford's private life started to go public. It began with one story, which led to more, and more. The mayor's response was denial—and to paint the media as the enemy and attack them by name. There's a reason this strategy has become so popular. It works."

How To F#€k Up An Airport: "BER is the international airport code for Berlin Brandenburg Airport, nickname Willy Brandt. It has also become a signifier of failure, incompetence, corruption and Berlin's general inability to get its act together … for many, many reasons."

Do you have a new favourite podcast we should listen to? Email, tweet us @PodcastPlaylist, or find us on Facebook.

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