Charles Rotblut leads a class in AAII's new Essential Investing Video Course. Go to https://www.aaii.com/ves for more information and to subscribe.

In our annual Best of the Web Guide in this issue, we include an updated list of some of the best financial/investing-related podcasts.

Podcasts are akin to on-demand radio shows. In some cases, they are digital versions of actual radio shows. They vary widely in length, from under 10 minutes to two hours and possibly longer. Most are free and can be downloaded via an app onto your phone (e.g., the podcasts app that comes installed on iPhones) or played through a web browser or, in some cases, a smart speaker such as an Amazon Echo. Whatever your personal interest, there’s probably a podcast for it.

I’ve heard about people listening to them at one and a half times and two times the normal speed. The goal is to listen to as much information as quickly as possible. My personal preference is to listen to fewer podcasts but more intently. I download shows I’m genuinely interested in. This restricts what I hear, but it’s a trade-off I’m content making.

As far as the podcasts I subscribe to, there are two I rarely miss an episode of—Marketplace and Sound Opinions.

Marketplace is a daily radio show airing on NPR stations across the country. It covers the financial markets, business and the economy in a conversational tone. Host Kai Ryssdal and his staff have been doing a fantastic job covering the trade war with insights from a variety of people, including business owners. I’ve been a regular listener for more than a decade, possibly much longer, first via radio and now via podcast.

Sound Opinions is a music show hosted by two longtime music critics. Over the years, hosts Jim DeRogatis and Greg Kot have introduced me to a large number of new artists as well as prompted me to relisten to older albums with a new ear (most recently Neil Young’s “Rust Never Sleeps”). The show is primarily focused on a wide variety of rock but has increasingly included hip-hop artists as well.

There are a few others I listen to on a regular rotation. Planet Money provides light-hearted but in-depth coverage of various financial and economic topics. They do some interesting things, such as attempting to buy a satellite and having it launched into orbit. The Curious Investor is a relatively new podcast produced by investment firm AQR Capital Management. Each episode does a deep dive into a particular investing concept, such as how, when and why merger arbitrage works.

Others I listen to depending on time and topic include Freakonomics, Masters in Business, MoneyLife with Chuck Jaffe (I used to be a weekly guest), Standard Deviations, TED Talks and This American Life. If I had time, The Meb Faber Show, The Investor’s Field Guide and The Long View would probably end up on my iPhone.

You can see the podcasts and other essential investing-related websites you should know about in the Best of the Web Guide starting here. Due to space constraints, we can run only a fraction of the entire guide in print; go to the online version of the article for the rest of the best-of sites.

Also in this issue, you’ll see something completely new: mutual fund and exchange-traded fund (ETF) First Cut columns. Like the original and popular stock-focused First Cut articles, these new columns use a specific screening approach to take an initial look at potential investment candidates.

You’ll see more of these First Cut columns next year. They are part of a broader project we’ve been working on. I can’t go into more detail yet, but there are enhancements to AAII.com forthcoming.

For those of you who prefer, shall I say, the First Cut classic, we have that in this moth’s issue too.You’ll find the 20 stocks with the highest shareholder yield here.

Since October is National Financial Planning Month, we’ve asked attorneys Dera Johnsen-Tracy and John Horn to contribute an article on the subject. They responded with estate planning suggestions, which start here. Even if you don’t consider yourself to be uber-wealthy, you’ll find many of the tips to be helpful, including setting up a health care power of attorney and authorization for final disposition. While no one likes to think about their eventual demise, expressing your wants regarding medical care and final resting arrangements will help ensure that your wishes are met and give your family much needed direction.

Wishing you prosperity in addition to a long and healthy life,