Snap Judgement

September 3, 2011 2:02 PM

Snap Judgement is a radio show airing on NPR stations; you can also listen to all of it online or via iTunes. The show bills itself as "storytelling with a beat".

Some shows for you to check out:

* "Spooked"

* "Tales from the Library"

* "Something Ain't Right"

* Live show "Wild Kingdom"

* Live show "Drama Mama"; particularly Joyce Lee's story.

posted by curious nu (18 comments total)

Just heard this for the first time last week, and I really enjoyed it and then promptly forgot about it. Thanks for the post!
posted by rollbiz at 4:15 PM on September 3, 2011

I really like this show. It's a really nice antidote the the 'ira glass tone' of announcer's voices that I sometimes find grating. I also think the sound design is great and occasioanlly gets a radio-drama feel.
posted by kittensofthenight at 4:33 PM on September 3, 2011 [1 favorite]

So if you don't have/can't use iTunes and don't want to listen to it online, you have download a wav file? Yikes, those things are huge! I get more-reasonably-sized mp3s from other NPR podcast so what's up with this?
posted by fuse theorem at 4:42 PM on September 3, 2011

Yaaaaay Snap Judgment!

It's become one of Those Shows where I'm constantly saying, "Oh, there was a great story about that on Snap Judgment not too long ago!" and sending people links.

Its kinda credulous when it comes to spooky stories and new-agey beliefs, but I just counter that by listening to Point of Inquiry, Big Picture Science and other fine skeptical sources of audio pleasure.
posted by BrashTech at 4:42 PM on September 3, 2011 [1 favorite]

"So if you don't have/can't use iTunes and don't want to listen to it online, you have download a wav file? Yikes, those things are huge! I get more-reasonably-sized mp3s from other NPR podcast so what's up with this?"

I just downloaded "On The Mend" and it came to me as an MP3. No problem.
posted by charlesminus at 4:54 PM on September 3, 2011

Just subscribed, can't wait to try it out. Thanks!
posted by dejah420 at 5:27 PM on September 3, 2011

Thanks for the recommendation! Just listened to the first show in the post (Spooked) and it passed my "washing the dishes" test (made the time fly by and I was almost sorry when I ran out of dishes to wash).
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 5:45 PM on September 3, 2011 [1 favorite]

I'm so glad you made this post; I love this show.
posted by Dr. Zira at 5:46 PM on September 3, 2011

I caught the show for the first time last week and absolutely loved it!
posted by Cat Pie Hurts at 5:48 PM on September 3, 2011

KCRW has also been playing Unfictional. It's great listening.
posted by Xoebe at 5:49 PM on September 3, 2011

One of our own. That was it. I got home with about 20 minutes left in the show and just sat in my car riveted.
posted by Cat Pie Hurts at 5:50 PM on September 3, 2011

Have they done a segment on Centralia yet?
posted by All Out of Lulz at 5:52 PM on September 3, 2011

I have been listening to this for the last few months too. I agree, it's great; it fits into my storytelling podcast niche along with Risk! and The Moth.
posted by norm at 10:01 PM on September 3, 2011

my only gripe with this otherwise wonderful show is that the host *really* likes to incorporate the phrase "snap judgement" in the intro/outro's. Kind of feels like a perpetual pilot-episode tone.
posted by Taft at 10:41 PM on September 3, 2011

I love This American Life and look forward to more shows like it, such as Snap Judgement. My only gripe with SJ is that sometimes it builds up an upcoming segment to a "YOU CAN'T MISS THIS" degree, but the actual segment is benign and definitely doesn't live up to the hype. TAL doesn't do that, and I'm glad.
posted by JLovebomb at 11:55 PM on September 3, 2011 [1 favorite]

Snap Judgement is awesome in small doses. We tried to listen to a few episodes in a row during a long car trip and that was a bit much. I could listen to the Moth all day long, though!
posted by WowLookStars at 12:27 AM on September 4, 2011

Huge fan of Snap Judgement! Pretty much have followed it since its introduction.

I am a NPR junkie in general. Also have much love for Wire Tap with Johnathan Goldstein. He is a bit more of a Debbie Downer, but I enjoy his antics.

Always on the look out for new podcasts, but primarily everything I listen to is NPR/BBC/CBC related.
posted by handbanana at 7:53 AM on September 4, 2011

sometimes it builds up an upcoming segment to a "YOU CAN'T MISS THIS" degree, but the actual segment is benign and definitely doesn't live up to the hype

Yeah, agree. OPB has been airing this for sometime now. I do like it, but the host kinda drives me batty....he's just a little too...ominous.
posted by Lutoslawski at 10:00 AM on September 5, 2011