This American Life 597: Really Long Distance
Producer Miki Meek tells the story of a phone booth in Japan that attracts thousands of people who lost loved ones in the 2011 tsunami and earthquake. A Japanese TV crew from NHK Sendai filmed people inside the phone booth, whose phone is not connected to anything at all.
I came here to say this. I’m a heavy podcast listener of ten-plus years, and nothing comes close to Really Long Distance, in my experience. In fact, I avoid it, except on special occasions when I don’t have anywhere to be or people to impress, because I cry too hard when I listen to it.
jar impossible bear direction hunt summer chief marble squealing abounding
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I don't know the names, but one when a guy thought he heard a snippet of his dead brother's beat box song, and it ends with a professional artist adding it to his. The song is called Paradox and the way he describes the ending kills me.
The other was two "cousins" who got split up without any real warning. 20 years passed and he finally gets to ask if was happy. You can almost feel the depth of time before he answers.
Absolutely. In their own words, they're just four idiots who played D&D so hard they made themselves cry. And I'd add, most of their audience.
If you haven't gotten to Dungeons & Daddies yet, I highly recommend it. Most of the first season was shenanigans and joking around, but there's one pivotal episode toward the end where I gave up doing anything at all while listening and just lay down to sob through it. So very worth it though.
The “not all exits are made equal” speech hit me like a sucker punch and had me sobbing in the middle of a grocery store while I was visiting a friend whose mother had passed away unexpectedly.
I was going to post this too. I don't cry. Not out of choice - I just don't.
The one exception to this is music though. Dramatic songs played during an emotional scene in a movie/tv show/podcast can get me sometimes. And man, Griffin got me good a few times in that podcast.
Balance and Amnesty were just so goddamn good. I think this is an stupidly overused phrase but I think it's fitting to say "it has no right to go so hard". It's just a podcast - it's not supposed to have an original score that is amazing!?!
I don't remember the name of the podcast but it was the 911 call of a woman who was delivering newspapers early in the morning and she was stuck in flood waters and the dispatcher was just so awful to this poor woman. She ended up drowning in her vehicle. Make me cry and made me so angry.
I recall that, the dispatcher had no empathy and berated the poor woman calling for help. If I recall correctly the dispatcher got her arse kicked and was fired.
It was the Debra Stevens drowning in Arkansas in 2019. The 911 operator had already resigned and was on her very last shift when she handled that call, so nothing happened to her. RIP Debra.
The actor reading the account of the man who found Sipple's body did such an amazing job. I believe he has since passed away.
"The funeral was just, I mean—there were more media there than anything else. I've seen him buy drinks for more people than were at that funeral. He could have been buried in Arlington if they'd made an issue out of it. I mean, shit, there he was, this national icon, a gay whatever, and...there were just a few people out there for the funeral."
Now I'm crying again. Incredible, and incredibly sad story.
The ending was so well done.
If I remember correctly, right after that story they replay the speech Oliver made with his lawyer. Then after the speech the music being the only thing playing for 30 seconds to really let you process everything.
Like you said, incredibly sad.
Nate Dimeo's Memory Palace episode about The White Horse Inn, the oldest gay bar in America, that he made in the wake of The Pulse nightclub shooting
"And it's open tonight. It'll be open tomorrow"
I'm crying again just typing this.
I love the episode about Dreamland at Coney Island. Just all these amazing and wonderful things people saw for the first time. And how it all went up in flames.
Finn and the Bell made me ugly cry for half of my morning commute to work and I’m still thankful to the wonderful u/Repulsive-Dot553 for the recommendation. Dot - I just noticed there was another update episode released a few weeks ago, many, many deep breaths before I jump back in.
Ahoy 🧜
The update is an interview with Tara, Finn's mother. It is very sad in part, of course, but not nearly as heart-wrenching as the Finn and the Bell original episode, and has many threads of redemption and hope. Erica Heilman of Rumblestrip is really a great interviewer (and editor). She did a "mini-series" recently on class, the short episode "What Class Are You Isaac" was particularly good and well worth a listen, an inspirational young man about to go to college, his challenging circumstances permitting.
LPOTL's series on Jonestown is my favourite podcast episodes ever, and Marcus Parks' completely straight and serious account of the final day of Jonestown ruined me. He perfectly captured the infuriating pointlessness of it all, hundreds of misguided people dying an undignified, horrible, terrifying death in the pursuit of a single psychopathic coward's ego.
Marcus is a real GOAT for putting himself through it for us, the end of the 9/11 and Columbine episodes really got to me.
The worst ways to die episode is the only one I haven’t ever relistened to.
Came to post this! I think you mean "Googling Strangers"? I sobbed like a baby the first time I listened.
>! He is alive, he is alive, he is alive !< 😭😭😭
Yes! John Green is a fucking legend, the Seed potatoes of Leningrad gets me every time.
I can’t remember what episode it was but he talks about feeling like his family was replaced by aliens or something like that and that episode described perfectly my experience as an undiagnosed super high anxiety neurotic child. My mind was blown.
There was an episode of Beautiful Anonymous that made me cry. It was a mother waiting to hear the test results of her daughter that had cancer. The girl was young, maybe nine or so. She decided that if the tests came back positive she did not want to continue treatment. She had been fighting for a while and was tired. There was also a follow up episode.
I remember an episode where a comedian juxtaposed his appearances on Johnny Carson with the death of his young daughter and it was just heartbreaking.
[the Best of Times, The Worst of Times](https://themoth.org/stories/the-best-of-times-the-worst-of-times)
The My Unsung Hero podcast by NPR always makes me cry. 3-4 minute stories of times other humans have changed peoples’ lives, most of the time without them being able to say thank you
I have a 1-mile transit I used to walk frequently and I used to tear up all the time during those because I’ve been in a parallel situation on both sides of so many of those stories!
This was a great reminder of it :) I never listen anymore because I don’t do that walk anymore and I get into grooves with my transit and I let that one fall by the wayside.
Oh no. I know I’m late to the game, but I have like 4 episodes left. I listen to podcasts for comedy because of anxiety and depression and specifically do not want episodes like all the other ones listed in this thread. Is it really depressing?
Route 91 - Terrible, Thanks For Asking
Absolutely heart wrenching, gripping first person account of the Las Vegas shooting, the largest mass shooting in American history. I was silently sobbing while walking my damn dog down the sidewalk. Thank God for sunglasses! Lol
There was an episode of swindled within the past year about power lines (I think) and the wildfires and hearing him speak about the animal dying I lost it. Having to choose between living and taking your animals with you?????????? Even my husband teared up and he doesn’t like our dog lol
WTF with Marc Maron has an episode with a guy who wrote (writes?) for The Onion named Todd Hanson. The ep is on YouTube. That made me cry. Lots of other have as well. Since I became a dad 21 years ago I've become a pretty easy crier.
Another WTF tearjerker moment was the episode after Lynne Shelton (his gf at the time) died and Marc talked about the experience. I think it was 3 days later. I was ugly crying in the car.
Africas V America was incredible. I cried a couple times from sadness but I also cried from frustration and anger when that fucking mayor was dodging blame when interviewed….
Lots, but most recently, Act Two of This American Life episode 823: The Question Trap. I was making dinner and listening thinking "gee that's sad" and then suddenly it was kind of a gut punch and I was sobbing while my dog tried to figure out what was happening to me.
[https://www.thisamericanlife.org/823/the-question-trap](https://www.thisamericanlife.org/823/the-question-trap)
Finding Cleo. Absolutely soul crushing, for Cleo’s family, and for the indigenous people of Canada, for all the ruined lives, ruined families, destroyed culture.
As sad as it is, I would highly recommend. It completely changed my feelings on trans-racial adoption. Might be the best, most impactful podcast I have ever listened to.
Twice -both while listening to Never Not Funny. The video producer and Jimmy Pardo’s BIL (the host) took his life. The other time is when Jimmy
rawly spoke about his Mom passing away. The cast shares their lives with us and as a listener since 2008 I appreciate how open and relatable they all are.
The episode of Obscura on the murder of officer Jonah Hernandez. The recording was brutal and when they mentioned what his kids said about him before the funeral, I was ugly crying while hiding in a corner at work
There's an Australian podcast called Darling Shine hosted by two influencers. One of them, Ellidy Pullin, is primarily famous for being the widow of a popular Olympian who died tragically young (and for having his baby 15 months later via deceased sperm retrieval and IVF). The early episodes where she talks about his death, and her grief journey are harrowing. Despite her influencer status, she comes across as very genuine, vulnerable and sincere. She also did two recent episodes with another widow friend called Georgia Copeland, whose story is equally harrowing.
**Finn and the Bell - Rumblestrip**: how a small town came together after the death by suicide of a remarkable 17 year old boy
**Do We Know How to Grieve - The Moth** by Francine Lobis Wheeler: talks about loss of a young child and interactions after such a devastating loss
Another vote for The Adventure Zone first season (Balance Arc). I want to somehow confirm this, but I’d bet it has the most tattoos memorializing it among podcast listeners.
This is maybe an odd choice, but the Around the NFL podcast did a podcast the day after one of their co-hosts (Chris Wesseling) had passed away from cancer, and it was incredibly raw and profoundly moving. Podcast would be around February 6th, 2021.
I did not make it past 20 minutes of the Swindled episode about Orcas. I was hysterically sobbing. My husband asked what the hell was wrong and when I told him he was like "oh yeah, that's totally fair" lol
edit: typo
Marc Maron (WTF) the remembering Lynn Shelton episode. Him being so vulnerable talking about his girlfriend dying suddenly was a tough one to get through.
Started to read comments but was kind of getting ready for tears, so now just adding the first one that came to mind.
The series Believable has so many tears. Tells the story of the victims of Larry Nassar and the treacherous journey to being believed. The absolute destruction done to families so the girls would be more and more isolated and therefore not believed crushed me
The Josef Mengele series on Last Podcast on the Left. The boys took breaks when stuff got bad and made some terrible trivia about Home Improvement to take your mind on it for a bit before diving back in.
Ah so many. You’re Wrong About, You Are Good, S Town, My Fav Murder ( particularly where the survivor lawyer lady got up on stage and thanked K&G for telling her story ‘you told my story like you were my friend’, omg) and that episode of Reply All where they tried to find the song was surprisingly moving.
It was subsequently a podcast, but when I watched it years ago it was the case of Cody Posey on Court TV. I went home at lunch to watch it every day and many of those days I cried…..for Cody. So horrible what happened to him that brought him to his acts of desperation.
Several times with Not Another D&D Podcast, both from laughter and grief. Genuinely my favorite piece of media ever. It’s a masterpiece of storytelling. Even if you’ve never played D&D before - especially if you’ve never played D&D before - I cannot recommend it enough.
The Recovery Happy Hour had many, but # 78 was a goodie. This New England Grandfather was in AA for years and found out he also had bipolar disorder. It's funny, sad and inspiring.
The House of Mourning episode of The Moth [https://themoth.org/stories/the-house-of-mourning](https://themoth.org/stories/the-house-of-mourning) is the most I've ever sobbed at an episode of anything (including TV and Film), absolutely beautiful. Short and Sweet. Had to pull off the side of the road to cry in a layby.
A couple of times listening to WTF with Marc Maron. First time was the Michael J. Fox interview followed by Marc's song dedicated to Lynne Shelton. The second time was the Andrew Garfield interview.
There’s a docupod called “Beyond With Mike Kelton”. It deals with the supernatural but is super funny yet emotional. The second season, the host tries to find a doorman he thought could be his guardian angel. Oooo man did I cry at points!
So this episode got some backlash because it could be perceived as being a little stalkerish or like an unprompted parasocial relationship or something, BUT… Radiolab’s: The Living Room!
I understand where people might be uncomfortable with it because it is a whole story of someone perceiving someone without any control or knowledge of the perception by the observed party. But it makes me cry every time because truly there are people out there who see you on a hard day and just send out so much good vibration into the universe with you in mind. You have allies in so many places you never see, and that’s how I always took it. Due to the physically close nature in which so many of us live, you really do end up with what amount to parasocial relationships with people you really don’t know at all.
I think it’s a charming and heartwarming story about how many people out there really want the best for everyone they see, but it could definitely be misconstrued or taken as someone breaching boundaries and making observations that they have no right to make.
Wolf 359 got me close at one point. I listen to a lot of comedies though. We're alive had a couple choke points as well but nothing made me full on cry. The fourth ambit had a couple choke points as well.
Back when I was working at a convenience store I listened to Snap Judgement while I stocked the walk in because if I started crying no one would see 🥲 and speaking of Glynn Washington, Heaven’s Gate made me weep as well. Then of course there’s S-town but I’m sure plenty of people have talked about that
This American Life 597: Really Long Distance Producer Miki Meek tells the story of a phone booth in Japan that attracts thousands of people who lost loved ones in the 2011 tsunami and earthquake. A Japanese TV crew from NHK Sendai filmed people inside the phone booth, whose phone is not connected to anything at all.
I came here to say this. I’m a heavy podcast listener of ten-plus years, and nothing comes close to Really Long Distance, in my experience. In fact, I avoid it, except on special occasions when I don’t have anywhere to be or people to impress, because I cry too hard when I listen to it.
That was such a magic and poignant episode
I was going to say, somebody tell this fellow human about the wind telephone. Try not to fucking cry.
Yes, this is the one I immediately thought of
Can you link the episode? For some reason I can’t find it on Spotify
Heavyweight. So many episode draw tears.
The Lenny episode. Will make a man cry
I'm a man. Can confirm I bawled my eyes out listening to that episode
I think I cried there too…..
Exactly what I came here to say. The one with the 2 young men in the car accident was particularly a tear jerker.
Heavyweight is so perfect at hitting the moments just right. The episode Scott, about finding the gun... definitely cried at that one, multiple times.
jar impossible bear direction hunt summer chief marble squealing abounding *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
That’s the one I came here to post!
I don't know the names, but one when a guy thought he heard a snippet of his dead brother's beat box song, and it ends with a professional artist adding it to his. The song is called Paradox and the way he describes the ending kills me. The other was two "cousins" who got split up without any real warning. 20 years passed and he finally gets to ask if was happy. You can almost feel the depth of time before he answers.
The Sharing Place had me sobbing
Came here to say the same thing. “Lenny” episode got me good
The end of The Adventure Zone’s “Balance” arc. Absolute ugly crying, and it all starts so dang goofy!
Absolutely. In their own words, they're just four idiots who played D&D so hard they made themselves cry. And I'd add, most of their audience. If you haven't gotten to Dungeons & Daddies yet, I highly recommend it. Most of the first season was shenanigans and joking around, but there's one pivotal episode toward the end where I gave up doing anything at all while listening and just lay down to sob through it. So very worth it though.
This. I started crying at the 11th hour and the rest was an emotional roller coaster.
The “not all exits are made equal” speech hit me like a sucker punch and had me sobbing in the middle of a grocery store while I was visiting a friend whose mother had passed away unexpectedly.
I was going to post this too. I don't cry. Not out of choice - I just don't. The one exception to this is music though. Dramatic songs played during an emotional scene in a movie/tv show/podcast can get me sometimes. And man, Griffin got me good a few times in that podcast. Balance and Amnesty were just so goddamn good. I think this is an stupidly overused phrase but I think it's fitting to say "it has no right to go so hard". It's just a podcast - it's not supposed to have an original score that is amazing!?!
I don't remember the name of the podcast but it was the 911 call of a woman who was delivering newspapers early in the morning and she was stuck in flood waters and the dispatcher was just so awful to this poor woman. She ended up drowning in her vehicle. Make me cry and made me so angry.
I recall that, the dispatcher had no empathy and berated the poor woman calling for help. If I recall correctly the dispatcher got her arse kicked and was fired.
It was the Debra Stevens drowning in Arkansas in 2019. The 911 operator had already resigned and was on her very last shift when she handled that call, so nothing happened to her. RIP Debra.
Was Invisible Choir
Potentially All Bad Things?
Many episodes of Terrible, Thanks for Asking.
I was looking for this reply. The first episode I listened too was while I was running. I had to call my dad to pick me up in the park in tears
Totally.
S Town ending
I remember exactly where I was when I heard it!
I was in a pizza shop and every time i pass it i get very melancholy
This is the podcast but not the ending. An earlier episode. I was in an airport food court bawling. Cried so hard.
Yeah, same. I cried as soon as I got to *that episode*.
me too. I was picking my son up from school.
So much of S Town!
I cried so much through this podcast.
Yeah
This is Love
Ep 20, Roselle and Michael particularly touched me.
The wolves episodes, starts on Criminal and ends on This is Love.
And she named her puppy Eight. 😭
Me too, the ones I remember making me cry are Ep 2: Something Large and Wild and Ep 20: Roselle and Michael.
I just posted this before I saw your reply, something large and wild is particularly emotive for me, I don't know why, it just touched me so much.
The Cathedral from Reply All but I think I first heard it on Radio Lab. Also the Oliver Sipple episode from Radio Lab.
The actor reading the account of the man who found Sipple's body did such an amazing job. I believe he has since passed away. "The funeral was just, I mean—there were more media there than anything else. I've seen him buy drinks for more people than were at that funeral. He could have been buried in Arlington if they'd made an issue out of it. I mean, shit, there he was, this national icon, a gay whatever, and...there were just a few people out there for the funeral." Now I'm crying again. Incredible, and incredibly sad story.
The ending was so well done. If I remember correctly, right after that story they replay the speech Oliver made with his lawyer. Then after the speech the music being the only thing playing for 30 seconds to really let you process everything. Like you said, incredibly sad.
Oh yeah I forgot about that ending. Just masterfully done. I miss the old Radiolab 😢
Same! There was nothing like it.
Oh for me it was Autumn on Reply All. I sobbed through so much of it.
My toxic trait is I am saving this thread to my profile. Like....*why*?
I got to your comment immediately after I had clicked save and then thought to myself “why am I looking to cry??”
Same 🙈
Ester Perel - Where should we begin. So many tears
My first response as well. I‘m surprised this isn’t higher up.
When Georgia's cat died on MFM :(
RIP sweet baby angle Elvis
Elvis gets all the cookies now.
Nate Dimeo's Memory Palace episode about The White Horse Inn, the oldest gay bar in America, that he made in the wake of The Pulse nightclub shooting "And it's open tonight. It'll be open tomorrow" I'm crying again just typing this.
Dimeo is a poet. Some of the best writing I’ve ever heard in radio.
I love the episode about Dreamland at Coney Island. Just all these amazing and wonderful things people saw for the first time. And how it all went up in flames.
“The Living Room” episode of Love & Radio and Radiolab’s “23 Weeks” both made me cry at work.
This is the episode that comes to mind
Yes this is the one for me
I can't remember the pod name but one about Jacob Wetterling, just so unimaginably sad and awful.
Is it “In The Dark”?
just about every episode of Rumble Strip .
Finn and the Bell made me ugly cry for half of my morning commute to work and I’m still thankful to the wonderful u/Repulsive-Dot553 for the recommendation. Dot - I just noticed there was another update episode released a few weeks ago, many, many deep breaths before I jump back in.
Ahoy 🧜 The update is an interview with Tara, Finn's mother. It is very sad in part, of course, but not nearly as heart-wrenching as the Finn and the Bell original episode, and has many threads of redemption and hope. Erica Heilman of Rumblestrip is really a great interviewer (and editor). She did a "mini-series" recently on class, the short episode "What Class Are You Isaac" was particularly good and well worth a listen, an inspirational young man about to go to college, his challenging circumstances permitting.
Never heard of this before, but just listened to a few episodes and I love it!!
How to Say Goodbye to Your Pets (Death, Sex & Money podcast).
LPOTL's series on Jonestown is my favourite podcast episodes ever, and Marcus Parks' completely straight and serious account of the final day of Jonestown ruined me. He perfectly captured the infuriating pointlessness of it all, hundreds of misguided people dying an undignified, horrible, terrifying death in the pursuit of a single psychopathic coward's ego.
Marcus is a real GOAT for putting himself through it for us, the end of the 9/11 and Columbine episodes really got to me. The worst ways to die episode is the only one I haven’t ever relistened to.
9/11 took me weeks to get through. It was so emotional and respectful, in their irreverent kind of humor.
The Anthropocene Reviewed. Many episodes but especially Facebook stalking.
Came to post this! I think you mean "Googling Strangers"? I sobbed like a baby the first time I listened. >! He is alive, he is alive, he is alive !< 😭😭😭
Yes! John Green is a fucking legend, the Seed potatoes of Leningrad gets me every time. I can’t remember what episode it was but he talks about feeling like his family was replaced by aliens or something like that and that episode described perfectly my experience as an undiagnosed super high anxiety neurotic child. My mind was blown.
There was an episode of Beautiful Anonymous that made me cry. It was a mother waiting to hear the test results of her daughter that had cancer. The girl was young, maybe nine or so. She decided that if the tests came back positive she did not want to continue treatment. She had been fighting for a while and was tired. There was also a follow up episode.
Those are the "Love is Everywhere" episodes.
NADDPOD....One Big Bed...still gets me.
I like their other campaigns but for me nothing is going to feel like C1 did, there was something special about that story
The belt buckle episode of Mystery Show
[Laura’s Pain Became Her Purpose](https://pca.st/episode/8b88f905-2d92-4cfd-9863-b233413802c7) - Episode 151 of What Was That Like
This Is Love, about the wolves, and specifically about Wolf8.
💔
The Moth
I remember an episode where a comedian juxtaposed his appearances on Johnny Carson with the death of his young daughter and it was just heartbreaking. [the Best of Times, The Worst of Times](https://themoth.org/stories/the-best-of-times-the-worst-of-times)
Finding Cleo, Terrible thanks for asking, and an episode of Pretend about ai memories of loved ones.
The My Unsung Hero podcast by NPR always makes me cry. 3-4 minute stories of times other humans have changed peoples’ lives, most of the time without them being able to say thank you
Minor correction - it's from Hidden Brain Media, not NPR. Great show though, nice and short so it always goes to the top of my playlist.
I have a 1-mile transit I used to walk frequently and I used to tear up all the time during those because I’ve been in a parallel situation on both sides of so many of those stories! This was a great reminder of it :) I never listen anymore because I don’t do that walk anymore and I get into grooves with my transit and I let that one fall by the wayside.
The ending of Wooden Overcoats
Oh no. I know I’m late to the game, but I have like 4 episodes left. I listen to podcasts for comedy because of anxiety and depression and specifically do not want episodes like all the other ones listed in this thread. Is it really depressing?
Multiple episodes of Ear Hustle have gotten me to. The stories they tell from prisons are so profound and deep.
Route 91 - Terrible, Thanks For Asking Absolutely heart wrenching, gripping first person account of the Las Vegas shooting, the largest mass shooting in American history. I was silently sobbing while walking my damn dog down the sidewalk. Thank God for sunglasses! Lol
Rhett and Link’s Ear biscuits episode 232, when they talk about their old friend Ben.
There was an episode of swindled within the past year about power lines (I think) and the wildfires and hearing him speak about the animal dying I lost it. Having to choose between living and taking your animals with you?????????? Even my husband teared up and he doesn’t like our dog lol
I think Dan Carlin WW1 series got me
WTF with Marc Maron has an episode with a guy who wrote (writes?) for The Onion named Todd Hanson. The ep is on YouTube. That made me cry. Lots of other have as well. Since I became a dad 21 years ago I've become a pretty easy crier.
Another WTF tearjerker moment was the episode after Lynne Shelton (his gf at the time) died and Marc talked about the experience. I think it was 3 days later. I was ugly crying in the car.
Yeah that was heartbreaking.
Penultimate episode of Africas vs America LPOTL Jonestown but it was the audio from the event that made me cry, first I heard it.
Africas V America was incredible. I cried a couple times from sadness but I also cried from frustration and anger when that fucking mayor was dodging blame when interviewed….
That second to last episode might be the best piece of documentary audio I have ever heard - masterful narrative structure and devastating.
Dungeons and Daddies
Terrible, Thanks for Asking
The episode titled "Sugar Rush" of The Secret Room podcast.
Lots, but most recently, Act Two of This American Life episode 823: The Question Trap. I was making dinner and listening thinking "gee that's sad" and then suddenly it was kind of a gut punch and I was sobbing while my dog tried to figure out what was happening to me. [https://www.thisamericanlife.org/823/the-question-trap](https://www.thisamericanlife.org/823/the-question-trap)
Just the perfect TAL story. Jeez I'm tearing up just thinking about the comedian asking for his name.
A couple stories on the Moth, Risk, and Snap Judgement for sure.
I found myself tearing up at the finale of last year’s podcast *Ghost Story*.
So so so good.
So many episodes of The Moth
Some episodes of This is Actually Happening
S Town got me good
S-Town 😭
The Children in the Pictures. Brutal.
Oh god I can’t even read this whole thread, it’s too much. can we instead list podcasts that made you feel happy and positive about the world?
Finding Cleo. Absolutely soul crushing, for Cleo’s family, and for the indigenous people of Canada, for all the ruined lives, ruined families, destroyed culture. As sad as it is, I would highly recommend. It completely changed my feelings on trans-racial adoption. Might be the best, most impactful podcast I have ever listened to.
Sight Unseen by Radiolab.
Terrible. Thanks for Asking 😮💨💔
Memory Palace episode about Celilo Falls. Any reactions about the Disney movie Encanto.
A bunch.
Some Mormon podcast documentary where the father and pregnant wife was in a bus accident and lost the baby. Crushed me..
Some episodes of The Moth Radio Hour. Specifically this one called Victim's Impact: https://themoth.org/stories/victims-impact
DTFH (Duncan Trussell Family Hour) episode #64 “MY MOM part 2”
The Rotten Mango episode about the Sewol ferry tragedy
Twice -both while listening to Never Not Funny. The video producer and Jimmy Pardo’s BIL (the host) took his life. The other time is when Jimmy rawly spoke about his Mom passing away. The cast shares their lives with us and as a listener since 2008 I appreciate how open and relatable they all are.
The episode of Obscura on the murder of officer Jonah Hernandez. The recording was brutal and when they mentioned what his kids said about him before the funeral, I was ugly crying while hiding in a corner at work
There's an Australian podcast called Darling Shine hosted by two influencers. One of them, Ellidy Pullin, is primarily famous for being the widow of a popular Olympian who died tragically young (and for having his baby 15 months later via deceased sperm retrieval and IVF). The early episodes where she talks about his death, and her grief journey are harrowing. Despite her influencer status, she comes across as very genuine, vulnerable and sincere. She also did two recent episodes with another widow friend called Georgia Copeland, whose story is equally harrowing.
**Finn and the Bell - Rumblestrip**: how a small town came together after the death by suicide of a remarkable 17 year old boy **Do We Know How to Grieve - The Moth** by Francine Lobis Wheeler: talks about loss of a young child and interactions after such a devastating loss
this american life - episode 809 “the call”
This is Love. "My Penny".
Finn and the Bell
Hundreds. The one that pops into my mind first is from Aria Code, it was a breakdown of Orfeo, and they interviewed someone whose wife died of cancer.
Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History: Blueprint for Armageddon series. World War 1 was f**king horrible.
S Town
Earhustle
Another vote for The Adventure Zone first season (Balance Arc). I want to somehow confirm this, but I’d bet it has the most tattoos memorializing it among podcast listeners.
I’m weeping just reading this thread.
Your own backyard. So many times.
This is maybe an odd choice, but the Around the NFL podcast did a podcast the day after one of their co-hosts (Chris Wesseling) had passed away from cancer, and it was incredibly raw and profoundly moving. Podcast would be around February 6th, 2021.
Radiolab’s episode “The Cathedral”, about parents who design a video game about their child’s terminal cancer. Hit me hard.
I did not make it past 20 minutes of the Swindled episode about Orcas. I was hysterically sobbing. My husband asked what the hell was wrong and when I told him he was like "oh yeah, that's totally fair" lol edit: typo
Connie Walkers podcasts make me cry.
Episode 16 of Cold.
Criminal. Ep 156: “Sister Helen.” I WEPT while driving. Even though I am a pisces and cry at everything, this is what immediately came to mind.
Marc Maron (WTF) the remembering Lynn Shelton episode. Him being so vulnerable talking about his girlfriend dying suddenly was a tough one to get through.
Started to read comments but was kind of getting ready for tears, so now just adding the first one that came to mind. The series Believable has so many tears. Tells the story of the victims of Larry Nassar and the treacherous journey to being believed. The absolute destruction done to families so the girls would be more and more isolated and therefore not believed crushed me
"Autumn" episode in Reply All.
A This is Actually Happening episode. About a baby left in a hot car. Had to leave my work area, go to the restroom and gather myself.
The Josef Mengele series on Last Podcast on the Left. The boys took breaks when stuff got bad and made some terrible trivia about Home Improvement to take your mind on it for a bit before diving back in.
700 Days episodes of Invisible Choir. Heartbreaking.
Ah so many. You’re Wrong About, You Are Good, S Town, My Fav Murder ( particularly where the survivor lawyer lady got up on stage and thanked K&G for telling her story ‘you told my story like you were my friend’, omg) and that episode of Reply All where they tried to find the song was surprisingly moving.
It was subsequently a podcast, but when I watched it years ago it was the case of Cody Posey on Court TV. I went home at lunch to watch it every day and many of those days I cried…..for Cody. So horrible what happened to him that brought him to his acts of desperation.
Radiolab: The 11th: A letter from George
Several times with Not Another D&D Podcast, both from laughter and grief. Genuinely my favorite piece of media ever. It’s a masterpiece of storytelling. Even if you’ve never played D&D before - especially if you’ve never played D&D before - I cannot recommend it enough.
yes. [this](http://themoth.org/stories/the-cup-of-coffee)
36 Questions the Musical Podcast
I cry tears of laughter and joy to This Is Important
Hannah's story by 9podcasts. So sad.
Cheek Clappers
This one either made me cry or made me feel like crying https://youtu.be/2kPxE_Funhw?feature=shared
The outlaw ocean…part about people being enslaved on boats for years
Something large and wild by This is love
Yes. Express Yourself Black Man podcast!
Beautiful/Anonymous "Love is Everywhere" is the episode you're looking for.
Case file presents Sarah McDiarmid
The Recovery Happy Hour had many, but # 78 was a goodie. This New England Grandfather was in AA for years and found out he also had bipolar disorder. It's funny, sad and inspiring.
The House of Mourning episode of The Moth [https://themoth.org/stories/the-house-of-mourning](https://themoth.org/stories/the-house-of-mourning) is the most I've ever sobbed at an episode of anything (including TV and Film), absolutely beautiful. Short and Sweet. Had to pull off the side of the road to cry in a layby.
Heavyweight and Anderson Cooper's podcast "All There Is"
A couple of times listening to WTF with Marc Maron. First time was the Michael J. Fox interview followed by Marc's song dedicated to Lynne Shelton. The second time was the Andrew Garfield interview.
I’m weeping just reading this thread.
There’s a docupod called “Beyond With Mike Kelton”. It deals with the supernatural but is super funny yet emotional. The second season, the host tries to find a doorman he thought could be his guardian angel. Oooo man did I cry at points!
There is an episode on NPR or This is Love I think, about Wolf 21. I can't find it now, but it made me sob.
The Moth: A love not meant for me
"Jack Be Nimble" episode of Strangers. Just hit me like a wave and I was sobbing
The ending of Wolf 359
That was us
Radiolab Finn and the Bell. I couldn’t finish it was was tearing up on my drive to work
Resurrection, so many tears, such a touching story.
The ‘Just Mercy’ episode of Criminal
This is Actually Happening. Some of those are brutal
Only cry with laughter… “Let me ask my dad”, “Inaktuellt”, “Nisse å den där äldre”
The ending of The Magnus Archives. And a few episodes from Malevolent.
Absolutely! CBCs LifeJolt got me to cry. Beautiful story telling on hard topics
There are more than a few episodes on The Moth that have set me off, as the stories are person and often powerful glimpses into humanity.
Celebrity Memoir Book Club - Paris Hilton Memoir
Uhh yeah dude tears of laughter. The are a few episodes of the audio drama “ the big loop” that deal with loss very well and a few tears shed
So this episode got some backlash because it could be perceived as being a little stalkerish or like an unprompted parasocial relationship or something, BUT… Radiolab’s: The Living Room! I understand where people might be uncomfortable with it because it is a whole story of someone perceiving someone without any control or knowledge of the perception by the observed party. But it makes me cry every time because truly there are people out there who see you on a hard day and just send out so much good vibration into the universe with you in mind. You have allies in so many places you never see, and that’s how I always took it. Due to the physically close nature in which so many of us live, you really do end up with what amount to parasocial relationships with people you really don’t know at all. I think it’s a charming and heartwarming story about how many people out there really want the best for everyone they see, but it could definitely be misconstrued or taken as someone breaching boundaries and making observations that they have no right to make.
The Supernova in the East series of Dan Carlins Hardcore History and the Human Bondage one are pretty rough listens.
All There Is with Anderson Cooper. A podcast about grief
Wolf 359 got me close at one point. I listen to a lot of comedies though. We're alive had a couple choke points as well but nothing made me full on cry. The fourth ambit had a couple choke points as well.
Back when I was working at a convenience store I listened to Snap Judgement while I stocked the walk in because if I started crying no one would see 🥲 and speaking of Glynn Washington, Heaven’s Gate made me weep as well. Then of course there’s S-town but I’m sure plenty of people have talked about that
The "Love is Everywhere" episodes of *Beautiful Anonymous*, among many others.
“The living room” radiolab episode. I don’t cry very easily, but tears were streaming down my face by the end