Boomtown (podcast)
Boomtown is a podcast about big oil in the Permian Basin hosted by Christian Wallace and produced by "Texas Monthly" in partnership with "Imperative Entertainment". Background. The show was produced by "Texas Monthly" in partnership with "Imperative Entertainment," and syndicated on Marfa Public Radio. The show debuted on December 10, 2019 with Jason Hoch as the executive producer of the show. "Boomtown" is a narrative serialized show about the 21st century Texas oil boom that occurred in the Permian Basin. Christian Wallace—the host of the show—grew up in Andrews, Texas and previously spent a year as  a roughneck in the oilfields working on drilling rigs. The first episode of the ten part series is about U.S. Route 285 in Texas known as "Death Highway" or the "Highway to Hell" because the traffic from tank trucks carrying oil has increased the number of deaths by 67% since the beginning of the oil boom. Reception. In January of 2020, CBS7 reported that the show hit number one on the iTunes and Spotify charts and had stayed within the top twenty documentary podcasts. Laura Jane Standley and Eric McQuade of the "The Atlantic" included the show on their list  of the "50 Best Podcasts of 2020" saying that the "show is a beautiful ride filled with levity, even as it delivers troubling forecasts for the future." Erin Berger of Outside commented on the show saying that "Boomtown ... prove[s] that good storytelling about devastating environmental issues is still vitally important, informative, and inspiring." David Leffler of "Austin Monthly" called the show "Compelling, illuminating, and gripping."