The Latest From Vox Media: Sweet, Sweet Sounds

 Don't get scared. I'm going to use that dreaded word, "synergy." The corporate graveyards are full of companies who merged or acquired other companies trying to achieve the elevated state of synergy, only to fall victim to their own incompetence and hubris.

Just look at the retail hell that is Sears K Mart. Their "synergy" never materialized, and both department stores have ended up as skeletal, zombie versions of themselves.

The Vox Media Network has escaped the bottomless pit of attempting to blend disparate media formats, from print via New York Magazine to digital via Verge and Vulture, video via Explained on Netflix, and, of course, its podcast network with shows like Unexplainable and Land Of The Giants.

 Through a well-constructed email newsletter called Sounds Good — Vox offers listeners a roadmap to significant offerings throughout its network this month. 

Here are some of the highlights about Vox's podcast network in the upcoming month that would be relevant to podcast fans.

Curbed’s Nice Try! podcast is back to explore how our homes channel the pursuit of utopia. This time, rather than focusing on the dream of communal betterment, host Avery Trufelman turns our attention to the struggle for personal improvement through the lens of the lifestyle products found in our homes ​​— and the promises that these products have made, kept, and broken. 

 Land of the Giants, Recode’s podcast on the biggest and most influential tech companies of our time, and recipient of the Webby’s Best Entertainment Podcast of 2021, is back for a new season: The Apple Revolution. 

 Previous seasons -- which are worth a listen -- include Amazon, Netflix, and Google.

 Peter Kafka returns to the mic to give the inside story of how Apple went from a niche computer company with anti-establishment roots to becoming the gold standard of product design and technology. Tune in today.  

 Hosted by Verge senior reporter Ashley Carman, The Vergecast’s month-long AI series investigates how emerging technologies will reshape various industries. Created in partnership with Capital One, each deeply reported episode dives into a real-world application of artificial intelligence — like speech synthesis, video editing, and writing — seamlessly run alongside custom audio segments spotlighting how Capital One experts are utilizing AI to power next-generation consumer experiences. 

For Halloween Episodes Podcasts, Vox teams up Gastropod and Now & Then for an episode on the history of trick-or-treating and Halloween candy. 

The "worth a listen" science show, Unexplainable explores paranormal experiences and their psychological explanations (and lack thereof). Galaxy Brains is sharpening their knives to talk about the slasher series Halloween Kills with special guest Henry Zebrowski of The Last Podcast on the Left. 

The Future of Work, Explained Building on the success of Today, Explained's recent episode on “the four-day workweek,” Vox is launching a cross-show initiative on October 29th where Today, Explained; Recode Daily; and The Weeds will explore the dramatic changes in the American workplace — and whether they’re here to stay.

Finally, Switched On Pop -- which was just highlighted in a New York Times piece -- turns its attention to a full slate of programming that reveals the making and meaning behind the holiday’s biggest hits. 

How did Grandma get run over by that reindeer?