Italian podcasts

[jeffers]

I have recently started learning Italian, and have found there isn't much discussion on this forum about Italian podcasts. The master list of Italian resources has some, but it's pretty far out of date for podcasts. So please share podcasts that you like. Along with the name, please share what sort of level you would think it's targeted for, whether it's all in Italian, and anything else you'd like to share about it. I will attempt to update the list below as and when I get suggestions. I'm dividing into beginner (teaching through another language), intermediate (aimed at learners, but in Italian only, or mainly), and native (podcasts aimed at native speakers). I've also noted CEFR levels for a rough reference, but personally I prefer to think about the podcasts purpose and contents.

I started something similar for French podcasts: https://forum.language-learners.org/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=17152


~*~*~*~*~Beginner~*~*~*~*~--> Podcasts teaching Italian through another language. (A0-A2)

Coffee Break Italian https://coffeebreaklanguages.com/coffeebreakitalian/
20-30 minute instructional episodes teaching the basics of Italian to new learners. There is a scottish teacher, a scottish learner and an Italian native helping with pronunciation and culture. The style is very much like a classroom or tutorial, with all explanations in English.


~*~*~*~*~Intermediate~*~*~*~*~--> Podcasts for learners, fully in Italian (or mainly). (A2-B1 and beyond)

Podcast Italiano https://www.youtube.com/@PodcastItaliano/featured


~*~*~*~*~Native~*~*~*~*~ --> Podcasts targeted at native speakers.

Elisa True Crime podcast
"Nel 2020 Elisa De Marco ha aperto il canale Youtube “ElisaTrueCrime” che oggi conta più di 1 milione di iscritti in cui racconta storie di crimini efferati, enigmi irrisolti e misteriose sparizioni."

Il Mondo https://www.internazionale.it/podcast/ilmondo
A daily news podcast from Internazionale. Usually 25-30 minutes per episode covering a variety of headline stories, and often ending with something more cultural like a film review.

BSMT https://www.youtube.com/@bsmt_basement
Leosmith wrote: "It's an interview show. The host interviews all sorts of famous Italians (athletes, singers, authors, astronauts, youtubers, etc.). They usually talk pretty fast, but it's surprisingly comprehensible, so I feel like I've accomplished something really cool when I listen to an episode. They are typically 1hr+ long."

[jeffers]

Reserved (perché no?)

[leosmith]

Can you define "podcast"? I watch some YT channels that call themselves podcasts, and others that could be completely understood with only audio but don't call themselves podcasts. I personally prefer watching YT videos because seeing the person talk seems to make it more comprehensible. I like to use the ones with accurate subtitles, so I both read the subtitles and listen to the audio, first separate then together. But here is an intermediate YT channel that calls itself a podcast:
https://www.youtube.com/@PodcastItaliano/featured
And here is a native one that most would call a podcast:
https://www.youtube.com/@bsmt_basement
I've got more, but I'll wait for your definition.

[jeffers]

Can you define "podcast"? I watch some YT channels that call themselves podcasts, and others that could be completely understood with only audio but don't call themselves podcasts. I personally prefer watching YT videos because seeing the person talk seems to make it more comprehensible. I like to use the ones with accurate subtitles, so I both read the subtitles and listen to the audio, first separate then together. But here is an intermediate YT channel that calls itself a podcast:
https://www.youtube.com/@PodcastItaliano/featured
And here is a native one that most would call a podcast:
https://www.youtube.com/@bsmt_basement
I've got more, but I'll wait for your definition.

I would define a "podcast" as an audio-only format, but I am seeing more and more things that are described as podcasts being put on YouTube. YT Music is definitely blurring the line, which annoys me mainly because a video will take a lot more data and there are times when I'm out listening to podcasts for 8-10 hours. The main thing is that it should be about listening. The ability to see subtitles on YT, or even people at microphones, doesn't disqualify it, but I think anything you couldn't just listen to wouldn't be a podcast.

What is BSMT about? I'd like this to be slightly more than just a list, so I'd like to include a short description along with reasons to give it a listen.

[leosmith]

What is BSMT about? I'd like this to be slightly more than just a list, so I'd like to include a short description along with reasons to give it a listen.

It's an interview show. The host interviews all sorts of famous Italians (athletes, singers, authors, astronauts, youtubers, etc.). They usually talk pretty fast, but it's surprisingly comprehensible, so I feel like I've accomplished something really cool when I listen to an episode. They are typically 1hr+ long.

[Sonjaconjota]

Podcasts for native speakers:

Elisa True Crime
Weekly true crime podcast with a wide range of cases, mainly Italian and American ones.
Can be found on several different platforms, for example:
https://podtail.com/de/podcast/elisa-true-crime/

Le scandalose (Alle otto della sera)
A series of programmes by RAI Radio2 about famous women in history.
Can be found on the subscription platform podimo or for free on youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXs4yind_QSLouhpj76-UpqnmeFowJQMb

Veleno
A monothematic true crime podcast about a case of Satanic panic in the late nineties in Italy:
https://www.repubblica.it/podcast/storie/veleno/stagione1/

[jeffers]

I've been experimenting with a few intermediate podcasts, but I won't add them to the table until I've listened for a couple weeks so that I can say a bit about them.
From memory, the ones I've been listening to have been:

• Italiano con amore
• Quattro staggione
• Italy Made Easy
• Learn Italian with Teacher Stefano
• Il Podcast in Italiano Comprensible (AKA Simple Italian Podcast)

I've also considered listening to Learn Italian with Joy of Languages, but I don't need another 60% English beginner podcast.

[mick33]

~*~*~*~*~Intermediate~*~*~*~*~--> Podcasts for learners, fully in Italian (or mainly). (A2-B1 and beyond)

Podcast Italiano https://www.youtube.com/@PodcastItaliano/featured

There is also a website Podcast Italiano that has, along with other things an all audio podcast (it's also available on Spotify) and I think that the audio version has more episodes than the YouTube channel.

[jeffers]

I've been following Sonjaconjota's language log and she regularly mentions the Elisa True Crime podcast. A quick search shows that this is a popular native Italian podcast about "storie di crimini efferati, enigmi irrisolti e misteriose sparizioni". It looks interesting and quite popular, so I figured it deserves mention here as an option for advanced learners.

If anyone is willing to say more about the podcast, that would be helpful as I reckon it will be well beyond my abilities at the moment!