The Data Journalism Podcast

Alberto Cairo, Simon Rogers, and Scott Klein are three of the most respected names in data journalism, and their monthly podcast is basically a masterclass in how numbers become stories. Cairo is a professor and visualization expert at the University of Miami, Rogers built Google's News Lab data team, and Klein runs ProPublica's news applications desk. That combination means you get academic rigor, industry perspective, and newsroom practicality all in one conversation. With 50 episodes and a 4.8-star rating, the show covers everything from the Trans News Initiative's data-tracking project to how Singapore's Straits Times handles visualization, to politicians misusing data graphics in campaigns. A recent episode looked at how data journalism tracked federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota, blending technical methodology with real human impact. Each episode runs about 45 minutes and typically features a guest who's doing interesting work at places like the BBC, Reuters, or smaller independent newsrooms. The hosts have a genuine rapport that makes even technical discussions about chart types or dataset cleaning feel approachable. It's a niche show, no question, but for anyone interested in how journalists use data to hold power accountable, or for aspiring data journalists looking to learn from the best, there's nothing else quite like it in the podcast space right now.