TLDR: #49 - Do URL Believe in Magic?
March 15, 2015 9:48 PM - Subscribe

What happens when you buy a magic spell on Etsy?

Writer Jaya Saxena and her husband Matt Lubchansky recently tested one witch's wares, and they talk to TLDR about being careful what you wish for. Plus, TLDR hires our own spellcaster, a mystic named Melenia O'Breasal, to talk about how a person comes to cast spells, where all that incense comes from, and the difference between peddling magic online and off.

Jaya's Daily Dot piece
Melenia's Etsy shop
Melenia's website
posted by radioamy (8 comments total)
 
Not their strongest ep but I thought it was entertaining.

However WNYC has just announced that they are canceling TLDR. I'm bummed. I liked the spin that Haggerty was putting on it. There are also not enough female voices in podcasting!

Does anyone know any more details on why it was canceled? Just low ratings or did it have something to do with the Wadhwa thing?
posted by radioamy at 9:44 AM on March 16, 2015


I'd wager that had something to do with it. WNYC brass was clearly not happy with that whole thing. It's not like Hagerty had final say on how that episode would be put together and it's a shame she (and the show) paid the price for it.
posted by inturnaround at 9:54 AM on March 16, 2015


I wonder if this episode was the last straw?

I dunno, it wasn't bad but it sure was fluffy. Jaya's article was better.

Sorry to hear they were canceled effective immediately. Ouch.
posted by jenfullmoon at 2:28 PM on March 16, 2015


WNYC had some half-assed tweet about there being a future for TLDR, so we'll see. It looks like Meredith was canned though which sucks.

However Roman Mars reached out to her so maybe this is a blessing in disguise?

(Thank goodness for Twitter and its nuggets of podcast gossip!)
posted by radioamy at 4:23 PM on March 16, 2015 [1 favorite]


That's too bad. I liked Haggerty's take, but I never felt like she really wanted to do this show. She said some things that made it sound like she was just doing it on the side until someone else took over. Except for the big Wadwha thing, most of her episodes were repackaging materials that she had found elsewhere.
posted by skewed at 9:39 PM on March 16, 2015


@skewed, I was more under the impression that since her contract with WNYC wasn't exactly ironclad she herself didn't know when her "guest host" gig might end.

I will miss the Haggerty era TLDR. I really hope they don't keep trying to reboot it. Just let it die and maybe try to think up a more specific theme than "it's about the internet".

It's bizarre that Brooke is starting up a "House of Cards" recap show so soon before TLDR imploding. Like some kind of law of conservation of podcasts. Unless that show was a big prank that I would only realize if I'd listened past the intro.

I will NOT miss visiting the On The Media forums to get updates on TLDR goings-on. The comments sections on the Wadhwa posts are a disaster zone.
posted by tjgrathwell at 11:40 PM on March 16, 2015


Does anyone know about Haggerty's history? I assumed she worked at WNYC prior to this but now I'm thinking it was just a contract gig for the podcast? I had never heard of her before.
posted by radioamy at 7:26 AM on March 17, 2015




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