Binge Sesh

House of Troy is a new podcast from LA Times Studios tracing the rise and fall of USC football, from coach Pete Carroll’s back-to-back national titles in the 2000s, to the Reggie Bush scandal, to the series of missteps that followed. It’ll feature exclusive interviews with coaches, players, and USC officials who saw it all up close — and shine new light on how a college football dynasty came undone.

Pandora’s Box: The Fall of L.A.’s Sheriff is a six-part true crime investigation from the Los Angeles Times about one of the biggest law enforcement scandals in U.S. history.

Follow Pulitzer Prize–winning reporter Christopher Goffard as he uncovers how Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca, once hailed as a reformer, became entangled in a shocking cover-up inside the nation’s largest jail system. From FBI informants and jailhouse brutality to corruption at the highest levels, this series reveals how deputies hid an inmate, intimidated federal agents, and ultimately brought down one of California’s most powerful sheriffs.

Please enjoy a featured clip of L.A. Times Studio's latest production, L.A. Crimes. On this episode, Madison McGhee is joined by legendary Dateline host Josh Mankiewicz and esteemed L.A. Times Reporter Richard Winton as the three of them dive into all-things Menendez Brothers, the good, the bad, and the still unknown. New episodes drop every Wednesday.

Introducing a new podcast from LA Times Studios and award-winning L.A. Times columnist Sammy Roth, Boiling Point, where Sammy breaks down the many complexities of today's climate challenges and solutions with top experts in the field. In this episode comedian Esteban Gast talks with Sammy about using humor to alleviate climate anxiety, while making clean energy and other environmental solutions more interesting — and even fun. From punchlines to policy, they explore laughter as a powerful tool for change.

"Foretold" is the newest podcast from the L.A. Times, and we're sharing a preview of the first episode with you here today. 

In the fall of 2019, reporter Faith E. Pinho received a tip from a woman named Paulina Stevens. Paulina claimed she had grown up in an insular Romani community in California, where she was raised to be a wife, mother and fortuneteller — until she decided to break away. That first call unraveled a story spanning multiple continents, hundreds of years, and complex metaphysical realities. 

 Follow "Foretold" to hear new episodes every Tuesday. 

All good things must come to an end. Including basketball dynasties (and podcast seasons).

In the season finale of “Binge Sesh,” hosts Matt Brennan and Kareem Maddox examine the lasting effects of the Showtime-era Lakers by looking at what came after. From David Stern and the Olympics Dream Team to ESPN and the Chicago Bulls, we discuss how the NBA attained a new level of prominence in the 1990s and explain how the team of the 1980s made it possible.

For the podcast transcript, real-life photos and links to much more, visit the episode page on latimes.com. 

At a time when HIV was still seen as a death sentence, Magic Johnson shocked the world by announcing he was infected. But the bigger shock may have been what happened next.

In  this episode of “Binge Sesh,” hosts Matt Brennan and Kareem Maddox explore the defining moment that opens HBO’s “Winning Time”: Magic Johnson’s 1991 diagnosis with HIV. With help from experts and Johnson’s fans, we reflect on the announcement’s seismic impact and explore how it changed the face of the disease at the height of the AIDS crisis.

For the podcast transcript, real-life photos and links to much more, visit the episode page on latimes.com. 

What does it mean to say the NBA had a drug problem in the 1970s and 1980s?

In this episode of "Binge Sesh," hosts Matt Brennan and Kareem Maddox examine recreational drug use in professional basketball in the Showtime era. Zooming in on the depiction of Spencer Haywood in HBO's "Winning Time" and zooming out to the U.S. government's war on drugs, we deconstruct the rhetoric — from politicians, the press, even players — that shaped perceptions of the NBA and explain how systemic racism turned a health crisis into a moral panic. 

For the podcast transcript, production stills, real-life photos and links to much more, visit the episode page on latimes.com.