Best SOUND STRUCTURE RADIO NETWORK Podcasts (2026)

New Orleans is an indispensable element of America's national identity. As one of the most fabled cities in the world, it figures in countless novels, short stories, poems, plays, and films, as well as in popular lore and song. T. R. Johnson's book New Orleans: A Writer's City (Cambridge UP, 2023) provides detailed discussions of all of the most si…

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Henry Grabar, "Paved Paradise: How Parking Explains the World" (Penguin, 2023) 44:17

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12d ago44:17

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Parking, quite literally, has a death grip on America: each year a handful of Americans are tragically killed by their fellow citizens over parking spots. But even when we don't resort to violence, we routinely do ridiculous things for parking, contorting our professional, social, and financial lives to get a spot. Indeed, in the century since the …

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Ruby Oram, "Home Work: Gender, Child Labor, and Education for Girls in Urban America, 1870-1930" (U Chicago Press, 2025) 57:54

13d ago57:54

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In Home Work: Gender, Child Labor, and Education for Girls in Urban America, 1870-1930 (U Chicago Press, 2025) historian Ruby Oram tells the story of how middle-class, white women reformers lobbied the state to implement various public education reforms to shape the lives of girls and women in industrial cities between 1870 and 1930. Women such as …

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Nicholas L. Caverly, "Demolishing Detroit: How Structural Racism Endures" (Stanford UP, 2025) 49:56

11d ago49:56

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In this episode, Nick Caverly talks about his new book, Demolishing Detroit: How Structural Racism Endures (Stanford UP, 2025). For decades, Detroit residents, politicians, planners, and advocacy organizations have campaigned for the elimination of empty buildings from city neighborhoods. Leveling these structures, many argue, is essential to makin…

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Weila Gong, "Implementing a Low-Carbon Future: Climate Leadership in Chinese Cities" (Oxford UP, 2025) 42:49

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This episode explores what China’s subnational climate experiments tell us about the possibilities and limits of climate leadership in an era of intensified geopolitics. We discuss how China’s domestic governance dynamics matter for international climate cooperation and competition, especially as Chinese actors become central in the global low-carb…

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Karma F. Frierson, "Local Color: Reckoning with Blackness in the Port City of Veracruz" (U California Press, 2025) 49:56

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The Caribbean port city of Veracruz is many things. It is where the Spanish first settled and last left the colony that would go on to become Mexico. It is a destination boasting the “happiest Carnival in the world,” nightly live music, and public dancing. It is also where Blackness is an integral and celebrated part of local culture and history, b…

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Tourism and a Kyoto in Flux: A Conversation with Dr. Chiara Rita Napolitano 28:58

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In today’s episode Julia Olsson continues her talk with Dr. Chiara Rita Napolitano from last episode, and they discuss the issue of overtourism and its effect on traditional urban neighbourhoods in Kyoto. Dr. Chiara Rita Napolitano is a JSPS Postdoctoral Researcher at Kyoto university. She got her PhD from the University of Naples in 2024. Her rese…

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Radio ReOrient 13.11: Refugees and Sanctuary, with Rosie Tapsfield, hosted by Claudia Radiven and Saeed Khan 43:14

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In this episode, Claudia Radiven and Saeed Khan were in conversation with Rosie Tapsfield, Director of Operations at City of Sanctuary UK. Rosie has been with the organisation since 2024 having worked on their initiatives in Newcastle before then. She leads the College of Sanctuary programme of work and has seen first-hand how implementing inclusiv…

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Jennifer Ott, "Where the City Meets the Sound: The Story of Seattle's Waterfront" (HistoryLink, 2025) This 1:12:32

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From canoes on the beach at Dzidzilalich to steamships and piers, Seattle's waterfront was the center of the city's economy and culture for generations. Its tumultuous history reflects a broader story of immigration, labor battles, and technological change. The 2001 Nisqually Earthquake brought fresh urgency and opportunity to remake this contested…

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Jeffrey Kroessler, "Rural County, Urban Borough: A History of Queens" (Rutgers UP, 2025) This 18:26

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The borough of Queens is the largest of New York City’s five boroughs. It holds more people than Chicago or Los Angeles. And thanks to immigration, it is today home to a population of extraordinary ethnic, religious and linguistic diversity. Queens is also the subject of a new book by Jeffrey Kroessler, Rural County, Urban Borough: A History of Que…

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NSW to tighten gun laws and PM launches national buyback scheme 29:59

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Coverage that provides news and analysis of national issues significant to regional Australians.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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Shiben Banerji, "Lineages of the Global City: Occult Modernism and the Spiritualization of Democracy" (U Texas Press, 2025) 1:06:08

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War, revolution, genocide, rebellion, slump. The economic and political turmoil of the early twentieth century seemed destined to rip asunder the ties that bound colonizers and the colonized to one another. The upheaval represented an opportunity, and not just to nationalists who imagined new homelands or to socialists who dreamed of international …

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Why is Australia slow to embrace offshore wind farms as part of the energy mix? 29:59

19d ago29:59

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Coverage that provides news and analysis of national issues significant to regional Australians.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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Peter Mancina, "On the Side of ICE: Policing Immigrants in a Sanctuary State" (NYU Press, 2025) 26:29

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In the United States, local law enforcement agencies are legally and organizationally independent entities from federal law enforcement agencies like the FBI and ICE. While local police enforce local, state and federal laws, they are not required to enforce civil immigration laws. On the Side of ICE: Policing Immigrants in a Sanctuary State (NYU Pr…

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How do we manage the shifting sands of our changing coastline? 30:00

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Australia is blessed with majestic coastlines and most Australians live near the coast, but in a number of these communities that coastline is changing. Beaches around Australia are at risk of disappearing with climate change resulting in severe weather systems that lash up and down the coastline and erode the landscape. From Newcastle in New South…

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SA’s algal bloom; one of the biggest environmental disasters of 2025 29:59

21d ago29:59

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As we head into summer, Australia Wide looks at an ecological disaster that decimated communities and industry in South Australia.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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"The world needs a lot more light," Jewish community in regions react to Bondi shooting 29:59

22d ago29:59

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Today on Australia Wide the regional response to the shooting at Bondi Beach.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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Machiya, Seikatsu Bunka, and Changing Domestic Culture in the Japanese Urban Environment 31:42

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Kyoto is known as a pinnacle of Japanese history and culture, drawing visitors of more than double its resident population many times over every year. In this and the subsequent episode we explore Kyoto neighbourhoods and the houses in them to see what transformations are happening, and what is at risk of being lost in the process. In today’s episo…

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Mirya Holman, "The Hidden Face of Local Power: Appointed Boards and the Limits of Democracy" (Temple UP, 2025) 44:08

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The Hidden Face of Local Power: Appointed Boards and the Limits of Democracy (Temple UP, 2025) by Dr. Mirya Holman explicates the purpose, role, and consequences of appointed boards in U.S. cities. Dr. Holman finds cities create strong boards that generate policy, consolidate power, and defend the interests of businesses and wealthy and white resid…

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Katrina Navickas, "Contested Commons: A History of Protest and Public Space in England" (Reaktion, 2025) 29:40

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A radical history of England, Contested Commons: A History of Protest and Public Space in England (Reaktion, 2025) by Dr. Katrina Navickas is a gripping overview of increasingly restrictive policing and legislation against protest in public spaces. It tells the long history of contests over Trafalgar Square, Hyde Park, Cable Street and Kinder Scout…

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Melissa Byrnes, "Making Space: Neighbors, Officials, and North African Migrants in the Suburbs of Paris and Lyon" (U Nebraska Press, 2024) 1:09:39

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“A lot of things become possible when [the nation state] is not the only framework,” Melissa Byrnes reminds us in this deeply intimate local history of North African migrants in France. In this conversation about her new book, Making Space: Neighbors, Officials, and North African Migrants in the Suburbs of Paris and Lyon (U Nebraska Press, 2024) we…

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Families plead for drivers to slow down amid increasing road toll 29:59

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Coverage that provides news and analysis of national issues significant to regional Australians.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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René Esparza, "From Vice to Nice: Midwestern Politics and the Gentrification of AIDS" (UNC Press, 2025) 52:07

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Shifting the focus of AIDS history away from the coasts to the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, this impressive book uncovers how homonormative political strategies weaponized the AIDS crisis to fuel gentrification. During the height of the epidemic, white gay activists and politicians pursued social acceptance by assimilating to Midwestern…

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Tiwi Islands named the newest Indigenous Protected Area 29:59

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Coverage that provides news and analysis of national issues significant to regional Australians.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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Youth mental health service concerned social media ban will further isolate country kids 29:59

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Youth mental health service concerned social media ban will further isolate country kidsBy Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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James Sears, "Queering Rehoboth Beach: Beyond the Boardwalk" (Temple UP, 2024) 56:04

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“Create A More Positive Rehoboth” was a decades-long goal for progress and inclusiveness in a charming beach town in southern Delaware. Rehoboth, which was established in the 19th century as a Methodist Church meeting camp, has, over time, become a thriving mecca for the LGBTQ+ community. In Queering Rehoboth Beach: Beyond the Boardwalk (Temple UP,…

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Benjamin Schneider, "The Unfinished Metropolis: Igniting the City-Building Revolution" (Island Press, 2025) 1:13:03

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In The Unfinished Metropolis: Igniting the City-Building Revolution (Island Press, 2025), Benjamin Schneider argues that American city-building is a lost art. U.S. cities used to constantly evolve, experimenting with new urban designs and ambitious infrastructure projects, from railroads and subways to public housing and shopping malls. But in rece…

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Kids in remote towns say social media ban will make isolation worse 29:59

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Teenagers in remote and rural communities are worried social media ban will make them even more isolated.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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'I'm somebody now': After 88 years Maisie finally has a birth certificate 29:59

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Our birth certificate is our first form of identification. But there are some Australians like 88 year old Maisie Harkin that still to this day never had a birth certificate.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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“Rurality 2.0”: How City Migrants are Reshaping Norway’s Rural Regions with Tom Bratrud 1:11:07

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In today’s episode, we talk to Tom Bratrud about his ongoing, long-term work with city-dwellers who migrate to rural parts of Norway. This research forms the basis of Tom’s forthcoming book project, which has the working title Rurality 2.0: Redefining Urban-Rural Divides in the Mountains of Norway. Tom Bratrud is Associate Professor in Social Anthr…

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Anna Zhelnina, "Private Life, Public Action: How Housing Politics Mobilized Citizens in Moscow" (Temple UP, 2025) 52:01

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Renovation, an urban renewal plan in Moscow that was announced in the spring of 2017, proposed to demolish thousands of socialist-era apartment buildings. In a country where it is rare under an authoritarian government, residents supported or opposed the redevelopment by mobilizing and organizing into local alliances. They were often shocked by the…

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Caravan park owners feel the brunt of housing crisis, taking an emotional toll 29:59

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Coverage that provides news and analysis of national issues significant to regional Australians.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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Daniel Skinner et al., "The City and the Hospital: The Paradox of Medically Overserved Communities" (U Chicago Press, 2023) 43:20

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The City and the Hospital (Chicago 2023) focuses on an urban paradox: American hospitals are imagined as sites of healing and care, and yet the people who live and work in nearby neighborhoods have some of the worst health outcomes in the nation. One part urban sociology and one part policy analysis, this book reports insights from a collaborative …

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Commercial fishers says WA ban will cost consumers 29:59

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Coverage that provides news and analysis of national issues significant to regional Australians.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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Backpackers and pacific workers scrambling for jobs after salad grower's sudden shutdown 29:59

1M ago29:59

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Coverage that provides news and analysis of national issues significant to regional Australians.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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Matt Houlbrook, "Songs of Seven Dials: An Intimate History of 1920s and 1930s London" (Manchester UP, 2025) 53:22

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How has central London changed in the last 100 years? In Songs of Seven Dials An Intimate History of 1920s and 1930s London (Manchester UP, 2025), Matt Houlbrook, a Professor of Cultural History at the University of Birmingham, tells the story of a part of London that was the site for major contests over urban development, race, and the future of t…

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Local town's deputy shire president killed fighting WA bushfire 30:10

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Coverage that provides news and analysis of national issues significant to regional Australians.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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'It's like an underwater bushfire': the marine heatwave turning Ningaloo white 29:59

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Coverage that provides news and analysis of national issues significant to regional Australians.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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Michael McCulloch, "Building a Social Contract: Modern Workers’ Houses in Early Twentieth-Century Detroit" (Temple UP, 2023) 56:25

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The dream of the modern worker’s house emerged in early twentieth-century America as wage earners gained access to new, larger, and better-equipped dwellings. Building a Social Contract: Modern Workers’ Houses in Early Twentieth-Century Detroit (Temple UP, 2023) is a cogent history of the houses those workers dreamed of and labored for. Dr. Michael…

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Brumbies no longer protected in Kosciuszko National Park 29:59

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Coverage that provides news and analysis of national issues significant to regional Australians.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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Allison Christine Meier, "Grave" (Bloomsbury, 2023) 50:17

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Grave (Bloomsbury, 2023) by Allison C. Meier takes a ground-level view of how burial sites have transformed over time and how they continue to change. As a cemetery tour guide, Meier has spent more time walking among tombstones than most. Even for her, the grave has largely been invisible, an out of the way and unobtrusive marker of death. However,…

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Darling River degradation due to alterations in natural flow 29:59

2M ago29:59

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Coverage that provides news and analysis of national issues significant to regional Australians.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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Joanna Merwood-Salisbury, "Barbarian Architecture: Thorstein Veblen’s Chicago" (MIT Press, 2024) 39:36

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An important critic of modern culture, American economist Thorstein Veblen is best known for the concept of “conspicuous consumption,” the ostentatious display of goods in the service of social status. In the field of architectural history, scholars have employed Veblen in support of a wide range of arguments about modern architecture, but never ha…

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Lauren E. M. Everett, "Fortunate People in a Fortunate Land: At Home in Santa Monica's Rent-Controlled Housing" (Temple UP, 2025) 49:42

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Rent control and other tenant protections have profound and positive impacts on individuals’ and communities’ lives. Dr. Lauren Everett’s Fortunate People in a Fortunate Land: At Home in Santa Monica’s Rent-Controlled Housing (Temple UP, 2025) shows how rent control impacts the lives of the renters themselves. Dr. Everett interviews residents about…

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Calls for more support for country apprentices 30:00

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Regional apprentices are out of pocket for frequent travel and accommodation costs to attend city-based TAFE studies.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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Cyclone Fina leaves a trail of damage across the Top End 29:59

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The Top End of Australia mops up the damage from Tropical Cyclone Fina.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation

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Marek Kohn, "The Stories Old Towns Tell: A Journey Through Cities at the Heart of Europe" (Yale UP, 2023) 59:34

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Historic quarters in cities and towns across the middle of Europe were devastated during the Second World War—some, like those of Warsaw and Frankfurt, had to be rebuilt almost completely. They are now centers of peace and civility that attract millions of tourists, but the stories they tell about places, peoples, and nations are selective. They ar…

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Former mayor backs bill to protect drivers using medicinal cannabis 30:00

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Former mayor backs bill to protect drivers using medicinal cannabis.By Australian Broadcasting Corporation