WNYC Studios Launches Its First-Ever Podcasts for Kids

'This Podcast Has Fleas' recently debuted on WNYC.

By Jordan Laird December 8, 2017

WNYC Studios debuted its first children’s podcasts, This Podcast Has Fleas and Pickle, on Dec. 4 and Dec. 11, respectively.

WNYC Studios, a leading creator of original audio programming and podcasts, for the first time ever, is releasing two podcasts aimed at children listeners. On Monday, Dec. 4, the first two episodes of This Podcast Has Fleas debuted. On Monday, Dec. 11, all five episodes of the series Pickle will be released.

This Podcast Has Fleas is a collaboration between WNYC and kid’s television veterans Adam Peltzman (The Backyardigans, Odd Squad, The Electric Company) and Koyalee Chanda (Blue’s Clues). The scripted comedy series follows a well-intentioned dog named Waffles (Emily Lynne) who can’t seem to make things go her way and a cool cat named Jones (Jay Pharoah) with a fondness for auto-tune. Not only do Waffles and Jones have to live together, but these pets also have competing podcasts. According to a press release, Waffles and Jones’ story promises unpredictability, original music, and hilarious recurring characters-including a goldfish (Alec Baldwin) and a gerbil (Eugene Mirman).

“It has been a really exciting creative challenge to go from television, where the visuals are everything, to telling a story with just sound,” said Chanda and Peltzman in a press release. “These podcasts are essentially cartoons with no pictures, and we hope kids will be completely absorbed in this immersive audio experience. As longtime listeners of WNYC, we cannot imagine better partners to bring this experiment to life.”

WNYC will follow This Podcast Has Fleas with Pickle, a five-episode ethics series exploring big ethics questions for small people. According to a press release, co-hosts Shumita Basu (WNYC) and Carl Smith (Australian Broadcasting Corporation), along with ethicist Jennifer Morton (The City College of New York), will use humor and storytelling to help kids and families grapple with life’s ‘pickles.’ Pickle is co-produced with the Australian Broadcasting Company, and is an adaptation of the Australia podcast Short & Curly. They’ll tackles questions such as “When is it okay to tell on a friend?” and “Should elephants be in zoos?” According to the press release, recording for the series took place at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington, and on the New York City subway.