“The Big Listen” host Lauren Ober. Photo by Ben Wall.

“I’m gonna start a podcast,” your friends have probably announced at one point or another. Hell, you’ve probably said it to yourself at least once. But first, you’ve got to listen to all of the other must-listen shows, which seem to pile higher by the day.

Or do you? How do you figure out which podcasts deserve your attention, and which ones you can click “unsubscribe” without a shred of FOMO?

That’s where “The Big Listen” comes in. Premiering on WAMU this Sunday at 6 p.m., the show wants to guide its audiences through the ever-growing landscape of podcasting. And, in a healthy measure of walking-the-walk, it will also be a podcast.

Image courtesy of WAMU.

“I think we at WAMU see the need to be in the podcast space, and this was a way we could provide some value-add to our audience,” says Lauren Ober, the host of “The Big Listen.” “For some, this will be an introduction to podcasts. And for listeners who are already into podcasts, it gives them a chance to explore even more. There’s a lot out there.”

And you can expect the show to have the same kind of audio-rich storytelling that podcasts like Radiolab have made their calling card because it’s not recorded live. “It’s highly produced,” says Ober, who has logged more than a decade of experience in radio and print journalism. “It sounds great.”

Jacob Fenston, who edited Metro Connection before its hiatus, is editing, producing, and doing sound design.

“The Big Listen” toggles between interviews with podcast luminaries (Anna Sale of “Death, Sex & Money,” Dan Savage of “Savage Lovecast,” and Mike Pesca, now of “The Gist,” have all already joined Ober in conversation for the show), long clips of featured podcasts, as well as “things that genuinely tickle me and give me joy,” Ober says.

But not all of the featured podcasts will be slickly produced. The third episode (“The Big Listen” has the first three shows in the can, after which it will take a step back to evaluate) highlights a flight attendant who has been podcasting for the past 10 years about all of the bizarre things she’s experienced on planes. It’s not the most buttoned-up sounding broadcast, but it is original and filled with funny anecdotes.

Because she’s in the broadcasting business, Ober says she’s “familiar with who’s making what and who is starting new things,” but still learns about tons of shows the old-fashioned way—recommendations from other folks.

So is Ober going to become the Simon Cowell of podcasting? “I don’t want to be the person saying that stuff is garbage,” she says. “I don’t think that’s my job. But other people are happy to do it. Mike Pesca had a list as long as your arm of what he didn’t like. There’s definitely room for critique.”

“The Big Listen” is part of a larger vision for WAMU, which is going through some changes. The Kojo Nnamdi Show switched to a new, hour-long format last week. Diane Rehm is retiring next year to advocate for the right-to-die movement. And local news-magazine “Metro Connection” went on hiatus at the end of 2014, though Ober promises it will return to the airwaves in some form. Indeed, public radio more generally has seen an exodus of talent to the for-profit podcasting space.

“This is part of a bigger picture here to be in more places and build our listenership out,” says Ober.

And if you plan on finally starting that podcast you’ve been brainstorming, you’ll have Ober’s support. “I say the more, the merrier. It’s amazing what people have done.”

“The Big Listen” premieres at 6 p.m. on Sunday, January 31 on 88.5 FM or streaming on wamu.org. Learn more about the show at biglisten.org.