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Just like the Presidential debates, the VP debate is also in iTunes. The VP debate comes in two parts and can be downloaded here (iTunes link). Thanks to CNN for putting up the debates for those who missed it!

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Did you miss the presidential debate last Friday? Don’t worry, iTunes has you covered. CBS has posted the first 2008 presidential debate as a video podcast. You can download the video or subscribe (there are two more presidential debates) to the podcast here.

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There is no doubt the 2008 US Presidential election will go down as one of the most significant elections in the last 100 years. For the first time in history, either a woman will be Vice President or an African-American will control the Oval Office.

The Democratic National Convention (DNC) was held this past week in Denver with many speeches spread over several days and many hours. Unless you parked yourself in front of the TV for most of the week, you probably missed a few of those speeches. And for those inclined, iTunes has you covered.

The Democratic Party has posted the majority of the speeches from Denver on iTunes. The speeches are about 50/50 audio/video. The major speeches, Al Gore, Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, and Barack Obama, are all in video. It’s great they are posting the speeches on iTunes, but I wish each speech was available in both audio and video formats.

By mentioning this podcast, I am in no way endorsing any particular candidate for President. In fact, I still don’t know who I’m going to vote for.

You can download the speeches from the 2008 Democratic National Convention: Selected Speeches podcast (iTunes link).

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Despite being the number one US seller of music, some of the good music in the iTunes Store is actually free. If you love free live music, please check out the NPR: Live Concerts from All Songs Considered Podcast (iTunes link). Several times a month, NPR features a live concert from various genres of music.

While I might not like every band NPR puts on the feed, the shows I have downloaded have been good quality and sometimes feature interviews with the band after the performance. As with most podcasts, there is a website with additional content. Pictures, set lists, and additional commentary is among the material on the Live In Concert: All Songs Considered website. The website also features an RSS feed so you can subscribe in your RSS reader instead of in iTunes (so you can download only the shows you want).

So where do you begin? I will suggest the Black Keys show from 5/14/2008. You can read about the show via the link provided or just visit the link to iTunes in the first paragraph and look for the podcast released on 5/14/2008. Enjoy some great free live music!

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One of my favorite podcasts has returned from nearly a year long hiatus. NeatLittleMacApps is an enhanced podcast about those little applications that make the Mac so great. I’ll go ahead and warn you that if you visit the website you’ll have music automatically start playing (a pet peeve of mine). Other than the website, there’s nothing to dislike about the podcast.

Episode 41 is the first episode since Frank De Graeve returned to podcasting. The long hiatus was due to the construction on his home. If you love Mac shareware, you’ll enjoy listening to NeatLittleMacApps (iTunes link). Give it a try!

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Patrick Wilson, from the band Weezer, was on MacBreak Weekly (iTunes link) last week (Episode 82). As you would expect, there is talk about iTunes, the music industry, music video creation, and other tidbits related to music. It was really interesting to hear Patrick’s thoughts on these subjects.

Perhaps the biggest surprise for me is finding out what a big geek (in a good way) Patrick is. He’s sporting a Ubuntu PC! Patrick shares his thoughts on the record companies, Myspace, his Mac/Studio setup, and really lets his inner geekness shine. The guys even talked him into signing up on Twitter. Episode 82 was easily the most enjoyable episode of MBW in quite some time. If you haven’t listened in a while, check it out!

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If you’re looking for some HD content to display on your new, or maybe not so new TV, look no further than iTunes. I recently came across a new HD podcast that will look great on my TV once I get my AppleTV in a few weeks. I thought some of you might be interested in the podcast too.

If you love to travel and enjoy the outdoors, check out Beautiful Places. The podcast (iTunes link), features Tony Farley as he visits beautiful places around the US. Many of the early podcasts feature California locations like Yosemite, Point Reyes National Seashore, and more.

The podcast features Tony hiking around the various locations with his camera and filming the natural beauty that he encounters. Along with the video, the podcast features quotes and descriptions by Tony along with just enough silence to really take in what he has captured. Watching this podcast really inspires me to hit the trails.

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