High Theory is one of my favorite podcasts. Each episode of the show brings in an expert to discuss a key term, ranging from “disintermediation” to “Black trans feminism” to “aunties.” Hosted by Kimberly Adams and Saronik Bosu (in their own terms, “two tired academics trying to save critique from itself”), High Theory takes on challenging theoretical or academic concepts, but approaches them in a relaxed, irreverent, and approachable way. The episodes are short enough (usually about 10 to 20 minutes) to slot into my own personal commute to class, but more importantly, they are incredible teaching tools to orient students, friends, and colleagues in complex ideas.
High Theory has been on hiatus for the past few months, but returns this fall! In anticipation of that return, I spoke with Kim and Saronik to talk about what’s next for the podcast.
For readers unfamiliar with the podcast, are there particular past episodes that you think really express what the podcast is all about, or would be a good starting point for a new listener?
Saronik: These aren’t favorites (I love them all!) but maybe they are representative of our general method – Experimental Life with Travis Chi Wing Lau, Racial Affect with Oishani Sengupta, and University Press with Rebecca Colesworthy.
Kim: It’s hard to get a good scope on a project that’s so varied, but perhaps start with Shortage with Eram Alam, Computer Graphics with Bernard Dionysius Geoghegan, and Choice Architecture with Eli Cook.
Saronik: We recently compiled a list of all our guests and were floored by the sheer number of incredible scholars and thinkers we have interviewed. We loved talking to Olivia, Farah, and Jay from the Mid Theory Collective!
What is your vision for High Theory’s return?
Kim Adams: Sanity, safety, comfort, kindness. The security of steady work. The reassuring pressure of deadlines. The pleasure of chronos, ordered time.
Saronik Bosu: To go off on the purview of this magazine, we are trying to scale our productivity back to medium, knowing full well that neither of us are Type A academics who can multitask to any respectable degree.
Kim: We are not trying to shoot the moon.
Can you give us any previews of upcoming episodes or projects?
Saronik: We are coming back with a Halloween episode called ‘Ghosts in Our Fields’ (working title). It’s about things in our field of work that scare us, and we are compiling submissions from our former guests. We should probably have put an embargo on things like capitalism or the job market. Too generally scary.
Kim: We have episodes recorded with Esther Gabara on non-literary fiction, Faye Gleisser on risk, Laura Stamm on biopics, Marcello Vitali-Rosati on bugs, and Priyasha Mukhopadhyay on required reading.
What are you most excited about for the podcast’s future?
Kim: Working with students! We have the chance to hire some student workers on the podcast, so if you know anyone who needs a small gig, let us know. The last time we did this it was pretty amazing. Turns out other people are helpful.
Saronik: Of course, everything is dependent on funding. I would love to go back to planning some in-person events. A live recording maybe!
Kim: We were going to set up a Patreon, and you know, for that you have to give out rewards. Saronik said merch. But I said parties!
How do you see High Theory participating in public humanities and public scholarship?
Kim: Universities and hospital systems are often the largest employers in a city. I doubt High Theory reaches a mythical public beyond the ivory tower, but if we are trapped in the tower all night long (cue Leonard Cohen’s “Tower of Song”) we can recognize its dimensions as a large multinational corporation. In other words, High Theory addresses academics as a public.
Saronik: We have heard back in some instances from the public public, especially about the use of High Theory in pedagogical situations. I know our podcast has been used to train social workers in one case. We want to maximize that, and come up with ways and means to that end.
Anything else you want us to know about you and your return? Anything you want to share or say is fair game!
Kim: Saronik’s art is a key component of the podcast. I think it helps us speak across media and discipline. Also the best part of editing every episode is the “thank you” at the end.
Saronik: Aww, thanks Kim! Finally, if you are reading this, and you want to do an episode with us, please write to us at hightheorypod@gmail.com. We are building our roster for next year, and we would love to hear from you!
Saronik Bosu is a visiting assistant professor in the department of English at Baruch College. Kim Adams is a Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow in Race and Medical Humanities at Wheaton College. Kim and Saronik met over home-brewed rye whiskey for a reading group called Farm to Text. Kim did a PhD on literature and medicine, cursing herself for not going to med school like her parents told her. Saronik chose to work on literature and money while making little of the latter. They run the podcast High Theory (hightheory.net) together.
Olivia Stowell is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Michigan, where she researches race and labor in contemporary television and popular culture. At any given moment, you can probably find her walking her dog Maisie, watching reality TV (for work!), or strategizing about how to acquire hard-to-get restaurant reservations.
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