As on “Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me” and “Love It Or Leave It,” in-studio games (the liquor tasting will appear in a future episode) and calls from listeners will provide a sense of dynamism. Like “ Culture Gabfest” and “Pop Culture Happy Hour,” it promises smart takes from critics on the week’s news and trends.

“Into It,” which had its debut on Thursday, enters a crowded talk-show podcast space, distinguished by a deep bench of contributors - care of Vulture, largely missing in action in podcasting before now - and a generous pouring of irreverence. “It’s hokey, and corny, and cheesy - but it works,” he said. The chocolate rum - SelvaRey, by the kitschy pop and R&B star Bruno Mars - won the host over mostly because of its fittingly cheeky slogan: “Made in the jungle.” on a weekday in May, and Sanders, with the help of a few co-workers, was getting day drunk in a blind taste test. Someone had posted in Slack about the proliferation of celebrity-owned liquor brands, a subject, it was pointed out, that could make for a fruitful segment on “ Into It,” Sanders’s new pop culture podcast from New York, Vulture and the Vox Media Podcast Network. Sanders, a longtime radio and podcast host, was in a conference room in the Lower Manhattan office of New York magazine, dutifully making his way through a boozy gantlet.

“I took a secret shot before I came in here.” The chocolate rum notwithstanding, Sam Sanders was full of good spirits.

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