For more than 10 years I have relished every episode of RL, I am a better person having done so, THANK YOU RadioLab!

This is a perfect podcast episode and everything I love about Radiolab. Once you listen, this review speaks for itself.

Excellent! Gives me hope that there is light after tragedy. Finding purpose in life after that dark day, is something that I can relate to.

A shadow of its former self….

Make more plz love so much but no subscription shows cus some of those are super good but they cost a lot ☹️ thanks though! 謝謝!

Is so deeply annoying. His bratty, contrarian naivety is hard to listen to. He seems to think his sparring is fun? God I pity his friends and family.

I came for engaging content. I left because, true to the trend, the Left tends to destroy everything they touch. This podcast is no exception.

I’m told podcasters avoid reading reviews to protect their mental health. If that’s true I’m shouting into the void. If not, Lulu, Nasir, you have no business hosting this show. It’s been turned into a juvenile parody of what it once was. Are you listening WNYC? If you are you need to find hosts who bring something to the show not detract from it. Numerous reviews from your listeners make it obvious. Your hosts are running listeners off not attracting them.

the show really took a dive once the nasal latif took over and they started doing this thing where they repeat the word that someone just said and or filling in the word someone was about to say with a producer's word... just incredibly annoying and it's as if all the people who speak on program are coached to affect the most bizarre grating quirky personality

Wow! Racism doesn’t age well no matter who it comes from. I’m sorry but Elie’s racist outburst toward the end- hard to listen to. He made some good points throughout but at other points started to sound exactly like what he’s trying to stop: close minded racist A holes. I hate racist A holes too but yikes! Don’t descend to their level. Not the best representation of that side of the argument. Many have made and do make this argument without resorting to racism.

I keep on greeting my teeth and listening to radio lab even though I find Jad and Robert’s host interplay so terrible. Sometimes even though I’m really interested in a topic, I can’t stand them constantly, cutting each other off, talking over each other one of them, taking the position of being a complete moron who can’t understand anything and won’t let the other person finish a sentence and I just stop listening midway through. Lulu is not as bad at that but again often does seem to play some sort of naïve character who needs the most basic stuff explained. I guess that might be for the listener benefit, but I can’t. It’s too stupid. And God the sound effects and musical breaks in some episodes, which aren’t a regular thing but when they’re there just stop because it’s only gonna get worse. It’s gonna take them 40 minutes tell a story they could probably have told in 10.

To me, this was once the best podcast available. Jad and Robert were stunningly good. Since they handed it over, it’s rarely worth listening to, other than the repeats of J&R (which are many since these new people are extremely slow to produce any content at all). It’s now often laughable, just weak and often strays way far into identity politics, virtue signaling, lesbian flag waving, childish giggling, women who use overly affected-overdramatic delivery, etc. Lulu is a poor substitute for a host and needs to get over herself. Too bad RadioLab is now ruined.

Unlistenable.

The audio experience of this show is a sensory overload. It is grating to listen to.

Show went way, way, WAY downhill after Jad and Robert left. Majority of the shows are replays of previously aired shows. It would interesting to hear actual statistics of how many replays vs new episodes have been aired since the hosts changed. After many years, I will be unfollowing this podcast due to the poor content and lack of effort since the new hosts have taken over. Honestly, I had high expectations but have been let down tremendously. Sad to be leaving.

Have listened and enjoyed for years, however the constant replays of old episodes coupled with extremely short new ones with tons of ads are making me call it quits

I was absorbed by the diver's story but the host inserted their voice constantly between his words. The hyped 'party' atmosphere of the show put me off too.

The Jad and Robert days were the best; wish they were still on and so does Radiolab as evidenced by the fact that they constantly re-air old episodes with them. Jad and Robert were such great hosts that I used to gladly donate to Radiolab every month. Now I cannot even stand more than five minutes of an episode. Also, pro-tip to any podcast: do not hire speakers with lisps. I know this is ableist or whatever but if your role requires you to speak as your primary function, your elocution should be pristine. I would not hire someone without arms as a boxer and would not hire someone with a lisp as a speaker. And paywalling the original episodes? Wowwwwwww

With a heavy heart, I’m out on Radiolab. One of the very first podcasts I followed, it’s descended into a sort of giggly mess of a panel show. Audio creativity has fallen off markedly.

The information is good, and mostly interesting, however, I find the giggling quite annoying.

I enjoyed the week of sharks, especially the Baby Shark episode. Anything that helps people connect and care about nature is good, and the example of rescuing and raising baby sharks was a treat. Thank you for this story.

I found this podcast by mistake and I am hooked! Have listened every week for over 5 years AND even went to listen to archives! It’s enhanced and changed the way I see the world and my place in it! If you want to be in an immersive science and human loving based experience, then this podcast is for you! Stay curious!

Radiolab occasionally has a snoozefest of an episode but can usually be counted on for an interesting human interest story. The only major problem is the stuttering, staticky opening which is viscerally infuriating.

Tremendously interesting subject. Unfortunately, the host kept speaking over the interviewee telling the listener what the interview is saying. Would much have preferred to hear the man talk himself.

The current hosts are no match for the originators. They don’t seem like serious people.. They can’t speak the language without sounding like uneducated teenagers. They compromise their credibility with up-talk, and verbal ticks… ‘like’ seems to be every other word. Also, it seems the focus has turned from science to social issues. It’s just plain boring now. If it weren’t for the rehashing of old shows, which are like revisiting, old friends, I have to say the new version doesn’t deserve to be called radio lab. i’m sorry to write this negative review. Because this truly was a seminal podcast.. But it’s become so mediocre. I’m sure the hosts mean well, but they’re just not prepared to fill the shoes they’re trying to fill.

Back when Jad and Robert hosted this show, it was consistently interesting and excellent. But after they retired, the show really went downhill in terms of professionalism, quality, and frequency of new episodes. I rarely listen anymore unless it’s one of their “rewinds.”

As someone who’s been listening to Radiolab for years now (even have a favorite episode, it’s called “The Rhino Hunter”) I feel like I know a thing or two about it. When I listened I actually absorbed the information and wanted to share this stuff with others. This podcast has turned into the podcast that I only listen to the reruns because they are so much more interesting (I hate the rerun intro though, I wish there wasn’t a paywall for the older episodes). For the most part this podcast has turned into the podcast I listen to when I’m waiting for the others to release new episodes. I’m glad Jad and Robert felt like they could and wanted to step away but I wish they left it in more capable hands. Lulu and Latif should’ve never changed the way it’s done, and taken the advice of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Loved ‘A flock of two’❤️

It pains me to say it but RadioLab is not what it used to be. I loved this program for years, every scientifically researched minute of it. The hosts knew what they were talking about, having done the research or immersed themselves into the depth of the information provided to them. The current variety of hosts and contributors are phoning it it, with seemingly fake enthusiasm forwards a topic the know the slightest about, topped off with giggles and up-speak. Hopefully RadioLab will go back to its well researched scientific based programming rather than its present day fad chats.

Words aren’t enough. Just listen.

Ever since Jad & Robert left, this podcast has gone way downhill. 4 out of 5 episodes is a rerun, and the new episodes are dull or over the top artsy pieces whereas they used to tackle interesting science stories, etc. The old banter between Jad & Robert has been replaced by hosts who lack the chemistry & speaking voices to grab an audience. I still listen, but often find myself not really paying attention.

This podcast is utterly unlistenable. Either the host is repeating a guest or finishing their sentence unnecessarily (the episode on Stockholm Syndrome was a physically miserable experience because of this) or the editing chops things up and makes it hard to even follow if there’s a conversation or just jumping from clip to clip. They don’t need to! And honestly? They add nothing insightful, in depth, new or interesting to the subjects of their episodes. At least not enough to put myself through it.

This program stands out as one of the few pieces of (I hesitate to call it entertainment) that is consistently innovative, invigorating, and just amazing. Over the years I have worked a warehouse job off/on to pay for college that allows me to listen to music or podcasts as I work. Radiolab has made me excited for the stints where I return to this job so I can just pour hours of time into this fantastic program. The team expertly blends informational science, storytelling, journalism, human emotion, sound design, music, and just pure fun into a consistently awe-inspiring phenomenon. The sheer volume of radiolab’s work is simply breathtaking—how do they not run out of amazing oddities to report on?! The show’s breadth and quality are unmatched and have become a necessary reminder to me in these seemingly endless end times of the beauty of the world—natural and human. I cannot count the number of times that I have used an episode of Radiolab to create titillating (not in a weird way! Lol!) conversation with scores of friends and strangers alike. As a budding scientist and avid lover of all things … life … Radiolab captures the earnestness that has defined and propelled humanity since our beginnings. Thank you to the team at Radiolab for bringing so much light to the world. I look forward to the day I can comfortably afford to join The Lab and donate as much as I can. The work you do has changed my life.

Loveeee

Love the content, the editing drives me nuts.

I love love love radio lab - I grew up on it. However, I’m finding it’s harder to listen to with how often the hosts speak over the guests. I grew up loving the almost 3D auditory experience with sound effects used to emphasize the cool stuff. The recent Malthusian Swerve was a lot of talking and chiming in - I lost the plot. I hope to see more emphasis on story telling moving forward!

I really was hoping the show would get back to its old ways, but clearly it won’t. Before I enjoyed hearing a new story with insight every week and listening to jad and Robert giving round table points and counterpoints on what it could mean to the world as a whole. But now the show is filled with reruns and showcases to other podcasts. And when there is a new story, the content feels kind of plain, like it’s knowledge that’s pieced together logically and doesn’t have that unique teaching anymore. Even the discussion after feels very surface level and the new hosts consistently feel like they’re phoning it in with “oh wow” type statements. There’s minuscule debate. The show has gone from “let’s tell you how the blood of horseshoe crabs are harvested for crucial medicines and the moral implications behind it” to “let’s just read you a poem of early life on earth and call it an episode”. There’s no more journalism. The content has been dumbed down considerably and the hosts clearly want to showcase their own projects, which feels more targeted towards younger audiences

Why is this a podcast for children now. Seems they’re targeting 2nd graders with all the obnoxious cheerbabble and goofy sound effects. This show was once a master class in confidently informative storytelling, often punctuated with perfect moments of silence to allow space for wonder. Now it’s saccharine pulp for kiddos. A masterclass in trying too hard. Less scientific wonder and more goony gabbing. Let the information stand for itself and stop with all the inflective gibbering.

Sad it took me so long to find this podcast, but so happy I did. brings me so much awe and joy.

For the love of everything holy, STOP playing episodes of Terrestrials. Also, who decided a 10+ minute long poem about an obsession with a cringeworthy early 00s “rock” song belonged in this podcast. It’s not remotely relevant to science or technology, let alone interesting. Please stick to your usual beat which I love!

Can’t replicate the magic

Good show but you left out the fact that the US government is running a deficit of 1.8 trillion per year. That not sustainable with current interest on our current 38 trillion debt now over 800 billion per year. If cuts are not made the economy will crumble and there will be no funding for research. One more point you fail to mention is that there are companies started on government funded research with pennies paid back to the government. That never happens in the private sector.

I think that radio lab is excellent— I really enjoyed the episode on the cassette tape. Thank you for the work you’re doing!

I don’t mind the opinions, but the cadence is off. Too fast-hitting. Makes me uneasy.

Radiolab is consistently great but Camel in the Snow was a riot! Loved the playful way it was presented. And Latif’s enthusiasm and sense of discovery is always a joy

The topics are interesting but the hosts are annoying and the singing, goofing off and comedic efforts trivialize the subject matter and it is so distracting. I've tried to listen several times and I can't even make it through an episode.

You are going to use pregnant person and parent instead of the word mother because not everyone who has had a baby identifies as a mother. Give me a break.

Why does Lulu sound like she’s speaking to kindergartners? Was she formally a teacher in grade school?

This is still an seriously interesting, well researched, and intricately produced podcast. Thank you Radiolab! But I feel it’s lost a step since Jad and Robert left. The Flight Before Christmas is a prime example. By something over the nine minute mark, I understood that I had not learned a thing. And at that point, the hosts and the guest were in a deep discussion about the ethics of reclining one’s airline seat or not. I had to stop. The listeners time is valuable, and these two hosts need to remember that. Please consider editing your future episodes more tightly to create greater value. And I feel bad about saying this, but I’m just not a fan of Latif’s voice. He sounds like he has a stuffy nose all the time. I still think he’s an utterly amazing and innovative journalist, and I remain grateful for the hard, creative work he does to educate us all.

It’s become WAY too political. This last episode on PCR was the last straw for me. I have a doctorate in pharmacotherapy and I work for the VA. Not everyone out there that listens drinks the leftist cool aid guys, come on. You have very educated people listening from all walks of life. Please stop. All I want to do is learn interesting new things. I don’t need my Podcasts pushing a political agenda. Good luck though and I hope you take heed.