Review: Ologies Podcast Explores Everything From Witches to Algae
How Alie Ward's interviews with a wide range of experts subtly make the case for liberalism and pluralism.
Come for the seaweed, stay for the Constitution. In Ologies, podcaster Alie Ward interviews experts in everything from volcanology to vexillology (that's the study of flags). The best episodes reach beyond a collection of gee-whiz facts to a capacious liberalism.
The two-part witchology episode, for example, explores stigmatized spiritual practices with curiosity and respect. "Your own spiritual or religious beliefs are yours to keep," Ward reminds listeners, modeling pluralism in action. In a recent episode she reads the U.S. Constitution aloud, inviting listeners to rediscover "what rights we have, how we obtained them, and how to keep them." Across every topic—from cryptology to a genuinely riveting treatment of algae—Ologies champions the freedom to wonder, question, and live differently.
